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Seminar on "The Belt and Road: New Archaeological Discoveries in South China and Hong Kong"

2022-10-18

Maritime Silk Road Society and Hong Kong Public Archaeological Society jointly held "The Belt and Road: New Archaeological Discoveries in South China and Hong Kong" seminar at the Lecture Theatre of the Hong Kong Central Library on 18 October. Prof Xu Yong Jie of the School of Sociology and Anthropology, Sun Yat-Sen University and Dr Ji Wei Wei, Founding Chairperson of Hong Kong Public Archaeology Society were the speakers. The seminar was conducted in a hybrid mode with onsite and online (via VooV) audience.

Prof Xu said the archaeological discoveries in Islands of the South China Seacan be divided into different major periods. He first introduced the archaeological discoveries before 1949 with many pictures of relics, then he talked about the collection of cultural relics after 1949 found mainly in the Paracel Islands and Pratas Islands. The rich discoveries reflected that there were activities of the ancient people in the Islands of South China Sea as early as the prehistoric period of the late Neolithic. Finally, he expounded the current situation and prospects of the archaeological research in the South China Sea with emphasis on sites near Robert Island and North Reef. Archaeological discoveries in Islands of the South China Sea proved that the area has always been China's territorial waters since ancient times.

Dr Ji mainly talked about the relationship between Hong Kong and the Maritime Silk Road, the historical timeline was divided into three stages, they are from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Six Dynasties, Tang to Song Yuan Dynasties, and Ming Dynasties. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, growing maritime traffic prompted the communications with Nokor Phnom (Cambodia), Lam Ap (Vietnam). The coastal area of Guangdong has become the major route of the Maritime Silk Road. In Song and Yuan Dynasties, saltwork grounds were found in coastal area and Kowloon Bay of Hong Kong, together with a large number of ceramics were unearthed in the area reflecting it might be a transshipment port at that time. In the Ming Dynasty, Penny's Bay of Lantau Island in Hong Kong was probably one of the Portuguese trading points. Besides, the archaeological findings of the High Island Reservoir can also infer the role of maritime trade of Hong Kong in the Ming Dynasty.

In the Q&A session, participants responded enthusiastically, stating the importance of promoting archaeology knowledge to the public, as well as the discoveries of ancient cultural relics and ancient sites in Hong Kong. The audience also reflected that the talk helped them to learn more about the history of Hong Kong before any documented history.

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