ʇɐoq ɹǝdɐԀ
You have a sheet of paper and a room. Take the sheet of paper and fold it into a paper boat. Flip it upside down and then scale it to the size of the room. Merge these two together and you will end up with
something that resembles neither a room, nor a paper boat. These are five steps to obtaining nothing in particular.
An inquiry into paper boats
Curated by alt. corp. & David Mitchell (The Public Paperfolding History Project)
European medieval book about astronomy written in Latin and printed in gothic type; this book is a version of the much earlier “Tractatus de Sphaera Mundi” by Johannes de Sacrobosco; the book contains a picture illustrating a solar eclipse; the inner circle seems to have two human silhouettes on either of its sides while its horizontal diameter splits the image in two equal halves: the upper one depicting a medieval city and the lower on depicting the open sea with two floating paper boats (“Uberrimum sphere mundi commentum intersertis etiam questionibus domini Petri de Aliaco”, 1498, p. 194-195, Joannes de Sacro Bosco)
The first known prose romance written by an English woman; it is considered to be an English Renaissance masterpiece – “unguided she was, unrul’d, and unman’d, tumbling up and downe, like the boates boyes make of paper, and play with all upon little brookes” (“Urania”, 1621, p. 444, Mary Wroath, Countess of Montgomerie)
A poem containing a mention of a paper boat – “I therefore to conclude this much will note / How I of Paper lately made a Boat; / And how in forme of Paper I did row / From London unto Quinborough, Ile show: (…) For as our boat was paper, so our Oares / Were Stock-fish, caught neere to the Island shores.” (“A Voyage in a Paper Boat from London to Quinborough”, “Extracts from The Works of John Taylor, The Water Poet”, 1630, p. 235, John Taylor)
Letter written by Arthur Trevor to The Marquess of Ormonde and Prince Rupert during the English Civil War – “My Lord of Antrim’s interest, and how it moves, and in what it points at your Lordship, and how, this Knight will acquaint your Excellence; for I dare not venture the state of such a question in a paper boate” (1643, p. 231-232)
Dictionary containing a mention of a paper boat in three languages, German, French and Latin – “Ein papieren schiff / schiffvon papier / Un bateau ou un navire de papier, comme les escoliers en font / Navis papyracea; Sic dixit Plinius: munus papyraceum aut chartaceum” (“Dictionarium Gallico-Germanico-Latinum”, 1664, p. 372, Nathanaël Duëz, Amsterdam)
French book containing a mention of a paper boat – “from his study, the place or the works of children when they make wooden weapons or paper boats” (“La Vie admirable de la B. Jeanne de Valois, Reine de France”, 1666, Paulin Du Gast, Bourges)
French book containing a mention of a paper boat – “They made a paper boat and their intention was to put Escobar in it to send him to drown in the middle of the canal which flows through their garden”; “They” being “little girls” and “Escobar” being a caricature of a man (“Les Visionnaires, Ou lettres sur L’Heresie Imaginaire”, 1667, Pierre Nicole, Liege)
Spanish book containing a mention of a paper boat – “If you intend to establish your foundation on papers, you enter defeated, ferociously deceased, because, in such a gulf, how can a paper boat last floating on water?” (“Comedias escogidas de los mejores ingenios de Espana”, 1670, p. 106, Agustin Moreto y Cabana)
Memoir book containing a captivating and inspiring account of the life of a noted Scottish minister. Written by the reverend himself, this memoir offers a firsthand look at his experiences as a pastor, preacher, and missionary in the seventeenth century; the book contains a mention of a paper boat – “I have been like Children, who with their little Bows shoot, but at no Mark, but that they may shoot; or as when they set their Paper-boats to Sea, but look for nothing else than to see them swim upon the Waters; and so it may be said of them, There is no End of their Labour.” (“Memoirs of the Life of the very Reverend Mr James Fraser of Brea”, 1698, p. 284, James Fraser)
Daily publication founded by Joseph Addison and Richard Steele in England, lasting from 1711 to 1712; each “paper”, or “number”, was approximately 2,500 words long, and the original run consisted of 555 numbers; number 482 contains a mention of a paper boat – “He was never suffered to go abroad, for fear of catching cold: when he should have been hunting down a buck, he was by his mother’s side learning how to season it, or put it in crust; and was making paper-boats with his sisters, at an age when other young gentlemen are crossing the seas, or travelling into foreign countries.” (“The Spectator” no. 482, 1712, p. 45-46)
