During the siege of Constantinople, from the tower on the Bosphorus built by Mehmet II (60m high), stone balls weighing 180kg and up to 270kg were thrown at the few Venetian ships that had the courage to force the naval blockade to leave the Black Sea with the merchandise. Three Venetian cogs tried to pass without lowering their sails: two managed to make it but the third sank, the crew captured and beheaded, and the captain impaled.
