Yangtze Estuary No. 2: A sand boat that "returned" from the depths of history?

Yangtze Estuary No. 2: The sand boat that "returned" from the depths of history after "the thousand sails have passed"?

　　Our reporters Sun Liping, Ding Ting, Wang Chenyang

　　The 10,000-ton salvage vessel "Dali" left Shanghai Hengsha Wharf on the 6th.

In the next two or three months, it will join hands with the "Feng Li" ship to let the sunken Qing Dynasty Yangtze River Estuary No. 2 ancient ship "break out of the waves" again.

　　Changjiangkou No. 2 is a trading vessel during the Tongzhi period in the Qing Dynasty, and it is also the largest and most well-preserved wooden sailboat discovered by underwater archaeology in my country.

At present, it is sleeping underwater in the Beigang Channel, northeast of Hengsha Island, Chongming, Shanghai.

Archaeological surveys show that this Qing Dynasty ancient ship has a residual length of about 38.1 meters and contains many exquisite cultural relics.

　　Archaeological experts pointed out that the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty was the beginning of the opening of Shanghai as a port.

The Yangtze Estuary No. 2 is full of information about the opening of Shanghai's port, like a "space-time capsule" sinking to the bottom of the sea, which contains a lot of suspense.

For example: what kind of ship is it?

Where did you come from and where are you going?

Why did it sink?

　　Although it will take time to unravel these mysteries, experts are still trying to find some key clues to the mystery of the origin of Yangtze Estuary No. 2.

Zhai Yang, deputy director of the Shanghai Cultural Relics Protection Research Center, said that after underwater exploration, archaeologists found that the bottom and keel of the Yangtze Estuary No. 2 ship were flat, and it was likely to be a large sand ship.

The sand ship is the important shipping carrier that has witnessed Shanghai's "prosperity of the city with the port" to become a modern metropolis.

The sand boat also appeared prominently on the Shanghai city emblem.

　　However, due to historical reasons, the once prosperous sand ship has no complete real ship.

So, will Changjiangkou No. 2 be a sand ship that "returned" from the depths of history after "a thousand sails have passed"?

　　Zhai Yang told reporters that, judging from the underwater exploration information, the Changjiangkou No. 2 is more likely to belong to the type of sand boat.

But in the end, to determine whether it is a sand boat, we have to wait for the rudder blade of Changjiangkou No. 2 to come out of the water.

　　"The rudder blades of Chinese wooden sailboats in the Qing Dynasty have their own characteristics: the rudder blades of sand ships are wide and rectangular; the rudder blades of wide ships often have diamond-shaped openings; the rudder blades of lucky ships are narrow and rectangular... The difference is clear at a glance. At present, we have I found that the rudder blade of Changjiangkou No. 2 was pressed under the hull. It can be said that this rudder blade is a 'key key' to uncover the mystery of the identity of the ancient ship."

　　Then, what is Shachuan and what is its relationship with Shanghai?

According to Ye Chong, an expert on traditional boats at the China Maritime Museum for a long time, sand boats are also called "sand-proof flat bottom boats".

"Sand boats are a big family, originating from the mouth of the Yangtze River and Chongming. It is characterized by a flat bottom, multiple masts and multiple sails, and a shallow draft. It can 'walk sand' and 'sit on the beach'. It can sail on the coast and rivers, and is especially suitable for muddy water. The Yangtze River channel with more sand.”

　　In fact, the name of the sand boat appeared relatively late.

The Song Dynasty only recorded the "sand-proof flat-bottomed" warship, and in the Ming Dynasty, the official name of "sand boat" appeared.

Since the Qing Dynasty, the Shachuan family was very prosperous.

According to literature records, during the Jiaqing and Daoguang periods of the Qing Dynasty, there were about 3,500 sand ships that often gathered in Shanghai. There were about 100,000 sailors in this industry, and the annual transportation volume was about 250,000 tons to 300,000 tons.

　　A piece of "The Picture of Tang Ships", which was circulated in Japan and the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, "fixed" the "prosperous elegance" of Chinese sand boats.

This ancient painting depicts the picture of Chinese merchant ships from the southeastern coast of China to the port of Nagasaki, Japan. The most notable one is the "Nanjing Ship", a member of the "Sand Ship Family". Brilliant.

　　"The sea ban was lifted in the Qing Dynasty, and Shanghai became a central port connecting the north and the south of China, which fully demonstrated its geographical advantage of being near the river."

He pointed out that before and after the opening of Shanghai's port, the sand shipping industry reached its peak, "the busy Shanghai sand ship became the most important logistics 'artery' and 'lifeline' connecting China and the world at that time... Until the opening of Shanghai for a period of time, the sand ship was faced with and The fierce competition between western-style sailboats and steamships gradually declined."

　　The sand ship effectively promoted the take-off of Shanghai's shipping industry, becoming a pillar industry at that time, and also radiating many other industries.

In 1858, He Guiqing, the governor of Liangjiang, wrote in his memorial: "Jiangsu Province, the essence is all in Shanghai, and Shanghai is known as the rich because of the traffic from north to south by sand boats." This led to the rise of the qianzhuang industry, the cloth industry, and the northern goods industry in the city.

　　"Today, when we strolled through the old city of Shanghai Nanshi (now under the jurisdiction of Huangpu District, Shanghai), we can still feel the great influence of the Shachuan industry on Shanghai from many interesting place names. Nanshi used to be a Shachuan wharf and a cargo distribution center, so there is a concentration of cotton. 'Huayi Street' for trading, 'Doushi Street' where soybean traders gather, 'Wangjia Wharf' named after Shachuan merchants, 'Huiguan Street', 'Oil Truck Lane' where Shachuan trade associations are built, etc. Shachuan in Shanghai There is a 'code' in the streets of the city and a cultural heritage for us."

　　Chu Xiaobo, a member of the party group of the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism and director of the Shanghai Museum, believes that Shachuan has played a vital role in Shanghai's development as a port and becoming an important city in China and even in the world.

The salvage of Yangtze Estuary No. 2, a sleeping underwater "space-time capsule", has far-reaching significance for understanding Shanghai's "why it became Shanghai".

　　Experts speculate that, judging from the information obtained from the current underwater archaeology, the hull of the Yangtze Estuary No. 2 is relatively complete, and the possibility of hitting a reef and sinking is relatively small, and it is more likely to be affected by "overloading" or "experience of extreme weather".

Of course, it is also possible that the superposition of the two factors led to the sinking of the Yangtze River Estuary No. 2.

However, the "sandboat conjecture" is only a scientific speculation, and all the answers must wait for the ancient ship to "break the waves" before it can be finally revealed.