The oldest boat ever discovered was found in France. But have you ever wondered how boating came about? Or how, from simplistic dugouts designed for fishing or getting around, man came to build motor vessels dedicated solely to yachting? 

Let's embark together on a journey through the ages, from the beginnings of mankind when navigation was born, to the present day, when it has become indispensable to our society.

Navigation is nothing new, to say the least, since the first traces of it can be dated back to 130,000 BC. At that time, humanity was still nomadic and hunter-gatherers moved in response to changes in their environment, which led them to move away from climates that were too harsh and to search ever further afield for food.

Crossing the Mediterranean in the Palaeolithic period 

During an archaeological expedition aimed at proving the presence of Man on the island of Crete as early as the Mesolithic period (between 13,000 and 10,000 years BC), researchers discovered tools dating from the Middle Palaeolithic (between -350,000 and -100,000). It's a surprise that suggests man may have crossed the Mediterranean much earlier than previously thought. It's true that sea levels were much lower than they are today, but Crete was already an island and therefore impossible to reach on foot.

However, it is difficult to know whether this feat can be attributed to Homo Sapiens, as its presence in Europe at this period is still controversial (Apidima skull 1). It is therefore presumed that the first navigator may have been his cousin Homo Erectus (according to the archaeologist Thomas Strasser, who took part in the excavations in Crete) or Homo Heidelbergensis (probable because it was the first human established in Europe, often referred to as Pre-Neanderthal).

While it is impossible to determine precisely what type of boat the first navigators used to reach Crete, since no boat fossils have been discovered to date, we can theorise on the basis of the techniques known at the time that they could have been rafts or monoxyle dugouts (made from a single piece of wood), as are the oldest boats discovered to date.

Fishing in Western Europe during the Mesolithic period

The oldest boat ever discovered was found in France, in the town of Nandy. It is a monoxyle dugout dating from 7245-6710 BC (late Mesolithic), found alongside another dugout almost as old. Other similar discoveries have been made in Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark, indicating that these boats were fairly widespread in the region. 

In Egypt, as in Mesopotamia, the first traces of navigation date back to the Mesolithic period, and while they indicate the use of monoxyle dugouts as in Europe, the appearance of rafts has also been identified. During this period, mankind began to become sedentary and developed its first spiritual beliefs, but still subsisted on hunting, fishing and gathering, which leads us to presume that these dugouts were intended solely for fishing or travelling.

However, it was not until the Neolithic period that the first sails appeared and more complex boats were built.

The first sailing ships in Neolithic Egypt

The Egyptians were the first to understand that the wind could be used to propel their boats. This was the birth of sailing.

At the same time, navigators developed planking sewn to the sides of dugouts to stabilise the craft and prevent water from entering from the edges. This planking also made it possible to considerably increase the size of the vessels and, at the same time, their carrying capacity. The dugout was soon abandoned, leaving only the keel of the boat, and the range of boats diversified.

The oldest representation of a sailing boat is Egyptian, dating from around 5,000 BC. It shows a large ship with a mast, a large square sail and numerous oarsmen. The boats must have been built from papyrus, reeds and hemp rope. And although they were smaller than the future Roman galleys, Egyptian sailing ships were already very impressive for their time.

By the Neolithic period, humanity had become largely sedentary and was gradually beginning to produce its own food through livestock rearing and agriculture, rather than relying exclusively on hunting, gathering and fishing to subsist. This change in lifestyle, which began in the Fertile Crescent (from Egypt to Mesopotamia) 9,000 BC and much later in Europe, goes some way to explaining the increasing complexity of boats, whose purpose was no longer limited to fishing and peregrination. 

Ships were used to transport materials or foodstuffs such as cereals, but they were also used for ritual purposes, while continuing to fish and sometimes travel. The Austronesians began to populate Oceania around 3,000 years ago with sailing boats with sewn planks, which could later hold up to fifty people. 

But Khufu ship, discovered in 1954 and dating from around 5,000 years ago, is without doubt the most striking example of the influence of these changes in lifestyle on boats. Although it was created as a tool for funerary worship, it is a perfect illustration of the diversification of construction and navigation techniques after the end of the Neolithic period. Built from cedar wood and comprising 1,224 individual parts at the time of its discovery, it is over 43 metres long (142 feet long) and includes a cabin. 

From Prehistory to Antiquity, navigation developed in parallel with the great changes in human lifestyle. From the nomadic prehistoric peoples who used their dugouts for fishing emerged the great ancient sedentary civilisations, for whom navigation also became a means of gaining power, honouring the dead and transporting materials and foodstuffs for trade and supply.