Sheepskin Rafts, Thousand-year-old Ferry Tools 千年輪渡工具——羊皮筏

The sheepskin raft， the oldest ferry tool along the Yellow River in Northwest China， boasts a history of nearly 2，000 years. The airbag of the raft is made of a whole sheepskin and undergoes careful processes that include heating to remove hair， soaking in salty oil， sewing， drying and blowing. Subsequently， the airbags are fastened to a rectangular wooden stand， enabling its use for transporting people and goods across the water.

羊皮筏是中國西北黃河沿岸最古老的輪渡工具，已有近2000年的歷史。羊皮筏的氣囊是用整張羊皮制成，經過加熱脫毛、咸油浸泡、縫制、烘干、吹氣等一系列精細的工序。隨后，將氣囊固定在一個矩形木架上，使其能夠運送人員和貨物渡河。

It is said that the largest sheepskin raft in old times consisted of more than 600 sheepskin airbags， with an impressive length of 22 meters and a width of 7 meters. It was capable of carrying around 30 tons of goods and drifting over 200 kilometers in one day， making it as formidable as a steamship. No wonder that there was a local saying： “A sheepskin raft can rival a warship.”

據說，古代最大的羊皮筏由600多個羊皮氣囊組成，長22米，寬7米，令人印象深刻。它能夠承載約30噸貨物，一天可航行200多千米，堪比現在的輪船。難怪當地有句俗話：“羊皮筏子賽軍艦?！?/p>

In the early 20th century， before the 1950s， when railways were not yet in operation and road traffic was inconvenient， the sheepskin raft served as the most important means of transportation for residents inhabiting along the Yellow River.

在20世紀初至50年代之前，那時候黃河沿岸沒有火車，道路交通也不便，羊皮筏是當地居民最重要的交通工具。

However， with the rapid development of society， the sheepskin raft has largely fulfilled its historical role in transporting people and goods. Nowadays， it can only be found along the banks of the Yellow River in cities such as Lanzhou and Baiyin in Gansu Province， Zhongwei in Ningxia Hui autonomous region. It has become a tool for people to ferry on the Yellow River for sightseeing and leisure.

不過，由于社會的快速發展，羊皮筏已經基本完成了其運送人員和貨物的歷史使命。如今，僅在甘肅蘭州、白銀和寧夏中衛等地的黃河沿岸才能見到。它已成為人們在黃河上擺渡觀光、休閑的工具。

Today only some of the older generation of boatmen still operate the traditional sheepskin rafts， who are inheritors and are helping to preserve the ancient craft. And the younger generations are choosing to pursue other business opportunities on the riverbank.

如今，只有一些老一輩的船夫還在用這種傳統的羊皮筏，他們是傳承者，正助力于使這種古老的工藝留存下來。年輕一代則選擇在河岸上尋找其他商機。

Word Bank

subsequently /'s?bs?kw?ntli/ adv. 后來；接著

rectangular /rek't??ɡj?l?（r）/ adj. 矩形的；長方形的

formidable /'f??m?d?bl/ adj. 難對付的；令人敬畏的

fulfil /f?l'f?l/ v. 實現；執行

They will fulfil the task in one week.

inheritor /?n'her?t?（r）/ n. 后繼者；繼承人