Visitors look at porcelain from the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) that was recovered from the sunken ship Nan'ao One. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Along with the pleasure of sea, sand and sun, a trip to to the local museum on picturesque Nan'ao Island in Shantou, Guangdong province, can provide a rich excursion into history.

The Museum of Coast Defense History in Nan'ao county has 1,200 artifacts on display from the remains of the sunken ship Nan'ao One from the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), along with ancient coastal defense items.

The relics include porcelain, which was bound for overseas markets and mostly produced in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, and Zhangzhou, Fujian province. There is also pottery, iron, copper and wood ware.

Organic items, such as walnuts, chestnuts, lychee and olive from the ship are also presented.

The ship was spotted by fishermen two nautical miles off Yun'ao town in May 2007. Three recovery missions were carried out between September 2009 and September 2012, with nearly 30,000 artifacts brought up.