Another ancient cannon was unearthed at a construction site on Kinmen Island on Saturday, bringing to 29 the number of cannons found in a weapons cache that may date back to the 17th century.
Chen Wei-chun (陳維鈞), an associate researcher at Academia Sinica’s Institute of History and Philology who took over responsibility for the excavation on Wednesday, said the cannons were a valuable cultural asset even if their age has yet to be determined.
“It is the largest number of cannons ever discovered at a single site,” said Chen, referring to the construction site in Chincheng Township (金城).
PHOTO: CNA
“The largest number of ancient cannons ever found at one site to date is 20, in Fujian Province in southern China,” Chen said.
Huang Yi-nong (黃一農), a historian and member of Academia Sinica, said after inspecting the cannons that they were similar to Western-style muzzle-loaded smoothbore cannons from the 17th century.
Ancient cannons normally bear inscriptions of who manufactured them and when they were produced, but the newly uncovered cannons are so eroded that no inscriptions could be found, leaving academics uncertain about their age.
Chen said he was seeking assistance from German scientists who have developed a technology to date the age of metal.
“If we can determine how old these cannons are, it will help us understand their historical significance,” he said.
The first cannon to be discovered was excavated by construction workers on May 5, which led to the discovery of the other 28.
The developer has turned the cannons, which vary in length from 0.9m to 1.2m and have calibers ranging from 10cm to 15cm, over to local authorities.
A local cultural official said they were similar to weapons found in other places on the island that date back to the mid-17th century.
Kinmen was occupied at the time by a warlord loyal to the dethroned Ming Dynasty. He used the island as a base to fight unsuccessfully against the Qing Dynasty from 1644 to 1670.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)