Historically, this indigenous vessel is also favored by European skippers and private merchants for trading in East Indies: 50% of them were using mayang and pencalang.
The hull shape is broad, flat-bottomed with a pronounced bow and stern.
[2] A boat from 1850 had a beam of 3 m, a length of 12 m, and a depth of 1 m. There were at least 9 compartments for storing fish (called petak), three of them in front of the mast, separated from each other by bulkheads.
Linggi (the foremost part of the frame) is about 2.1 m high, about 1.2 m in width and adorned with traditional motifs like flower, horse head, wayang figure and writings in bright colors.
The large sail propel the boat with relatively high speed, when the wind is unavailable row or paddle can be used instead.
It is quite similar in construction technique to a perahu jaring but beamier and having a horn-like pole which is carried beyond the sides of the boat to the stern to support the net.