Like in ancient times: Hand-stitched wooden ship sets sail in India

The Indian Navy’s hand-stitched wooden sailing vessel INSV Kaundinya arrived in Oman on Wednesday to a water salute after completing 17 days at sea, the BBC writes.

The ship began sailing from Porbandar on India’s west coast on 29 December and arrived in Muscat, retracing the ancient maritime route that connected India with the rest of the world for millennia.

Named after a fabled Indian mariner who sailed across the ocean to South East Asia, the ship was built using traditional techniques. Wooden planks were stitched together with coir rope made from coconut fibre and sealed with natural resin. The ship does not have an engine and moves under square sails, helped by favorable winds.

INSV Kaundinya was built without nails or metal fastenings – methods once common across the Indian Ocean region.

Its design is inspired by a 5th Century vessel depicted in a painting at the Ajanta caves in western India – believed to be one of the few visual records of early Indian seafaring.

“Her sails display motifs of the Gandabherunda [a mythical two-headed bird, representing the form of the Hindu god Vishnu] and the sun, her bow bears a sculpted Simha Yali [mythical creature from South Indian lore], and a symbolic Harappan style stone anchor adorns her deck, each element evoking the rich maritime traditions of ancient India,” according to the Indian Navy’s website.

The ship’s construction began in September 2023 and it was launched in February 2025 in Goa state.

It is not yet clear when the ship and its crew will begin their return journey to India.