Turiang shipwreck
The Turiang shipwreck is a sunken merchant ship presumably from China and probably dates from the beginning of the 14th century. It was found by Sten Sjostrand not far from Singapore on May 13, 1998 and contained more than 6000 ceramic vessels.
Naming and description
The name Turiang refers to a site of Thai pottery kilns , from which many pottery vessels found in the ship probably originate. The name is modern and given by the finder. The shipwreck was about 42 m under water and 183 km from the coast. The ship was once around 26m long and was almost certainly built in China, as a species of pine was used in its construction (perhaps Pinus sp. ) That only grows in China, Laos and northern Vietnam. The ship dates between 1305 and 1370 and was probably on its way to Borneo or Sulawesi ( Indonesia ).
The ship's cargo consisted mainly of 6,500 ceramic vessels from China , Vietnam and the Thai, the latter being stoneware known as Sukhothai ware . About 2500 bowls come from Sukhothai and are decorated with underglaze colors. For the most part, they show a single fish as decoration, while a smaller number of them each show a single flower. Other Sukhothai goods are mostly bottles of various sizes. About 11% of the vessels come from Si Satchanalai . There were also around 500 vessels from Vietnam, also decorated with underglaze colors. About 2240 vessels come from China. It is mostly glazed goods.
The non-ceramic finds include four elephant tusks and a stone that was probably used for knife sharpening. Numerous lumps of iron were found, which probably served as ballast. These were found along with bits of bamboo, suggesting that the iron was packed in bamboo sacks. Fish and leftover eggs in vessels are leftovers from the food for the ship's crew.
The exact dating of the wreck is uncertain, but there are no finds of blue and white porcelain, which was exported from China from 1328 onwards. So the wreck may date shortly before that. However, the vessels that were found indicate a later date, but before 1378, when production in Sukhothai switched to other goods. A later date is also possible.
The discovery of this shipwreck proves a brisk maritime trade for the 14th century. Earthenware from Sukhothai and China was popular early on and was widely traded before porcelain appeared. Some of the found vessels are now in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London .
Web links
- Sten Sjostrand: Turiang: a 14th century Chinese shipwreck, upsetting Southeast Asian ceramic history
- Pottery from the Turiang shipwreck in the Victoria & Albert Museum
literature
- Roxanna M. Brown, Sten Sjostrand: Turiang. A Fourteenth-Century Shipwreck in Southeast Asian Waters . Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena 2000, ISBN 1-877921-17-3