A Geographical Perspective for the Book of Mormon ~ Building a Ship!

Dhow

The following are quotes from Wikipedia/Dhow regarding the Dhow boats that still sail the waters of the Indian Ocean today:

 

"Dhow (Arabic داو dāw) is the generic name of a number of traditional sailing vessels with one or more masts with lateen sails used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean region. Typically sporting long thin hulls, dhows are trading vessels primarily used to carry heavy items, like fruit, fresh water or merchandise, along the coasts of the Arabian Peninsula, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and East Africa.
 
The exact origins of the dhow are lost to history. Most scholars believe that it originated in China from 600 B.C."
 


Ship Building in Dubai, UAE

Dhow were built in both India and in some places on the Arabian Peninsula.  The resources needed included available timber and coconuts for rope. "Anciently, the sheathing planks of a dhow's hull were held together by coconut rope instead of nails . . . Even today, dhows make commercial journeys . . . using sails as their only means of propulsion." [1] 

 

After Lehi's party arrived in the Land of Bountiful, one would think that the grumblers would finally be content, but they were not.  After many days, the Lord called Nephi to journey up into a tall mountain.  There He commanded Nephi to build a ship to take his family across the ocean they called Irranteum.  Nephi, of course, had logistical questions, but the Lord reassured him that He would be by his side through it all and that they would arrive safely in a land which would be choice above all other lands. 

 

Of course, that gave the older brothers even more cause to complain.  They even sought to take Nephi's life by throwing him off of a cliff, but God intervened.  Nephi was saved and the rebels were chastised.

 

Of course, we don't know that Nephi built a boat that looked like a dhow.  The Book of Mormon tells us that he did not build his ship after the manner of men.  Who knows if the dhow was being built in Salalah at that time?  So, conceptually, Nephi's ship may have been very different in appearance and performance upon the sea. It is just invigorating to think of the possibilities!

 

The important thing is that he did build it.  In Bountiful, he would have had tall trees for timber, ore for tools, and coconut fiber for ropes.  Lehi's family boarded the ship and they set sail upon the Indian Ocean, bound for an unknown and yet trusted destiny.

 

[1] www.wikipedia.com/Dhow

 

Text copyright June 2013, Gebara Education

 

Pictures from:

Dhow www.1uptravel.com

Ship building in Dubai www.wikipedia.com

Building a dhow today from www.byu.edu