The world's oldest boat was carved from a single tree using fire
The Pesse canoe, the oldest known watercraft, was hollowed out from a Scots pine using controlled fire to create a vessel capable of transporting four adults.
Dating back to approximately 8040 BC, the Pesse canoe of the Netherlands proves that Mesolithic humans mastered naval engineering long before the invention of the wheel. This three-meter dugout was carved from a single Scots pine using a combination of flint adzes and controlled burning. By strategically charring the wood and scraping away the embers, the builders could shape a hull that displaced 300 liters of water while maintaining structural integrity.
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