An exhibition featuring "Nanhai No.1", the ancient sunken vessel officially opens at the Nanyue King Museum in Guangzhou, July 3, 2023. (Photo by Wang Weixuan/Guangzhou Daily)

What supplies were carried by the "Nanhai No.1" before its departure? On July 3, an exhibition featuring the ancient sunken vessel officially opened at the Nanyue King Museum in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province.

Porcelain relics recovered from the "Nanhai No.1" are displayed at the Nanyue King Museum in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, July 3, 2023. (Photo by Wang Weixuan/Guangzhou Daily)

The exhibition, planned for over a year, brings together over 400 relics from 12 domestic cultural and heritage institutions, with more than two-thirds of the artifacts being displayed for the first time.

A visitor takes photos of porcelain relics recovered from the "Nanhai No.1" at the Nanyue King Museum in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, July 3, 2023. (Photo by Wang Weixuan/Guangzhou Daily)

Based on the latest archaeological discoveries and academic research, the exhibition vividly presents the prosperous maritime economy of the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

Porcelain relics recovered from the "Nanhai No.1" are displayed at the Nanyue King Museum, in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, July 3, 2023. (Photo by Wang Weixuan/Guangzhou Daily)

The discovery of the "Nanhai No.1" in 1987 offered fresh insight into the ancient Maritime Silk Road, a trade route that facilitated the transportation of China's silk, porcelain, and other valuable goods to Southwest Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe. However, it wasn't until December 2007 that the wreckage was raised from the seabed.

The sinking of the "Nanhai No.1" represents the most significant underwater archaeological discovery in China to date. Over the past thirty or so years since its discovery, the excavation and research into the "Nanhai No.1" have yielded remarkable results, yet many mysteries remain to be unraveled.

The "Nanhai No.1" was loaded with gold, silver, bronze currency, luxurious golden goods, ceramics, ironware, copperware, lacquerware and more. Drawing from the wealth of information contained in the artifacts recovered from the sunken ship, this exhibition aims to reconstruct the maritime route of the "Nanhai No.1," which departed from Fujian Province's Quanzhou and sank in the waters off Taishan, Guangdong Province.

The exhibition is expected to run until October 8, 2023.

Source: CGTN
Photos: Wang Weixuan/Guangzhou Daily
Editor: Lyu Yun