According to the Thua Thien-Hue Revolutionary History Museum, these five cannons and cannon balls were discovered by fishermen in Tan An village, Phu Vang district, Thua Thien Hue province.

Nguyen Huu Hoang, a member of the Vietnamese UNESCO Antique Research and Collection Club, on May 22 bought the four brass copper cannons from fishermen.

The cannons weigh 250kg each. Each cannon has designs around the top, the middle of the body and the end. The near-end part has Latin letters. Two cannons are 175cm long. The other two are 162cm in length.

According to researcher Ho Tan Phan, these cannons date back to the Nguyen Dynasty (1648 – 1687). Deputy director of the Thua Thien-Hue Revolutionary History Museum theorised that these cannons could have been on ships of French or Spanish origin which were wrecked when attacking Hue imperial city in 1883.

It is said that people began a sedentary life style and at that people started using boat to collect resources from wide area.

名遺跡：発掘調査で出土の木製棒は最古の櫂か－－佐賀・金立　／佐賀

　縄文早期の遺跡、東名遺跡（佐賀市金立町）で９月に出土した１メートル余りの木製の棒が、舟をこぐ櫂（かい）である可能性が高いことが分かった。木製品に詳しい首都大東京の山田昌久・准教授（考古学）が指摘した。櫂であれば約７０００年前のもので、国内最古となる。
　長さ１メートル１６センチで先端の３５センチが平たく、最大幅４・５センチ。山田准教授によると、土掘り棒とは形状が異なる▽大量の貝などを運ぶために舟を使ったと考えられる――などから櫂と判断。これまで縄文早期の櫂は見つかっていないという。
　同遺跡は集落のそばに有明海にそそぐ川があったと見られ、山田准教授は「すでに木を加工していた時代。定住化に伴う資源の運搬などに舟を活用していたことを示す物証が見つかった」と話している。【姜弘修】

１１月１８日朝刊
（毎日新聞） – 11月18日13時1分更新

The marine survey vessel named Seamuse went into commission for the National Maritime Museum in Mokpo on the country’s southwest. It is the first of its kind in Asia, while European countries like France and Germany operate their own, the museum said.

The marine museum was upbeat that the survey vessel will drastically expand the scale of archaeological understanding in Northeast Asia.

The vessel is 19 meters long and 4.4 meters wide and can accommodate up to 13 people. It is equipped with exploration systems that can operate in deep waters, such as a side scan sonar system for searching and detecting objects underwater through photographic images made from its sound waves and remote operated vehicles that use remote controlled robots instead of divers, the museum said.

Seamuse will have its inaugural sail on Nov. 19 in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the dicovery of a sunken ancient vessel on the seabed of Sinan off the country’s southeast coast which made world headlines. The ship from the latter days of the Goryeo Dynasty (918~1392) carried precious porcelains and coins that defined Korea’s civilization and the sea route of trade in Northeast Asia.

hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)

A vessel from the Korean Koryo Kingdom dating back to the 14th century is unveiled on Monday. The wooden ship, found along with a Chinese ship (below) off the sea of Penglai in China’s Shandong Province last year, is 21.7 m long and 5.2 m wide./Yonhap

The discovery was made some 200 meters on the inland side of an embankment newly built to hold back the sea water as part of an ongoing reclamation project to transform the tidal mud flats into land suitable for rice cultivation or construction sites.

The ancient celadon pieces were found at a depth of 7 meters and are assumed to be part of the remains of a shipwreck, they said. There were also piles of as many as 40 bowls stacked together, they said.

The bluish green earthenware, called Koryo Chongja in Korean, seemed to be produced for local authorities and middle-class households, rather than aristocrats, as they were made from lower-grade clays and subject to a rougher firing process, they said. Some were inlaid with lotus flower patterns.

The museum started the excavation in late April after people were reported to have illegally taken the ceramics from the area last year.

Archaeologists are concerned that the reclamation area around Kunsan, called Saemangeum, may be a vast reserve of ancient relics, as celadon pieces from the 11th to 13th century have been uncovered there in the past few years.

“The area needs archaeological surveys. There are a lot more cases of relics that resident fishermen have found and reported,” Park Ye-ree, a researcher with the national museum, said.

Many kilns were established in coastal areas on the Korean Peninsula in the Koryo era as the finished products had better access to the sea for transportation.

06-20-2006 17:38

Local diver Geng Wei first told of a large ancient city in the lake eight years ago, thought to span 2.4 square kilometres. Geng claimed to have seen lots of square boulders more than 1.4 square metres in size, either piled or scattered deep underwater.

In 2001, the local government launched the first large exploration of the lake, which was broadcast live across the nation by China Central Television (CCTV).

