As the tides of time erode history, the centuries-deep culture of traditional Japan slowly seeps away. Without anyone much noticing, something old and valuable disappears. We can all think of examples -- the one I am thinking of is traditional craftsmanship, most pressingly the disappearance of conventional carpentry.
There are very few carpenters left who can build a purely Japanese house, even fewer oteradaiku who build temples and shrines, fewer yet funadaiku, builders of boats, and none at all for that specialized ship -- the tub boat of Sado Island. This is a round boat, though occasionally an oblong one can be seen. Tourists line up to paddle around Ogi Bay and in the next cove it is still being used by fisher-folk since its shape and maneuverability are well suited to the wrinkled coast of this southern part of the island.
There are various accounts of its origins. One is that someone cut a big miso barrel in half and started using it as a boat. Indeed, the common name of the craft is hangiri or "half barrel," though the proper name of the vessel is taraibune. Another is that a trough once floated away and the neighbors, seeing that it could navigate the furrowed coast, started using it as skiff. A legend has also been concocted: A love-struck local maiden rowed her little tub boat nightly to the mainland to be with her lover but one night was lost in a storm.