Ah.......Boats

Post by **Minimalist** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 10:31 am

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/ ... 110608.php

wo Durham University scientists are to play a key part in a 6000km trip following the migration route of ancient Pacific cultures.

Drs Keith Dobney and Greger Larson, both from the Department of Archaeology, will be joining the voyage, which will be the first ever expedition to sail in two traditional Polynesian boats - ethnic double canoes - which attempts to re-trace the genuine migration route of the ancient Austronesians.

The main aim of the voyage is to find out where the ancestors of Polynesian culture originated but the Durham University researchers will also be examining the local wildlife.

Ishtar · Post by **Ishtar** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 10:51 am

In order for it to be authentic, shouldn't they be clinging on to floating mats of vegetation?

Bet there wouldn't be too many volunteers for that.

.

Post by **Minimalist** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 11:54 am

You raise a good point.

Those people who oppose Bednarik should put it all on the line.

They can both start from the same place. Bednarik on a boat and them on a mat of vegetation and see who makes it to Australia.

Excellent idea, Ish.

Think they are willing to put their money where their mouths are?

Sam Salmon · Post by **Sam Salmon** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 12:53 pm

It'll be a helluva journey and I'm glad to see he has some scientists joining him for a while anyway.

http://www.lapita-voyage.org/en/lapita_ ... nzept.html

Have to wonder about some of the copy on the main page though-OTOH he probably has better things to put his energy toward.

The visits to Tikopia and Anuta alone remarkable

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anuta

http://www.bbc.co.uk/tribe/tribes/anuta/index.shtml

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 1:29 pm

http://www.museum.wa.gov.au/collections ... epicts.pdf

This is a long PDF, but it has a lot of pics of rock art in Australia that depict watwrcraft. Most of them do not appear to be that ancient to me, and some are obvious depictions of 19th century ships with sails.

The oldest? I'm not sure - you be the judge.

Post by **Minimalist** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 1:56 pm

I was struck by the high prow canoes or other boats. As I recall, Hancock opined that the high prow ships found in the Egyptian desert were of a type for the open sea not the Nile which is a fairly placid river.

Assuming that they would not build a boat for conditions they did not expect to face, I would interpret some of those as sea-going vessels rather than river or lake craft...if there are even lakes in the region.

Beagle · Post by **Beagle** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 2:28 pm

Could very well be Min. There are members here that know more about the subject than I do. Maybe they'll offer an opinion. I seem to remember that Native Americans had high prow canoes also.

Post by **Minimalist** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 2:39 pm

Again, depends on where they were being used. On the Great Lakes or in an estuary such as the Columbia the waters would be a bit rougher and so a canoe like these might be swamped. But on a flat stream or a small lake?

One does have to give them credit for knowing the difference, though.

Sam Salmon · Post by **Sam Salmon** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 7:11 pm

Something I forgot to post here but the mention of high prows jogged my memory-a long film but worth every second.

Note the tools the craftsman uses.

How To Build a Birchbark Cnoe

As to high prows inland lakes are prone to develop short steep chop in little time at all later in the day-particularly those lakes formed by glacial action-long and narrow.

kbs2244 · Post by **kbs2244** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 9:28 am

This trip seems to be more oriented to the small islands in the open South Pacific than to Australia.
But I guess that if you can get out there then you could get to Australia.

I think I would volunteer to check out “the local wildlife” of the Polynesian Islands.