DUYFKEN AND SHIPWRECKS EXCURSION
Yesterday we went to Fremantle to visit the 1606 Duyfken
replica. A big 'thank you' to Judy, (Ryan's mum) who assisted our class on the excursion. It was a brilliant day out.
Duyfken (or Little Dove) is the first known European ship
to visit Australia, approximately 164 years before the arrival of Captain James
Cook. In 1606, it sailed
from the Indonesian island of Banda in search of gold and trade opportunities
on the fabled island of ‘Nova Guinea’ or ‘Land of Gold’ under the command
of Willem Janszoon. They did not find gold, but they did find the
northern coast of a huge continent: Australia. Captain Janszoon was the first
European to begin mapping Australia. The Duyfken‘s voyage is quite considerable
as it marks the beginning of Australia’s recorded history. A small boat, at the
length of 25m, yet mighty. She has 16 cannons and was actually considered to be
a pirate ship. The act of piracy led to her demise when she went after a
Portuguese ship and was bombarded by two other ships that came to the rescue.
On Monday, 7th September, Room 22 went on a
commendable excursion to the Duyfken, the Shipwrecks Galleries and the Whalers
Tunnel in Fremantle. However, the most wonderful and extraordinary of all was
the Duyfken. The Duyfken was the first ship to explore parts of Australia. It
was also a pirate ship (known as the hunter). Indeed, the marvellous,
attractive and ornate ship collected and traded spices. Some of the most valued
spices were star anise (which was worth twice its weight in gold as it was
sought after for its strong flavour), pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg. The spices
were all stored in the most important part of the ship, the cargo hold. You
could also find the food, water and ballast bricks in this area. The ballast
bricks (all 20 tonne of them) allowed the Duyfken to sit in the water without
flipping over (due to it being too light) or sinking (if it were too heavy).
Just like any other pirate ship, the Duyfken was also
just as evil, demonic and infamous at times when it came to punishments. The
forms of punishment ranged from the ‘cat and nine tails’ to being pushed
overboard. It made me think how lucky we are today not to have these kinds of
punishment. I learnt a great deal on the excursion and had a fantastic time.
- Aena
On the 7th September, Rooms 22, 10 and 20 went
to Fremantle to see the Duyfken and the Shipwrecks Museum. On board the Duyfken
was my favourite part. I learnt a great deal including the fact that the crew
ate seaweed, fish and different kinds of fruits. The Duyfken didn’t have a ship’s
helm (steering wheel) instead, it had a steering stick. The steering stick had
Roman Numerals engraved upon it and it would control the rudder. I enjoyed
going down to below deck where the cargo hold was. Although you had to duck or
crawl at times, the area was filled with barrels and chests. The Duyfken traded
in spices such as star anise, cloves, pepper, cinnamon, maize and nutmeg. Some
of the spices were used for medicine, such as the cloves which were rubbed onto
sore gums to make tooth aches go away.
If you were a child back in those days, you would not go
to school, instead, if you were close to a port, you would work on a ship. The
children on the Duyfken were called ‘Powder Monkeys.’ A Powder Monkey is
responsible for running around the ship or climbing up and down the ropes to
give the crew exactly what they needed. They got their name by running around
the ship with the gun powder needed for the cannons. As the Duyfken was a
pirate ship, the Powder Monkeys would be quite busy at times.
- Jasmine
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