16th International Symposium on Boat & Ship Archaeology

61 Zadar, Croatia | 26 September – 1 October 2021 Fredrik Leijonhufvud University of Gothenburg, Department of Conservation, Gothenburg, Sweden Developing a craft perspective on the interpretation and reconstruction of boats In my PhD project, I explore how a boat builder’s interpretation of boats can en- hance research that aims to reconstruct boat building skills and knowledge from an older tradition. In this contribution, I discuss methods for surveying and re- constructing boats and ships with a craft perspective. I am in the process of eval- uating the differences in outcomes between conventional analogue methods for documentation and digital photogrammetry when read and seen from the per- spective of a skilled boatbuilder. With experience from surveys of Nordic clinker boats, I can pinpoint specific examples from the use of photogrammetry versus the use of analogue tools. The advantages and possible shortcomings of digital methods need to be considered to reach good practice in the survey. The current case study focuses on a local type of Nordic clinker boat tradition, boats from the Stockholm Archipelago, partly built with hewed planking. This tradition was discontinued in the late 1800s. The absence of living tradition bearers means that the craft tradition is broken, but traces of it can be deciphered from the few re- maining boats. Both theoretical insights and practical experience are crucial in the survey in order to interpret craft objects from the past. The boat builder’s perspective on surveys and reconstruction of boats can therefore contribute to maritime archaeological research. However, even if the craftsperson–researcher is highly skilled, artefacts have limitations as sources of craft knowledge, which must be considered in the interpretation process. To interpret a boat built in an older tradition, one needs to be aware of one’s own traditions and prejudices, and that one’s perspective will always differ from that of boat builders from the past.