The Shanghai Museum of History on Saturday hosted a unique exhibition of the Yangtze River Estuary No. 2 ancient ship, showcasing 137 salvaged artifacts, with 95 items never seen before.

The exhibition highlights the ship's hull components, salvaged ceramics, and models of the ship's technology and equipment.
At a depth of 5.5 meters below the seabed, the hull of the shipwreck spans approximately 38.5 meters in length and 7.8 meters in width, signifying it as a merchant vessel dating back to the reign of Emperor Tongzhi during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
Among the 31 cabins on board, a wealth of cultural relics were discovered, including fine porcelain crafted in Jingdezhen, an internationally renowned 'porcelain capital' located in east China's Jiangxi Province.
The most eye-catching in the exhibition is a dowry vase, the largest porcelain item ever salvaged from the ancient shipwreck.
"The contents of this dowry vase are really unimaginable. Inside it, there are 50 small bowls decorated with dragon patterns. These bowls kept their freshness as if they were just crafted out of the oven, despite their lengthy existence for over 150 years," said Zhai Yang, Deputy Director of Shanghai Cultural Relics Protection and Research Center.
"They have been underwater for hundreds of years, so it's usually hard to see them," said a visitor.
"There are so many cultural relics on display, and they are all very substantial and nice-looking," said another visitor.
Two-thirds of the exhibition space is dedicated to demonstrating the prowess of cutting-edge technologies used in archaeology. The display features intelligent equipment, such as underwater robots, underwater cameras, and unmanned vessels, which are instrumental in significant archaeological work and meet the public for the first time.
"This is one of the unmanned vessels we used. It is equipped with synthetic aperture sonar that can perform 3D imaging below the mud surface," said Zhai.
The exhibition also breaks the traditional form of display cabinets, incorporating technologies such as projection and mist screens to create special exhibits, including 3D displays, fog projection and salvage interactive experiences.
"We interpret the story of a sunken ship to present the splendor of the whole city, its profound and extensive history, and futuristic sci-tech sentiments. Since it's summer vacation, we hope to spark students' interest in archaeology and sci-tech exploration, and boost their confidence for the future," said Zhou Qunhua, Director of the Shanghai History Museum.
The exhibition will run through October 6.