SEMINAR ON NAUTICAL SCIENCE AND NAVIGATIONAL TECHNIQUES OF THE 15TH AND 16TH CENTURIES

On the 3rd, 4th and 5th of November 1987, a seminar on Nautical Science and Navigational Techniques of the 15th and 16th centuries in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans was held at the Palace Auditorium on the Praia Grande in Macau. It was organized by the 'Instituto Cultural de Macau' and the Maritime Services Department.

This seminar provided an opportunity for Chinese and Portuguese specialists to discuss the art of navigation as practised by the helmsmen and navigators of their respective countries in that early period. This allowed an initial examination of the points of convergence and also of the different solutions in maritime practices that, at the beginning of this seminar, were completely unknown. It was impossible to make a detailed study of all similarities and differences in such a short period of time. However, this seminar revealed the fact that Oriental and Western seafarers facing the same kind of difficulties tried to find solutions based upon principles and ideas that were often related.

The 15th century was a period of maritime expansion for both Portugal and China. As a matter of fact, these Chinese navigators chose to make their expeditions far from their own vast territorial waters. They voyaged to every corner of the Indian Ocean. Besides visiting the peninsula of Hindustan and the East Coast of Africa, they reached 'Moon Island' (known as S. Lourenço to the Portuguese) and the Persian Gulf, in particular, Ormuz (Hulumus to the Chinese). This maritime expansion predated that of the Portuguese and reached its peak under the command of the navigator Zheng He, to whom special attention was given during this seminar. This will be mentioned later.

Some Chinese sources claim this expansion began in the 11th century. However, this may be an exaggeration. At the beginning of the last quarter of the 14th century, Chinese maritime voyages had achieved a degree of fame in Europe. The Catalan Atlas of Cresques dated 1375, now in the National Library of Paris, depicts an embarkation vessel called a 'junk' (in Catalan 'junch') on an area of sea equivalent in size to the Indian Ocean. This junk has all the characteristics of the famous Chinese vessel of the same name.

When Vasco da Gama's vessels reached the Indian Ocean, Chinese maritime activity was already in decline. The Chinese fleets, with a smaller number of vessels, did not voyage further than the port of Malacca where Diogo Lopes de Sequeira met them, establishing links with the Chinese sailors (as was mentioned in detail in Portuguese chronicles).

The two navigational techniques possibly influenced each other; yet Dr. Zheng Yi Jun's paper states that it is doubtful whether the Indian wooden charts brought to Portugal were of Arabian origin as was generally believed or whether they were replicas of the twelve astrological charts mentioned by the classical writer Li Yu.

We are compelled to bring this and many other questions into the open.

However, despite indications which point to further research areas, much has yet to be solved. This is because, in spite of some published works on scientific history and Chinese techniques (I mention, in particular, the great studies by J. Needham), the Western historian has very little access to Chinese sources because of linguistic difficulties.

It is obvious that this difficulty also arises in China. Chinese historians do not have easy access to Western history and this becomes more difficult still when one deals with the history of scientific and technical subjects which have boomed in Europe since the 16th century.

All the participants in the seminar agreed on the third point in the conclusions which states that "the main barrier to the exchange of ideas between participants of both countries is language" and strongly recommends that "every effort be made to promote the translation of the main texts in order to facilitate better dissemination as a foundation for future meetings".

This recommendation does not criticise the excellent job translators and interpreters have done supporting the seminar with their fluency in the Portuguese language (their Chinese origin is a guarantee of a perfect command of Mandarin). Meanwhile we believe that a correct version from Portuguese to Chinese (or vice-versa) poses great difficulties which increase with the use of technical and archaic language which both Portuguese and Chinese used, often omitting words or leaving their meaning obscure. Hence, even though one may have excellent translators, they must always be assisted by specialists on the subject from both countries. This was done, though hastily, for the versions from Portuguese to Chinese. I believe, considering the difficulties I had when I read the papers from our Chinese colleagues, that this was not done with the translation of the texts into Portuguese. This is a problem of prime importance to be taken into consideration should future meetings be held. It is very much hoped that these meetings do take place as they establish strong links between the two cultures.

Among the five papers presented by the Chinese participants, three were on Zheng He's voyages, analysing in great detail not only techniques of navigation used by his helmsmen but also the social and cultural causes which motivated Zheng He's expansion and the importance placed on his extensive maritime expeditions in geographical studies.

