An international maritime expo opened in Shanghai Friday to mark
the 600th anniversary of voyages by ancient Chinese seafaring hero
Zheng
He who lived in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
With the theme of "Loving the motherland, good-neighborly
relations and scientific seafaring," the expo exhibits seven
voyages by Zheng He and the history of China's seafaring in an area
of about 20,000 square meters at the Shanghai Exhibition Center.
The expo also showcases the achievements China and other countries
have made in navigation, ship-building, maritime affairs and
construction of harbors.
China's seafaring history dates back 7,000 years to the New
Stone Age and reached a peak marked by Zheng He's voyages.
Zheng's fleet, comprising more than 300 ships and manned by
about 27,000 sailors, a number unrivaled in the world at that time,
visited more than 30 countries and regions in Asia and Africa
between 1405 and 1433.
Zheng is believed the first man to blaze a direct sea route
linking the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean. His voyage is
recorded 87 years earlier than Columbus' discovery of the Americas
and 114 years earlier than Magellan's round-the-world voyage.
July 11 marks the 600th anniversary of Zheng He's voyages. The
government has planned a series of events to mark the occasion,
including the current expo.
(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2005)
