Arts & Culture

Archaeology exhibition showcases undersea history

"Diving into History," Taiwan's first-ever underwater archaeology exhibition, now at Bali Township's Shihsanhang Musuem of Archaeology in Taipei County through Dec. 13. (Courtesy of Council for Cultural Affairs)

• Publication Date：11/27/2009
• Source： Taiwan Today
• By  Lishan Chang

Readers might be surprised to learn that Taiwan has underwater archaeological treasures to rival the remains of the “Titantic,” wrecks of Spanish treasure galleons in the Caribbean and even the lost city of Atlantis, said by Plato to have sunk into the ocean “in a single day and night of misfortune.”

The place to go to learn more about these treasures is “Diving into History," Taiwan's first-ever underwater archaeology exhibition, which is being staged by the Cabinet-level Council for Cultural Affairs at Shihsanhang Museum of Archaeology in Bali Township, Taipei County until Dec. 13.

As defined by the United Nations’ Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, underwater archaeology studies sites, artifacts and human remains which have been submerged in the ocean, lakes or rivers for at least 100 years.

UNESCO regards “archaeological sites located under water as important sources of historic information” because these locations, “due to the lack of oxygen, contain material that is lost on comparable sites on dry land.”

Large-scale underwater exploration was not feasible until six decades ago when the development of an efficient free-diving apparatus made the task safer and easier. “Aqua-Lung,” a self-contained, underwater breathing device, was introduced by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Emile Gagnon in 1943. It was important in allowing divers to operate underwater for long periods of time.

Subsequent improvements to “Aqua-Lung,” coupled with the development of glass facemasks and rubber fins, gave the world today’s scuba gear and opened up the door to advanced exploration of undersea archaeological remains, shipwrecks and treasure troves.

In Taiwan underwater archaeology is a relatively new field of study. Systematic undersea excavations did not begin until 1995. For generations, however, legends have held that an ancient city rests in the waters of Penghu’s Hujing Islet. In 1976, then county magistrate Xie You-wen asked Penghu native Steve Shieh to search for the legendary sunken city.

The mission was considered highly risky due to unpredictable sea conditions in the waters around Penghu. Undiscouraged by several unsuccessful attempts, Shieh was finally able to mark the location of a 100-meter long and 100-meter wide crosscut structure in 1982, marking the first step in solving the long-talked-about mystery.

Since Penghu was under military administration at that time, international media were denied access to the archipelago to report on Shieh’s findings until 1996, when journalists from Japan’s “Asahi Shinbun” obtained permission to document the discovery, thus putting Penghu in the international limelight for its bountiful undersea treasures.

Another remarkable event that drew attention to Taiwan’s underwater world occurred in 1987 when Huang Jia-jin, a professional diver, stumbled across a great number of shipwrecks near Penghu. Huang’s report on his findings to the Ministry of Education was a preliminary step toward the establishment of the National Museum of History’s Marine Archeology Team.

In 1994 Penghu fishermen found scattered remains of a vessel, later identified by archaeologists as having been built in the period of the Qianlong Emperor (1736-1795). The sunken vessel was named “General No. 1” after Penghu’s General Islet, the site of the discovery.

The nation’s first underwater archaeology team, consisting of deep-sea divers, historians, anthropologists and archaeologists, finally came together in 1995 to conduct preliminary excavations of “General No. 1.” Funded by the MOE, this unit became the NMH’s Marine Archeology Team.

A total of 264 items were recovered from the shipwreck, including blue and white porcelain bowls, porcelain spoons and saucers, pottery pots, bronze implements and wooden cabin boards. “Qianlong coins,” currency used during Qianlong’s rule, confirmed the wreck was a commercial trading ship sailing between Fujian and Taiwan in the 18th century.

In the summer of 2002, members of the Underwater Archaeological Institute, a private association then still in its infancy, discovered forms resembling stone walls in the Hujing Islet site originally investigated by Steve Shieh.

Some archaeologists believed them to be natural geological formations, but others saw signs indicating they had been built by humans somewhere between 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. Further explorations are still being carried out to determine the exact nature of these mysterious underwater forms reminiscent of Atlantis.

In April 2005, workers hired to dredge Penghu’s Magong harbor accidentally discovered several shipwrecks buried in the mud and reported the findings to county authorities, who suspended the dredging immediately for fear of damaging valuable historical assets.

Working with professional French diver Jean-Bernard Mernet, in May 2006 UAI members dove into the harbor waters hoping to find out more about the shipwrecks. Unfortunately, bad weather hindered progress on this project and only 60 artifacts, including such things as porcelain bowls, pottery and brick tiles, were unearthed.

Compared to France, Sweden, the United States, Japan and mainland China, Taiwan’s underwater archaeology is still young and awaits more attention from both the government and academia, according to Ho Chuan-kun, director of the anthropology department of Taichung’s National Museum of Natural Science. One purpose of the exhibition at the Shihsanhang Museum is to raise public awareness of the significance of this new field.

The exhibition is divided into six areas covering a general introduction to the world’s underwater cultural heritage, underwater archaeology, shipwrecks, the preservation of artifacts, Taiwan’s important underwater sites and protection of underwater cultural heritage. A simulated underwater archaeological excavation is also on view.

Visitors to the exhibition can see fossils from the Taiwan Strait dating back 40,000 years, dozens of artifacts retrieved from a sunken Qing dynasty vessel and artifacts from Yilan County’s Kibannoran site, first uncovered during a river dredging project in 2001.

The Kibannoran site includes two levels, the latest dating back to about 300 years ago, with artifacts produced by the Kavalan aboriginal group. The older stratum includes 1,000-year-old artifacts from an earlier tribe in the area.

The rocky Taiwan Strait, with its stormy weather, holds numerous shipwrecks from throughout recorded history. There are also human habitation sites from the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods, later flooded by the sea. Taiwan’s important inland underwater sites, in addition to Kibannoran, include the Lalu site in Sun Moon Lake and a Dutch-built canal in Madou Township, Tainan County.

As former CCA Minister Huang Pi-twan pointed out at the exhibition’s opening ceremony Oct. 21, “Our goal is to locate and preserve the legacy our ancestors left behind.”

Director Ho told visitors on opening day that “the best way to preserve our underwater heritage is to leave the relics where they are found.”

He explained that in order for Taiwan to take full advantage of being an ocean nation, government agencies and scholars need to come up with the best way to utilize underwater resources.

“For instance, Taiwan could cooperate with experts in the Chinese mainland to conduct surveys and excavations along the Taiwan Strait.”

Another alternative would be to develop undersea tourism in such a way that relics could be preserved without excessive exploitation. “Wouldn’t it be amazing to go undersea and view sunken ships that we could otherwise only see in films or computer simulations?” Ho asked.

To find out more about the exhibition, please visit www.divingintohistory.com.tw/ (THN)

Write to Lishan Chang at lishan@mail.gio.gov.tw