Shipbuilding in Ancient China

China had established a fairly mature shipbuilding industry as early as the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-220 AD). Possessing well-developed shipbuilding technology and expertise, the artisans of the time were fully capable of fabricating large oceangoing vessels. During the Song Dynasty (960-1276 AD), China's Four Great Inventions (gunpowder, paper, the compass, and moveable type) and the growth of the handicraft industry stimulated further advances in shipbuilding and navigation. The emergence of shipbuilding on a large scale during the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties signified that China's shipbuilding technology had surpassed all its contemporaries. By the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368 AD), China had the most advanced shipbuilding industry in the world. Marco Polo and noted Arab traveler Ibn Batuta both provided detailed descriptions of China's oceangoing vessels. Their reports indicate that the oceangoing vessels of China's Song-Yuan period were meticulously constructed, with massive hulls and huge holds, and were renowned worldwide for their safety.