Steve Cayard - Birchbark Canoe Builder

Fern Forest 18, 2006

About the canoe

The unusually detailed etching on the side panels of this canoe was created to complement the names of the client’s three children, inscribed at his request. The detail shot of the center thwart shows the chip carving that accentuates the “tump shoulder,’ which is typically seen in some form on the center thwart of Wabanaki canoes. Its purpose, aside from decoration, is to hold the ends of a “tumpline,” which is a leather strap used in portaging to carry part of the weight of the canoe on one’s head. Inside beam 30”, depth 11 5/8”
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