Jewel of Muscat

The Jewel of Muscat has taken 12 months to build on the beach of Qantab, just outside of Muscat. This, in hindsight, was the easy part; launching a reconstruction 9th-century sewn-plank boat safely was a logistical operation that involved members of the Royal Navy of Oman, Oman Sail, local villagers from Qantab as well as the Jewel of Muscat team.

The final stages of the launch took 72 hours and consisted of wheeling the ship, sitting in a cradle, slowly down to the water’s edge on specially designed tracks. The closing steps of the launch started on Saturday morning at 0400hrs and as the Jewel of Muscattouched the sea for the first time, there was a traditional sacrifice and a dance troop marking this momentous occasion for Oman. Sitting at the water’s edge, the team carefully positioned the ship ready for her launch the following day.

With a Royal Oman Navy ship pulling the ship from the water and the team pushing from the shoreline, the Jewel of Muscat slipped into the water at 0750hrs on Sunday morning. A tremendous cheer rose up from the beach as months of hard work paid off. Construction director Tom Vosmer stated,“I'm elated, relieved and very happy. The Jewel of Muscat is wonderful and isvery at home in the water. I want to thank the Ministry of Foreign Affairsfor their support and all our workers who are a wonderful team and did afantastic job. Congratulations to them all!”

Directing the operations from onboard the Jewel of Muscat during her launch was her new captain, Saleh Al Jabri. “It's been incredible seeing this ship go into the water after a long wait. My heart stopped for a few seconds as she went in and I'm so happy and proud that she's now afloat. She is as beautiful in the water as on dry land and I cannot wait to now sail her to Singapore.”

The Jewel of Muscat is a gift from the Sultanate of Oman to the people of Singapore and has involved the reconstruction of a 9th-century sewn-plank ship, built in traditional Omani methods without any nails. The 60-foot (18m) long hand-built hull has now been towed into Marina Banda Al Rowdha where she will stay while her mast is fitted and she undergoes seatrials. The Jewel of Muscat will then set sail from Muscat in early 2010 and travel along the same trade routes across the Indian Ocean as those described by Arab geographers and navigators. She is expected to arrive in Singapore in July 2010 after stopping in India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia en-route. Once in Singapore she will be officially handed over as a gift from the Sultanate of Oman .

Notes to editors (International only)

The story of the ship’s construction and voyage will be captured in two exclusive one-hour documentaries to be shown in 164 countries on the National Geographic Channel from early next year. For more information, please visit www.natgeotv.com

The project website www.jewelofmuscat.tvoffers a wealth of information on the project including short videos, photos, a 3D model of the ship, a timeline and a unique education section. There is also an archive section documenting the skills and techniques of sewn ship construction.

Contacts for any enquires:-

PR & Media inquiries: Ingmar JenseIngmar@omansail.com
Website & TV footage: Simon Gallimoresimon.gallimore@inclusivedigital.tv

Photos for download in high resolution:-

http://drop.io/wkhfsbw/