Chinese treasure ship
A Chinese treasure ship (, literally "gem ship") is a type of large wooden ship in the fleet of admiral Zheng He, who led seven voyages during the early 15th-century Ming dynasty. According to British scientist, historian and sinologist Joseph Needham, the dimensions of the largest of these ships were by . Historians such as Edward L. Dreyer are in broad agreement with Needham's views. However other historians have expressed doubts over the dimensions of these treasure ships. Xin Yuan'ou, a shipbuilding engineer and professor of the history of science at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, argues on  engineering grounds that it is highly unlikely that Zheng He's treasure ships were 450 ft long, and suggests that they were probably closer to 200–250 ft (61–76 m) in length. Accounts. Chinese. According to the "" (1658), the first voyage consisted of 63 treasure ships crewed by 27,870 men. The "History of Ming" (1739) credits the first voyage with 62 treasure ships crewed by 27,800 men. A Zheng He era inscription in the Jinghai Temple in Nanjing gave the size of Zheng He ships in 1405 as 2,000 liao (500 tons), but did not give the number of ships. Alongside  the treasures were also another 255 ships according to the "" (1520), giving the combined fleet of the first voyage a total of 317 ships. However, the addition of 255 ships is a case of double accounting according to Edward L. Dreyer, who notes that the "Taizong Shilu" does not distinguish the order of 250 ships from the treasure ships. As such the first fleet would have been around 250 ships including the treasure ships. The second voyage consisted of 249 ships. The Jinghai Temple inscription gave the ship dimensions in 1409 as 1500 liao (375 tons). According to the "Xingcha  Shenglan" (1436), the third voyage consisted of 48 treasure ships, not including other ships. The "Xingcha Shenglan" states that the fourth voyage consisted of 63 treasure ships crewed by 27,670 men. There are no sources for number of ships or men for the fifth and sixth voyages. According to the Liujiagang and Changle Inscriptions, the seventh voyage had "more than a hundred large ships". Yemen. The most contemporary non-Chinese record of the expeditions is an untitled and anonymous annalistic account of the then-ruling Rasūlid dynasty of Yemen, compiled in the years 1439-1440. It reports the arrival of  Chinese ships in 1419, 1423, and 1432, which approximately correspond to Zheng He's fifth, sixth, and seventh voyages. The 1419 arrival is described thus: The later Yemeni historian, Ibn al-Daybaʿ (1461-1537), writes: Mamluks. Mamluk historian Ibn Taghribirdi (1411-1470) writes: Niccolò de' Conti. Niccolò de' Conti (–1469), a contemporary of Zheng He, was also an eyewitness of Chinese ships in Southeast Asia, claiming to have seen five-masted junks of about 2000 tons* burthen: Song and Yuan junks. Although active prior to the treasure voyages, both Marco Polo (1254–1325) and Ibn Battuta (1304–1369) attest to large multi -masted ships carrying 500 to 1000 passengers in Chinese waters. The large ships (up to 5,000 "liao" or 1520-1860 tons burden) would carry 500-600 men, and the second class (1,000-2,000 "liao") would carry 200-300 men. Unlike Ming treasure ships, Song and Yuan great junks are propelled by oars, and have with them smaller junks, probably for maneuvering aids. The largest junks (5,000 "liao") may have a hull length twice that of Quanzhou ship (1,000 "liao"), that is 68 m. Description. Taizong Shilu. The most contemporary accounts of the treasure ships come from the "Taizong Shilu", which  contains 24 notices from 1403 to 1419 for the construction of ships at several locations. On 4 September 1403, 200 "seagoing transport ships" were ordered from the Capital Guards in Nanjing. On 1 March 1404, 50 "seagoing ships" were ordered from the Capital Guards. In 1407, 249 vessels were ordered "to be prepared for embassies to the several countries of the Western Ocean". On 14 February 1408, 48 treasure ships were ordered from the Ministry of Works in Nanjing. This is the only contemporary account containing references to both treasure ships and a specific place of construction. Coincidentally, the only  physical evidence of treasure ships comes from Nanjing. On 2 October 1419, 41 treasure ships were ordered without disclosing the specific builders involved. Longjiang Chuanchang Zhi. 's "Longjiang Chuanchang Zhi" (1553), also known as the "Record of the Dragon River Shipyard", notes that the plans for the treasure ships had vanished from the ship yard in which they were built. Sanbao Taijian Xia Xiyang Ji Tongsu Yanyi. According to 's novel "Sanbao Taijian Xia Xiyang Ji Tongsu Yanyi" (1597), the treasure fleet consisted of several distinct classes of ships: Edward L. Dreyer claims that Luo Maodeng's novel is unsuitable  as historical evidence. The novel contains a number of fantasy element; for example the ships were "constructed with divine help by the immortal Lu Ban". Scholars have worked, however, to distinguish the fictional elements from those that the author had access to but have subsequently been lost, including both written and oral sources. Dimensions and size. History of Ming. According to the "History of Ming" (Ming shi - 明史), completed in 1739, the treasure ships were 44 "zhang", 4 "chi", i.e. 444 "chi" in length, and had a