EWA-2: Early Watercraft: Technologies and Use in Maritime Landscapes
Contribute to the 2nd Early Watercraft Association Congress
Deadline for submissions: 1 May, 2026
The Early Watercraft Association invites contributions to EWA-2 in Derry (Londonderry), Northern Ireland, 6-8 November, 2026. Within the congress’s overarching theme, Early Watercraft: Technologies and Use in Maritime Landscapes, papers and other presentations in the following sub-themes are suggested.
| Sub-themes | Example topics |
| Archaeology of Early Watercraft | Maritime landscapes and early watercraft |
| Mobility along waterways in early human groups | |
| Archaeological methods, documentation, and digital approaches | |
| Early Watercraft use and significance | Watercraft, navigation, and seafaring skills |
| Watercraft and trade | |
| Watercraft and fishing/sustenance/gathering | |
| Symbolism and Early Watercraft | The symbolic realm of early watercraft |
| Early watercraft in rock art | |
| Ethnography of Early Watercraft | Building traditional watercraft – ethnographic knowledge, craft, and community |
| Recording and presenting archaeological and ethnographic watercraft | |
| Oral history: early watercraft in stories | |
| Regional Perspectives | Europe |
| The Americas (North, Central, South, Caribbean) | |
| Middle East and Indian Ocean region | |
| Pacific and Oceania | |
| Africa | |
| Public Engagement | Watercraft and museums (curation, exhibition, interpretation) |
| Engaging the public (outreach, education, replica projects) | |
| Experiment and Replication | Experimental archaeology of watercraft |
| Building replica watercraft | |
| Early Watercraft Technology | Design and construction |
| Modeling watercraft performance | |
| Production, repair, maintenance, reuse |
We hope to see all forms of early watercraft represented and considered: dugout boats/logboats, bark boats, skin-on-frame or hide boats, basket boats, rafts, and early plank-built boats.
EWA-2 is not just for the academic/scientific community. We value unique perspectives and contributions of craftspeople, artists, mariners, and other non-academic practitioners, and encourage new ideas and creative approaches. If none of the listed sub-themes fit your idea for a presentation, feel free to recommend your own (but no commercial messaging, please).
Submissions
Please submit the following:
- Author(s): Name, title, affiliation, and country as you wish them to appear in proceedings
- Contact data for corresponding author: email, phone, postal address
- Paper title
- Abstract: 200-300 words
- Suggested sub-theme/category: from the above list or “other” (specify)
- Format: Indicate in-person live presentation, remote live presentation*, in-person panel discussion, or poster paper.
Proposals not accepted for live presentation will be automatically considered for poster papers unless you indicate otherwise.
*Remote live proposals please note: If your proposal is accepted for a livestream presentation, we will also need to receive your presentation prerecorded with media ahead of time as insurance against connectivity issues.
Contact for Submissions
Send submissions by 1 May, 2026 to [email protected]