Quanzhou, March 3 (Zhongxin Net) -- "The meeting of ships and the sea brings out a glorious history of the Maritime Silk Road. Although Cai Guodong, an ancient ship model maker, is over eighty years old, his eyes are still full of brilliance when he talks about the self-made "Zheng He treasure ship" ancient ship model.
In Cai Guodong Cai Lixin ship model making workshop located in Xiangzhi Town, Shishi City, Fujian Province, Cai Guodong and his son Cai Lixin are working to polish ancient ship model parts and prepare for the next ancient ship model production.
Cai Guodong shows a model of Zheng He's treasure ship in production. Photo by Wu Guanbiao
Xiangzhi Town, located at the mouth of the sea on the south bank of the Jinjiang River, is not only a famous fishing port and hometown of overseas Chinese, but also a historical shipbuilding base. According to Cai Yongjing's "Xishan Magazine" of the Qing Dynasty: "Xiangzhi, Shiye in ancient times." Jiyang Cai's navigation is here... The countryside and the seashore have been transported by boat since ancient times. ”
In 1960, Cai Guodong entered the local shipyard to learn shipmaking. "From apprentice to master, from wooden sailing ship to iron boat, I have come into contact with it, but my favorite is the Fu boat, which carries the sea silk mark of Xiangzhi Fishing Port."
Around 2011, Xiangzhi prepared to build a ship model museum, and invited a group of old shipbuilders to reproduce the history of Xiangzhi ships in the form of ancient ship models. Cai Guodong was one of them, he brought his son, who had followed him in shipbuilding since he was a child, and began to design drawings and start making them based on memory.
Cai Lixin, son of Cai Guodong, explained the details of the production of Fu Ship. Photo by Wu Guanbiao
"To make an ancient ship model, excluding the time to prepare materials, it often takes two or three months." Cai Lixin said that his father grew older, responsible for designing drawings, polishing small parts, pointing out details errors, etc., while he mainly did manual work. The ship model making process is cumbersome and detailed, but the father and son are unwilling to settle, and must be carefully carved.
In Cai Lixin's eyes, since you want to make an ancient ship model, you must respect tradition, according to the original appearance and style of the Fu ship, scale down, and restore every detail as much as possible, rat holes, rabbit ears, keels, horse faces, sheep's horns and other key "zodiac" components are indispensable. "Almost every part and pattern on the ship has its role and story, and we just want to restore them one by one and reproduce their style."
Cai Lixin is preparing ship model materials. Photo by Wu Guanbiao
For more than ten years, Cai Guodong and Cai Lixin father and son have used their spare time to create many ancient ship models such as "Zheng He Treasure Ship", "Xiangzhi White Bottom Ship" and "Xiangzhi Merchant Ship", which are mostly displayed in local museums and cultural and sports centers.
Cai Guodong recalled that the Singapore Museum treasured an old photo of a Chinese sailing ship that made its maiden voyage to Singapore, that is, Xiangzhi's merchant ship. Based on photos, he consulted countless materials, and spent more than three months finally reproducing the merchant ship as a model ship in scale, reproducing the style of the Xiangzhi merchant ship sailing to Southeast Asia.
This experience impressed Cai Guodong, "In addition to rich experience, manufacturing ancient ship models requires certain historical knowledge. In order to create a more accurate model of ancient ships, the father and son with low education often consult various materials and images, and seek advice from experts in literature and history to constantly enrich their knowledge of ancient ship culture.
In 2021, "Quanzhou: The World Ocean Trade Center of Song and Yuan China" was successfully inscribed on the World Heritage List. Since then, Cai Guodong father and son have set out to build ancient ship models of the Song and Yuan Dynasties.
A model of a Xiangzhi white-bottomed boat made by Cai Guodong and Cai Lixin. Photo by Wu Guanbiao
"Unfortunately, due to the age and limited information, some specific hull structures have not been accurately restored, and we can only speculate based on the Zheng He treasure ship and the ancient ship remains in the museum, and we look forward to more professionals who can correct and guide us." Cai Lixin said.
Cai Guodong and his son also hope that more people will be willing to learn this traditional skill and pass on the culture and memory of Fuzhouan. "Although Fukufune has now withdrawn from the trend of the times, its production skills are still part of traditional Chinese culture and should not be lost. If anyone wants to, we'll give it a hand. (End)