The design of the kayak comes from the Eskimos of Southwestern Greenland,

The design of the kayak comes from the Eskimos of Southwestern Greenland, with dimension-sawn wood substituted for a frame of carved driftwood and bones, and canvas substituted for animal skins. The building techniques are simple but elegant, incorporating modern adhesives to reduce the number of screw fastenings and the degree of precision required, while still creating a strong, light boat. Ordinary shop tools and locally available woods will suffice. The two kayaks shown under construction in this book's many photos and drawings--a 17-footer and an 18-footer--were built from the same lines and offsets (included in the book). Putz shows how to scale the boat up or down to any size using a pocket calculator. He also shows how to cover the boat with fiberglass rather than canvas if desired.