Perahu - traditional boats of Malaysia

[Anatol]

In the Malay world, the word perahu in Malay/Indonesian language generally refers to water transportation regardless of its size. To differentiate the types of perahu, another word is added to the word perahu such as Perahu buatan barat, Perahu Payang, Perahu Burung and so on. Traditional perahu are boats without engines and may have sails. The sources of information on types of traditional Malay perahu can be found from the study of classical literature, museum exhibits, ethnography and samples which can still be seen along the coast. Perahu are decorated by painting or woodcarving. Today, a decorated perahu is usually used as fishing boats in the East Coast of the Malay Peninsular that is Terengganu, Kelantan and Southern Thailand. The motifs or themes of carvings or decorations are characters from wayang kulit (shadow puppet theatre), myths, legends, flora and fauna and usually in a stylised form. All four Malaysian boats, depicted on stamps, are from the East Coast and are attractive in terms of their traditional value. They are able to sail the open seas, each accommodating up to 20 people.Their unique shapes and colors are believed by some to have Patani influence. The decorations display unusual motifs depicting fishermen’s lives. Their use today has become limited following new technological advancements in fishing methods.On the boat is installed a decorative, carved out of wood asymmetrical form, called Bangau. The Вangau(stork) is a decorative guard placed on the port side of the boat. It is mainly a support where sails and fishing nets are hooked on to whenever the boat is not in use. Traditional Malays also believed the bangau to be the home for the spirit (semangat) of the boat to reside which brings luck during the catch and protects the fishermen from the vagaries of the sea and sea demons. Such an easy to please creature, i must say.For the kind of life preserving insurance it offers, it really should have claimed the whole vessel to itself instead of just the bangau, and call himself Davy Jones. The bangau is always heavily carved with typical Malay meandering awan larat design. The shorter end of the bangau, okok or ongkak that lies across the bow is attached to the keel acting as a prop to secure the anchor and counterbalancing the bangau. Bangau as a figureheads is installed on the Perahu Burung (Boat-Bird).
Malaysia2000;(30;30;30;30)sen;FDC.
Source:http://interesting-place-in-terengganu.blogspot.ru/. fdcgallery.blogspot.ru/2011/10/perahu-tradisi-traditional-boats and various web-sites.