A fragment of a 13th-century celadon bowl made in Longquan, China, was recovered at Dibba Al-Hisn in Sharjah.
Previous excavations at Khor Fakkan, too, unearthed several Chinese objects. The Sharjah Archaeology Authority's collection from the site includes a 14th-century Longquan celadon dish and a blue-and-white porcelain plate made in Jingdezhen during the 16th century.
The material points to centuries-old commercial links between China and what is now the UAE, according to organisation director general Eisa Yousif.
“Through these discoveries, we can understand the relationship with China. We can also examine the similarities between objects discovered in China and those found in the UAE, particularly in Sharjah,” Yousif said at the Beijing International Book Fair, running until Sunday, where the UAE is guest of honour.
Yousif placed the ceramics within a wider body of discoveries showing how the emirate was connected to communities across Asia by land and sea.
“One of the most important drivers of that exchange was the Silk Road,” he said. “This route connected East and West, and enabled civilisations to move and interact with one another. Cultural diversity and exchange took place through both the overland and the maritime Silk Road.”
Sharjah’s east coast ports at Dibba Al-Hisn and Khor Fakkan face the Gulf of Oman and the maritime routes of the Indian Ocean. The 14th-century traveller Ibn Battuta named Dibba and Khor Fakkan among the coastal settlements recorded in his Rihla.
While the pieces do not establish that ships sailed directly between China and Sharjah, they show that goods made at major Chinese ceramic centres reached markets serving the emirate’s coast.
“Some of the material remains intact, while other examples survive only as fragments. These discoveries show the continuation of imports and commercial contact with China over a long period,” Yousif said.
Tracing those routes depends on continuing excavation, preservation and research, all part of the heritage programme developed under Sharjah Ruler Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi.
“His vision began with the understanding that cultural heritage is the foundation of national identity and the memory of peoples,” Yousif said. “This is an integrated vision that includes archaeology, museums, popular heritage, manuscripts and scientific research.”
The archaeology session formed part of a wider programme at Al Bait Al Emarati, the UAE pavilion bringing together more than 20 cultural, publishing and research institutions. Alongside its books and heritage displays, the programme has examined ties between the countries through translation, scholarship and cultural debate.
“These are two civilisations separated by enormous distances and differing in language and geography. Despite that, the relationship between the two countries grows closer every day, and understanding between their peoples continues to deepen,” said Professor Wang Youyong of Shanghai International Studies University during a session about the Silk Road.
“Why has this rapprochement taken place? How can this coexistence be explained? I believe the answer is that both civilisations draw from a common source at their core: the values of tolerance and harmony.”
Wang said the UAE shared with China an understanding of harmony that accepts difference rather than enforcing cultural uniformity.
“Harmony does not mean that everyone becomes an identical copy of everyone else,” he added. “As Confucius said clearly, the noble person seeks harmony without demanding uniformity. True harmony is based upon recognising difference. Different voices meet and rise together towards wider horizons.”
Wang pointed to the Chinese Muslim scholars Wang Daiyu and Liu Zhi, who fused Islamic teachings with Chinese philosophy, and to Arab scholars who studied and developed knowledge from Greek, Indian, Persian and Chinese sources.
“In China, Muslim scholars such as Wang Daiyu and Liu Zhi established an important model of civilisational dialogue,” Wang said. “They explained Islamic teachings through concepts drawn from Chinese thought. During the flourishing periods of Islamic civilisation, Muslims embraced Greek philosophy, Indian sciences and Persian wisdom.
“They also benefited from China in medicine, industry and other forms of knowledge. This demonstrates that the boundaries between civilisations were never walls of isolation. They were always spaces of encounter, enrichment and exchange.”
Xue Qingguo, a professor at the School of Arabic Studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University, argued that both countries had flourished by balancing their traditions with an openness to ideas from abroad.
“If the slogan of Chinese reform were effectively ‘yes to the East and yes to the West’, this is exactly what we see in the UAE,” he said. “It is open to the East and open to the West. It says yes to both.”
Xue compared Dubai with Shenzhen, the southern Chinese city that is home to the headquarters of technology companies including Tencent and Huawei.
“Just 40 or 50 years ago, Dubai was a small port. Look at it now. It has become a global city,” he said. “Forty years ago, Shenzhen was a small fishing village. In less than 50 years, it became a global city and a Chinese centre for creativity and innovation.”
The comparison was also personal for Xue in his address to Emirati nationals.
“As a Chinese citizen, I have sufficient reason to feel proud that I live in this country,” he said. “I would also say to the Emirati citizen that you have more than enough reason to be proud that you live in this country, the beloved and deserving UAE. We see through its vision that it continues to advance day after day.”
