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Plate 22.3 A full-size replica of Zheng He’s treasure ship in Nanjing Treasure Shipyard Relic Site Park

            and this was a consideration for the planners of the 600th   Between the 580th anniversary in 1985 and the 600th
            anniversary. A fleet of 62 ships of this size (the number of   anniversary in 2005, the possibility of building a replica for
            ships given in the Ming shi for the first voyage) would have   the big celebration stimulated a substantial amount of
            required about 1,525,200 trees. Moreover, the ships would   research into the size of these ships. Scholars made all sorts
            have lasted only about ten years before they had to be   of speculations and calculations, attempting to make sense of
            completely rebuilt. Therefore, over the 28 years of the   the dimensions given in the Ming shi. One scholar suggested
            voyages, they would have needed to be reconstructed three   that the length and beam of the ships may have been
            or four times, bringing the total up to 4,575,600 or even six   reversed, and a decimal point introduced, yielding
            million trees.  This would have included not only fir, but   dimensions of 18 zhang long by 4.4 zhang wide.  Another
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                       11
            also more expensive and exotic woods of teak and cedar for   argued that the measurement given as length was actually
            parts of the ships requiring extra strength, such as rudders   the product of the length multiplied by the beam.  Still
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            and tillers.  Shipbuilding was not the only demand on   others dispensed with the Ming shi entirely and looked back
                     12
            China’s forests at the time; the new capital was being built in   to the dimensions of earlier ships in China’s long maritime
            Beijing from approximately 1407 onwards, which also   tradition. The trouble with comparing ships from other
            required huge amounts of high-quality wood. Thus the   periods and contexts is that in the end it is difficult to draw
            effect of just these two of Emperor Yongle’s ambitious   precise conclusions about Zheng He’s ships from these
            projects on the environment and the economy, even if the   earlier ships. The essential difficulty with the issues
            ships were half the dimensions given in the Ming shi, was   surrounding Zheng He’s ships is that not enough
            enormous, not to mention the pressure on the infrastructure   information about them survives.
            which would have been required to transport the trees from   Despite the reverence in which the Ming shi is held by
            their points of origin.                            some scholars, it should be remembered that in general the
               Another issue is time: there does not seem to have been   official histories of China are secondary, not primary,
            enough time for ships of such a large size to be built.   sources. Although they were compiled from primary
            Emperor Yongle came to the throne in the second half of   sources, this did not occur until the subsequent dynasty.
            1402. In 1403 he announced the plan to launch these   Thus while Zheng He’s expeditions took place between 1405
            expeditions, and the first voyage set sail in July 1405. This   and 1433, the Ming shi was not completed until 300 years
            means that all 62 ships had to have been built in less than   later, almost 100 years into the Qing dynasty. By that time,
            two years, which is remarkable given that a single replica   not only those involved in the voyages, but even those who
            half the size, which is now being built with modern   could remember the voyages were gone. The history was
            technology in Nanjing, has been under construction for   also compiled, not by shipbuilders or scientists of any kind,
            almost six years (Pl. 22.3). More will be said about this   but by literati, educated in the Confucian classics. The most
            replica later.                                     likely explanation for the unrealistically large dimensions in



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