The Display Board of Konts was handmade in Kings Lynn, Devon, England, by Tom Long DSM, a member of the International Guild of Knot Tyers. Tom Long more recently lived in a suburb of Melbourne. This display board shows the knots and joins used in ropework performed by a sailmaker and other skilled knot tyers and ropeworkers. It demonstrates the uses of some of the knots, such as knobs and handles, suspending lengths of wood, reinforcing spliced rope and even for decorative work. The sailmakers, travelling as part of the ship’s crew, stored their tool kit in a canvas ditty bag. It contained needles, awls, a sailmaker’s leather-palmed glove with a heavily reinforced palm, a shuttle to mend and make nets, fids, knives, mallets, brushes, rulers, and rope gauges. Sailmakers used their ropework and knot-making skills for various purposes and chose the type of rope fibre for its particular properties. For example, Italian hemp rope was preferred for the light line used in shore-to-ship rescues because it was lightweight, not easily knotted, and absorbed less water. A supply of various types of rope was a commodity on board a ship and on land in the new colonies. It was flexible, easily stored, and could be worked to create an endless variety of objects on its own or with other materials like wood. An example is a simple rope ladder. Lengths could be combined to make various thicknesses, and pieces could be skilfully joined together by splicing. The importance of knots in seafaring cannot be overestimated. When ships relied on only the wind for power and speed, there were a huge number of various ropes in use, particularly about the sails and rigging. Seafarers would be judged on their ability to tie knots speedily and correctly. A mounted display of authentic seamen's knots is on a board covered in blue fabric. Various rope grades and fibres were used to work numerous knots and splices. Some of the uses are familiar, such as the toggle, the pineapple knot, and the Turk’s head. A selection of rope grades and fibres was used to work numerous knots and splices. Some of the uses are familiar, such as the toggle, the pineapple knot, and the Turk’s head. The name or purpose of the knot is on the label below it. Labels below each knot give its name or use.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, maritime museum, maritime village, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, knot display, knot making, ropework, marine technology, sailmaker's work, sailor's knots, ship's rigging, seamen's knots, handmade, rope craft, knots, splices, display board of knots, knot board, tom long, sailmaker's knots, mariner's knots

Boat fenders are designed to protect against damage caused by boats, docks or moorings knocking into other objects. The Coir boat fenders can absorb the impact, acting as a bumper. The design is similar to fenders used for narrow boat fenders or on canal boats, barges, workboats and moorings. Feners are available in round and oblong boat shapes in many sizes today.Fenders are marine equipment used to protect the sides of water vessels and to buffer them against daming from their moorings or each other. The knot and rope work used to make the covers of these fenders is a skill learned by many mariners and passed down through generations. Seafarers on 18th-to-20th-century sailing ships found many uses for this handcraft.Fenders, set of four; balls made from Coir or hessian material and covered with knotted rope. Each has a rope loop..warrnambool, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill, flagstaff hill maritime museum, flagstaff hill maritime village, fender, knotted rope, buffer, coir, rope fender, round fender, boat protection, marine equipment, handmade fender, rope work, knot making