Print showing a paper boat lying on the floor of a Japanese home (“Onna Fuhzoku Tama kagami”, 1723, Nishikawa Sukenobu)
Print showing two children with a komoso and a paper boat with three sails in a terakoya – a school for the children of commoners (1734, Mitsonubo Hasegawa)
Print showing the inside of a Japanese home; the girl in the back is holding a paper crane, while the other two seem to be folding a white sheet of paper; in the foreground, a paper boat and a sanbo are lying on the floor (1735, Nishikawa Sukenobu)
Print showing the inside of a Japanese home; the girl in the back is holding a paper crane, while the other two seem to be folding a white sheet of paper; in the foreground, a paper boat and a sanbo are lying on the floor (1735, Nishikawa Sukenobu)
Letter sent on 10th July 1757 by the young Guillermo Pen home to his mother from his school on the Isla Real de Leon containing a mention of a paper boat – “With this ploy I silence them; and then, to make friends with them, I make kites for some, for other boats, ships, birds, and many other things, all of paper.” (“Entretenimiento de los niños con reflexiones e instrucciones para la juventud”, 1779, p. 12, Monsieur Rochon, Madrid)
Book about the missionary expeditions of the Jesuits in China ant the East Indies containing a mention of a paper boat – “These French Girls made a Paper-Boat, and throwing it into the Water, amused themselves with seeing it drive along with the Current. Many of the Passengers gazed at this Paper Vessel, and seemed mightily diverted with its Voyage. The Difference, I believe, between the Chineze and the French Girls in putting their several Vessels into the Water was, the former did it in a religious View; whereas the latter, I suppose, thought of their Sweethearts on that Occasion.” (“Travels of the Jesuits into Various Parts of the World” vol 2, 1762, p. 59, John Lockman, London)
Book on natural sciences containing a mention of a paper boat – “When we amuse ourselves to fold paper to form, afterwards, by means of a certain unfolding, regular and symmetrical forms, like crowns, boats, &c. we may observe, that the different folds which is made on the paper, seems to have nothing in common with the form which must result by the unfolding. We see, that these folds are made always in a symmetrical order, and that we make on what side what we have made on the other; but this would be a problem beyond known geometry, to determine the figure which may result from all the unfoldings of a certain number of given folds.” (“The Natural History of Animals, Vegetables and Minerals” vol. IV, 1776, p. 388-389, George Louis Leclerc, Count de Buffon)
Print showing a child wearing a kimono patterned with paper boats (“Konzatsu Yamato Soga”, 1781, Isoda Koryusai)
Book containing a mention to a paper boat – “The man in his paper boat, is to show you how every man by nature (till taught of God) is ready to think that he may get to heaven, by what he can do himself. (…) his own best righteousness will fail him, as this man’s paper boat has done” (“Early Piety Or Memoirs of Children Eminently Serious: Interspersed with Familiar Dialogues, Emblematical Pictures, Prayers, Graces and Hymns.”, 1783, p. 13-14, Rev. Mr. Peckwell)
Book on navigation containing a mention of a paper boat used to help demonstrate that a magnetized needle will naturally point to North/South – “Concerning Magnetism – If a small paper boat be placed in a vessel of water, and a sewing needle put into it, it will as usual rest in any position; but if the needle be previously touched with a magnet, it will have acquired the property called magnetism, by means of which one of its ends will turn to the North, and the other to the South: and if the paper-boat be removed into any other position, the polarity of the needle will carry it round, so that the fame ends of the needle may again point to the North and South as before. The use of the boat is to take away the greatest part of that friction which in other circumstances prevents the needle from turning, and any other method which would sufficiently diminish that friction, would answer the fame purpose.” (“The Navigator’s Assistant”, 1784, p. 85-86, William Nicholson, London)
