Photo taken on March 2, 2022 shows the launching ceremony of salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck at Waigaoqiao port in east China's Shanghai. (Xinhua/Ren Long)
SHANGHAI, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Salvage of a 160-year-old shipwreck, the largest and best-preserved wooden shipwreck discovered underwater in China to date, began Wednesday.
This sunken ship, with a large number of cultural relics, was a merchant vessel during the reign of Emperor Tongzhi (1862-1875) in the Qing Dynasty period.
Named Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck, the ship was found submerged at a depth of 5.5 meters below the seabed in the waters of Hengsha shoal in the northeast of Hengsha island in Shanghai's Chongming District.
According to archaeological investigations, the ship is about 38.5 meters long and 7.8 meters at its widest in the middle. It has 31 cabins and is loaded with exquisite cultural relics such as porcelain made in Jingdezhen, a world-famous "porcelain capital" in east China's Jiangxi Province.
Photo taken on March 2, 2022 shows the launching ceremony of salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck at Waigaoqiao port in east China's Shanghai. (Xinhua/Ren Long)
Photo taken on March 2, 2022 shows the launching ceremony of salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck at Waigaoqiao port in east China's Shanghai. (Xinhua/Ren Long)
Photo taken on Jan. 26, 2022 shows the testing operation for salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck in east China's Shanghai. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)
Photo taken on Jan. 26, 2022 shows the testing operation for salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck in east China's Shanghai. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)
Handout photo shows a sonar scan taken in 2021 of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)
Undated file photo shows some cultural relics found in the Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck in east China's Shanghai. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)
Photo taken on Jan. 26, 2022 shows the testing operation for salvage of Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck in east China's Shanghai. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)
Undated file photo shows a cultural relic found in the Yangtze No. 2 Ancient Shipwreck in east China's Shanghai. (Shanghai Municipal Administration of Cultural Heritage/Handout via Xinhua)■
