Raising history from the depths

The production begins with the discovery of the Yangtze River Estuary No 2 during an underwater archaeological census. Sonar detection pinpointed the 38-meter-long wooden structure, which had been well-preserved in the low-oxygen, muddy riverbed.

Subsequent underwater surveys determined that the ship, which had 31 cabins, dated from the 1860s to the 1870s. This was aided by the discovery of a ceramic cup upon which was written, "Made in the reign of Tongzhi". Emperor Tongzhi was a Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) ruler who reigned from 1862-74.

The discoveries mean that the boat is one of the largest and most intact ancient wooden shipwrecks ever found in the country. Its testimony to the history of Shanghai and China as a global hub of maritime trade prompted the ambitious project to salvage the boat for further research.

The documentary shows how people raced against time to encase the shipwreck with a huge, tailor-made steel cofferdam. Battling fast-flowing currents and typhoons, the shipwreck was raised from the riverbed in 2022 in just 77 days, using a vessel named the Da Li (Great Efforts) and another one designed especially for such operations, the Fen Li (Endeavor).

"The production shows the collective wisdom and joint efforts of experts from a variety of fields, such as anthropology, historical geography, art history, economics, science and technology, and industry, who were invited to contribute their insights to the project," Pan says.