The last topic was forcefully presented by Dr. Iu Zhong Xun, researcher at the Institute of Geographical Research (Institute of Chinese Sciences, Beijing) and Vice-Director of the Professional Commission on History and Geography. The author mentioned all the places visited by Zheng He on the seven voyages that he made over 28 years (between 1405 and 1433), reported in several different Chinese sources. The great majority of these voyages remain unknown in the West. To give an idea of his last voyage begun in 1431, Zheng He had visited Malacca, Cambodia, Sumatra, Ceylon, the Maldives, Cochim, Ormuz, Aden, Mecca (he even reached the Red Sea!), Socotra, Melinde, Mombassa, etc. The effects are reflected in the existence of 'Zheng He's nautical chart' which, according to Dr. Niu is 'one of the oldest ever known and was widely used'.

In his paper "The Cultural and Social Background to the Rise and Fall of Chinese Navigation during the 15th and 16th centuries" Professor Jiang Yi Hua of Fudan University was mainly interested in clarifying the causes which motivated the peak and sudden decline in Chinese naval activity. To quote him, 'History proves that China was one of the most developed countries in maritime navigation in the 15th and 16th centuries. Unfortunately this progress lost momentum. Whilst the West, inspired by the voyages of Columbus, Vasco da Gama and Magalhães made great strides forward (...) Chinese governmental nautical organization was cast aside and commerce and piracy were severely repressed and forbidden. Navigational science declined'. This idea occupied the major part of Professor Jiang's paper, to which were added many interesting details which astonished Western historians. Two of these were the great size of many of the vessels of Zheng He's fleet and the extensive routes covered, attaining one hundred thousand kilometres.

Dr. Zheng Yi Jun, research assistant at the Institute of Marine Research (Institute of Chinese Sciences, Beijing), presented a paper on Chinese Nautical Art which included some rather interesting details even though we believe they were not always clear enough and in some cases they were difficult to prove. Without doubt, Zheng He practised a stellar navigation that in some aspects (they used the stars of the 'Ursa Minor' constellation) had something in common with Western Nautical Art. Dr. Zheng ended his presentation with these words: 'On this occasion on which we commemorate the five hundredth anniversary of the Portuguese Discoveries, it is important to balance all the contributions that Zheng He's fleet, as pioneers in navigation, made to technical and scientific advance in the field of navigation. This will enable us to develop a world navigational science, and to bring about closer interchange among people from every corner of the world'.

He summed up the motives and concerns which had brought us together with great feeling and he proposed that the work begun in this seminar be continued.

"Xu Jing's role in the History of Maritime Communications in China" was the title of the paper presented by Professor Wang Wen-chu of Fudan University (Institute of History and Geography). The author's main interest was the history of maritime relations between his country and Korea (Gaoli), particularly during the Song Dinasty (10th - 12th centuries). He was assisted by extensive documentation on the subject despite the fact that much of it had been lost. Fortunately, citations are known or some extracts have been preserved in other works. It should be stressed that the problem of sources available to the Western scholar of Chinese history is one of the most crucial. Only knowledge can allow an open and productive dialogue with Chinese counterparts and this is why the third point in the conclusions has been included.

Professor T'ien Ju Kang, also from Fudan University (Faculty of History) dealt with the title "Peak and Decline of the Chinese Junk; Merchants, Entrepreneurs and Coolies (1600 - 1850)". In spite of the title's temporal limits, Professor T'ien acknowledged that the junk attained its first level of perfection after several developments which took place from the twelfth century. However, the paper emphasizes the commerce and emigration that the junks were involved in over a period of centuries rather than nautical archaeology or the evolution in boat - building techniques. This does not mean that these had no significance, quite the contrary. Effectively, it seems to me that the prolonged use of the junk as a vessel of great utility and the successive modifications is explained by its social and economic role, revealed so well by the author of this paper.

The five Portuguese participants in this seminar also presented papers. Four of them spoke exclusively on Western Nautical Science in the 15th and 16th centuries and the fifth paper presented by the author of this article, addressed the clear repercussions of Oriental Nautical Art in an example of Portuguese cartography.

Admiral Rogério de Oliveira, Chairman of our Maritime Academy spoke on the ‘Caravel Bartolomeu Dias’ that it is to say, on the reconstruction of a caravel of the end of 15th century. In particular he discussed the works he supervised, the problems he faced and the options he had to take (and the reasons why) in his task of planning and supervising the construction of the replica which is at present sailing round the Cape of Good Hope. The following extract from his speech should emphasize the solution that Admiral Rogério de Oliveira made, 'Firstly, the inflexible objective of reproducing in great detail a caravel of the Discoveries (...) not allowing for any practical divergences, could never have been attained. In fact, knowledge of the morphology and the functions of the caravel of the Discoveries is scarce and controversial. We always had to make conjectures or even imagine solutions to fill in unfathomable omissions'.

Dr. Manuel Leitão, a medical doctor, an expert yachtsman and an active member of the Maritime Academy presented 'The Art of Navigation in the Portuguese Maritime Discoveries'. The paper mentions several kinds of navigation using sails, in particular the voyages made in the Altantic and Indian Oceans in the 15th and 16th centuries and obstacles caused by the physical environment which they encountered. The text places particular emphasis on the type of sails used in the vessels of that period, giving several instructive and numerous technical details. This is a very important work because some of those who study routes and voyages of that period sometimes forget that sails were used.

