An underwater mapping and scouting campaign has begun in the South China Sea. Chinese archaeologists intend to recover relics - mainly porcelain dating from the Ming dynasty.
The relics are contained in two wrecks sunk at a depth of 1,500 meters. It is a "major discovery of underwater archaeology", trumpeted the Chinese state media. The campaign should be spread over a year, in three stages, report experts interviewed by the People's Daily, China's state-run news agency. In total, more than 100,000 items were transported by these two heavily loaded Chinese navy vessels.