The New Era proudly announces the winners of the Design-a-Jaredite-Barge Contest. There were many interesting and beautiful entries from many parts of the United States and from other countries. Although the three winning models shown here do not pretend to show what the Jaredite barges actually looked like, they do show thought and care in design and a firm understanding and reading of the Book of Mormon scriptures that describe the Jaredite barges. We wish to compliment all those who participated and who learned from this experience.

In Michael Sneddon’s carefully designed model, he faced many problems, such as deciding just how small is small, and what the length of a tree would have actually been. From his initial figuring, Michael decided that since people would have to stand inside, a minimum height would have to be 8 feet. To conform with proper ship proportion, the beam would have to be approximately 20 to 24 feet long. The length of the barge would need to be approximately 3 to 3 1/2 times larger than the beam length, or from 60 to 95 feet. Working in reverse, Michael decided he could find the approximate “length of a tree.” Asia and India have many kinds of trees. Average length was found to be anywhere from 60 to 120 feet. Michael decided that the average of the average was 90 feet. Therefore, using this method, the beam would be approximately 30 feet.

First Place

Arnold J. Amenda’s first place entry in the Design-a-Jaredite-Barge Contest was a masterful study, not only of the design and building of the barge, but also of the entire journey of the Jaredites to the American continent. In this view of Arnold’s model, which measures nearly four feet, you can see the wonderful detail the builder included in his barge.

Arnold’s explanation of the hole in the top and the bottom of the barge is most interesting. He says, “No doubt about it, there were holes in the top and the bottom. Some people suggest two holes were called for because the barges sometimes turned over. In my opinion this would have been catastrophic, especially when you consider that the barge was full of people, food, water, and animals. The hole in the top of the barge could be opened for light and circulation and would be closed by a special counter balanced weight. The bottom hole would flow into a stoppable basin.”

Arnold studied many different kinds of vessels, including Phoenician ships, Babylonian gufa, Egyptian barges, and even what Noah’s ark might have been like. From studying these vessels, Arnold decided that the watertight door would be possible by the use of very good, close workmanship and some kind of carefully fitted gasket, probably leather coated with beeswax.

In Arnold Amenda’s opinion, some kind of steering provision was necessary to keep the vessel safe and on the right path. Even if the winds blew continuously in the proper direction, a vessel “light upon the water” needed to be properly guided over the waves of a rough ocean.