A bireme is an oared ship, i.e. a galley, with two decks of oars. It was used by the Greeks of antiquity. In comparison, triremes were larger ships with three decks of oars, whereas pentaconters were smaller with only one deck of five oars on each side.
Biremes were the main type of warship used in the 5th century BCE across the Mediterranean Sea and in particular, Greece. Athenians, Spartans, Persians, and pirates alike sailed them in battle against one another during the Greco-Persian Wars and the Peloponnesian War[1]
Gallery[]
An Athenian bireme
A Spartan bireme
A Spartan elite bireme
A pirate bireme
A pirate elite bireme