Identity of the "Mado No. 5 Shipwreck" Revealed in Waters off Mado, Taean

25 Wooden Tablets Point to Cargo Collection in 1207
Voyage Likely Took Place in Spring 1208
Hull of Mado No. 6 Shipwreck Remains Unidentified
Detailed Excavation Planned for Shipwreck from Sacheon, Gyeongsang Province

The identity of the Goryeo-era shipwreck known as the Mado No. 5 shipwreck has been revealed in the waters off Mado, Taean, and traces of a buried wreck, dubbed the Mado No. 6 shipwreck, have been found nearby.

Location of the shipwreck excavated in the Mado waters off Taean / National Research Institute of Maritime Heritage.

The National Research Institute of Maritime Heritage said on November 4 that it had fully excavated the Mado No. 5 shipwreck this year, after detecting signs of it last year, and made these findings.

The identity of the Mado No. 5 shipwreck was revealed through artifacts and wooden tablets recovered during this year's underwater excavation. A total of 53 artifacts, including components of the vessel such as anchor stones, cylindrical timbers and ropes, as well as rice sacks and a bronze jar, were recovered. Researchers also confirmed 25 wooden tablets bearing details of the cargo.

Among the wooden tablets, the cargo collection dates "Jeongmyo year" and "the 12th month of Jeongmyo" were recorded. Based on radiocarbon dating and the dates of the celadon, researchers believe the Jeongmyo year was 1207. Since ships generally did not sail in the middle of winter, in December, the vessel likely departed in the spring of the following year, 1208.

The wooden tablets identify Yeongam County and Anro-hyeon as the cargo's points of dispatch, and Gaegyeong as its destination. This shows that the vessel carried cargo from the southwestern part of Jeolla Province to Gaegyeong.

A bronze jar from the Mado No. 5 ship being raised from the water / National Research Institute of Maritime Cultural Heritage.

The vessel's profile is very similar to that of the Mado No. 1 shipwreck, excavated in 2009. The No. 1 shipwreck also collected cargo in 1207 and sank while bound for Gaegyeong in 1208. The wooden tablets also show similarities. A research institute official said, "The Mado No. 5 tablet indicating that cargo was sent from Anro-hyeon to Song Deukdeok in Gaegyeong is nearly identical in handwriting and content to the Anro-hyeon tablet from the No. 1 shipwreck, leading us to believe that the same person wrote both."

The two vessels were found about 250 meters apart. A research institute official said, "We believe the two ships were sailing together in the same fleet toward Gaegyeong in the spring of 1208 when they encountered bad weather and sank together."

Traces of the newly identified Mado No. 6 shipwreck were found during a test excavation 100 meters east of the Mado No. 2 shipwreck, where around 30 Goryeo-era artifacts were recovered, including a celadon oil bottle, an earthenware kundika bottle, wooden tablets, rice sacks and cargo support timbers. The hull has not yet been found.

Wooden tablet recovered from the Mado No. 5 shipwreck / National Research Institute of Maritime Heritage.

Among the wooden tablets, the inscriptions "Saju Hojang Mokryang" and "Banseong Hyeongji [missing character]mi" indicate that cargo was sent by a local official from Saju and a person from Banseong. Saju is present-day Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, and was the location of Tongyangchang, one of 13 government grain depots used to store tax grain during the Goryeo Dynasty.

A research institute official said, "We plan to continue excavations in the waters around the Mado No. 5 shipwreck while beginning a detailed excavation to determine the nature of the newly identified shipwreck that departed from Sacheon in Gyeongsang Province."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.