Classic Yacht Atlantide Renewed—Rebuilt, Really—by Royal Huisman

Yacht refits, especially classic-yacht refits, are much like peeling an onion: You don’t fully know what you have until you remove layers. Royal Huisman’s Huisfit refit and service team peeled back quite a lot in restoring the yacht Atlantide. More than two years after she arrived, somewhat unexpectedly at that, the then-93-year-old emerged with nearly half of her hull, deck, and framing new. Remarkably, even today, a year following redelivery, she’s still running on her original engines. She’s also serving her original purpose: accompanying a large racing yacht as a tender.

Sir William Burton, an accomplished sailor and the helmsman for Shamrock IV in the 1920 America’s Cup, commissioned the 122-footer (37-meter). Taking delivery in 1930, he christened her Calista, using her as a luxurious tender to his 12-meter racers. Construction took place at Philip & Sons, with naval architecture by Alfred Mylne, who further designed the British royal yacht Britannia. A decade later, with World War II raging, Calista joined England’s renowned Little Ships of Dunkirk fleet. This collective of 850 private boats departed English shores for Dunkirk, France, successfully evacuating British and Allied forces. Post-war, she returned to yacht service, and in the ensuing decades passed through a variety of owners. When an owner in the 1980s rechristened her Atlantide, it stuck, straight into the 21^st century.

Enter Jim and Kristy Clark, avid cruisers and three-time Royal Huisman customers. They acquired the yacht Atlantide in late 2020. Simultaneously, their 10-year-old, 138-foot (42-meter) J Class Hanuman was at Royal Huisman, her place of build, for service. Jim Clark asked if the Huisfit team could accommodate the newly acquired classic yacht for an exterior refresh in 2021. “The next thing we knew, he’d decided to ship Atlantide to the Netherlands immediately instead of waiting,” a yard spokesperson says.

Upon her arrival in January 2021, the Huisfit team examined her thoroughly to determine the scope of the necessary work. They discovered some distressing situations. Inches-thick filler was crumbling off her hull, for example. After stripping it and the deck back to bare metal, they found dented and deformed steel, with some plates sagging against frames. That’s not all. Galvanic corrosion impacted an aluminum extension to the teak deckhouse. Glue and filler held the main-deck windows in place, and deck leaks had damaged interior bulkheads, MDF substrates, and built-ins. The yacht Atlantide needed a full-blown reconstruction, not a refresh.

Six months of examining, scanning, and redesigning her in 3D ensued. Entirely new custom piping needed creating to fit the extraordinarily narrow space behind walls and overheads. Insulation—nearly absent when Atlantide arrived—needed installing, too. Huisfit craftspeople added all of this, along with wiring and more after removing the teak deckhouse in one piece. It underwent restoration, as did dozens upon dozens of pieces of deck hardware, including porthole covers. Ninety-five percent of the exterior bronze fittings are original, in fact.

While the profile remained the same, Atlantide’s interior design and general arrangement didn’t. The Clarks weren’t fans of the extravagant Art Deco décor. Although they liked the 1930s aesthetic, they wanted a toned-down look. Furthermore, they wanted the interior to complement Hanuman’s French walnut interior, from Royal Huisman’s designers. The Clarks chose deVosdeVries Design, the principals having worked with the late Pieter Beeldsnijder, who’d designed three yachts for them.

The result? The wood aboard the classic yacht Atlantide employs an even more classic hand-applied antiquing finish. A practice dating back two centuries saw 14 steps of hand bleaching, coloring, French polishing, and distressing. It had to be done onboard, too, after construction of the cabinetry and panels completed in the joiner shop. Other wood highlights are built-in bookcases, a new addition in multiple rooms. Particularly striking is the three-deck, raised-panel walnut stairway with a wood-covered center post. Previously, stainless steel columns held the treads, and handrails were glossy bird’s-eye maple. Nearby, naturally finished walnut lies underfoot, instead of high-gloss teak and holy sole.

Décor-wise, Atlantide has warm, welcoming, cozy areas for the Clarks’ personal use. Stuffed sofas sit invitingly in the saloon, for instance. A media room with equally overstuffed furnishings replaces the forward indoor dining room. Dining instead takes place alfresco aft, beneath a fixed bimini and with removable weather side panels. Custom-made, the table has a diamond-design top. Comfy cushions beckon them to curl up against the fantail.

Even being 90-plus years old, the Gardner engines worked, though she didn’t cruise entirely straight. Huisfit’s engineers modified the original rudder by increasing its size 20 percent and filling a small gap that further reduced turbulence. The engines themselves underwent refurbishing in England, their place of build, gaining sensors and alarms at Royal Huisman. Royal Huisman recrafted the masts of this motorsailer as well. Of course, modern machinery like watermakers and stabilizers are aboard now as well.

An extraordinarily complicated and lengthy refresh-turned-rebuild allows the classic yacht Atlantide to enjoy American waters once again. The Clarks primarily keep her in a quintessentially nautical town, Martha’s Vineyard, though she accompanies Hanuman at regattas. “I’m a classic-boat snob,” Jim Clark says. “I like the old wood look; big, modern boats do nothing for me.”

deVosdeVries Design devosdevriesdesign.nl

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