Book arguing for the philosophical position of deism; it follows in the tradition of 18th century British deism and challenges institutionalized religion and the legitimacy of the Bible; the book contains a mention of a paper boat – “The human mind has a natural disposition to scientific knowledge, and to the things connected with it. The first and favorite amusement of a child, even before it begins to play, is that of imitating the works of man. It builds houses with cards or sticks; it navigates the little ocean of a bowl of water with a paper boat; or dams the stream of a gutter, and contrives something which it calls a mill; and it interests itself in the fate of its works with a care that resembles affection. It afterwards goes to school, where its genius is killed by the barren study of a dead language, and the philosopher is lost in the linguist.” (“The Age of Reason”, 1794, p. 49-50, Thomes Paine, New York)
Print showing three boys folding paper boats; two paper boats and a stack of white sheets of paper are found lying on the floor (1810, Utagawa Toyohir)
The English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley seems to have had a passion for folding paper boats, a thing also confirmed by his friend and biographer, Thomas Jefferson Hogg; Shelley also wrote a poem containing a reference to a paper boat – “And in this bowl of quicksilver – for I / Yield to the impulse of an infancy / Outlasting manhood – I have made to float / A rude idealism of a paper boat:” (“Letter to Lady Gisborne”, 1829, Percy Bysshe Shelley)
Anecdote containing a reference to a paper boat – “The Effects of Promising What You Are Not Able to Perform – The Boy and The Paper Boat – One day, when the children were assembled in the gallery, I, having none of their usual lessons at hand, took from my pocket a piece of paper, and promised them that if they would answer me every question I put concerning the paper, I would at last make a paper boat. I proceeded in the following manner: – <>, <>, <>, <>, <> &c. These questions being answered according to their different views, and having folded it into a variety of forms, and obtained their ideas upon such forms, I proceeded to fulfil my promise of forming it into the shape of a boat, and the children seeing me at a loss, exclaimed, <> which proved a fact, as I had forgotten the plan, and was obliged to make the confession. <> rejoined one of the boys, << you should not have promised.>>” (“Infant Education” 3rd edition, 1825, p. 172-173, Samuel Wilderspin)
Print showing a group of children playing various games; two children, a boy and a girl, are folding paper objects; the items they have already folded are a paper crane, a box and a paper boat; a pair of scissors is also found lying on the floor (1829, Eishin Kikugawa)
Memoir book telling another story about Shelley’s passion for paper boats – “A boat was to Shelley what a plaything is to a child – his peculiar hobby. He was eighteen when he used to float paper ones on the Serpentine; and I have no doubt, at twenty-eight, would have done the same with any boy.” (“Memoir of Percy Bysshe Shelley”, 1833, p. 70-71, Thomas Medwin, Whittaker-Treacher and Co, London)
Images depicting Hans Christian Anderson’s children’s fantasy story “Den standhaftige soldat”; the original story includes references to a paper boat made out of a newspaper page; two children put a tin soldier inside the boat and watch him go down the gutter, the boat spins getting rapidly tossed around and, further on, the tin soldier meets a rat inside the sewage system, ultimately ending up at sea and getting swallowed by “a most enormous fish”. The images accompanying this edition of the story are the works of renowned Italian illustrator Sandro Nardini (“The Steadfast Tin Soldier”, p. 14-19, 1838, Hans Christian Anderson)
Print showing a child wearing a kimono patterned with paper boats (1841, Utagawa Kunisada)
Print showing a child wearing a kimono patterned with paper cranes, star-shaped boxes and paper boats; the child in the front is playing battledore, while a shide is hanging from the branch above them. (1845, Gorakutei Sadahiro)
German book about the country of China and its inhabitants containing a reference to “these little paper boats we fold for children”; the English translation of the highlighted fragment is as follows: “He wore a winter cap made of dark brown satin, which sat snugly on his head and had a black velvet rim bent sharply upwards all round, but much higher at the front and back than at the sides. In fact, the cap looked a lot like those little paper boats that we fold for children.” (“China: das Land und seine Bewohner”, 1848, p. 21-22, Friedrich Gerstäcker)
