by Ben Serrano
February 9, 2089
BUTUAN CITY- The historical wooden boat which did not used any single nails and built in a lashed lug technique believed to have been used by Malay settlers in their vast sea travel during prehispanic times will be used again to circumnavigate the World.
This time, the Philippine’s Mount Everest team with tourism officials and scientists composed of Leo Oracio, Ervin Pastor Ermita, Noel Winceslao, Karina Dayondon, Janet Belarmino-Sardina, Dr. Ted Esguerra, Fred Jamili and Dr. Walter Villasco will circumnavigate the World using the remodeled ancient Balanghai Boat.
Dubbed as Voyage Balanghai, Department of Tourism undersecretary Art Valdez who served as RP’s Mt. Everest Team Captain will accompany his team with experienced master sailors who will assist the team’s voyage.
Valdez said they will start their voyage in Manila this year, hoping that by next year, the group will already circumnavigate Southeast Asian nations.
By 2011, Voyage Balnaghai is expected to reach Micronesian nations and Madagascar as they will continue to navigate the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans by 2012 and hopefully be back n the Philippines by 2013.
“The ancient Balanghai Boat is not only environment-friendly but we can also show to the World the Filipinos and Butuanons’ expertise in sea travel even before the Spaniards and Europeans came to our shores” Valdez said.
Used by the Filipino seafarers and traders in sea trading with China then, the Balanghai has definitely debunked the claim that before the coming of the Spaniards Philippines had no contacts with the outside world.
The ancient vessel then was about 15 to 18 meters in length was mentioned in Pigafetta’s account in their 1521 voyage when Magellan’s voyage reached the Philippine shores.
In 1977, local Butuan historian Adolfo Busa Sanchez wrote in his book “1521 Limasawa” that the “balanghai” is more of a royal family boat. It is large enough to house the entire family of a datu or rajah.
“It can be converted into a warboat and it has a capacity of from 25 to 30 passengers or warriors. It is a kind of a boat about 15 to 17 meters long, built on its sides like a wine cask, with strips of timber planks fastened by strong wooden dowels. This boat is so constructed that it can be utilized to easily navigate along narrow waterway such as rivers and big stream, and it could also be used as a fishing boat in the open sea during fair weather.”
In late 1976, Butuan Boat 1 was discovered near the east bank of the Libertad River in Barangay Libertad here. Then in 1977, Boat 2 was found about a kilometer southwest of the first site.
The National Museum excavated and conserved three boats (Boat 1 in 1976, Boat 2 in 1978, and Boat 5 in 1986), despite the furious commercial digging activities for imported ceramics in the mid 1970s and later for processed gold.
The radiocarbon (C-14) tests on the three boats (numbered according to the order of their discovery) gave the following results
Boat 1 1630+-110 years 320 AD, Boat 2 700+-790 years 1250 AD, Boat 5 900+-70 years 900AD and throughout Southeast Asia and the world, it is only in the Philippines where a flotilla of such prehistoric wooden boats are known to exist.
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