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This remarkably well designed and swift
boat of the Chamorros startled experienced European
sailors as early as the 1500's. Because it
seemingly skipped over the waves much like a flying
fish does, early European observers called it the
"flying proa." During the height of its use by the
Chamorros of the Marianas, international mariners
referred to it as the best sailing boat in the
world.
Wars,
epidemics, and restrictions during the Spanish
colonial occupation took their toll on the Chamorro
boat builders. In time, the fabled boat building
skills of the natives of the Marianas, which
captured the imagination of the world, was not
passed on to later generations and the skill
virtually disappeared. By the late 1700's, the proa
was no longer sailing the seas around Guam.
True
to its name, however, the proa continues to fly and
captivate us today as the little white boat on the
Guam flag which proudly snaps in the breeze over
Guam.
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