An ethnography of Shetland’s oldest boat, the Sixareen Mary LK 981

Chivers, M., Stratigos, M. J. and Tait, I. (2019) An ethnography of Shetland’s oldest boat, the Sixareen Mary LK 981. Mariner's Mirror, 105(4), pp. 442-460. (doi: 10.1080/00253359.2019.1665342)

Abstract

The Mary LK 981 is the oldest surviving Shetland-built boat. Detailed recording of surviving examples of Shetland’s boats has been rare, and where undertaken, has focused on analysing overall boat form rather than their biographies. However, previous work has been critiqued as too narrowly focused on hull form and the direct connection between Shetland’s small boats and their Norwegian (or even Norse) antecedents. This paper presents new recording and analysis of the Mary’s surviving remains taking an archaeological approach combined with historical and archival research providing a more complete biography of the Mary. We argue that the Mary is a unique survival of Shetland’s vernacular boatbuilding tradition and its biography parallels important transitions in Shetland’s nineteenth-century maritime economy. This work has dramatically cast into relief areas for future research into Shetland’s vernacular boatbuilding and wider maritime history.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Stratigos, Dr Michael
• Authors: Chivers, M., Stratigos, M. J., and Tait, I.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre
• Journal Name: Mariner's Mirror
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 0025-3359
• ISSN (Online): 2049-680X
• Published Online: 21 October 2019
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © The Society for Nautical Research 2019
• First Published: First published in Mariner's Mirror 105(4):442-460
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy