800 year old ancient ship to be lifted in China

An ancient ship in China, lying on the sea bed for more than 800 years, is just weeks away to be lifted out of the water after months of salvage operation that took three years for planning.

Sunken cargo vessel the Nanhai No.1 with an estimated 80,000 cultural relics, including porcelain, gold artifacts, copper coins, jewelry and copper mirrors from the Southern Song Dynasty (1127 to 1279 AD), is under the sea, 30 nautical miles west of Hailing island near Yangjiang city. Already, 6,000 items have been salvaged, the official media reported. Typhoons delayed the salvage work which began in May after three years of planning. The 30-m-long ship, found in 1987 by the Guanzhou salvage bureau and a British underwater company, is the first ancient vessel to have been discovered on the "Marine Silk Road" in the South China Sea and will be taken out of the water by the year end. It was also the largest Song Dynasty cargo ship ever discovered in China.

Read More