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Arab Lateen-Rigged Vessel

Type Object Region Asia Time 900

In the mid-12th century, lateen-rigged dhows built in the Arab world, with their shallow draft and flexible rigging, dominated Indian Ocean monsoon t…

Timeline

  1. c. 1100–1170Eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula · Arabian PeninsulaArab craftsmen stitched planks together with coconut-fiber rope and fitted lateen sails, building seaworthy dhows suited to shallow seas; their form was already standardized by the early 12th century and widely replicated.
  2. c. 1171–1180Indian Ocean (Arabian Sea–Bay of Bengal) · Indian OceanIn the 1170s, Arab and Gujarati merchants used the southwest monsoon to sail to India's west coast, then returned on the northeast monsoon, forming an annual cycle of spice and cotton cloth trade.
  3. c. 1175–1200Swahili Coast (around Kilwa) · TanzaniaDhow merchant vessels reached East African ports, exchanging ivory, gold, and slaves; the port economies of the Swahili city-states flourished further by the end of the 12th century.

Sources