Article about a proposal to build a paper monument for The Queen of England; it contains a mention to ancient Egyptian paper boats – “The Egyptians, who had deep meaning in all their symbols – so deep, it often baffles us in its darkness – shipped Isis, when she searched for the remains of Osiris, in a bark of papyrus – a paper boat; for even the crocodiles respected the papyrus, never so much as snapping at it. There can be no doubt that, in this, the Egyptians intended to manifest the solemn function of paper as vessel sacred to the Intellect – a vessel that even the instinct of savage ignorance should respect. Such was the paper boat of Isis.” (“Our Little Bird – Proposal for a Monument to the Late Queen Dowager”, “Punch”, Volumes 17-18, p. 282, 1849, Henry Mayhew, Tom Taylor, Shirley Brooks, Sir Francis Cowley Burnand, Sir Owen Seaman, Mark Lemon)
German book about the country of China and its inhabitants containing a reference to “these little paper boats we fold for children”; the English translation of the highlighted fragment is as follows: “He wore a winter cap made of dark brown satin, which sat snugly on his head and had a black velvet rim bent sharply upwards all round, but much higher at the front and back than at the sides. In fact, the cap looked a lot like those little paper boats that we fold for children.” (“China: das Land und seine Bewohner”, 1848, p. 21-22, Friedrich Gerstäcker)
German book containing instructions for various children’s toys and games, including those needed to fold paper boats and other such objects; the English translation of the highlighted fragment is as follows: “Old writing books, which have done their duty in previous years, are dug out of the bookcase on long winter evenings to undergo a series of new transformations. Simply by folding them, a whole range of objects can be made from a piece of paper without any other tools being necessary. A white sheet of paper becomes a small book, one with writing on it becomes a bag, a case, a feathered hat, a ship, bellows, a horned devil, a snake, etc. We give some figures above which show the manner in which such works of art can be easily produced.” (“Spielbuch fur Knaben”, 1864, p. 283-284, Hermann Wagner, Verlag von Otto Spamer, Leipzig)
One of the best loved and most influential books ever published, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, is said to have been devised as a whimsical fantasy to entertain the Liddel sisters on a boat trip; years later, Lewis Carroll wrote an acrostic poem to honor this moment, and it was published at the end of the first edition of the book “Through The Looking Glass and What Alice Found There” in 1871; the first letter of every line of text spells out the name Alice Pleasance Liddell, the little girl said to have inspired Lewis Carroll’s book (“Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, 1865, Lewis Carroll, Macmillan, England)
An article containing a story about Lewis Carroll and his alleged passion for paper boats: “It was his delight to present copies of his books to little friends whom he met while traveling, or at the seashore where he spent his long summer vacations. Often, he wrote amusing letters with the book. One lady says: <>”; the article also features a photograph of Alice Liddell and another of her and her two sisters, Lorina and Edith (“St. Nicholas” Magazine v. 35 1907-1908, “How <> came to be written”, Helen Marshall Pratt)
German book containing instructions for various children’s toys and games, including those needed to fold paper boats and other such objects; the highlighted fragment is in many ways similar to the one published in 1864 (“De Kleine Natuurkundige”, 1869, p. 140, Pieter Beets, D Noorthoven Van Goor, Leiden)
Caricature from the “Collection de caricatures et de charges pour servir à l’histoire de la guerre et de la revolution de 1870-1871” showing Napoleon III at sea in a paper boat; the emperor is raising his hat in his right hand (“Les Représentants En Représentation”, 1871, Georges Labadie Pilotell, Talons)
Exercise book found in the collection of Musée cantonal d’archéologie et d’histoire (MCAH) in Lausanne; it contains three pages on paper folding; the two paper boat designs are the standard one (top) and one other variation (below) with a slightly larger sail (“Cahier de pliage selon la méthode Froebel – Adèle – 17 ans”, 1876, Nishikawa Sukenobu)
Pictorial story containing images of various folded paper objects/toys, including a paper boat (“Llibre Vert III”, Apeles Mestres, 1883)
