Fishing Boat
date: label: Collection Date
content: 1883 or before
name: label: Collector
content: Francis Day
label: Donor Name
content: Accession Number Unknown
notes: label: Notes
content: THIS BOAT WAS CONDEMNED AND DESTROYED IN 1941, DUE TO ITS POOR CONDITION. TWO PADDLES WERE KEPT AND ARE IN GOOD SHAPE AS OF THIS DATE. A MEMO DOCUMENTING THIS, DATED NOVEMBER 4, 1941, IS FILED WITH ACCESSION 44455.
label: Notes
content: From card: "This boat was condemned by the Div. of Engineer. Nov. 4, 1941, and disposed of because of deterioration. however two paddles from it are in the Div. of Cult. Anth. - June 1965. Refer: USNM Bull. 127, p. 270-1." See also Collins Boat Ms. p. 1252.
label: Notes
content: Boat is described in detail in pp. 270-271 of U.S. National Museum Bulletin # 127, where it is noted: "... The oars are made in the usual East Indian manner by lashing the blades, which are flat on one side and convex on the other, to bamboo handles; the blades of the oars are made of sal wood (shorea robusta). ... The shape of this boat suggests the vessels used by the ancient Egyptians. It has a close affinity in form to the modern fin-keeled racing yachts, and no doubt would sail very swiftly if its bottom was smooth and it was properly ballasted. It tapers from the midship section both vertically and horizontally, ending in a long pointed bow and stern, both somewhat higher than the middle. As it sits in the water not much more than half its length is submerged. It is propelled with two oars when engaged in fishing and steered with a long sweep shaped like an English made oar. No sails are used." Gift of Surg. Gen. Francis Day. Cat. No. 160,320 U.S.N.M. Jessor " donga." A peculiar type of dugout constructed from the stem of the tar palm tree and used by the native fishermen of Jessor, Bengal Presi- dency, India. This dugout is formed by excavating the soft portion of the palm stem and leaving only the outer layer, except at the smaller end where a narrow space has been left to prevent the water from entering. Its shape resembles that of a spoon with a deep bowl and a handle, concaved on one side and convex on the other. This
label: Notes
content: At the time this boat was collected, Jessor/Jessore was a part of Bengal, India. It is now part of Bangladesh.
label: Notes
content: Records indicate this was a gift in 1883 from Surgeon General Francis Day through G. Brown Goode. It was apparently collected for and exhibited at the International Fisheries Exhibition in London of 1883. P. 87, in the Smithsonian Annual Report for the year 1884, part 2, reports that a collection of boats and boat models were presented to the museum by Surgeon-General Francis Day, F.L.S., Late inspector of Her Majesty's fisheries in India, and commissioner from India to the International Fisheries Exhibition at London, 1883. See also p. 149, # 222 in International Fisheries Exhibition. 1883. Great International Fisheries Exhibition, 1883: official catalogue. London: W. Clowes; http://books.google.com/books?id=EVk9AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA149#v=onepage&q&f=false .
label: Record Last Modified
content: 30 Jul 2020
label: Specimen Count
content: 2
place: label: Place
content: Jessore, Bengal, Bangladesh, Asia
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
culture: label: Culture
content: Not Given
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 000000
label: USNM Number
content: E160320-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Boat Paddle
physicalDescription: label: Height - Object
content: 3 cm
label: Depth - Object
content: 20 cm
label: Width - Object
content: 2 m