Antananarivo – In a small workshop on the outskirts of Madagascar's capital, Antananarivo, a team of master artisans is keeping maritime history alive by crafting detailed models of famous ships. For three decades, craftsmen at "the Village" have been creating museum-quality models of vessels that once ruled the waves.
From the Bounty to the Soleil Royal and Superbe, these legendary ships – which once carried admirals, merchants and kings across the world's oceans – are now recreated in exquisite detail by the Village's 30 skilled model makers.
With his scraper in hand, Rafah Ralahy meticulously smooths the hull of the Soleil d'Orient, a 17th-century French merchant vessel that belonged to the French East India Company.
His fingers glide over the rough wood, searching for imperfections.
"My work is about being completely faithful to the plan. At each stage, we make adjustments to ensure the model we create is identical to the ship designed centuries ago," says Ralahy, his eyes fixed on the enormous plan spread across his workbench.
Across the room, Tovo-Hery Andrianarivo shapes the balustrades of an 18th-century warship's sterncastle, his chisel moving with careful precision.
Like most of his colleagues, Andrianarivo brings three decades of experience to his craft.
"I love my job because it's art. I'm proud to see our models travel around the world," he explains.
"Once, my former boss showed me a documentary about the ship Hermione returning to sea. Behind the museum curator who was speaking, there was our model. The feeling I had that day was incredible."
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A family tradition
The Village is more than a workshop – it's a clan. Its employees come from about 15 different families living in the same neighbourhood.
Most were trained in-house by the founder, a French naval model maker who has since sold the business. The youngest artisans are often children of the "old hands".
Despite Madagascar's repeated economic and social crises, the workshop has weathered the storms.
"It's thanks to the unique quality of our artisans' work," said Grégory Postel, who has owned the Village since 2023.
"We're among the best in the world, and we're not afraid to say it. It's our trademark. There are other competitors who make beautiful pieces, but none as refined as ours."
In the trade, this exceptional standard is known as "museum finish" – a level of excellence that demands painstaking attention to detail.
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Royal clientele
"I think that's what attracts the royal families, who are really looking for the pure, perfect product that resembles what their ancestors owned when they were kings of their countries in the 1600s and 1700s," Postel says.
The workshop's list of prestigious clientele includes Prince Albert of Monaco, the Spanish royal family and Pope Francis.
Special orders come alongside catalogue offerings, such as the Soleil Royal. At 1.2 metres long, this particular model is in its final stages, with four rigging workshop artisans completing the installation of 10 metres of beeswax-hardened cordage and hoisting the miniature flags.
This exceptional piece, sold to a private collector in France for €5,300 plus shipping costs, represents more than 800 hours of work by 15 people.
The detailed craftsmanship and historical accuracy of its miniature fleet have earned the Village, an otherwise modest Malagasy workshop, a reputation among foreign collectors as a guardian of maritime heritage.
This story was adapted from the original article reported in French by RFI correspondent Sarah Tétaud.
