Aboriginal Dugout Canoes

Aboriginal Canoes were a significant advancement in canoe technology. Dugouts were stronger, faster, and more efficient than previous types of bark canoes. The Aboriginal peoples' use of these canoes brought about many changes to both their hunting practices and society. The Australian Aboriginal people began using these canoes around the 17th century in coastal regions of Australia. As the popularity of dugouts grew their use quickly spread across the continent. Dugout canoes were brought to Northern Australia by Buginese trepang (sea cucumber) fishermen from Makassar, South Sulawesi, current evidence says from around 1640.

Aboriginal canoes were constructed much more easily than previous types of vessels, such as bark canoes. This ease of construction played a significant role in the dugout canoes’ widespread use. While earlier vessels required a great deal of labor and time-consuming sewing to make, dugout canoes were constructed easily and in a shorter period of time. First, one would have to cut down a tree and shape the exterior into an even form. The sides of the canoe were shaped in one of two ways. They were either carved straight up and down or in a "u" shape, curving in towards the center of the boat. Next, one would literally dig out the inner wood of the log to make space for the oarsmen to sit and paddle. In some early dugout canoes, Aboriginal people would not make the bottoms of the canoes smooth, but would instead carve "ribbing" into the vessel. Ribbing (literally sections of wood that looked like ribs) was used to stabilize bark canoes, and though not necessary to dugout canoes, was a carryover in the transition from one canoe type to the other. Both the chopping down of the tree and the digging out of the log were easily done with an iron-axe. They also made their canoes out of tree frogs, sticky tree sap to hold it together, and fallen tree limbs.

The wood used in the construction of dugout canoes was essential to its strength and durability. A wide variety of trees were used depending upon the location of a particular people, but in most cases the Aboriginal people used a type of native sycamore possibly Litsea reticulata or (Silver sycamore), White sycamore (Polyscias elegans or Cryptocarya obovata), Ceratopetalum succirubrum (Satin sycamore), Cardwellia sublimia, Cryptocarya hypospodia (Bastard Sycamore), Ceratopetalum virchowii (Pink Sycamore) or Ceratopetalum corymbosum (Mountain sycamore). Sycamores are strong and extremely durable, making them suitable for use in the construction of dugout canoes.

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