Opposite & Below: Under sail or power, 'Talisman 'is a beautiful sight to behold. Whilst the majority of yachts featured in this book are 'new builds', every so often a yacht which had previously fallen into dis-repair is refurbished to such a high standard that she may as well be announced as 'new'. One of these yachts is the recently re-launched sailing yacht, 'Talisman', originally built by Abeking & Rasmussen in 1920, and completely refitted by Conrad Shipyard, who are based in Gdansk, Poland, started work back in 1989 as a company called 'Marine Projects Limited' which was established as one of the very first private shipyards in Poland after the country's people took the brave decision to revolutionise the country as a democratic society. Developing rapidly as a full service building yard, constructing hulls, superstructures and complete ships of all sizes up to 100m in length, Marine Projects rapidly gained the expertise that other western European yards had taken for granted for so many years. Then in 1993, Marine Projects Limited took a decisive step and entered the yachting market in a major way - by building a 200' brigantine, called 'Swan Fan Makkum'. The success of this stunning sailing yacht naturally led to enquiries being received at the yard for other yachts, and before long Marine Projects Limited began building hulls and superstructures for sailing yachts over 100' long on a fairly regular basis. 1 OB I LUXURY YACHTS OF THE WORLD

With work now coming in on a regular basis, Marine Projects Ltd quickly outgrew their premises, so in 1999 they became the owner of the Gdansk yacht yard complex, named after the famous Polish writer 'Joseph Conrad Korzeniowski', otherwise known country wide as 'Conrad'. The name of Conrad Shipyard was born, and it is this name that is rapidly becoming well known in yachting circles worldwide, for building luxury sailing and motor Throughout their existence, Conrad Shipyard have employed the very best specialists in naval construction and design and co-operates with many professional firms, both...

Conrad Shipyard rich, warm colour, especially when as highly polished and finished as Conrad Shipyard demands. In the main saloon, fine cream leather perfectly complements the rich wood, whilst an abundance of lockers built into the wooden furniture, hides away the yacht's glass and other dining ware. Behind the raised panels and inside cabinets, navigation equipment and system control panels are installed as well as plasma TV's and music systems, everything visually hidden to provide the interior with a truly classic look, referring back to the time when the yacht was built and first launched....