Asian-Pacific Ships Celebrate Heritage and Goodwill

Stan Lum
NOAA Workforce Management Office

July 27, 2009 — It is not often that you see two “ancient” ships sailing together in this day and age, but that is exactly what happened just off the coast of Diamond Head in Honolulu, Hawaii, this past January.

The Princess Taiping, a traditional Chinese junk replica with brown trapezoidal sails billowing on three masts and a bright black and white hull outlined in red, glided alongside the Hokule’a, a Polynesian canoe fitted with orange triangular sails pushing her twin hulls. 

The two vibrantly colored ships cast a surreal image off Oahu’s modern-day Waikiki Beach. 

Onboard the Princess Taiping was Hans Van Tilburg, NOAA’s Maritime Heritage Program coordinator for NOAA Sanctuaries Pacific Region. As an expert in maritime archeology and history, he provided logistical and safety support for the ship’s crew while in Hawaii.

The Maritime Heritage Program, created in 2002, is an initiative of the National Marine Sanctuaries Program (NMSP) that promotes appreciation for ancient seafaring and marine heritage across the country.

Beginning her journey in Taiwan, the Princess Taiping had ventured more than 14,000 miles across the Pacific to stops in Hawaii; Vancouver, Canada; Seattle; Eureka, Calif.; San Francisco; and Japan, as part of a “goodwill tour” promoting the seafaring legacy of China and a cultural exchange between crew members from the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China. The Hokule’a escorted the Princess Taiping as she departed for the return leg of her voyage from Hawaii.

As replicas of vessels lost to the ancient world, both sailing ships were built to original specifications by volunteers using modern materials (including fiberglass) and building techniques. 

The Hokule’a’s sister canoe, the Hawai’iloa, however, had been built using as many ancient materials and techniques as possible (it did not escort the Taiping). One of the Hawai’iloa’s volunteer builders was Darrell “Ka’au” Robertson, director of Program Planning and Analysis Division at NOAA Satellites (NESDIS) and a Hawaii cultural specialist. Robertson helped build the boat several years ago when he was a member of the Polynesian Voyaging Society.

Van Tilburg and Robertson appeared together in June to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at NOAA’s Silver Spring campus. As part of the team’s presentations, Van Tilburg discussed the seafaring history of the Asia Pacific region, which included the story of the Princess Taiping. Robertson spoke about his unique experience sailing and building ancient ships replicas, such as the Hawai’iloa.

The Hawai’iloa’s twin hulls were carved from two massive 400-year-old spruce logs, 7 feet in diameter and 200 feet long, that were towed to Hawaii from Alaska as gift to the people of Hawaii, because a suitable one could not be found in Hawaii.

Robertson noted that he and other volunteers worked for nearly three years to hollow out two large logs for the twin hulls and shape the remaining pieces from materials native to Hawaii to build the voyaging canoe. No nails, screws, bolts or glue were used; rope braided from coconut husks was used to tie the ship’s pieces together. The finished vessel was 64 feet long, 20 feet wide, and weighed several tons. 

The wooden, 54-foot-long Princess Taiping was built by traditional methods in Jinjiang — China’s historic seafaring center — and began its trek in January 2008. The vessel and its voyage recalled the technical achievements of Chinese marine traditions and the rich heritage of the Ming Dynasty.

(On a sad note and in a dramatic near-finish, the Princess Taiping was less than 30 miles from her final port of destination in Taiwan when, in the dark of night, a freighter cut her in two. All of the crew survived.)

To learn more about the Princess Taiping, including photos of the ship, visit the Chinese Voyage Web site. More information about the Hawai’iloa can be found at the Polynesian Voyaging Society Web site.