Kerala: What is Beypore Uru, the traditional Arabian trading vessel being built?
Uru is a wooden ship or sailing boat handcrafted by skilled artisans and carpenters in Beypore, Kerala. After a break, the construction of two Urus has kickstarted in Beypore.
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FollowKozhikode: After a hiatus, the traditional ship-building culture of Kerala, 'Uru', has kick-started again in Beypore. At present, two luxury sailing vessels handcrafted by skilled artisans and carpenters are being built. For the past 1500 years, a vibrant culture has thrived on these shores. Beypore Uru is distinguished by excellence and luxury in construction.
The two large vessels being constructed at Beypore are for businessmen in Qatar. The construction that started four years ago was stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic. The massive flood in the state also affected its construction. For the past several years, two construction yards in Beypore have been manufacturing Urus. Both these yards depend upon the orders coming from Gulf countries.
The Beypore Urus are purely made of premium wood, without using any modern techniques. The wood used to build the Uru is still sawed the traditional way, requiring immense expertise.
The large traditional ships are being built at a height of 140-150 ft. Â All the modern facilities are provided on the ship. The construction cost is approximately estimated to be Rs 3 crores, apart from decorative works.
Arabs invented the science and art of building these ships. They were subsequently known as dhows by the Arabs, and they served as the customary commerce vessels in Arabia. The Arab traders moved their Dhow construction to Malabar (Northern Kerala) decades ago after discovering affluent Kerala, its sturdy timber, trained craftsmen, and its native technology.
Beypore, a coastal city located 11 kilometres from Kozhikode (Calicut), Kerala, has been a bustling hub for shipbuilding and navigation since the Middle Ages. Known for producing Uru, which was appropriate for the Indian Ocean, the location was on the northern bank of the Chaliyar River estuary. Ludovico da Varthema, an Italian explorer who travelled extensively around the Indian Ocean in the sixteenth century, provided a detailed description of the distinctive characteristics of the ships built in Calicut on India's west coast.
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