Maruko-bune

The stern of a 'maruko-bune' cargo boat. An exhibit at the Lake Biwa Museum, Shiga Prefecture, Japan.

A maruko-bune (丸子船) is a type of traditional wooden sailing boat, the design of which is unique to the Lake Biwa region, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. The name is related to the rounded shape of the hulls in cross section, "maru" meaning round in Japanese. Maruko-bune were in regular use in the Edo Period transporting cargo on Lake Biwa as part of one of the main historical transportation routes of Japan. Later, their numbers declined, but they were still in regular use in the 1930s, and a small number were used into the 1960s.[1]

  1. ^ Makino, Kumi (2013). "Marukobune", the traditional sailings boats in the Lake Biwa region, Japan. Tokyo: Yuzankaku. ISBN 978-4-639-02262-6.