Constructed by 4,000 workers at an expense of $30 million, the Gotheborg, a replica of the legendary Swedish merchant ship of the same name, this summer docked in the southern harbor city of Guangzhou, the originating port of call for the ancient Maritime Silk Road route. On July 18, after a nine-month voyage, the city welcomed this vintage-styled wooden sailing vessel with festivities and a newly constructed expo garden at Zhoutouzui Dock, at which the ship was exhibited for a month.
Then the Gotheborg departed Guangzhou and continued her voyage northward to Shanghai, a metropolis sharing the similar economic and geographical position as Goteborg, the second largest city in Sweden. The ship would stay in Shanghai for four months until its home port return voyage in December.
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Welcoming the "return" of the Gotheborg in Qing-Dynasty style. By Zheng Xun/CFP |
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Centennial Voyages
In the early 1700s, then exotic Chinese products such as silk, porcelain, and tea attracted waves of European merchants, many whom traveled on ships like the Gotheborg and first made port in Guangzhou. To pioneer trade with China, in 1731 the Swedish government established the East India Company. From then through the early 19th Century, the company’s ships sailed a total of 132 voyages across three oceans to Guangzhou. In particular, over a six-year period the company’s largest ship, the Gotheborg, completed three successful voyages across the waters between Sweden and China. Those occurred from: January 1739 to June 1740; February 1741 to July 1742; and March 1743 to September 1745.
On January 11, 1745, loaded with 700 tons of cargo the Gotheborg set sail from Guangzhou bound for her home port. After eight months at sea, she entered Sweden’s waters. But, on September 12, less than one kilometer from the docks, the ship collided with a submerged reef and sank.
Surprisingly, centuries later extensive salvage operations revealed that the decorative veins embedded in the porcelains onboard remained bright and clear, and the tea leaves held in airtight containers remained aromatic and brewable. The find wakened a longstanding dream of some maritime-minded Swedes, and the newly discovered relics again stirred public interest in the ship’s two-centuries past eastward journeys. The city of Goteborg re-founded the East India Company, and in 1993 the massive undertaking of constructing a faithful replica of the ship got underway with wide support from the public, industry, government agencies and nonprofit organizations. To reconceive the original appearance of the vintage vessel, traditional ship-making technology was employed, and the wood was harvested from primitive forests in Northern Europe.
On June 6, 2003, the Gotheborg replica was launched. The ship is 40 meters long, 11 meters wide, 11 meters high; it weighs 1,350 tons and carves a draft of 5.26 meters through the water.
In October 2005, the Gotheborg set sail from GoteborgHarbor, journeyed eastward, and arrived in Australia via Spain, Brazil, and Africa’s southernmost city of Cape Town. From Australia, the ship voyaged northward to finally arrive in Guangzhou via Indonesia. This route tracked the original course of the first Gotheborg-an historic merchant passage known as the ancient Maritime Silk Road.
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Crewmembers take a break at the bow. |
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Royal Reacquaintance
On board when the ship docked at Guangzhou’s NanshaHarbor were two distinguished guests - 60-year-old Swedish King Carl Gustav and his wife, Queen Silvia. Both royals, in particular, were strong supporters of the ship’s reconstruction. When the vessel formally launched on June 6, 2003, the king was on hand to offer best wishes and congratulations. And on September 3, 2004, the queen officiated at the naming ceremony.
After docking in China, upon disembarking the king proclaimed, “We are back, old friends!” The Gotheborg symbolizes the spirit of the Swedish people and the friendly relations between the two nations, he added.
At the Sino-Swedish “Share the Future” Seminar, Swedish Deputy Prime Minister Bosse Ringholm said, “261 years ago, the original Gotheborg made three excursions to Guangzhou. Today, its replica represents both an impressive past and a promising future.”
July is the hottest month in Guangzhou, but the admission tickets for the exhibition of the ship in the ExpoGarden were often sold out. In Shanghai, in particular, youngsters in large numbers turned out to see the ship, allowing them to in a way have a look at the 18th Century.
Like two centuries before, things Chinese are expanding in popularity in Sweden. For instance, in February 2005 Europe’s first Confucian school was established in Sweden, and the number of Swedish tourists visiting China steadily increases. In prime seasons, air tickets from Stockholm to Beijing can be scarce.
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August 14: Beautiful participants of the 14th Guangzhou Advertising Stars Contest adorn the deck of the Gotheborg. by Wei Hui/CFP |
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The Craft of Cooperation
In June 1740, when the merchant ship Gotheborg completed its roundtrip voyage to China, the revenue realized was remarkably substantial, by all recorded accounts. Today, along with the progress of globalization, the return of Gotheborg is expected to spark a multiple sectors of trade between the two nations and herald a second “Golden Age” for Sino-Swedish trade.
Accompanying King Carl Gustav to China during this trip was a business delegation which included the chief operators of more than 20 international firms.These included ABB, Sony Ericsson, Volvo, Scandinavian Airlines, Bank of Sweden, SAAB, and Electrolux. Extensive conferences were held between the delegation and Chinese counterparts.
According to Eddie Chen, chief representative of the Chinese Office of the Investment in Sweden Agency (ISA), the “Return of the Gotheborg” would primarily benefit Sweden’s small and medium-sized enterprises in such fields as information communications, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and precision manufacture. Through on-the-spot investigation, these enterprises will be accessible with more transparent business information through smoother trade channels, thus obtaining more opportunities for entering the Chinese market.
Since China-Sweden diplomatic relations were established in 1950, business dealings between the two nations have steadily improved. Last year, realizing a trade volume of $5.7 billion with Sweden, China continued to hold its place as Sweden’s largest trade partner in Asia. Beginning in the early 1990s, Swedish investment in China has greatly accelerated, mainly in the industries of automobiles, telecommunications, engineering, pharmaceuticals, papermaking, and packaging. Ericsson, Volvo, Tetra Pak, SKF, IKEA and some other Swedish brands have become household names in China.
Sweden’s advantages in the fields of communications technology and precision manufacturing have also attracted a growing number of Chinese investors. According to Eddie Chen, over the past three years, more than 40 Chinese enterprises, including Huawei Technologies, ZTE, China Minmetals Corporation, and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (Group), have established branches and offices in Sweden, and many private enterprises have also made their way into North European market through Sweden.
“The original Gotheborg took along silver coins when it visited China,” says Goteborg Mayor Goran Johansson. “This time, what we brought over are sincere friendship and endless business opportunities.”
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Tourists at Guangzhou's Nansha Dock celebrate the arrival of the Gotheborg. by Wu Luming/CFP |
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August 29: The Gotheborg nears port at the Shanghai International Passengers Dock, the final destination of the China visit. The ship remained docked in the city for two months before its homeward voyage. by Chen Fei/Xinhua |
