Pandanan Shipwreck
Marker: recorded wreck position (Date not recorded).
Key facts
| Name | Pandanan Shipwreck | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Ship type | sunken vessel | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Nationality / flag | Philippines | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Sea / ocean | South China Sea | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | Philippines | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 14 km from land |
| Position | 8.1633, 117.0517 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
The Pandanan Shipwreck is an archaeological site which was excavated in 1995 by the Underwater Archaeology Division of the National Museum of the Philippines in Pandanan Island, in the coast of Southern Palawan. The ship was surmised to be a Southeast Asian cargo boat travelling from either Vietnam or Southern China and is one of the best preserved pre-Spanish trading ships within the jurisdiction of Philippines. It is speculated that the ship stopped at some ports in mainland South East Asia to load trade wares. Bad weather might have led to the sinking of the ship.
The boat's dimensions are about 25 to 30 meters long and about six to eight meters wide. It had a flat bottom which was suited for riverine water. The Pandanan shipwreck is considered a rare site dated approximately at the mid-15th century because, as per Sakuma (1989), the Chinese imperial court ordered complete banning of all private trading within this time.
Diving & visiting
The discovery of the shipwreck was accidental. A long-time diver from the Ecofarm Systems Inc. (a pearl farm in Pandanan Island) named Eduardo Gordirilla stumbled upon the site by chance and found jars in the seabed as he was looking for a lost basket containing giant oysters. He then informed the manager of the farm, Efren T. Anies, who consequently called upon the national museum on June 9, 1993. Although a report about the wreck was submitted as early as 1993, it was only in 1995 that the official extensive excavated began. Surveying was done within the span of one year (1993 to 1994).
The ship was spotted under a coral reef cliff covered in sand and mud and is relatively near the land mass-only 250 meters away from the northeast coast.
Location
- Recorded position: 8.1633, 117.0517 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: South China Sea
- Nearest coast: Philippines
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Pandanan shipwreck (revision 1313176252), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Discovery”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby wrecks
- USS Flier 31 km
- USS Darter 138 km
- USS Robalo 157 km
Browse more: Asia wrecks · wrecks off Philippines · South China Sea