A submarine was sent down and detected a 60-metre-long stone wall. Divers unearthed a shard of pottery embedded in the stone wall, which was found to date back to the Han Dynasty (104 BC-220 AD).

The evidence convinced Chinese archaeologists that there might be some constructions under the lake, possibly more than 1,800 years old.

This hypothesis was substantiated on Friday in the first dive, when Geng was videotaped finding three notches, each 1.2 metres long and 45 centimetres wide, on a moss-covered square slate.

The “IY”-shaped notches must have been artificial, and “support the idea that all the stones were once processed by humans,” said Li Kunsheng, director of the Archaeology Research Centre of Yunnan University.

But Liu Qingzhu, director of the Institute of Archaeology under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, added: “We still have not enough information to verify that these slates made up a city. Even the shard and shell cannot represent the exact date of the rocks.”

After Geng announced his discovery eight years ago, more claims were made of underwater finds in the lake, which boasts a water surface of 212 square kilometres and an average depth of 87 metres. They include a slate path, an arena-like building and a small pyramid.

However, Liu, who was present during two underwater excavations, said no pictures or evidence about the above “findings” had ever been provided by these people.

Despite this, experts have engaged in a prolonged debate over whether these slates are relics of a documented city that mysteriously disappeared.

The history books show that the city of Yuyuan to the north of the Fuxian Lake once existed, but it disappeared from records after the Southern and Northern Dynasties (AD 420-589).

Li said the lake is situated on an earthquake-intense belt, which might suggest that the underwater construction may have sunken in rising waves during a quake.

Dissenters argue that the stone structure is contrary to buildings of this era, which were made of bamboo, wood or mud.

Liu said that while all the answers to this underwater mystery will not be found in seven days, “we’ll try to outline a layout map of what is beneath, and do more in the future.”

(Source: China Daily)

Editor: Lin Li

In Nara prefecture of Japan, A.D. 4th century ceremonial boat was discovered. This boat probably carried noble to his grave. The surface of the wood is stained and a motif is carved. It is 2.1 m in length, 0.78 m in width, and 0.25 m in thickness. In China, it is known that dead were carried on boat. It is believed that this boat finished its mission and discarded at the side of the tomb.

Such a find in rare in Japan, and this artifact should be analyzed fully by trained nautical/boat archaeologist to fully understand the real significant.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/culture/20060224TDY03002.htm

The Yomiuri Shimbun

Several large vermillion-lacquered wood fragments believed to be part of a funeral boat were unearthed at the Suyama ancient tomb in Koryocho, Nara Prefecture, the local board of education has announced.

The fragments bear inscribed patterns and were unearthed from the moat surrounding the tomb, which dates from the late fourth century.

Researchers said the fragments were part of a funeral boat that was used to transport human remains from a mortuary to a tomb over land.

One of the fragments is a piece of Japanese cedar measuring 3.7 meters long, 45 centimeters wide and five centimeters thick. It was originally part of an 8.2-meter-long piece of wood believed to be from one side of the boat. The fragment is decorated with triple concentric circles, intended to ward off evil spirits, and a beltlike pattern.

A piece of Japanese cinnamon measuring 2.1 meters long, 78 centimeters wide and 25 centimeters thick, is believed to be part of a coffin lid, and was originally part of a four-meter-long piece of wood. It is adorned with straight and curved lines and also triple concentric circles. The fragment retains some of its original vermillion lacquer finish.

If these fragments were to be assembled, they would suggest the shape of a boat with upward arching pointed ends, like a gondola, with a coffin on it.

The boat is similar to one described in a seventh-century Chinese book: “The remains of a noble are kept outside a mortuary for three years. Then, for the burial, they are put into a boat and carried over land.”

The Suyama tomb is a 220-meter-long keyhole-shaped mound. An emperor or another person of exalted status is believed to have been buried in the tomb.

The unearthed items will be on display to the public March 4-5 at the town’s cultural property preservation center.

Prof. Kunihiko Kawakami of Kobe Yamate University, who is an archaeologist, said: “It may have been placed at a mortuary, and after sending the remains to a tomb, it may have been destroyed and thrown away. For the first time, we have clarification of a funeral ritual that reproduces the world of myth.”

