Canoes

While home in DC over spring break, I visited the Native American Museum. One of the first things there that caught my eye was the three canoes and kayak on display. Listed next to each boat was the origin of the people who crafted it and the materials it was made of. The first canoe was from Hawaii, made up of three types of woods: koa, hau, and wiliwili. The second was from Bolivia/Peru and made up of reeds. The third canoe was from Northern America, crafted by the Chippewa tribe and made from birch bark.

Marveling at the seemingly perfect construction of the boats, I was blown away to think that it was manufactured without machinery. In thinking about it, I am reminded of the  discussion in class about hands being the primary tool of man, and crude tools (such as rocks, sticks, shells, etc.) that are available for use. Using his hands and crude tools, man can construct basic tools, such as knives, arrowheads, etc. I found myself wondering about the tools that these primal peoples used to fashion such beautiful boats, and how far removed these tools may or may not be from man’s most basic tool, namely, his hands.