On ships, blocks play the role of tackle, and more than two hundred were found aboard the two wrecks. They had many usages: in the masts, for manoeuvring the sails and with the guns. They are distinguished by name (fiddle-block, snatch-block, jewel-block, brail-block and tie-block, for example), by shape (single, double and triple blocks) but also whether or not they had a sheave. Clump-blocks, hearts and deadeyes in particular do not have sheaves.
An overall examination of the Natière blocks shows a clear preference for elm wood for the body, particularly on the Aimable Grenot, where elm was used almost exclusively. A more heterogeneous approach was taken with the sheaves, for which four different species were used: ash, beech, lignum vitae and elm. On the Dauphine, ash was the predominant species for sheaves, but was generally replaced by lignum vitae a half-century later, lignum vitae was used for more than half of the sheaves on the Aimable Grenot. This exotic wood, imported from the Caribbean, was valued for its strength and toughness; in spite of its high cost and the difficulties in procuring it, it definitively dominated the French market by the mid-18th century.