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Cargo and passenger vessel found all along the coasts of the Arabian Peninsula,Djibouti, Iran, both sides of the Red Sea, and Somalia. Wide-ranging, sailing to India and down the east coast of Africa. Popular pearling vessel in the Persian Gulf; in the Red Sea, they are most often fishing craft.This vessel characterized by a long, curved stem, generally in a smooth arc from the long keel, although in some areas, there is an elbow bend above the waterline.In its more generally accepted form, is recognised by its broad-planked stemhead with a quarter-round 'bite' taken out of the inboard corner. The stern is usually what marine historians have called escutcheon shaped which is really a transom more or less in the shape of a shield. There are exceptions, however, as there are in most dhow types. Sometimes, for instance, the stock of the rudder passes through trunking as in a ganja, instead of being fully exposed and the tiller passing inboard from its head and maneuvered by ropes leading to a wheel. Еmbellishment is in the Arab manner with carved panels and stars and crescents painted within them. The transom too, is usually divided into panels, some devoted to diamond-patterned fretwork or shaped cut-outs and others painted with stars and crescents. Few sambuks are exactly alike in decor.
The after part of the hull above water is oiled and that below the water line, if it can be defined, coated with the usual mixture of chunam and fat. Most of Sambuqs were 2-masted: massive mainmast stepped amidships, short mizzen just forward and abaft the poop deck break, both raking slightly forward. Set lateen sails; main¬sails tacked either to stemhead or to a spar rigged over the bow. Crew of 3-16 on fishing boats, 9-45 on traders. Lengths: fishing boat 11m long, 1.83m wide; trader 23.5-40m; e.g., 25m long overall, beam 5.4m, depth 2.6m.

State of Bahrain 1979;100f;SG 263
State of Qatar 1976;1f 50d;SG 596
Sultanat of Oman 1996;350b;SG 447
United Arab Emirates95f; SG?

Sourse: Source : A Dictionary of the world’s Watercraft from Aak to Zumbra.
C.Hawkins:The Dhow

Сonstruction of Sambuq
Under a ragged awning of sacking the keel had already been laid and now the ribs were being placed in position. These were built up from the usual"jungle” wood branches, selected for their curves and adzedto final shape. They had come by dhow from India's Malabar Coast, natural bends from the jackwood and babul trees. The planking also came from India, teak and venteak, and punnai for the masts and spars. In Kuwait most of the planking is first laid and held in position initially by temporary external blocks or battens. Then the ribs are progressively built up to the shape of the hull, holes being bow-drilled right through from the outside and nails driven home to be countersunk and clenched over on the inside of the ribs. No moulds are used and the hull gradually takes shape by eye alone. Each alternate rib passes completely over the keel, the others but¬ting on to it. Thus placed the joins in adjacent ribs are never located immediately alongside each other. This method of inserting or building up the frames inside the planking is oractised at Ma'alia in Aden although for the big sambuqs complete frames are sometimes set up and the planking then laid. A hull so beautiful as this could not possibly be the product of harsh words. Evident enough was the pride which these shipwrights took in their craftsmanship and the very joy of it shone from their smiling faces.

Somalis 1964;50f;SG478. Republic of Yemen 1972; 25f;SG105. C.Hawkins:The Dhow and its World.