This celadon bottle was made in the Longquan (龍泉) kilns in Zhejiang Province, China, and it was found at the bottom of the sea, from a shipwreck that is estimated to have occurred sometime in the early 14th century near Sinan, located in a cluster of small islands in southwest Korea. More than 30,000 artifacts were recovered from the Sinan shipwreck, which was a single merchant vessel sailing from China to Japan.

Chinese ceramics were widely admired and desired in the medieval world in general and the Islamic world in particular. The Chinese cared to export their ceramics throughout the world through land and sea. Dr. John Carswell describes the export of Chinese ceramics westward in his book “Blue and White Chinese Porcelain” (British Museum Press, 2007).

Typical scale weights used during the Yuan period were found. The bronze weights have inscriptions, “Qingyuan” on one side and “Year of Gengshen” on the other. Qingyuan refers to present-day Ningbo, and the zodiac year of gengshen (gyeongsin in Korean) may be 1320.

Provenance: Dodeok-do, Bangchuk-ri, Jido-myeon, Sinan-gun, Jeollanam-do

Materials: Copper Alloy

Dimensions: H. 9.3cm, D. 4.5cm

Accession Number: Sinan 9937

This amulet is made from a fine gold leaf and engraved; it represents a fish swimming towards the left with a long dorsal fin, two small ventral fins and a tail spreading out like a fan. The gills and eye are marked by small protrusions. On the body, a rock with a bluish-turquoise tone (green feldspar?) in an almond shape is set using a thin gold band. The general form of this inlaying is reminiscent of an eye, in particular, the Udjat eye, the symbol of integrity for ancient Egyptians.

This clay tablet was discovered at the site of Ugarit (modern Ras Shamra) located along the Syrian coast, 10 km north of Latakia. Ugarit was the capital city of the Empire bearing the same name.

This is a qingbai (bluish white) bottle, produced in the Jingdezhen (景德鎭) kilns located in Jiangxi Province, China. The Jingdezhen kilns first produced porcelains for export during the Tang and Song Dynasties, and by the Yuan Dynasty, they had become the center of ceramic production in China. Qingbai ware are known for their extraordinary translucency, which was achieved using kaolin (a special clay mineral) and fine-grained porcelain stone, which allowed for the creation of vessels with very thin walls.

Wanjiao One is an ancient Chinese merchant ship that sank off the coast of Fujian Province's Pingtan County, China. The shipwreck is 13.8m long, 3m wide and 1m deep. Loaded with more than 17,000 pieces of porcelain, amongst which 10,000 pieces of blue-and-white porcelain date back to the reign of the Kangxi Emperor (1654-1722) in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911).

In June 1990, the cargo of the wreck Vung Tau, which was approximately 15 km away from the Hon Cau Island, at the depth of 40m and buried in the sand from 0.6m to 1.0m deep, was recovered.

Turkish iron screw steamer of 1,736 GRT, which was built in Sunderland and launched in April 1873 as the Severn. Later renamed Mustapha Bey before finally becoming registered as the Turc. In May 1895 the Turc ran aground and broke in two on the Abu Madafi Reef approximately 40 miles north of Jeddah at position 22°03' N, 38°45' E and became a constructive total loss.

This shipwreck was discovered in 1984, near Wando-gun, Jeollabuk-do in South Korea. The shipwreck is the first local Korean vessel to be fully excavated under water. Almost 30,000 artefacts have been recovered, mainly typical celadon porcelain. Based on these findings, the vessel may date to the late 11^th century and subsequently, may represent the local Korean watercraft of the Goryeo Dynasty. This period was the golden age in the history of Korean seafaring and vessel development.