2002 Duyfken Voyagie

Sailing from Amsterdam around the Cape of Good Hope across the Indian Ocean to the island of Java and back again was a journey undertaken almost routinely by the VOC ships three centuries ago. Not since those spice trading days of the "Vereenigde Oostindische Companie" (United East India Company) has such a voyage been attempted.

Spices were valued in those days, as they are today, for their flavour and as medicines. Cloves, nutmeg and mace only grew on a few small volcanic islands of the Moluccas (now the Maluku province of Indonesia). Because spices were sourced from so far away operating a united fleet proved very lucrative for the Dutch..

Duyfken's crew will sail the 20 metre, Fremantle-built sailing ship replica from Sydney to Jakarta, then along the original spice trade route to The Netherlands to arrive there in April/May, 2002.

She will then be part of the commemorations of the founding of the VOC 400 years ago, starting on the island of Texel, followed by visits to the original VOC ports in the Netherlands.

The word Voyagie is an old Dutch word meaning voyage. At present, Duyfken's crew are sailing the 20 metre, Fremantle-built sailing ship from Sydney to Jakarta, then across the Indian Ocean to Sri Lanka, then Mauritius and South Africa before sailing north through the Atlantic Ocean to The Netherlands.

Not since the spice trading days of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) more than 300 years ago has such a voyage been attempted.

Sailors from Holland and every Australian state are represented in the crew which will take on the greatest challenge ever contemplated in such an ancient replica ship - to sail a spice route voyage to Europe around the Cape of Good Hope.

We hope you enjoy your own voyage of discovery as you navigate this website, which will feature daily updates on the Voyagie of the Brave Ship Duyfken.

Please contact us if you have any questions or queries, but remember the staff of the Duyfken Foundation is English-speaking only.

Als u contact wil opnemen met ons dan kan dat helaas alleen in het Engels.

Download the article The Story of the Duyfken Replica, Construction, Expeditions And Voyages giving extensive background information about the replica in Acrobat (PDF) format.