Aoife Dally extracts a tree-ring sample of the Batavia ship’s hull planking in strake 14 Credit: W. van Duivenvoorde
Numerous Dutch ships passed through West Australian coastline on their way to Southeast Asia in 1600s. The national heritage-listed shipwreck Batavia has revealed the history of shipbuilding materials that allowed Dutch East India Company (VOC), to thrive against major European competitors for the first time.
Batavia was built in Amsterdam between 1626-1628, and lost on its maiden voyage to Morning Reef, Beacon Island (Houtman Abrolhos Archipelago) in June 1629. Experts reveal this in a study by Associate Professor Wendy van Duivenvoorde, Flinders University archaeologist, and coauthors Marta Domnguez -Delms and Associate Research Associate at the University of Amsterdam.
"Towards the middle of the 17th century, wind-powered sawmills were common in the Dutch Republic. This allowed the Dutch to build unprecedented numbers of ocean-going vessels for long-distance travel and interregional trade in Asia. But how did they manage the shipbuilding industry? Wendy van Duivenvoorde says that the Dutch Republic and its hinterland were certainly lacking in domestic resources.
A detailed sampling of Batavia's hull timbers was done for dendrochronological research. It was published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE. This article reveals a missing piece to the puzzle of global shipbuilding and global maritime travel in the early Dutch 17th century.
Aoife Dally extracting a tree-ring or dendrochronology sample from the Batavia ship’s transom planking using a 16mm dry-wood borer driven with a power drill. Credit: Wendy van Duivenvoorde
The VOC was the first multi-national trading company in the 17th century. This led to the rise of modern capitalism and the stock market. The VOC shipyards were home to 706 ships, 75 of which were lost in battle and 23 were captured by pirates or enemy forces.
It is not known what timber materials were used by the Dutch to build ocean-going ships and compete with continental European competitors like Portugal and France.
"Oak was the preferred material to shipbuild in northern and Western Europe. However, maritime nations struggled with sufficient timber supplies to sustain their growing fleets and meet their increasing needs." Marta Domnguez Delms explains that our results show that the VOC was able to successfully deal with timber shortages in early 17th-century Europe through diversification of timber resources."
The 1629 Batavia ship is still on display at Fremantle's Western Australian Shipwrecks museum. Credit: Patrick E. Baker (Western Australian Museum).
Marta Domnguez Delms, Aoife Dally and Aoife Daly work together to extract tree-ring samples from Batavia's transom beams. Credit: The Western Australian Shipwrecks Museum, Fremantle (Photo by Wendy van Duivenvoorde).
The Batavia ship remains have been saved and are now on display at Fremantle's Western Australian Shipwrecks museum.
This enabled archaeologists and dndrochronologists from Flinders University and the University of Amsterdam to sample and analyze the hull timbers.
"The preference for certain timber products from specific regions shows that the selection of timber was not arbitrary. "Our results demonstrate the diversity of timber sources that supplied the VOC Amsterdam shipyard during the 1620s, and show the builders' skilled craftsmanship and careful timber selection," says Aoife Dally.
Cross section of an oak hull plank showing its tree-rings from the 1629 Batavia ship. Before the research team developed a more destructive sampling method, this sample was taken from a loose hullplank. Credit: Patrick E. Baker (Western Australian Museum).
Wendy van Duivenvoorde concludes, "Our results contribute towards the collective knowledge regarding north European timber trade and demonstrate the geographical extent of areas that supply timber for shipbuilding within the Dutch Republic in 17th century."
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More information: Aoife Dally et al. Batavia shipwreck lumbers reveal a key for Dutch success in 17th century world trade, PLOS ONE (2021). Information from the Journal: PLoS ONE Aoife Dally et al. Batavia shipwreck Timbers reveal a key for Dutch success in 17-century global trade (2021). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0259391
