Cambodia · Boat Building / Structural Craft
ទូក (Tuk)
The Mekong River communities of Stung Treng and Kratie maintain a traditional wooden boat building tradition producing the narrow, high-prow vessels used for Mekong River fishing and transportation. The Cambodian Mekong boat tradition uses teak or local hardwood planks built over a simple keel, with the hull proportions derived from a body measurement system: 'the beam width equals the builder's arm-span from elbow to fingertip' — the same oral lofting principle as Irrawaddy boat building (CRAFT-0454) and Intha leg-rowing boats (CRAFT-0441). The Cambodian variant adds a specific feature: the hull bottom is deliberately asymmetric — slightly thicker on the port side than starboard — to compensate for the Mekong's anticlockwise current pattern that tends to push boats to starboard. This current-compensation asymmetry is the unique tacit knowledge of Mekong boat builders.
Risk level: Endangered · Not separately inscribed; Bon Om Touk Water Festival on Cambodia national ICH list
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