According to Wikpedia, Duyfken ….. was a small ship built in the Dutch Republic. She was a fast, lightly armed ship probably intended for shallow water, small valuable cargoes, bringing messages, sending provisions, or privateering. The tonnage of Duyfken has been given as ….. (49–59 tonnes …..)”
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Its general characteristics are given as: -
Displacement 110
tons
Length 65.4 ft (19.9 m)
Beam 19.7 ft (6.0 m)
Draft 8 ft (2.4 m)
Propulsion Sail
Speed 7 knots (13 km/h;
8.1 mph)
Armament 8
cannons”
Then, “Launched 1595.
Fate Condemned beyond repair July
1608 at Ternate”
The late Philip Hall wrote about the Duyfken in the August 2006 issue of the MLSSA Newsletter. Rather than repeat what Philip wrote, I simply asked Microsoft Copilot’s AI Assistant, “What happened to the Duyfken ship?”
The Assistant replied, “The Duyfken — the small Dutch
jacht* that made the first recorded European landfall on Australia in 1606 —
was condemned as beyond repair in July 1608 at Ternate. After years of hard
service in the East Indies, including battle damage, exploration, and heavy
sailing, she simply wore out. Once declared unseaworthy, she disappears from
the historical record. So, the original ship did not sink, wreck, or meet a
dramatic end — she was retired and broken up.”
* (Microsoft Copilot’s AI Assistant went on to explain just
what a ‘jacht’ was in the VOC era: -
“In the 1600s Dutch maritime world, a jacht (also spelled jaght,
yacht) was not what we mean by “yacht” today.
It was:
- A
small, fast, shallow‑draft vessel
- Designed
for scouting, courier work, reconnaissance, and rapid transport
- Often
lightly armed
- Used
to explore coasts, carry messages, chase smugglers, or escort larger ships
So, in VOC usage, a jacht = scout / dispatch vessel, not a
pleasure craft.”
Further: -
“How “yacht” got its modern
meaning
The English word yacht comes from the Dutch jacht,
but the meaning shifted.
- Dutch
jachts were admired for their speed
- European
nobility began commissioning them for pleasure cruising
- The
English borrowed the word, but kept only the “fast, elegant vessel” sense
- Over
time it became exclusively associated with private leisure craft”
Microsoft Copilot’s AI Assistant also described the modern
replica Duyfken as follows: -
“A full‑scale, historically researched reconstruction was
launched in 1999 in Fremantle. It has since sailed extensively and is now part
of the Australian National Maritime Museum’s fleet, currently undergoing
maintenance and expected back around 2026.
Philip Hall’s article in the August 2006 issue of the MLSSA
Newsletter described the ship’s construction style, saying that the Dutch used
a plank‑first method. Philip photographed this display board illustrating the building methods used to build the Duyfken replica: -
Microsoft Copilot’s AI Assistant explained that “no confirmed physical remains of the original Duyfken have ever been found, and based on the historical circumstances, none are expected to survive: -
🧭 1. The ship was not
wrecked
The Duyfken was condemned as unseaworthy at Ternate
in July 1608. In VOC practice, this meant:
- The
ship was stripped of anything valuable (ironwork, guns, rigging,
fittings).
- The
hull was broken up locally for reusable timber or simply left to decay.
- No
formal “wreck” site was created.
This is why no wreck site exists to search for.
🪵 2. Why no artefacts
survive
VOC jachts like Duyfken were built of:
- Oak
(frames, planking)
- Pine
(masts, spars)
- Iron
(fastenings, bolts)
- Lead
(ballast pigs, sheathing in some cases)
Ternate’s environment is:
- Tropical
- Warm,
oxygenated water
- Biologically
active (shipworms, bacteria)
In such conditions:
- Wood
disappears in years, not centuries.
- Iron
corrodes to nothing.
- Lead
survives, but only if buried — and condemned ships weren’t buried.
So even if fragments were left on a beach or shallow water,
they would not survive 400+ years.
🏺 3. Could anything possibly
remain?
The only realistic surviving artefacts would be:
A. Ballast stones
If the ship was dismantled in shallow water or beached,
ballast stones might remain. But ballast was often reused by the VOC or locals.
B. Iron concretions
Heavily corroded lumps from bolts or fastenings could
theoretically survive if buried in anaerobic mud. But there is no record of the
Duyfken being scuttled or abandoned in such a location.
C. Artefacts removed before breaking up
These would have been:
- Guns
- Anchors
- Rigging
hardware
- Tools
- Navigational
instruments
All of these would have been reused on other VOC vessels.
None have ever been linked to Duyfken.
🧭 4. Has anyone searched
for remains?
There has been no archaeological search for the original Duyfken
because:
- The
exact dismantling location at Ternate is unknown
- The
ship was not wrecked
- The
survival probability is effectively zero
- VOC
records confirm she was broken up, not lost at sea”
I visited the replica of Duyfken when it visited Port
Adelaide. It may have been about the same time that Philip Hall visited it. He
said in the August 2006 issue of the MLSSA Newsletter, “The Duyfken visited
Adelaide between 18th and 29th May 2006. I took these
photos of the ship during my visit: -
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The Duyfken replica at Port Adelaide
Scans of more of my Duyfken photos can be seen at https://1drv.ms/f/c/f49cda2ca5c2599b/IgCvvBntW3C5S7JI-IddrYJYAYBbVZ3QexMSd1DY7I5NnJg?e=TcLwxj
, including Philip Hall’s photos from the August 2006 issue of the MLSSA
Newsletter (those with captions).
Here are some of the photos that featured in Philip Hall ‘s
article in the August 2006 issue of the MLSSA Newsletter: -
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