Homemade wooden bellyboard

Date1940

Object number00033576

NameBellyboard

MediumWood, metal

DimensionsOverall: 1515 x 450 x 30 mm, 3.54 kg

ClassificationsToys, games and souvenirs

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionThis homemade belly board was made from yellow pine purchased in 1939 by Jack Gaetjens from the Lions Timber Mills yard in South Australia. The board has three metal cleats to prevent splitting, and was originally protected by a meat bag cover (00033577).HistoryThough Australia was first introduced to surfing in the late 19th century by traders and travellers who had passed through Hawaii, the surfing demonstration of Hawaiian Duke Kahanamoku at Freshwater Beach in 1914 was a significant moment in Australia's surfing history. Solid hardwood planks were common on Australian beaches between World War I and World War II, and pre-dated the Australian surfing boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Designs were often similar to the Duke's 1914 board, which was shaped from sugar pine purchased from Hudson's Timber Mill in Sydney, and incorporated many of the standard Hawaiian design characteristics. Wooden boards were usually covered in layers of varnish, oil or shellac to prevent the board from becoming waterlogged. They were finless until the early 1950s, and often featured a brass or copper band, or wooden cleats near the nose to prevent the wood from splitting.SignificanceThis board is an important example of a homemade wooden board from the 1940s.