Historic Paddle Illustration: Franquelin Map

One of the earliest representations of the distinctive shaped Mi'kmaq canoes comes from a beautifully illustrated map by Jean-Baptiste Franquelin (1651–after 1712).   Map for the Clarification of Land Titles in New France is dated to 1678. A portion of modern day New Brunswick shows three Mi'kmaq figures portaging their canoes while holding paddles in their hand.

Map for the Clarification of Land Titles in New France

 Jean-Baptiste Franquelin, 1678 

Full Zoom View

Two paddlers are seen carrying a canoe on their shoulders and another figure ahead of them is single portaging towards the coast.

Mi'kmaq Portaging Closeup

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Also found another closeup image which shows the canoes and paddle shapes with more detail...

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