[3] The excavation was led by the local archaeologist, professor of history at Xiamen University, Zhuang Weiji (庄为玑, 1909–1991).

[3] During the heyday of Quanzhou as one of China's major sea ports, the area corresponded to the ancient Houzhou Harbor (后渚港, Houzhougang;[5] Hou-to in Wake (1997).

Some archaeologists (John W. Chafee, Janice Stargardt) conjecture that the peculiar circumstances of the ship's sinking may indicate that the vessel was scuttled by its own crew upon returning to Quanzhou from Southeast Asia, once they found out that the city had been captured by the Mongols.

For example, seams between planks were sealed with a tree-derived resin known as chu-nam, which was commonly available e.g. in the port of Satingpra, near today's Songkhla in southern Thailand.

[1][8] According to archaeologists, the composition of the cargo found on board the ship indicates that it was a merchant vessel returning to Quanzhou from Southeast Asia.

There were also small amounts of various valuable commodities: five "Chinese liters" (sheng) of black peppers, ambergris (which, according to chemical testing, must have ultimately come from Somalia), 6.3 grams (0.22 oz) of frankincense (possibly from the Arab lands), almost 4 kilograms (8.8 lb) of mercury, a small amount of "dragon's blood" and haematite, and one turtle shell.