Lagatoi

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A Lagatoi (also Lakatoi ) is a trading boat in Papua New Guinea . It consists of four to ten dugout canoes tied together , which are called asi . The platform above can be up to 20 meters long and up to 16 meters wide. The boats are equipped with one or two crab claw sails. Lagatois were traditionally used by members of the Motu people around what is now the capital, Port Moresby , for their Hiri trade trips.

A lagatoi can transport up to 30 tons of goods. In 1884 a European observer described a lagatoi that consisted of 14 asi and is said to have carried 34 tons. In 1903 a fleet of 20 Lagatois is reported, each consisting of four Asi and transporting 25,920 clay pots. Carrying out a trade trip meant gaining prestige for those involved. The decision to go was made in April or May, around six months before departure. The time in between served as preparation. The asi were cleaned and sealed, knotted together, and provided with platforms and crab claw sails.

The women were responsible for the manufacture of the clay pots, which were coveted as barter goods. In October or November the ships were loaded with pottery and bracelets. At this time of year the winds are favorable for the multi-day trip to the Gulf of Papua (Gulf Province), which is around 300 to 400 kilometers away. At the level of the mouth of the Kikori River there are numerous villages that live from the extraction of the Sagogue. The clay pots and bracelets were against starch containing sago flour exchanged, tobacco, betel nut and other goods of the lowlands. In addition to negotiating, celebrating successful contracts and maintaining social ties, the boats were partially dismantled and reinforced with new tree trunks. After a few weeks of waiting, the wind and current conditions change and make a safe and quick return journey possible. Up to 30 tons of sago per boat were transported. In December or January the fleet returned to the starting point. The traded sago served to supply the Motu families with food during the subsequent dry season.

The canoes are normal fishing and transport boats that were returned to their owners after the Hiri trip, and are held together by ropes and bamboo . The masts are made from shallow-rooted trees whose roots are anchored to the canoes to keep the mast upright. At the top of the mast hangs the license plate of the clan of truck drivers. The sails consisted of interwoven pandanus leaves and the anchors of several large stones connected in a network.

literature

  • Dudszus, Henriot, Krumrey: The great book of ship types . transpress VEB, Berlin 1987, ISBN 3-344-00161-2 , p. 288 .
  • Hermann Mückler: Introduction to the ethnology of Oceania . In: Cultural History of Oceania . tape 1 . Facultas, Vienna 2009, ISBN 978-3-7089-0392-7 , p. 123-127 .

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