Description of the Starry Raft
Encyclopedia
Description of the Starry Raft (Chinese: 星槎勝覽 Xin Cha Shen Lan) is written in year 1436 by Fei Xin
, who had participated in the
third, fifth, and seventh of expeditions of the Ming fleets to the Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean commanded by the eunuch Zheng He
.
The book contains descriptions of places, peoples, cultures, etc., that the Chinese mariners had seen.
According to Edward L. Dreyer
, Fei Xin's book was strongly influenced by an earlier (1433) work by Ma Huan, a translator/interpreter on Zheng He's 4th, 6th, and 7th expeditions.
Partial translation:
Fei Xin
Fei Xin was a member of the military personnel of the fleet of the Ming dynasty admiral Zheng He, known as the author of a book about the countries visited by Chinese ships.-Biography:...
, who had participated in the
third, fifth, and seventh of expeditions of the Ming fleets to the Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean commanded by the eunuch Zheng He
Zheng He
Zheng He , also known as Ma Sanbao and Hajji Mahmud Shamsuddin was a Hui-Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat and fleet admiral, who commanded voyages to Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and East Africa, collectively referred to as the Voyages of Zheng He or Voyages of Cheng Ho from...
.
The book contains descriptions of places, peoples, cultures, etc., that the Chinese mariners had seen.
According to Edward L. Dreyer
Edward L. Dreyer
Edward L. Dreyer was an American historian, known for his works on the history of the Chinese Ming Empire.Born in San Diego, Edward L. Dreyer earned his B.A. in history from Harvard University in 1961. In 1971 he earned a PhD degree with a thesis on "The Emergence of Chu Yuan-chang, 1360–65."...
, Fei Xin's book was strongly influenced by an earlier (1433) work by Ma Huan, a translator/interpreter on Zheng He's 4th, 6th, and 7th expeditions.
Translations
English translations:- Fei-Hsin, Hsing-ch'a Sheng-lan or "Description of the starry raft(1436) translated Friedrich HirthFriedrich HirthFriedrich Hirth, Ph.D. was a German-American sinologist.-Biography:He was educated at the universities of Leipzig, Berlin, and Greifswald . He was in the Chinese maritime customs service from 1870 to 1897...
, W. W. Rockhill, "Note on the relations and trade of China with the Eastern Achipeligo and the coasts of the Indian Ocean during the fourteenth Century,part 2" T'oung Pao, XXI (1915)
Partial translation:
- The Chinese Travellers of the Ming Period, by Gabriele Foccardi; Wiesbaden, Harrasowitz 1986.
See also
Other important sources on the voyages of Zheng He's fleet:- The Overall Survey of the Ocean Shores (Chinese: 瀛涯勝覽) written by Ma Huan. (Ying-yai Sheng-lan, The Overall Survey of the Ocean's Shores (1433), translated from the Chinese text edited by Feng Ch'eng Chun with introduction, notes and appendices by J.V.G.Mills. White Lotus Press, reprint. 1970, 1997.)
- Records of Foreign Countries in the Western Ocean (西洋番国志) Written by Gong ZhenGong ZhenGong Zhen was a fifteenth century translator and writer famous for his association with the Chinese admiral Zheng He.-Life:Born near Nanjing in present day Jiangsu Province during the Ming Dynasty , Gong Zhen’s dates of birth and death are not recorded but it is known that his father was a soldier...
(巩珍) - Ming Shi-luMing Shi-luThe Ming Shilu , or the Veritable Records of the Ming, contains the imperial annals of Ming dynasty emperors and is the single largest historical source for the dynasty and "plays an extremely important role in the historical reconstruction of Ming society and politics." After the fall of the Ming...
External links
- Description of the Starry Raft (1436) Xin Cha Shen Lan 星槎勝覽
- The Voyages Gallery (Partial view on Google Books)