It is obvious that sails were used but by that time stellar navigation had already begun as Commander Soeiro de Brito, Vice-Chairman of the Maritime Academy and Professor at the New University of Lisbon, states in his work entitled 'On the Portuguese Invention of Astronomic Navigation'. This development was made in successive phases as the navigators sailed on the open seas. The impressive history of this technical adventure, with its results, is narrated in detail in almost 25 pages of great interest. I may well be accused of bias as I have been interested particularly in this chapter in the history of navigation but I have tried to be completely objective in my judgement and I am convinced that I have attained that goal.

Commander A. Estácio dos Reis, also a prominent member of the Maritime Academy, spoke about nautical instruments, a topic to which he has dedicated himself for a long time with some remarkable results. In fact, we owe to Commander A. Estácio dos Reis the idea of dating old nautical instruments by chemical processes and we are also indebted to him for a rich catalogue of all existing globes in Portugal. In his paper, presented in Macau, Estácio dos Reis referred to the four most used nautical instruments in the 15th and the 16th centuries, that is to say the quadrant, the astrolab and the cross - staff (all astronomic instruments introduced in the order mentioned) and also the hourglass and the plummet. These two have been used in Portugal for centuries as is proved by a document from the first quarter of the fifteenth century which mentions them. The author of the paper praises the practical significance of each of the instruments or devices, stressing the importance that all of them had in the modernization of the art of navigation.

My paper resumed work started in collaboration with Dr. J. Lopes Tavares some years ago and I tried to show that in the planisphere called 'Cantino', drawn up in 1502 by an unknown Portuguese cartographer, there are influences of the nautical expertise possessed by the sailors in the Indian Ocean, revealed by the keys which show the heights in inches (almost always incorrectly designated degrees) and the location of the place names on the same latitude on the East Coast of the Indo -Chinese border peninsula.

From what I have mentioned it is obvious that the seminar has achieved remarkable results and that seems to be the conclusion of the 50 participants, some of whom participated quite actively in the discussion on the papers. This also explains why, at the final session, a set of conclusions was approved, including the proposal that other similar meetings should be held bi - annually in Macau, in the People's Republic of China and in Portugal. There is no doubt that studies of nautical history will receive an important boost if the resolution to make translations of the most important texts on nautical science of the 15th and 16th centuries, both Portuguese and Chinese, is put into practice. This was also expressed in other parts of the conclusions.

CONCLUSIONS OF THE SEMINAR

At the end of the seminar workshops on 'Nautical Science and Navigational Techniques of the 15th and 16th centuries' which was held in Macau from 3rd to 5th November 1987, the Portuguese and Chinese participants stated the following conclusions:

1. They congratulate themselves on carrying out this seminar during the Five Hundredth Anniversary of the Portuguese Discoveries, establishing for the first time contact between Portuguese and Chinese specialists who exchanged information of extreme technical and scientific importance.

2. Recognizing that the Portuguese and Chinese peoples were the world pioneers of ocean voyages of the modern era in the 15th century, being responsible in the West and in the East respectively for remarkable advances in the fields of nautical science and for the discovery of techniques and instruments which became the closest solutions for a great part of the problems by navigation which they faced isolated and without reciprocal knowledge, the participants were unanimous that these scientific meetings should be held bi - annually alternatively in Macau, the People's Republic of China and Portugal in order to systematically broaden and deepen reciprocal knowledge of the available information.

3. Meanwhile, considering that the main barrier for the exchange of knowledge between the participants from the two countries is the language, it is highly recommended that all possible efforts be made as regards the promotion of the translation of basic texts in order to facilitate their dissemination and thus be a foundation for future meetings.

4. In the same spirit, it is considered that it would be most convenient to create conditions for the Chinese and Portuguese researchers to make study - visits of short duration in Portugal and in the People's Republic of China respectively.

5. To propose to the Governor of Macau that he appoint the 'Instituto Cultural de Macau' as the link between cultural and scientific organizations of Portugal and the People's Republic of China according to the agreement of technical, scientific and cultural cooperation in force, because of the special endowment of this institution in these areas of knowledge and its privileged location in Macau, a city whose traditions date back centuries, a meeting point of Chinese and Western culture.

Translated by Isabel Morais

*Doctorate in Mathematics (University of Coimbra), Geographical Engineer (University of Lisbon), Doctor 'Honoris Causa' in History (University of Lisbon), Director of the Centre of Historical and Ancient Cartographical Studies and Director of the Department of Historic, Economic and Social Sciences at the Tropical Sciences Research Institute.