A life-sized replica of Noah’s Ark built by Dutch carpenter plans to sail the 2,500-ton vessel to Israel.
The devout Christian carpenter, Johan Huibers told JTA he wants to take his biblical creation to ‘God’s land’, and is seeking $1.3 million donations from good Samaritans to get the vessel over there. Since the ark has no motor he needs to rent tugboats to sail it.
Will you offer us a hand? Every gift, regardless of size, fuels our future.
Your critical contribution enables us to maintain our independence from shareholders or wealthy owners, allowing us to keep up reporting without bias. It means we can continue to make Jewish Business News available to everyone.
You can support us for as little as $1 via PayPal at office@jewishbusinessnews.com.
Thank you.
Huibers say he built the ship six years ago according to ancient dimensions detailed in the book of Genesis: “three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits” (Genesis 6). This means 410ft long, 95ft wide and 75ft tall chambers.
The Noah’s ark is larger than a football field, with five floors and can transport more than 5,000 people at a time.
It cost him nearly $1.6 million and it becomes an attraction in Dordrecht, south of Amsterdam.
The 60-years-old carpenter says he began working on the ark’s construction with the help of seven assistants back in 2008 and it took him more than four years complete all details. The cost of its construction was $1.6 million, a most of it covered by donations.
‘I love the land, I love the country, I love the people,’ he told Daily Mail of Israel. ‘They don’t obey, they do what they want, they drive like mad, shove while waiting in line and don’t listen to anyone. Just like me.’
