Abstract
This paper examines the maintenance of the knowledge and practice of Nordic clinker boat building in the setting of coastal Denmark, characterized as a form of intangible cultural heritage (ICH). We explore the ‘working’ dimension of these boats as small-scale fishing vessels and the risks to this ICH as expressed in various policy, social, and economic domains. The paper centres around a working boatyard on the west coast of North Jutland, incorporating perspectives from a network of wooden boat builders, and those working in coastal and maritime cultural heritage in Denmark and the wider Nordic region. Threats to the continuation of the heritage in its ‘working’ form are explored using responses from semi-structured interviews, as well as documents related to the pan-Nordic application for the inscription of Nordic Clinker Boat Traditions on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The case highlights the challenges specific to ‘boatbuilding for industry’ as a form of ICH and opens a discussion on which actors and institutions ought to be responsible for safeguarding, maintaining and cultivating its practice and renewal.
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Notes
When talking about their craft, boat builder interviewees repeatedly used the Danish word ‘erhverv’ to differentiate between working on boats that are actively used in the fishing industry and working on boats used for leisure. ‘Erhverv’ has several context-dependent definitions, and does not translate directly to English. After consultation with native Danish speakers, we have chosen to use the words ‘industrial’/’industry’, to denote this differentiation, informing the idea of an ‘industrial craft’ setting.
To protect the confidentiality of interview participants, gender-neutral pseudonyms and pronouns have been used and specific mentions of organizations and affiliations have been removed.
‘A double-pointed, elegant shape with rising lines towards the curved stems, as well as slender frames and beams which are symmetrical to the centre plane and places with a regular, wide spacing along the length of the hull… to Scandinavians this set of features defines what is considered a ‘proper boat shape’ for a traditional boat” (Crumlin-Pedersen, 2009, p. 148).
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the special editors, Katia Frangoudes, Alyne Delaney, and Marloes Kraan, for their comments on earlier drafts, in addition to the two blind peer reviewers for their constructive input.
Funding
The research and writing of this article were supported by the PERICLES project, which has received funding from the European Commission Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 770504.
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Ounanian, K., Howells, M. Clinker, sailor, fisher, why? The necessity of sustained demand for safeguarding clinker craft intangible cultural heritage. Maritime Studies 21, 411–423 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-022-00260-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-022-00260-7