Matsalu ühepuuvene ehk ussilaev

Abstract

Making dugout boats from a single log involve some of the oldest construction traditions known on almost every continent. In Estonia, dugout boats have been common in all regions where the waterways were suitable for navigation. At the beginning of the 20th century, they were still found in three regions: the western part of Estonia; in the Kasari river basin and around Matsalu Bay in central Estonia in the Pärnu river basin; and to some extent on the lower Emajõgi and Ahja rivers.

While the Soomaa dugout boat has received a lot of attention thanks to UNESCO and the continuation of its building traditions, the Matsalu-type dugout boat is little known due to a lack of sources. However, Matsalu Bay and the Kasari river basin are a distinctive area due to their maritime influence, which therefore merits a more in-depth study of the Matsalu type dugout boat. Matsalu-type dugout boats differed from the boats used elsewhere in Estonia in that they were larger and often had an edge board attached to raise the sides. Other distinguishing features are the special triangular-shaped bow and stern, and the technology used to spread the sides of the boat. For example, while in Soomaa fire and water were used to spread dugout boats, in Matsalu they were generally spread using
hot tar. This was done indoors in a traditional rehetuba, otherwise used mainly to dry grain. In contrast to Soomaa, where the tradition and production of dugout canoes has survived to the present day, Matsalu's dug out tradition died out in the first half of the last century. The main reason for this decline was the shortage of the old aspen trees that are suitable for manufacture.

The present article is an attempt to bring together the photographs and ethnographic records of Matsalu dugout canoes and to highlight their technical and cultural characteristics. In the first part of the article, I will briefly outline the historical and cultural background of the Matsalu and Kasar river basin and its impact on the spread of the dugouts. In the sec ond part, the specific features of the Matsalu dugout canoe and the stages of its construction will be discussed. In the final part, I will examine the various causes that led to the decline and disappearance of the Matsalu dugout. Since the aim of the article is to bring together various sources that mention the Matsalu dugout canoe, the most notable quotations will be presented in full.

Keywords: archaic boats, heritage technology, handicrafts, cultural heritage, woodworking