Front page of a French newspaper showing a floating paper boat with a military hat and a French flag under the title “Il flotte, mais ne sombre pas”; the English translation of the title is “It floats, but doesn’t sink” (“La Diane”, 13 October 1889)
Book containing instructions for various children’s toys and games, including those needed to fold paper boats and other such objects (“The Prang Primary Course in Art Education: Part 1: The First Primary Year”, 1892, p. 160-167, Mary Dana Hicks and Josephine C Locke, The Prang Educational Company, Boston)
French book containing an illustration of the small paper boat – “Petit bateau” (“L’Annee Preparatoire de Travail Manuel”, 1893, M P Martin, Armand Collin & Cie, Paris)
French book containing an illustration of the simple paper boat – “Barque simple” (“Le Travail Manuel a L’ecole Primaire”, 1893, M. Coste and J. Lapassade)
Poem about a paper boat (“The Paper Boat”, 1897, Palinurus, James Bowden)
Spanish book containing a mention to a paper boat; the English translation of the highlighted fragment is as follows: “In Paper Boat – I had just sat down when the victim the youngest of my paternal extremes opened the door of my coffee drinker, sat on my lap, bribed me with a kiss, and asked for a paper boat.” (“En Barco de Papel”, 1898, Hostos Eugenio María)
French book containing illustrated instructions on how to fold a paper boat (“Le Livre des Amusettes”, 1899, Toto, Charles Mendel, Paris)
Novel containing a reference to a paper boat made from a £5 note by a character called Shelley, who is a poet – presumably Percy Bysshe Shelley; much of this work was included in a later novel, “Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens”, published in 1906 and illustrated by Arthur Rackham – one of these illustrations shows Solomon and his assistants examining a £5 note – “So, when he was walking in the Kensington Gardens, he made a paper boat of his bank-note, and sent it sailing on the Serpentine. It reached the island at night: and the look-out brought it to Solomon Caw, who thought at first that it was the usual thing, a message from a lady, saying she would be obliged if he could let her have a good one. They always ask for the best one he has, and if he likes the letter, he sends one from Class A; but if it ruffles him, he sends very funny ones indeed. Sometimes he sends none at all, and at another time he sends a nestful; it all depends on the mood you catch him in. He likes you to leave it all to him, and if you mention particularly that you hope he will see his way to making it a boy this time, he is almost sure to send another girl. And whether you are a lady or only a little boy who wants a baby-sister, always take pains to write your address clearly. You can’t think what a lot of babies Solomon has sent to the wrong house. Shelley’s boat, when opened, completely puzzled Solomon, and he took counsel of his assistants, who having walked over it twice, first with their toes pointed out, and then with their toes pointed in, decided that it came from some greedy person who wanted five. They thought this because there was a large five printed on it. <> cried Solomon in a rage, and he presented it to Peter; anything useless which drifted upon the island was usually given to Peter as a play-thing.” (“The Little White Bird / The Thrush’s Nest”, 1902, p. 173-174, J. M. Barrie, Hodder & Stoughton, London)
Postcard showing a caricature of Swiss Admiral Jacques Lebaudy; the image shows four people overlooking a small water basin with floating paper boats (1903)
Spanish book containing instructions for games, toys and folding techniques for paper boats and other such objects – “Botecitos” (“Caras y Caretas” Issue 238, 25th March 1905)
French postcards showing a girl playing with paper boats; the English translation of the captions on the postcards reads as follows: “And the most beautiful of all, its mast trimmed with canvas That the breeze will sway, a real sailing boat!”, “A shipwreck is nothing, for here, the shoals cause accidents, but do not cause mourning.” (1907)
French book containing illustrated instructions on how to fold various types of paper boats, including a so-called “large ship” – “Grosse Schiff” (“Die Frobelschen Beschaftigungen”, 1910, Marie Muller-Wunderlich, Friedrich Brandstetter, Leipzig)
Book containing instructions for various children’s toys and games, including those needed to fold paper boats and other such objects; the book has to versions of the paper boat called “Dory 2” and “Dory 3” (“Studies in Invalid Occupation”, 1910, p. 27-35, Susan E Tracy, Whitcomb and Barrows, Boston)
