OSAKA — A replica of an Edo Period cargo vessel is nearly complete and will be tested in Osaka Bay early next month, according to city officials.
The replica of the Naniwa Maru, a "higaki-kaisen" type vessel, was built as the main exhibit for a new marine museum that will open in Osaka's Suminoe Ward next year.
Higaki-kaisen were single-mast wooden vessels that transported such goods as cotton, oil and paper from the Osaka area to Edo, now Tokyo. At the time, Osaka was the nation's main economic hub.
The ships, whose name derives from the diamond shapes of the latticework along their gunwales, became active around the late 18th century.
The Naniwa Maru was reconstructed using blueprints of ships of the early 19th century and is roughly 30 meters long.
With a maximum width of about 7.4 meters, the total weight of the vessel, including its mast, is roughly 90 tons.
Most of the materials used for the Naniwa Maru were secured domestically, including pliable "benko" cedar from Miyazaki Prefecture. Even the nails followed the specifications of historical documents.
The decorative plaque on the stern measures 5 meters by 1.8 meters. It was taken from the trunk of a huge cypress on a farm in Ibaraki Prefecture.
The project was overseen by Kensaku Nomoto, professor emeritus at Osaka University, who said he is looking forward to the upcoming shakedowns.
"If we can collect data on how fast the ship can go with a weight of about 80 tons, which is the weight of the cargo these vessels carried," he said, "then it would serve as excellent information regarding the economic situation of the Edo Period, such as the distribution systems of the times."