The planet we live on is covered mostly by ocean and with advances in shipbuilding and navigational technology; maritime exploration emerged to provide unprecedented access to the most distant destinations.

In our previous program, we talked about the city of Guangzhou as an ancient capital for three dynasties in Chinese history. Today, Liu Yan will introduce you to the city's history as a 'maritime Silk Road'.

Like its landlocked counterpart, the earliest maritime Silk Road can be dated back to the Han Dynasty, some 2,000 years ago. The maritime routes opened by Emperor Wudi provided access to the Roman Empire via India. It was the earliest maritime trading route in the world.

Through these trade routes China was able to actively seek out overseas markets and establish foreign trade relations. This laid the foundation for the development of the maritime Silk Road.

Later during the Tang Dynasty, some 1,000 to 1,500 years ago, Chinese ships set sail from Guangzhou and Quanzhou in Guangdong and travelled across the South China Sea, thus pioneering the most important routes of the maritime Silk Road.

Doctor of history Huang Haiyan explains.

"The excavation of the Nan Yue king's tomb enabled the discovery of a seal made of ivory. It is a statue of a human head, a design of strong Arabian style. This shows that the city had some kind of relationship overseas as early as 2,000 years ago."

In addition, other discoveries found in the tomb include five pieces of ivory and a silver box from Iran and are believed to be the earliest foreign goods imported via a sea route to be discovered in China. That proved the fact that the ancient Panyu, the present day Guangzhou, is the birthplace of the maritime Silk Road which served as a bridge connecting China and the rest of the world.

Archeologist Huang Miaozhang, the curator of the Provincial Research Institute of Culture and History in Guangdong, says in contrast to the central plains, the economic development of Guangzhou boasts strong oceanic characteristics which were comprehensive and commercial.

"As a trade capital for a couple of thousand years, Guangzhou had the most advanced culture in Lingnan in southern China. People in Guangzhou were more open due to the influence of the oceanic culture."

The development of the maritime Silk Road can be divided into several stages. During the Tang Dynasty some 1,000 to 1,500 years ago, among the six routes which operated regularly, the most famous one started from Guangzhou and reached the East Coast of Africa via the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf. The longest sea route in the world at that time, it linked China with 90 countries and regions.

The traders shipped silk, porcelain and tea for sale in foreign countries and brought back gold and silver, glassware, ivory and perfume. Guangzhou served as a major trading port in China and a well known port in the world.

In the late 13th century Yuan Dynasty, the number of countries that had trade relations with China increased to 140. Three more new sea routes were opened linking Guangzhou with new destinations in Java's northern coast, the Apennine Peninsula and Africa's eastern coast.

At the turn of the 15th and 16th century and during the era of great geographical discovery, another three new sea routes were added as part of world transportation routes. They all started in Guangzhou, with destinations in Europe and Japan, and Latin America via the Philippines.

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