Archaeological, Historical, and Ethnographic Approaches to the Study of Sewn Boats: past, present, and future

Eric Staples, Zayed University
Lucy Blue, University of Southampton

Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

International Journal of Nautical Archaeology

Publication Date

1-1-2019

Abstract

© 2019 The Authors. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology © 2019 The Nautical Archaeology Society. Sewn-plank vessels have been a pervasive form of ship construction since antiquity. This paper provides an introductory overview of the current state of the field of sewn-plank studies, with a particular focus on the Indian Ocean. It describes the basic function of sewn-plank techniques, and then discusses textual references and historical approaches to the topic. The relevant archaeological evidence is reviewed, and prior ethnographic work relating to the topic is outlined. It summarizes numerous experimental sewn-plank reconstructions that have been undertaken and concludes with a discussion of the current directions of the field and suggestions for the future.

ISSN

1057-2414

Publisher

Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Volume

48

Issue

2

First Page

269

Last Page

285

Disciplines

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Keywords

archaeology, ethnography, history, Indian Ocean, sewn-plank boats, ship construction

Scopus ID

85070865422

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

yes

Open Access Type

Green: A manuscript of this publication is openly available in a repository

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