On the morning of December 27, forces were present at the scene where the wreck of a suspected ancient ship was discovered on Tan Thanh beach, Cam An Ward, City. Hoi An (Quang Nam).

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Cong – Vice Chairman of Cam An Ward People’s Committee said that this shipwreck was discovered by people around 9:00 a.m. yesterday, December 26, on the beach right behind the ward committee headquarters about 400m.

The ship is about 15m long and about 3m wide. The wooden frame surrounding the body floats above the sand to create a shape surrounding the ship’s hull, looking like an ancient ship.

Forces were deployed to secure the scene. “According to people’s experience, this is a boat that people have owned in the past and has been around for quite a long time. We are waiting for specialized agencies to intervene to clarify” – Mr. Cong said.

Many curious people came to see the wreck of the ship emerging near the coast. Mr. Nguyen Dong (60 years old, in Tan Thanh city block) said that the location of the wreck was previously people’s garden land. However, landslides and erosion have penetrated deep into the mainland for many years, so people had to relocate elsewhere. Storms and floods, ocean waves hit, sand and soil are washed out to sea, so the shipwreck emerges.

Mr. Dong commented that this shipwreck was probably an old merchant’s gourd boat, a type of sailing vehicle made from rare black ebony wood and has high durability. It can be said that this is an ancient boat hundreds of years old.

Talking to the press, Chairman of Hoi An City People’s Committee Nguyen Van Son said he had directed professional forces to the scene to learn and collect information. Mr. Son said that the discovered wooden shipwreck was a gourd boat that had sunk in the past. The gourd boat is an ancient vehicle used by traders in Hoi An to transport rice, fish, and other necessities to sell everywhere. This type of boat is more than 100 years old.

The city assigned the Hoi An Cultural Heritage Management and Conservation Center to research and survey specifically to come up with a plan to salvage this ship’s hull. If necessary, invite the Institute of Archeology to participate in the research.

According to Mr. Pham Phu Ngoc – Director of Hoi An Cultural Heritage Management and Conservation Center, the ship is quite valuable and old. The unit went to the scene as soon as they received the information and the force went to the scene to investigate, but the large waves were not able to salvage the ship.