Ming-dynasty Fuchuan merchant junks

Timeline

1. c. 1405–1550Quanzhou port · FujianFuchuan shipbuilding techniques along the Fujian coast matured around the Yuan–Ming transition; their broad bottom, sharp prow, watertight bulkheads and multiple sail rigs made them suited to long ocean voyages, and they were widely used by Ming civilian maritime merchants.
2. c. 1581–1590Yuegang, Zhangzhou · FujianAfter the opening of the seas in the first year of Longqing (1567), Yuegang became a legal port for civilian foreign trade, and Fuchuan merchant junks sailed from there, carrying silk, porcelain and other goods to Manila and Southeast Asia, and returning with silver and spices.
3. c. 1585–1620Manila (Chinese merchant trade node) · PhilippinesDuring the Wanli era, Fuchuan merchant guilds integrated deeply with the Spanish trade system in Manila; the Yuegang–Manila route became one of the busiest trade routes of Ming overseas trade, with the scale and frequency of merchant ships continuing to grow.