Researchers are working to determine if a sunken ship discovered off Taiwan’s Green Island is a legendary Dutch ship that locals say ran aground there in the 19th century.

The shipwreck appears to be the remains of a wooden vessel from the West dating to at least 100 years ago, according to Tsang Cheng-hwa, an academician at Academia Sinica, Taiwan’s top research institute.

It was discovered on the sea bed by an Academia Sinica underwater archeology research team in June 2013.

Experts say the design of the ship, which has been dubbed “Green Island No. 1” since its discovery, does not look like a traditional Asian vessel.

In fact, there is a local legend that says in the late 19th century, a Dutch trade boat ran aground there after hitting reefs.

The crew is said to have fled instead of landing on the strange island, leaving their badly damaged ship behind, and enough rice for the residents of the island for three years.

The research team says in a preliminary study, they found the wooden boards of the sunken ship were copper-plated, indicating that it was rather large and did not originate in Asia. And the thickness of the boards suggest it was a larger ship.

Most of the wreck has been covered by coral reefs, but researchers have been commissioned by the Ministry of Culture to conduct in-depth probe.

The experts speculate that the vessel may have been a merchant ship sailing north from the Philippines when it met with its fate.

 

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Image via  Harald Kobler