(Feb. 24, 2006)

奈良県広陵町の国特別史跡・巣山古墳（４世紀後半）の周濠（しゅうごう）から、表面に文様が刻まれ、朱が塗られた前例のない形状の大型木製品が出土したと、同町教委が２２日、発表した。

　木製品は船の形に復元できることから、埋葬前に遺体を仮安置する「殯（もがり）」の場から古墳まで遺体を運んだ＜霊柩（れいきゅう）船＞の一部と専門家はみている。古代の葬送儀礼を解明する上で極めて重要な発見と言える。

　出土した木製品のうち、船の側板の形をしたスギ製の部材は、長さ３・７メートル、幅４５センチ、厚さ５センチ。一部が欠けているが、復元すると長さは８・２メートルに達する。魔よけを意味する三重の円と帯状の文様が刻まれていた。棺の蓋（ふた）形をしたクスノキ製の部材（長さ２・１メートル、幅７８センチ、厚さ２５センチ）は復元長が約４メートル。表面に直線と弧を組み合わせた「直弧文」と三重の円が刻まれ、一部に朱色の顔料が残っていた。

　これらを組み合わせると、先端が反り上がったゴンドラ形の船に棺を載せたような形になり、中国の史書「隋書倭国伝」（７世紀）にある「貴人は、三年外に殯し、葬に及べば、屍（しかばね）を船上に置きて、陸地にて之を牽（ひ）く」という記述と合致する。

　巣山古墳は全長約２２０メートルの前方後円墳で、被葬者は大王（天皇）級の有力者とされる。出土品は３月４、５日に町文化財保存センターで一般公開される。

　河上邦彦・神戸山手大教授（考古学）の話「葬送用の棺として殯の場に安置し、古墳まで運んだ後に破砕して周濠に捨てたのではないか。葬送儀礼の流れが、初めて明らかになった」
（読売新聞） – 2月22日22時13分更新

According to director of Ca Mau Historical Museum, Le Cong Uan, the antiques were salvaged in 1998 from the shipwreck of a vessel that is believed to have sunk in the early 18th century off Ca Mau’s southern coast.

Chinaware plates, tea-cups, boxes and statues are included in the items to be sold off.

“The Government has allowed us to sell the antiques at an international auction, but there are still a number of customs procedures to be completed before we can ship them,” Uan said.

Salvaging the antiques from the shipwreck cost about VND16 billion (US$1 million), of which VND14 billion came from the State budget.

Sotheby’s will cover all the costs of the auction but it will take 20 per cent of the revenue from the sales.

Some of the antiques have been kept by the Viet Nam Historical Museum, Viet Nam Fine Art Museum in Ha Noi, and historical museums in HCM City and Ca Mau . — VNS

By Achong Tanjong

A “Traversing the Blue” exhibition, organised by Brunei Museums Department, was officially launched yesterday by Deputy Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, Dato Paduka Awang Haji Yakub bin Abu Bakar.
The launch was held at the Malay Technology Museum in Kota Batu.

Also present at the launching ceremony were Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, Awg Haji Jemat bin Haji Ampal, Director of Museums, Haji Matassim bin Haji Jibah, Deputy Director of Museum, Awg Bantong Antaran, and senior officers from Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports as well as departments under it.

The exhibition on boats aims to highlight Brunei’s past maritime industry, especially shipping related activities in line with national development.

Archaeology Officer and exhibition chairman, Awg Matzin bin Haji Yahya, said the exhibition also aims to provide an overview and pictures on local sailing traditions that are slowly being forgotten in the modern era.

He said the exhibition is part of Brunei Museums Department’s efforts to reintroduce various types of traditional boats, used mainly in the past that are not in use anymore these days.

The exhibition showcases 30 model boats and five life-size boats including the Tongkang, Pengabat, Pelauk, Bagong, Pedayong, Kumpit and Bidar Temuai. Also on show are materials used to make the boats such as ulak-ulak, ragum, pembahas, sapit-sapit, gigis and cecatuk. Boat remains from the Limau Manis River archaeological site are also on display.

Awg Matzin said, “In Brunei Darussalam, early traditional water transportation consisted of stems and bamboo boats such as Gaman and Rakit, while Gubang and Jompong boats were made by digging the centre of large logs using an axe and adze. The boats were used mainly along rivers, expect for the Gaman, which was used at sea.”

He hoped that through the exhibition, public members especially students could understand the national heritage, history, economy, and social culture of sailing-related activities, while increasing their understanding on the uniqueness and skills of boat and ship making in the country.

The Archaeology Officer said the exhibition is part of early preparations for a permanent exhibition to be held by the department when construction of the Maritime Museum Building is complete. Construction works will start soon, he added.

The exhibition coincided with the launching of the book, “The Boats of Brunei Darussalam”, written by the chief guest.

The exhibition, to be held from January 26 till May 31, is open to the public from Saturday to Thursday between 9am and 5pm and on Friday between 9am and 11.30am and from 2.30pm till 5pm.

Copyright © 2006 Brunei Press Sdn Bhd. All right reserved.