The Sindbad Voyage
On 23 November, 1980 Sohar set sail from Muscat harbour with a crew of about 20 men
THE trading routes and sailing skills of the Omani people were well-known throughout the world. In 1980, Tim Severin, the British explorer, demonstrated that it is possible that Omani dhows voyaged to far off lands in the traditionally sewn ships!
The 'Sindbad Voyage' to the east was the result of 5 years of planning and hoping.
The attempt was to re-trace the old Arab sea-route to the East in a traditional Omani ship. Cooperation and offers came from all quarters, and in Tim's words, as the dream was coming true, it seemed like "the Arabian Nights still existed!" Sailing in an engineless boat to visit a country 6,000 miles away today was an unheard of attempt.
The birth of this Sindbad ship and its successful voyage to Canton in China and back is narrated in Tim Severin's book The Sindbad Voyage. The wise support from His Majesty Sultan Qaboos and the Ministry of National Heritage and Culture and many other sources together made the whole voyage a grand success.
In order to make the 20th anniversary of the arrival of Sohar at Canton, a photo exhibition was held at the Cultural Club, Qurum, last month. His Highness Sayyid Faisal bin Ali al Said, Minister of National Heritage and Culture presided over the photo exhibition. As part of the ceremony, the Chinese ambassador to the Sultanate gave a lecture on the Oman-China relations. The ceremony was attended by the President of the Majlis Addawla and a number of ministers and senior state officials and diplomats.
Stitching a vessel together is the most distinguishing feature of an Arab ship and about two or three times slower than conventional shipbuilding using nails. The planks were sewn together with ropes made out of coconut husks. It was believed that sewn ships, when hit by a coral reef could flex its way out of trouble instead of splitting apart.
The Sindbad Voyage carried a joint Omani-international crew, which consisted of Omanis, Asians and Europeans. (The legendary Sindbad is believed to be a native of Sohar). Medieval Arab ships picked up the massive boat timber and coir used for shipbuilding from along the Malabar Coast. Therefore, Tim too decided upon obtaining timber and coir from the same source.
"The most delicate phase of my work on the Malabar Coast was the hiring of carpenters and rope workers to come across to Sur to help build the sewn ship," says Tim in his book. "People at first were wary about the whole thing, quite reluctant to leave their homeland for a foreign land".
These shipbuilders were affectionately called 'Green Shirts from Malabar' because Tim had arranged for the volunteers to be given green shirts to be identified. The hills near Cochin provided the aini wood needed to build the ship. The aini was similar to teak in strength and density, for half the price. Good quality coconut husks were processed into hand-twisted strings. About 15,000 bundles of coconut strings with a total length of 400 miles were needed for the building of the ship.
The strange items required for the construction of the sewn vessel included barrels of fish oil mixed with melted sugar. This was needed to paint the outside of the completed hull. Half a ton of lime was required to plaster the underwater surfaces of the ship as an anti-fouling measure. The ropeworkers insisted that if the rope is oiled every 6 months the ship might last close to a century.
The ship was named Sohar. By command of His Majesty it was to honour the ancient trading port of Sohar. The 'Green shirts' from Malabar worked wonders with their chisel, says Tim. "They worked with a frenzy that was difficult to imagine in the blazing heat". And in just 165 days they built an excellent 90-ft ship!
On 23 November, 1980 'Sohar' set sail from Muscat harbour escorted by Royal yacht and patrol boats of the Royal Navy. Her departure was a part of the celebrations of the 10-year rule of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos. Sohar was to have a crew of about 20 men. The Omani sailors who were to handle the vessel in traditional style were Khamees Humaid al Araimi, Musalam Ahmed Saleh al Shaiady, Khamees Said Sbait al Mukhaini, Jumah Matar Mubarak al Saad, Abdullah Mubarak Salim al Salhi, Eid Abdullah Saleh al Alawi and Jumail Marhoon Jameel al Saad.
There were Europeans with specific technical skills and other volunteers. Gulf Air offered to carry all equipment and passengers free of charge. Yusif Shirawi, the airlines' chairman said, "Sindbad voyage is important to all the Gulf countries because they share a sense of history of the sea and if the venture is a success it will remind us of our past!"
The skilled Omani sailors steered by the stars in the night sky. Sohar was advancing at 70 to 80 miles a day depending on the wind. At some places the weather was mild. Tim writes: "When the wind gets strong an Arab ship does not reduce the area of the sailing in the European manner by gathering folds in the canvas. Instead the Arab sailors change the entire mainsail for a smaller one. It was done aboard Sohar for the first time when they were off the southern tip of India.
Omanis are at their best when faced by bad weather. On board the Omanis were real heroes of the sea, having lived through several shipwrecks and sea adventures in the past. The crew learnt more from experiences aboard Sohar. There were times when the weather turned hostile. They touched India, Sri Lanka, Sumatra, through the Malacca strait to Singapore.
The sailing of Sohar was heard over the din of the sea. The crew ate, sang, danced and waited patiently. At last after seven and a half months Sohar touched China coast where she was received amidst celebrations of the re-establishment of the historic link by sea between the China and the Arab world. The teamwork was greatly appreciated by the Chinese.
"The arrival of an Arab ship, bearing real Arab sailors in turbans and dishdashes caused a sensation and everywhere the Omanis went in town they were welcomed with warm hospitality". Sohar's average speed was a little better than 2 knots over the entire route from Muscat to Canton. This is almost exactly the same as the speed of the 9th and 10th century, Arab merchant ships on the same run, calculated from the early texts. Their traditional equipment was in excellent condition.
Thus Sohar's crew worked their way to China by muscle power, patience, and sheer application to the job in hand, without any sophisticated instruments. She had fulfilled the purpose for which she had been built! In the words of Tim Severin, "Her voyage, like Sindbad's Seven voyages, would become another tale - of success!" In the rising tide of modernisation and prosperity, the sailing skills of Omani seafarers remain indelible in the sands of time.
Oman Observer 18th February 2002
