The way Europeans and Americans understand history is that westerners did business in ships and Arabs did business on camels. But as those of us who grew up on the tales of Sinbad the Sailor surely know this is far from the truth. Arabs have been sailing trading vessels through the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea since the Roman times.
There’s a shibuilding heritage as well, and constructing this 275-foot-long native dhow brought those skills to the fore recently in Dubai. These guys have been putting wood together for a very long time and do a very fine job of it. We wonder if there’s anyone living in the world today who has seen a wooden vessel this big take shape?
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Poul Smith says:
Hi. Yes, it is amazing to see the ship take form. 25 years ago travelled around in India. On the beach in Porbandar, Gujarat we saw two built, they were somewhat smaller.
Poul Smith.
Denmark
Emil King says:
Thanks for sharing, and pointing out the fact there’s definitely a Eurocentric lens when exploring histories like this. From even cursory research on watercraft traditions around the world, one could easily conclude that pretty much every culture with access to water developed approaches to surviving off of, and even profiting from boats. It continues to amaze me that folks think only western Europeans were capable seafaring businessmen. Education is critical to appreciating the many ways people have historically skinned cats.
Albert Foley says:
Simply amazing! Teamwork!
Georg Hinteregger says:
far out! thanks, Maynard