This image depicts a junk, with a seaside town in the background. This is an early portrayal of the kind of vessel that was traditionally the lifeblood of commerce throughout the sheltered seas of china and southeast asia. The ship is shown manned by sailors in period costume, of which one the figures is engaged in fishing. The flag featuring crescent moons suggests that this particular junk hailed from one of the islamic sultanates of indonesia. The text reads in dutch language "schepen van china et iava met rietten seylen en houten anckers", in english "ship of china and java with rattan sails and wooden anchor"
the presence of vegetal sails suggest southeast asian origin, and wooden anchors are commonly found in nusantara archipelago even until 20th century. Date: 1596.
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