According to the Quang Ngai Provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the 40 ceramic and porcelain plates and bowls recovered from the sea bed in Binh Son District were from the Chinese Ming and Qing dynasties dating back to the 16 and 17 centuries.

"Initial investigation showed that the ceramic wares may belong to a sunken ship that might have been buried under the sea bed," the department said. "The ship might have sunk during a storm as most of the objects were still in good condition."

Deputy director of Quang Ngai Museum, Doan Ngoc Khoi, said that this was the first time they found objects some 50 metres deep. He said there may be many other objects from a sunken ship which will provide lots of useful information.

"We're discussing some measures to find the possible sunken ship in the area," Khoi said. "The search location is about three nautical miles from the shore and over 50 metres under water."

Earlier on May 17, some fishermen in Binh Son District found 33 plates and seven bowls made from ceramic and porcelain in local waters.

Source: Dtinews