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8
;
IXTRODl'CTION.
«products of Persia (Po-ssi),» the country of the majority of the traders who
brought these goods to China ^
In the seventh century Chinese maritime enterprise began to manifest
itself, and we hear of Chinese making at least one sea voyage of considerable
length. In the third year of his reign, A. D. 607, Sui Yang-ti sent a mission 5
by sea to Siam (Ch'i-t'u) to open commercial relations with it. The explorers
were back in 610, and, from the fact that they received high official prefer-
ment, there is little doubt that the exploit was held to be a most extraordi-
narily daring one*.
In 629 the famous pilgrim Hfian-tsang started on his travels through lo
Central Asia and India. He reached the south-eastern coast of India near
Ceylon, but the notions he brought back of the latter country were still of the
vaguest. He did not even know that it was an island. He heard of some islands
ftsome thousands of li» to the south and the west of Ceylon, but apparently
never a word reached him of intercourse by sea existing between India and i&
Ceylon and the countries to the east, Sumatra, Java, Indo-China and China.
The pilgrims to India who succeeded him followed at first the overland route
1) See Wei-shu, 102, Sect. Po-ssi. Sui-shu, 83, Sect. Po;Ssi.
2) The explorers Chan p r Tsnn and Wang Kfln embarked at Canton in the month of
November 607 (lO^i^ moon), and, sailing day and night for 20 days with the monsoon, they passed 201
Tsiau-shl island (^^ ^ ijj) and anchored S. E. of it at Ling-kiS-po-pa-to island (1^ Ahg
'^ ^t ^ fM\ )' ^^^'^^ ia.ces Lin-i (Tongking) to the W. and on which there is a temple
(^$ ^\ 'l^i-'"^''y")- Continuing S. they came to the ShMzi rocks (0)^ -^ '^\
where there
are a great many contiguous islands and islets, whence continuing for two or three days they sighted
in the W. the hills of Lang-ya-stt (^g ^ ^). Thence S. by the Ki-lung island (^ W, ^) ^^
they came to the frontier of Ch'i-t'u.
On the return voyage, on which ihey were accompanied by Siamese envoys, they noted
shoals of green flying-fish. After ten days they came to the high coast of Lin-i, when for a whole
day the ship sailed through a strip of yellowish, foul smelling water, which, it was said, was the
dung of a great fish. Following to the N. coast of the sea they came to Kiau-chii (Hanoi?), where SO
it seems that their sea voyage finished. See Sui shu, 82. Sect. Ch'i-t'u.
Tsiau-shi island, is tentatively identified with the island of Tseu, Hon Tseu on the maps,
IV2 miles S. E. of Mui (Cape) Duong, in the Ha-Tinh district on the coast of Annam, near Tourane.
(See Gerini, A^iat. Quart. Eev.,34 ser.XI, 156). Ling-kie-po-pa-to island, is identified by the same
(loc. sup. cit.) with Cape Varella. It is evidently the same as Mount Ling of Ki a Tan (see infra, So-
p. 10) which Pelliot thinks may possibly be Cape Sa-hoi, N. of Quinhon. The Shi-tzi rocks,
Gerini thinks (p. 157) may be Pulo Sapatu of the Catwick group, or else Pulo Cecir de Mer not
far N. of Pulo Sapatu. Lang-ya-stt is identified by Gerini (p. 157) with the Lankachiu islands,
Koh Katu on the charts, intended for Koh Kachin (i. e., Koh Lankachiu) in the gulf of Siam
opposite Swai Bay, a little below C'hump'hon Bay. Although the name Lang-ka-stt was applied 40-
by mediaeval Chinese to several places in the Southern Seas widely apart, G erini cannot, it would
seem, be far wrong. Ki-lung island, is tentativaly identified by Gerini (p. 158) with Koh-rang-kai
oir ((Hen's nest island)), one of a group of 4 islets, S. of Lem (Cape) C'hong P'hrah, some
20 miles above C'hump'hon Bay.