The Poole Logboat is an ancient
logboat made from a single
oak tree. It was excavated in the town of
Poole
Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Counc ...
,
Dorset,
England. The boat is over 2,200 years old and is estimated through
carbon dating
Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon, a radioactive isotope of carbon.
The method was dev ...
to have been constructed around 200–300 BCE, likely around 295BC.
The
Iron Age vessel was unearthed in 1964 during dredging work in
Poole Harbour. The log boat, which could accommodate 18 people and is long was based at
Green Island in the harbour. After it was found it was kept submerged in water for 30 years while archaeologists decided what to do with it. It was restored by members of
York Archaeological Trust and dried for two years.
The boat is on display in
Poole Museum.
The boat has been described as one of the finest examples in Western Europe.
As an internationally significant object, the logboat has been fully recorded digitally using 3D scanning.
The logboat is of a shell built design type that has a 'fitted transom added'. The boat has a reasonable degree of stability and seaworthiness. With a freeboard of 0.76m, research has determined the logboat could support the weight of up to 18 persons (weighing 60kg) each.
[McGrail 2014, p. 21.]
References
Bibliography
External links
Link to Logboat, Poole Borough Council, 2007Poole Museum
Tourist attractions in Poole
Ancient boats
Poole Harbour
{{ship-stub