Catharina II, FIN 105
2021 June, From Facebook, Catharina - "The First Ever Swan 36.
Nautor received information that a wooden Swan 36 was for sale and we got in contact with the seller who was keen and interested in selling her back to Nautor Swan. The yacht was at the time at Suomenlinna in Helsinki. After a short negotiation the yacht is now back at her birthplace and we have the pleasure to unveil this to you.
The story of Catharina II is long but the short version is that Pekka Koskenkylä, founder of Nautor Swan in 1966, needed to find way to finance the build of the mould for the Swan 36 serial yacht….and it so happened that Tauno Koristo, Commodor at Merenkyntäjät was interested in building a 36ft Sparkman and Stevens designed race yacht in wood.
Pekka Koskenkylä, a true entrepreneur, came with the solution of a plug purposely built in Mahogany (normally the plug is built for one time use) that would become a hull for a yacht.
The region was known for the wooden boat building tradition while the fiber glass was something very new and an exotic material.
Some of the best wooden boatbuilders in the region led by Janne Nyfelt, later one of the founders of Baltic Yachts, and my grandfathers brothers started building the plug and later the mould for the first Swan 36 yacht. The birth of Swan.
In todays terms, Catharina is a small yacht, back in the days a large yacht, and the old lady for sure needs some love and care, which we will make sure to give her. Speaking of sustainability, I think the old lady proves that this yachting can be sustainable, not just due to technology, but also in proper craftmanship, built to last.
This was the starting point of Nautor, Baltic Yachts and many other boatbuilders, subcontractors in the region and the background to why we have the opportunity to be here today."
