Secrets of the Sea: A Tang Shipwreck and Early Trade in Asia Virtual Field Trip

We ended the Winter Quarter with the land routes of the Silk Route. Over break, I traveled to New York to see a ground-breaking exhibition titled "Secrets of the Sea: A Tang Shipwreck and Early Trade in Asia" showcasing artifacts from a find of 60,000 gold, silver, and porcelain artifacts preserved by the ocean sediment and dating from the Tang Dynasty (618-907). 

Scholars working on this exhibition have made two claims or conclusions based on the evidence aboard. First, this ship proves that in the 9th century C.E. intense seagoing trade occurred throughout Asia, with an Arab-made vessel likely made in the Persian Gulf traveling from South China to Arabia or Persia. Second, the Tang Dynasty in China served as the "factory of the world at this time," thereby revealing the early roots of globalization. Kilns from across China produced -- likely on a "made to order" basis -- unique pieces specially made for Arab and Persia markets.  Thus, the "sheer ambition" and "sheer scale" of this single cargo transport revealed a maritime Silk Road that would have been much more sizable than the overland Silk Road. 

(Source: Asia Society, New York, Secrets of the Sea: A Tang Shipwreck and Early Trade in Asia, March 2017) 

Using the "app" entitled "Asian Civilization Museums" on your phone, the museum website on your computer, and/or the physical file of photographs taken onsite, please tour the museum exhibit. Look for three pieces of supporting examples for each of the above two claims by the Asia Society, and the Asian Civilization Museum in Singapore. Use an example of an artifact within your supporting examples.  Record those six pieces of evidence on your Virtual Field Trip Analysis Sheet.