30' Edo Water Taxi Replica (2003) - CHOKKIBUNE

In 2002-2003 I apprenticed with Mr. Kazuyoshi Fujiwara, a fourth generation boatbuilder from Tokyo. He and I built a chokkibune, or an Edo-era water taxi. This was part of a research project in which I documented all of Fujiwara’s design secrets and techniques (see my book Japanese Wooden Boatbuilding available at my website). The boat was built of cedar and cypress, fastened with blacksmith-made nails. Nail heads and seams were covered in copper. Planking was bent over an open fire in the Japanese tradition. The foundation that funded the research donated the boat to Wasen Tomo No Kai (Friends of Traditional Japanese Boats), a Tokyo non-profit that teaches traditional sculling techniques.