beam of 18 "zhang". The dimensions of ships are no coincidence. The number  4 has numerological significance as a symbol of the 4 cardinal directions, 4 seasons, and 4 virtues. The number 4 was an auspicious association for treasure ships. These dimensions first appeared in a novel published in 1597, more than a century and a half after Zheng He's voyages. The 3 contemporary accounts of Zheng He's voyages do not have the ship dimensions. The "zhang" was fixed at 141 inches in the 19th century, making the "chi" 14.1 inches. However the common Ming value for "chi" was 12.2 inches and the value fluctuated depending on region. The Ministry of  Works used a "chi" of 12.1 inches while the Jiangsu builders used a "chi" of 13.3 inches. Some of the ships in the treasure fleet, but not the treasure ships, were built in Fujian, where the "chi" was 10.4 to 11 inches. Assuming a range of 10.5 to 12 inches for each "chi", the dimensions of the treasure ships as recorded by the "History of Ming" would have been between 385 by 157.5 feet and 440 by 180 feet (117.5 by 48 metres, and 134 by 55 metres). Louise Levathes estimating that it had a maximum size of 110–124 m  (390–408 feet) long and 49–51 m (160–166 feet) wide instead, taking 1 "chi" as 10.53-11.037 inches. Contemporary descriptions. The contemporary inscription of Zheng He's ships in the Jinghai temple 靜海寺 inscription in Nanjing gives sizes of 2,000 "liao" (500 tons) and 1,500 "liao" (275 tons), which are far too low than would be implied by a ship of 444 "chi" (450 ft). In addition, in the contemporary account of Zheng He's 7th voyage by Gong Zhen, he said it took 200 to 300 men to handle Zheng He's ships. Ming minister Song Li indicated a ratio  of 1 man per 2.5 tons of cargo, which would imply Zheng He's ships were 500 to 750 tons. The inscription on the tomb of Hong Bao, an official in Zheng He's fleet, mentions the construction of a 5,000 "liao" displacement ship, and taking the "liao" to be 500 lbs, that would be 1,250 tons displacement or around 750 tons burden. Dionisius A. Agius (2008) estimated a size of 200–250 ft (60.96 m–76.2 m) and maximum weight of 700 tons. Modern estimates. Modern scholars have argued on engineering grounds that it is highly unlikely that Zheng He's  ship was in length, Guan Jincheng (1947) proposed a much more modest size of 20 "zhang" long by 2.4 "zhang" wide (204 ft by 25.5 ft or 62.2 m by 7.8 m) while Xin Yuan'ou (2002) put them as 61–76 m (200–250 feet) in length. One explanation for the colossal size of the 44 largest Zhang treasure ships, if in fact built, was that they were only for a display of imperial power by the emperor and imperial bureaucrats on the Yangtze River when on court business, including when reviewing Zheng He's actual expedition fleet. The Yangtze River, with  its calmer waters, may have been navigable for such large but unseaworthy ships. Zheng He would not have had the privilege in rank to command the largest of these ships. The largest ships of Zheng He's fleet were the 6 masted 2000-liao ships. This would give burthen of 500 tons and a displacement tonnage of about 800 tons. Because they are built and based in Nanjing, and repeatedly sail along the Yangtze river (including in winter, when the water is low), their draft cannot exceed 7-7.5 m. It is also known that Zheng He's fleet  visited Palembang in Sumatra, where they needed to cross the Musi river. It is unknown whether Zheng He's ships sailed as far as Palembang, or whether they waited on the shore in the Bangka Strait while the smaller ships sailed at Musi; but at least the draft of the ship that reaches Palembang should not be more than 6 m. Hsu Yun-Ts'iao does not agree with Xin Yuan'ou: Estimating the size of 2,000 "liao" ship with "Record of Lung Chiang Shipyard at Nanking", the size is as follows: LOA , bottom's hull length , overhanging "tail" length , front depth  , front width , midhull depth , midhull width , tail depth , tail width , and the length to width ratio is 7:1. Sleeswyk extrapolated the size of "liao" by deducing the data from mid-16th century Chinese river junks. He suggested that the 2,000 "liao" ships were "bao chuan" (treasure ship), while the 1,500 "liao" ships were "ma chuan" (horse ship). In his calculations, the treasure ships would have a length of 52.5 m, width of 9.89 m, and height of 4.71 m. The horse ships would have a length of 46.63 m, width of 8.8 m, and height of 4.19 m. In June 2010 , a new inscription was found in Hong Bao's tomb, confirming the existence of Ming dynasty's 5,000 "liao" ship. According to Zheng Ming, the 5,000 "liao" ship would have a dimension of 70.75 m long, 15.24 m wide, and 6.16 m draught. The 2,000 "liao" ship would have a dimension of 52.62 m long, 11.32 m wide, and 4.6 m draught, while the 1,500 "liao" ship would have a dimension of 47.71 m long, 10.26 m wide, and 4.17 m draught. Wake argued that the 5,000 "liao" ships were not used until after the 3rd voyage, when the voyages  were extended beyond India. Xin Yuan'ou, professor of the history of science at Shanghai Jiaotong University, argued that Zheng He's ships could not have been as large as recorded in the History of Ming. Xin's main reasons for concluding that the ships could not have been this size are: From the comments of modern scholars on Medieval Chinese accounts and reports, it is apparent that a ship had a natural