(Photo/Gu Jiezhu)

A replica of the Belitung shipwreck, created by Xingya Wooden Ship Building Co., Ltd. from Zhuhong Town in Xinghua City, was featured at an exhibition of intangible cultural heritage held to celebrate the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.

The shipwreck was discovered in 1998 off Belitung Island in Indonesia and excavated by a German salvaging company. It’s also known as Batu Hitam (meaning “black rock”) Shipwreck, from which the Chinese name of the wreck derives. The Arab ship contained more than 60,000 ceramics made during China’s Tang Dynasty (618–907).

The excavation provides important historical information about China's maritime trade and also shows the economic vitality and strengths of Tang Dynasty, with its coinage used for international trade at that time.

Zhuhong is known as the hometown of Chinese wooden boats and the boat-building technique is recognized as an intangible cultural heritage.