Building a great canoe is a community achievement. Expert craftsmen select a suitable tree - often a giant hardwood from the rainforest - and spend weeks shaping the hull with adzes and chisels. The prow (front) of a ceremonial canoe is often carved into dramatic animal or ancestral figures. Shell inlay in geometric patterns decorates the sides, glinting in the Pacific sunlight.
Paddling a large canoe in coordination takes practice and teamwork. In a festival parade, teams of paddlers must keep perfect rhythm, their blades entering and leaving the water at exactly the same moment. Drumming and chanting set the rhythm - and the noise of dozens of paddles hitting the water together can be heard far across a lagoon.
The canoe is a symbol of the deep seafaring heritage of Solomon Islanders. For thousands of years, people navigated between the 992 islands of the Solomon archipelago using nothing but traditional canoes and their expert knowledge of stars, currents, and ocean swells. Heritage canoe parades keep this proud seafaring tradition alive and visible for younger generations.