FIJIA LIVING HISTORY

Voyagers and canoes

All 46 scenes

Opening The drua, Fiji’s great double canoe…

The drua, Fiji’s great double canoe · Enhanced

Chapters in Voyagers and canoesVoyagers and canoes · Before 1900

The drua, Fiji’s great double canoe

About this scene

The unequal hulls, platform and woven sail are an interpretation of the drua type. Dimensions, lashings and sail handling are not a measured reconstruction. Enhanced; exact people, buildings and landscape are not authenticated. Reference links provide context, not certification of the enhanced details.

Royal Museums Greenwich: Drua photograph ALB0175.65

The drua Navukinavanua, described as Ratu Seru Cakobau’s last war canoe — 19th-century photograph — The drua Navukinavanua, described as Ratu Seru Cakobau’s last war canoe — 19th-century photographHistorical image supplied to the museum · source and rights to be confirmed

Fijian double canoe in full sail — 19th-century engraving “from an old block” — Fijian double canoe in full sail — 19th-century engraving “from an old block”Historical image supplied to the museum · source and rights to be confirmed

By the mid-19th century some drua measured 30 metres in length and were capable of carrying over 100 men. (1856) — By the mid-19th century some drua measured 30 metres in length and were capable of carrying over 100 men. (1856)J. Glen Wilson · Public domain ↗

Model of a Fijian double canoe (drua), Otago Museum — Model of a Fijian double canoe (drua), Otago MuseumSzilas · Public domain ↗

Fijian druas (1913) — Fijian druas (1913)Scan by NYPL · Public domain ↗

Fijians on a drua (double-hulled canoe), 1800s — Fijians on a drua (double-hulled canoe), 1800sHorsburgh, John · Public domain ↗

Photograph of sailing canoe or "drua" in the Fiji Museum in Suva, Fiji. (1962) — Photograph of sailing canoe or "drua" in the Fiji Museum in Suva, Fiji. (1962)Carlquist, Sherwin John, 1930-2021 · CC BY 4.0 ↗

Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Double canoe off Moalu, Feejee Islands, Septr 26th 1849 (Fiji) — Edward Gennys Fanshawe, Double canoe off Moalu, Feejee Islands, Septr 26th 1849 (Fiji)Admiral Edward Gennys Fanshawe (27 November 1814 – 21 October 1906). · Public domain ↗

Fijian double hulled canoe 1849 — Fijian double hulled canoe 1849Public domain ↗

A Fijian double canoe of the 19th century (published 1925) — A Fijian double canoe of the 19th century (published 1925)Miss E. Richardson, in the maori canoe , by Elsdon Best, 1925. · Public domain ↗

Fijian canoe, schematic diagram (1858) — Fijian canoe, schematic diagram (1858)Public domain ↗

Fijian canoe, drawing (1858) — Fijian canoe, drawing (1858)Public domain ↗

Canoe of the people of "Balahou", Fiji — from Dumont d'Urville's voyage atlas (1842) — Canoe of the people of "Balahou", Fiji — from Dumont d'Urville's voyage atlas (1842)Painted by Louis Le Breton (1818–1866), lithographed by De La Plante · Public domain ↗

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The drua is a Fijian double-hulled sailing canoe: two hulls of unequal length joined by a raised deck.
Drua were sailed by shunting — the sail was carried from one end to the other, so either end could become the bow.
The largest drua were among the biggest canoes built anywhere in the Pacific and could carry well over a hundred people.
The drua Ratu Finau, the last of the old sea-going drua, is preserved at the Fiji Museum in Suva.

Story · SAILING · MAKING · EXCHANGE

Built to connect islands.

Look beyond the sail to the knowledge that holds it together.

Quiz your history knowledgeMultiple choice · pick one answer

How could model-boat racing help young sailors?

Sources for this chapter

Wikipedia: Drua ↗

Wikipedia: Fiji Museum ↗

Each picture’s credit links to its original record and licence on Wikimedia Commons.

This chapter’s text is awaiting cultural and historical review.