Punt
Vessel numberHV000404
Vessel type
The Tasmanian Piners Punt
Date1920 - 1930
DimensionsVessel Dimensions: 4 m x 3.65 m x 1.5 m x 0.15 m (13.12 ft x 11.98 ft x 4.92 ft x 0.49 ft)
DescriptionPUNT is thought to have been made by Frank and Bill Britton, based on the way in which the stringers have been bevelled on their back face. It is 4 metres long and 1.5 m wide, and clinker planked in King Billy pine. This was the typical construction, only a few examples are thought to have been carvel planked.
The West Coast Piner's Punt has a shape ideally suited to its purpose. The dinghy transported Huon pine workers with their supplies and tools from their camps on the shoreline. They are thought to have originated in Port Davey or on the Huon and Picton Rivers, areas where the Huon pine industry was well established by the late 1800s. Convict Thomas Doherty (or O'Dougherty) has been given credit for an early design. His Irish background also suggets a connection and influence from traditional Irish boats used for fishing salmon and mussel, that had similar features and worked in similar conditions to the piner's punts.
The piner's punts had a snub or transom bow and the square ends were often referred to as forward and aft tucks. They were built with a lot of rocker or spring to the keel line and no skeg so they could turn quickly. They also had to negotiate rapids. Although they had a slack turn of the bilge, their width made them reasonably stable. The shape had an easy run to the strakes, which allowed quick planking of the hull. Two people could row them at a good speed. PUNT's shape reflects all of these traditional qualities.
In 2010 PUNT has been restored and is rowed regularly with members of the Wooden Boat Guild of Tasmania.
SignificancePUNT is a wooden Tasmanian West Coast Piner's Punt from the 1920s or 30s, and represents a type of craft uniquely developed on the rugged west and south west coast of the island. The dinghies were a transport for the Huon pine workers on the Franklin River, Denison River and to the south in Port Davey.
Vessel Highlights
c 1920
c 1915
1915
1910
1922
1935