Xinhua | 2010-5-3
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A TREASURE trove of priceless porcelain has been uncovered from a 400-year-old merchant shipwreck, evidence that Chinese merchants may have flouted bans on foreign trade.
More than 80 pieces of porcelain from Emperor Wanli's reign (1573-1620) have been salvaged from the ancient ship off south China's Guangdong Province, the provincial cultural relics bureau announced yesterday.
Archaeologists believe the ship, which sank in waters off Nan'ao County, Shantou City, may have been carrying 10,000 pieces of blue-and-white porcelain from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
Some of the larger porcelain bowls found in the vessel, dubbed "Nan'ao-1," were probably made for foreign trade as they were not commonly used in Chinese daily life at that time, experts believe.
The find is particularly interesting as Wanli's administration banned sea trade.
Sheet copper and coins found during the salvage operation indicated the ship might have been smuggling copper too, as its export was also banned at the time, said Sun Jian, head of the salvage team.
The Ming Dynasty restricted private sea trade to deter piracy, which had imposed huge hardships on legitimate sea traders, and ensure maritime security along Chinese coastal areas.
Many ancient Chinese dynasties, including the Ming Dynasty, banned the export of copper as the metal was precious, hard to mine and mainly used to manufacture coins in ancient China.
The team also recovered equipment that looked like cannon, but it was not unusual for ancient merchants to arm their ships against pirates, said Sun.
More than 20 experts started the salvage operation on April 9 and would finish in another 90 days if weather conditions permitted, he said.
The excavation was scheduled to begin on September 26 last year, but was postponed due to severe weather conditions, including typhoons and cold snaps.
Archaeologists have been saying they believe the wreck will shed new light on China's foreign trade at the time.
Local fishermen in May 2007 found the wreck, estimated to be about 25 meters long and 7 meters wide, buried in silt 27 meters underwater and about 5.6 nautical miles from Shantou City.
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A TREASURE trove of priceless porcelain has been uncovered from a 400-year-old merchant shipwreck, evidence that Chinese merchants may have flouted bans on foreign trade.
More than 80 pieces of porcelain from Emperor Wanli's reign (1573-1620) have been salvaged from the ancient ship off south China's Guangdong Province, the provincial cultural relics bureau announced yesterday.
Archaeologists believe the ship, which sank in waters off Nan'ao County, Shantou City, may have been carrying 10,000 pieces of blue-and-white porcelain from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
Some of the larger porcelain bowls found in the vessel, dubbed "Nan'ao-1," were probably made for foreign trade as they were not commonly used in Chinese daily life at that time, experts believe.
The find is particularly interesting as Wanli's administration banned sea trade.
Sheet copper and coins found during the salvage operation indicated the ship might have been smuggling copper too, as its export was also banned at the time, said Sun Jian, head of the salvage team.
The Ming Dynasty restricted private sea trade to deter piracy, which had imposed huge hardships on legitimate sea traders, and ensure maritime security along Chinese coastal areas.
Many ancient Chinese dynasties, including the Ming Dynasty, banned the export of copper as the metal was precious, hard to mine and mainly used to manufacture coins in ancient China.
The team also recovered equipment that looked like cannon, but it was not unusual for ancient merchants to arm their ships against pirates, said Sun.
More than 20 experts started the salvage operation on April 9 and would finish in another 90 days if weather conditions permitted, he said.
The excavation was scheduled to begin on September 26 last year, but was postponed due to severe weather conditions, including typhoons and cold snaps.
Archaeologists have been saying they believe the wreck will shed new light on China's foreign trade at the time.
Local fishermen in May 2007 found the wreck, estimated to be about 25 meters long and 7 meters wide, buried in silt 27 meters underwater and about 5.6 nautical miles from Shantou City.
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