Naniwa Maru
title: "Naniwa Maru" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["replica-ships", "osaka-university-research", "ships-built-by-hitachi-zosen-corporation"] topic_path: "society/education" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naniwa_Maru" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox ship"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| section1 | {{Infobox ship/image |
| image | Osaka Maritime Museum Naniwamaru.jpg |
| image_size | 240px |
| image_caption | The Naniwa Maru inside the Osaka Maritime Museum |
| section2 | {{Infobox ship/career |
| name | *Naniwa Maru |
| builder | Hitachi Zosen |
| maiden_voyage | 1999 |
| section3 | {{Infobox ship/characteristics |
| tonnage | 90 T |
| length | 30 m |
| beam | 7.4 m |
| height | 27.50 m |
| propulsion | Sail |
| :: |
|section1={{Infobox ship/image | image = Osaka Maritime Museum Naniwamaru.jpg | image_size = 240px | image_caption = The Naniwa Maru inside the Osaka Maritime Museum
|section2={{Infobox ship/career | hide_header = | name = *Naniwa Maru
- 浪華丸 | owner = | operator = | registry = | route = | ordered = | builder = Hitachi Zosen | original_cost = | yard_number = | way_number = | laid_down = | launched = | completed = | christened = | acquired = | maiden_voyage = 1999 | in_service = | out_of_service = | identification = | fate = | status = | notes =
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics | hide_header = | header_caption = | class = | tonnage = 90 T | displacement = | length = 30 m | beam = 7.4 m | height = 27.50 m | draught = | draft = | depth = | decks = | deck_clearance = | ramps = | ice_class = | sail_plan = | power = | propulsion = Sail | speed = | capacity = | crew = | notes = The Naniwa Maru is a replica ship of a typical Japanese trader from the Edo period (1603-1868) known as a higaki kaisen. It was built as the main exhibit for the Osaka Maritime Museum, with academic interest which also encouraged sea based testing until it was transferred into the newly built museum.
History
Higaki kaisen were cargo ships. During the Edo period they were used to transport basic materials between Osaka and Edo (now Tokyo), up the coast. Materials transported included vinegar, cotton, oil, paper and medicines. They were used by Sakai merchants, and were similar to the Kaisen (circuit ship).
Naming
The name Naniwa Maru comes from the ancient name for Osaka - Naniwa, and the usual postfix given to Japanese trading vessels, Maru. The type of ship, higaki kaisen (), originates in the name of the rhomboid-shaped bamboo gunwales, higaki, which helped keep the goods on deck, and kaisen, or "coastal boat".
Construction
The plans for the ship were drawn up on computer, based on the only remaining original drawings dating back to the Bunka epoch (1804-1817). The ship has a length of 30m, is 27.5m high, with a breadth of 7.4m and weighs 90t.
The ship uses a number of different woods in its construction, just as the original ships would have done. Pine, cedar, Japanese cypress and evergreen oak are all used in the construction of the hull and mast, whilst the sail is a cotton canvas known as a matsuemon-ho and there are old Japanese-style nails such as nuikugi and toshikugi.
Sea trials
Sea trials were conducted in Osaka Bay between 20 July and 1 August 1999, the first sea trials of a replica ship in Japan. These were run under the supervision of Nomoto Kensaku, emeritus professor at Osaka University, and helped confirm theories on the efficacy of the single-mast, square sail design.
References
References
- "参考資料：菱垣廻船「浪華丸」 – 日本海事史学会".
- Deal, William. (2007). "Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan". Oxford University Press.
- (1894-10-07). "Names of Japanese Ships of War". New York Times.
- (April 2020). "What's in Osaka Maritime Museum?". Osaka Maritime Museum.
- "Osaka and its Technology No.38". Osaka Municipal Government.
- (1999-06-10). "Edo freighter replica to be tested in Osaka Bay". Japan Times.
- Nomoto, Kensaku. "Numerical Simulation of Wearing Maneuver of "Naniwa-maru," Reconstruction of a Japanese Sailing Trader in Early 1800s". Journal of the Kansai Society of Naval Architects.
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::