Tourists are looking at the antiques displayed at the museum. Photo vov.vn

The exhibition "Di Sản Từ Những Con Tàu Cổ" (Heritage from Shipwrecks) is being held at the museum with documents, images and artefacts salvaged from ancient ships wrecked off the coast of the central provinces of Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh and Binh Thuan.

All the exhibits are coastal cultural treasures with significant historical and scientific values. 

One is a beautiful blue enamel figurine of a noblewoman dating from the 15th century found on a ship wrecked off Cu Lao Cham (Cham Island) in Hoi An, Quang Nam. 

The wreck in Cu Lao Cham was surveyed and salvaged from 1997 to 1999, with the remains of the ship measuring 29.4 metres long and 7.2 metres wide.

FANCY FIGURINE: A statue of a noblewoman dating from the 15th century found in a shipwreck off Cham Island in Hoi An, the central province of Quang Nam. VNS Photo Doan Tung

The ship was transporting Chu Dau ceramics produced in the Red River Delta, Vietnam, to other countries through the Silk Road when it was wrecked, according to Dr Doan Ngoc Khoi, deputy director of Quang Ngai Museum.

Some 240,000 valuable artefacts were salvaged, including ceramics, bronze objects, metal kitchenware, Chinese coins, mortars, spices, seeds, and the crew's belongings. It is one of the biggest finds ever made by local archaeologists.

The haul included many 15th century Chu Dau ceramics from the Le dynasty (1428- 1789), with various enamel and decorative patterns.

Many have blue, celadon, white, brown and multi-coloured enamels, and have distinct features of Vietnamese ceramics, different from the Chinese ones.

A JUG IN TIME: Artefacts from Cham Island shipwreck are on display in Quang Ngai Museum. Photo sggp.org.vn

Swiss tourist Hannes Schule is fascinated by the exhibition.

"It is amazing to watch the artefacts from the ancient shipwrecks with my own eyes," he said. "It gives me a chance to get to know the typical cultural characteristics of Quang Ngai and other Vietnamese coastal provinces in the past."

Hundreds of thousands of artefacts have been salvaged from shipwrecks in the central coastal region during the past years.

The highlight of the exhibits is a collection of hundreds of objects found in a 13th century shipwreck in Vung Tau seas, and Binh Son District of Quang Ngai. It was unveiled in an excavation conducted by the Vietnam Museum of History and the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2013.

The ship was nearly 30m long and 5m wide, containing a remarkable collection of antiques. The artefacts include ceramics that were salvaged dozens of metres away from the wrecked ship. Some of the 4,000 artefacts originated from China. 

Most date back to the 12th century. Many antiquities have unique patterns that are very different from those salvaged in the 700-year-old wreck, according to Khoi. 

Valuable and rare artefacts salvaged from an ancient shipwreck in Binh Dinh can also be found at the exhibition. It is believed to be a Chinese ship on the north-south navigation route, wrecked in the 14th century.

Another wreck was discovered by local fishermen in Tuy Phong District, Binh Thuan about 20 years ago. It was found at a depth of around 40 metres. The boat itself was 23.4 metres long and 7.2 metres wide. 

Archaeologists obtained more than 60,000 artefacts from the wreck, mostly blue and white ceramics and a significant amount of coloured porcelains, dating back to the first half of the 15th century. 

About 5,000 artefacts from the Binh Thuan shipwreck are stored in Quang Ngai Museum. 

"Heritage from the ancient shipwrecks in the central coastal provinces shows how Vietnam played a major role in international trade, as part of the glorious chapter of Maritime Silk Road," said Khoi. 

"Commercial ports along the coastal central of Vietnam have existed and thrived from the Champa to Đại Việt (Great Viet) eras according to historical documents and archaeological excavation. And today, we can still see the physical vestiges of these medieval commercial ports."

Source: Vietnam News

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