Things we didn't know before

We lately received the results of paint analysis of Peggy and of George Quayle's cabin room in Peggy's boathouse. Crick Smith, the company undertaking the analyses, has done a great job and come up with some super results.
The paint layers confirm that Peggy and the cabin room were built at the same time as each other, and that the same paint was used on both so that one echoed the other. It would appear that in the 1790's Peggy was painted a creamy colour on the hull exterior, with the rubbing strakes (thin timber bands down each side) picked out in black. The lower part of the hull (under the water) was tarred black. There was a thick, green band running around the top and across the transom (the decorative board at the back of the boat). It was on top of this that the gilded lettering 'PEGGY' was applied. The cream/ green/ black colour scheme was used in the cabin room. Inside the boat, the bilges (below the water line) were tarred black and the rest of the interior was a bright, deep red.
In or around 1802 George modified Peggy by making her taller. He repainted her at this time in a dark-yellow ochre paint with black highlights. Again, the decor in the cabin room was changed to compliment the boat. We can also see that, contrary to received opinion, George continued to use Peggy in her modified form for up to eight seasons, until no later than 1810. As soon as I can I'll post some mock-ups so you can see how she would have looked. Crick Smith are also helping me investigate the safest and most effective means of removing the modern over paint from Peggy.

Meanwhile, this week we have researchers from UK consultancy Hutton & Rostron inspecting Peggy. They are going to report on her timbers: what species of wood are they and what kinds of decay have they suffered? They'll also help devise a strategy for drying Peggy safely .