Quanzhou Maritime Museum
The Quanzhou Maritime Museum (泉州海外交通史博物馆) in Fujian province is the only museum in China taking the overseas relations as a special subject. It was established in 1959. By showing its abundant and value historical relics of overseas transportation, it reflects the development history of the Middle Ages’ major port in the east——Citong Port （刺桐港）. It also reflects the important role that Quanzhou plays in the economic and cultural exchanges with foreign countries.
Introduction
The museum consists of two parts: the old one and the new one. The old one, housed in the former Kaiyuan Temple, is used for exhibiting ancient boats. The new one was completed in 1991. Located on the scenic banks of East Lake, it looks like a large ship sailing on the sea.. It covers an area of 3,000 square meters and the built-up area is up to 7300 square meters. There are four exhibition halls in it named “ Quanzhou Maritime Exhibition Hall”（泉州海外交通史陈列馆）, “Quanzhou Religious Stone Carving Hall”（泉州宗教石刻馆）, “Quanzhou Ethnic Culture Exhibition Hall”（泉州民族文化陈列馆） and “Ancient Chinese Model Hall”（中国古代船模馆）.
Rare collections
Among the exhibits of particular interest are:[1]
- The "Quanzhou ship": The ship of the Song Dynasty: unearthed in 1974.
- Stone stelae and tombstones with religious inscriptions. Besides Buddhist ones, there are Islamic, Christian, and Hindu ones.
- Export ceramics: the Dehua（德化） porcelain is particularly value.
- Ancient navigation equipment: like the four-claw anchor of the Ming Dynasty （明代四爪铁锚）
References
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