Birthday postcards showing two young girls and her beloved pets, a dog and a cat, surrounded by flowers aboard two large paper boats (1910)
Spanish book containing instructions for games, toys and folding techniques for paper boats and other such objects – “El barco doble”, “El sombrero de dos picos”, “La cuna”, “Otras varias figuras” (“El Trabajo Manual en la Escuela”, 1914, p. 24-27, Félix Martí Alpera, Libreria de los Sucesores de Hernando, Madrid)
Book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects; this paper boat is developed from a version of the newspaper hat in which the corners have been partly turned up to improve the shape; this method gives the boat a smaller hull and a larger sail (“Paper Magic”, 1920, C Arthur Pearson, London)
Spanish book containing instructions for games, toys and folding techniques for paper boats and other such objects – “La barca” (“Trabajos Manuales y Juegos Infantiles”, 1923, Francisco Blanch, I. G. Seix y Barral Hermanos S.A.- Editores, Barcelona)
Spanish book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects (“Trabajos Manuales Salvatella – Plegado de figuras de papel”, 1929, Editorial Miguel A Salvatera, Barcelona)
French advertising postcard for Manioc Tapioca showing a paper boat – “Petit Navire” (1930)
French book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects (“Jeux de pliages”, 1933, Editorial Miguel A Salvatera, Barcelona)
German book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects (“’Faltarbeiten aus Papier 1”, 1936, Georg Netzband, W Kohlhammer Verlag, Stuttgart)
Book containing instructions for games, toys and folding techniques for paper boats and other such objects – “Paper Boats” (“More Things Any Boy Can Make”, 1936, Joseph Leeming, D Appleton-Century Company, New York)
Book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects (“Paper Toy Making”, 1937, Margaret Campbell, Sir Isaac Pitman and Sons Ltd, London)
Spanish book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects – “El Barquito” (“El Mundo de Papel”, 1939, Dr Nemesio Montero, G Miranda in Edicions Infancia, Valladolid)
Book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects – “A Fisherman’s Dory” (“Fun with Paper”, 1939, Joseph Leeming, Spencer Press Inc, Chicago)
Spanish book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects – “Barquito Comun” (“El Plegado y Cartonaje en la Escuela Primaria”, 1940, Antonio M Luchia, Corina Luciani de Luchia, Editorial Kapelusz, Buenos Aires)
Book containing paper folding instructions for paper toys, including paper boats; the paper boat diagrams include the simple boat and other variations like the boat with a mast, or the boat with a sail (“At Home Tonight”, 1940, Herbert McKay, Oxford University Press, London)
Spanish book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects – “Primer Modelo de Barco” (“Papiroflexia”, 1951, Elias Gutierrez Gil)
Article containing paper folding instructions for a so-called “Paper Man” with a paper boat hat on its head (“How To Make A Paper Man”, “Rupert Annual”, 1951)
Book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects – “… and here is your boat.” (“Paper Magic”, 1956, Robert Harbin, Oldbourne, London)
German book containing paper folding instructions for paper boats and other such objects “Kahn” (“Wir Falten”, 1961, Joachim Schönherr, Gerta Schumann, Rudolf Arnold Verlag, Leipzig)
English translation of a Polish book containing a reference to a paper boat – “The child ran along the side, then dipped it into the water, where other children were sailing paper boats and small ships. Their hands disturbed the surface of the water, while the net described a lazy circle, once, twice, then stretched itself out immobile, as if with pleasure. One of these boats was hit by a ball from the lawn. The boat swayed and toppled onto its side; water poured into its paper interior and the opposite side shone in the sun with deathly whiteness, gliding slowly and still more and more slowly. Two children ran up, pulled the ball to the side with a stick, unfastened the wet boat from it. Its creased shape fell near the stone edge of the pond, and the children ran off where they had come from and disappeared behind a wall of box shrubs. I picked up the crumpled little paper boat and shook the water off it. Pressed between my tight fingers, it assumed a similarity to its old self. I determined that when it dried out, I would keep it. I would write today’s date on it, and it would accompany me in my future odysseys.” (“Beech Boat”, 1993, p. 294-295, Janina Kościałkowska, Readers International)