In sailing, the throat halyard[1] (or throat for short) is a line that raises the end of a gaff nearer to the mast, as opposed to the peak halyard which raises the end further from the mast. Such rigging was normal in classic gaff-rigged schooners and in other ships with fore-and-aft rigging. It is absent in Bermuda rigged boats.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Mainsail-edges.png/220px-Mainsail-edges.png)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/Klau.jpg/220px-Klau.jpg)