How Maritime Archaeology Can Contribute to the Learning of Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century Singapore History in Schools

Abstract

Maritime archaeology may be broadly defined as the study of human interaction with the sea through the in situ documentation of shipwrecks and their cargoes. Underwater excavation presents many challenges not encountered on land, such as limited time, environmental hazards, and severe corrosion and decay of artifacts, including the ship’s hull. An added regional challenge is the extensive looting of shipwreck sites throughout the seas of Southeast Asia. Despite all this, our knowledge of ship construction, life at sea, navigation, trade routes, general trade, and the ceramics trade in particular, has been vastly enhanced by the discovery of over a hundred shipwrecks in Southeast Asia and China. Several are of particular relevance to our understanding of premodern Singapore and the environs. This chapter will briefly examine the challenges unique to maritime archaeology, before delving into important discoveries that shed light on Singapore during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including the Binh Thuan, Wanli, Vung Tau, and Ca Mau shipwrecks. There will be discussion on how to interpret and benefit from exhibits at maritime museums, with specific examples. The chapter shall conclude with reflection on the potential of maritime archaeology in Singapore in the context of local and international developments.