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This article is from
Creation 21(1):6, December 1998

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Modeling the size of Noah’s Ark

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Many people have difficulty understanding how big Noah’s Ark was. Rod Walsh, from Geelong (Victoria, Australia), set about helping people to see that Noah’s Ark was a real boat of huge proportions.

Rod Walsh‘s ark model

Rod built a 1/72nd scale model—that is, the real Ark was 72 times bigger than Rod’s model. Rod’s model is two metres long. The actual Ark was over 140 metres long. You could fit over 350,000 of Rod’s models in the real Ark!

How does this help? Well, when you put 1/72nd scale models of animals and people next to the model Ark, people can see just how big it is—and how it could hold a huge number of animals and a lot of food, as well as Noah and his family. The Ark was certainly too big if it was meant for a few local animals escaping from a limited local flood, as some would want to believe (and why not emigrate instead?).

Rod asked Creation Ministries International in Brisbane for help with the Ark’s specifications to make sure he got it as authentic as possible. You can see from the photos [all photos are available in Creation magazine] just how much work went into it—showing the decks, pens for the animals (including dinosaurs), sacks of food, even bird cages, complete with birds!

Rod has had a number of requests from people to show the model Ark at their church or school.

Rod built a 1/72nd scale model—that is, the real Ark was 72 times bigger than Rod’s model. Rod’s model is two metres long. The actual Ark was over 140 metres long. You could fit over 350,000 of Rod’s models in the real Ark!

Note—no fish tanks, despite skeptic caricatures, because the Bible says only land animals were on board. Imagine how much work it was for Noah and his family, and probably hired workers, to build the real thing!

Rod and his wife, Nancy, displayed their Ark at the Waterfront Festival in Geelong last January. The interest overwhelmed them. For three days they hardly had time to sit down, with 6–15 people looking at the Ark at any one time. On the last day they went from 10 AM to 10 PM with hardly a break.

Rod built a 1/72nd scale model—that is, the real Ark was 72 times bigger than Rod’s model. Rod’s model is two metres long. The actual Ark was over 140 metres long. You could fit over 350,000 of Rod’s models in the real Ark!

They ran out of brochures and materials to hand out, including Creation magazine brochures. People were amazed at the relative size of the Ark—Rod had measured the wharf building where the display was housed and was able to tell people how big the Ark was compared to the building.

Rod has had a number of requests from people to show the model Ark at their church or school. When he and Nancy display the Ark, they also present the biblical account of the Flood, warning viewers of the judgment of God upon sin and of the final coming judgment. God has provided a way of escape from this judgment through Jesus paying the penalty for our sins by His death on the Cross.

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