limit to her size, going beyond, would have made her structurally unsafe as well as causing a considerable loss of manoeuvrability, something the Spanish Armada ships famously experienced . Beyond a certain size (about 300 feet or 91.44 m in length) a wooden ship is structurally unsafe. Structure. The keel consisted of wooden beams bound together with iron hoops. In stormy weather, holes in the prow would partially fill with water when the ship pitched forward, thus lessening the violent turbulence caused by waves. Treasure ships also used floating anchors cast off the sides of the ship in order to increase stability. The stern had two 2.5 m (8 foot) iron anchors weighing over a thousand pounds each, used for mooring offshore. Like many Chinese anchors, these had four  flukes set at a sharp angle against the main shaft. Watertight compartments were also used to add strength to the treasure ships. The ships also had a balanced rudder which could be raised and lowered, creating additional stability like an extra keel. The balanced rudder placed as much of the rudder forward of the stern post as behind it, making such large ships easier to steer. Unlike a typical fuchuan warship, the treasure ships had nine staggered masts and twelve square sails, increasing its speed. Treasure ships also had 24 cast-bronze cannons with a maximum range of 240 to  275 m (800–900 feet). However, treasure ships were considered luxury ships rather than warships. As such, they lacked the fuchuan's raised platforms or extended planks used for battle. Non-gunpowder weapons on Zheng He's vessels seems to be bows. For gunpowder weapons, they carried bombards (albeit shorter than Portuguese bombards) and various kind of hand cannons, such as can be found on early 15th century Bakau shipwreck. Comparing with Penglai wrecks, the fleet may have carried cannons with bowl-shaped muzzle (which dates back to late Yuan dynasty), and iron cannons with several rings on their muzzle (in  the wrecks they are 76 and 73 cm long, weighing 110 and 74 kg), which according to Tang Zhiba, a typical of early Ming iron cannon. They may also carry incendiary bombs (quicklime bottles). Girolamo Sernigi (1499) gives an account of the armament of what possibly the Chinese vessels: It is now about 80 years since there arrived in this city of Chalicut certain vessels of white Christians, who wore their hair long like Germans, and had no beards except around the mouth, such as are worn at Constantinople by cavaliers and courtiers. They landed, wearing a cuirass, helmet, and  visor, and carrying a certain weapon [sword] attached to a spear. Their vessels are armed with bombards, shorter than those in use with us. Once every two years they return with 20 or 25 vessels. They are unable to tell what people they are, nor what merchandise they bring to this city, save that it includes very fine linen-cloth and brass-ware. They load spices. Their vessels have four masts like those of Spain. If they were Germans it seems to me that we should have had some notice about them; possibly they may be Russians if they have  a port there. On the arrival of the captain we may learn who these people are, for the Italian-speaking pilot, who was given him by the Moorish king, and whom he took away contrary to his inclinations, is with him, and may be able to tell. - "Girolamo Sernigi (1499) about the then-unknown Chinese visitors" Physical evidence. Some of the drydocks at Longjiang Shipyard at Nanjing—known informally as the Treasure Ship Yard—were 27 to 36 m (90 to 120 feet) wide. But two such drydocks measured 64 m (210 feet) wide, considered large enough to build a  ship 50 m (166-foot) wide. In 1962, a large rudderpost indicating a rudder area of 452 square feet was unearthed at the Longjiang Shipyard. It has been widely said dimensions of this rudderpost corresponds with a ship of between 538 and 600 feet in length, lending credence to the notion that ships of these dimensions were indeed built. However, such use of this piece of archeological evidence rests upon supposing proportions between the rudder and the length of the ship, which have also been the object of intense contestation: That length was estimated using steel, engine-driven ship as  the reference. By comparing the rudder post to the Quanzhou ship, Church estimated that the ship was long. Speed. The treasure ships were different in size, but not in speed. Under favorable conditions, such as sailing with the winter monsoon from Fujian to Southeast Asia, Zheng He's fleet developed an average speed of about 2.5 knots (4.6 km/h); on many other segments of his route, a significantly lower average speed was recorded, of the order of 1.4-1.8 knots (2.6-3.3 km/h). As historians note, these speeds were relatively low by the standards of later European sailing  fleets, even in comparison with ship of the line, which were built with an emphasis on armament rather than speed. For example, in 1809, Admiral Nelson's squadron, consisting of 10 ships of the line, crossed the Atlantic Ocean at an average speed of 4.9 knots (9.1 km/h). Replica. A copy of a treasure ship was announced in 2006 to be completed in time for the 2008 Olympic Games. However, the copy was still under construction in Nanjing in 2010. A new date of completion was set for 2013; when this dateline failed to be met in 2014, the  project was built for 4 years.