An exhibition that promises to offer insight into the world of underwater archeology and ancient maritime links between Taiwan and China is being held at the Shihsanhang Museum of Archeology in Bali (八里), Taipei County, until Dec. 13.
Under the theme “Diving into History,” the exhibition is divided into six areas that feature a wide range of biological fossils from the Taiwan Strait dating back 40,000 years, an array of underwater cultural and historic assets, and a virtual underwater archeological site, said Lee Li-fang, an official with the Council for Cultural Affairs and one of the organizers of the exhibition.
Other highlights include 20 artifacts retrieved from a sunken Qing Dynasty vessel from the Qianlong period (1736-1796) that was named General No. 1 after Penghu’s General Islet where the wreck was discovered by fishermen in 1994, the council said.
Records suggest that there could be 500 sunken ships in the Taiwan Strait, said Ho Chuan-kun (何傳坤), director of the National Museum of Natural Science’s anthropology department.
The Taichung museum is one of the organizers of the exhibit.
However, only about 10 sunken vessels were located in a recent marine census conducted by the council, Ho said.
Because Taiwan lacks expertise in underwater archeology, the council has sought international help in an effort to catch up with more advanced countries in the field, Lee said.
The council signed a four-year cooperative memorandum of understanding in 2007 with France’s Department of Underwater and Undersea Archeological Research for help in identifying and authenticating what was believed to be an ancient vessel discovered during the dredging of Makong Harbor in Penghu, Lee said.
However, no wreckage was found during the underwater exploration of the site by local experts and seven French archeologists, Lee said.
Taiwan has had marine links with China for 400 years and there are a number of sunken ships in the Taiwan Strait, the council’s Wang Show-lai said. The government should therefore seek to build underwater archeological expertise in the country, Wang said.
Artifacts and treasure recovered from sunken vessels should be seen as tourism resources, so the government should set up a marine department or underwater archeology agency to preserve these treasures, Lee said.
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