Sha Chuan (沙船)

UPDATED JULY 23, 2025

Drawing of a Sha Chuan, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

Originating from Chongming Island at the mouth of the Yangtze River, Sha Chuan (沙船, lit. 'Sand ship') was one of the iconic "Four Great Ancient Ships" of China, and one that could trace the longest history.

Sha Chuan as one of the "Four Great Ancient Ships of China"

Early 20th century photo of a five-masted Sha Chuan-type trading junk, known to the West as "Pechili trader" or "Kiangsu trader". Note the leeboard and pronounced stern overhang. Photo from National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London.

As a distinct ship type and shipbuilding tradition, Sha Chuan first emerged from the estuary of Yangtze River (in particular the region around present-day Shanghai, such as Chongming Island) during Tang period, likely as the result of further refinements of classical riverine ships of China. Sha Chuan was characterised by its keeled but flat bottomed hull with very little sheer, flat prow and stern, wide, exposed deck with little to no superstructure, squarish unbalanced rudder that could be retracted, slender rectangular junk sails, as well as large numbers of very tall masts and sails for its size. Many Sha Chuan had a pronounced flat stern overhang iconic to the ship type, and many were also equipped with bilge keels, leeboards, as well as a large, rock-filled bamboo basket known as Tai Ping Lan (太平籃, lit. 'Peace basket') that could be lowered into the water to serve as external ballast/storm drogue during rough weather conditions.

Another Sha Chuan-type junk, of the variety known as Yan Cheng Chuan (鹽城船, lit. 'Yancheng Ship'). Note that this vessel does not have stern overhang.

Tailor-made to navigate the shallow sandy water of the flood-prone Yangtze Estuary and its surrounding coasts, Sha Chuan had respectable stability despite being a flat-bottomed ship with shallow draught and low freeboard, and its flat bottom also allowed the ship to be beached safely and prevent hull damage in case of stranding. While Sha Chuan's hull design did not naturally lend towards high speed sailing, its unusually large numbers of sails more than compensated for the shortcoming, and even allowed the ship to sail against both wind and current at the same time. Due to these characteristics, Sha Chuan had been varying known as Fang Sha Chuan (防沙船, lit. 'Sand-proofed ship'), Ping Di Chuan (平底船, lit. 'Flat-bottom ship') and Zuan Feng Chuan (鑽風船, lit.'Wind-boring ship') during Song and Yuan period, and the name Sha Chuan wasn't coined until Ming period.

Sha Chuan during the Ming period

Drawing of a Sha Chuan with leeboard, from 'Bing Lu (《兵錄》)'.

The enduring design and features of Sha Chuan had remained remarkably consistent over the centuries. Already in Ming records there were mentions of Sha Chuan being flat-bottomed, having very tall masts for its size, able to sail against the wind, and being more suitable to navigating the shallower coastal seas of North China than the deeper waters of South China. Thus, we can be reasonably certain that what Ming people referred to as Sha Chuan closely matches with modern understanding of the sailing vessel. 

Nevertheless, it should be noted that Ming-period illustrations all depict the Sha Chuan with only two masts and no stern overhang, and Tai Ping Lan was not mentioned at all in Ming-period texts (even though similar technology had been around since the Song period). It is likely that these features were later (Qing-period) additions, although the possibility that Ming writers simply neglected to mention them cannot be ruled out either.

Other blog posts in my Four Great Ancient Ships series:

Guang Chuan (廣船)

Fu Chuan (福船)

Niao Chuan (鳥船)

Sha Chuan (沙船)

EXTRA: Ships of Zhezhi during the Ming period