China's Great Armada

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Combatants in Calicut demonstrate Kalaripayatta, which was developed in India in the 12th century and exported to China, wher...
Kathakali performers in Kerala spend painstaking hours applying their own elaborate make-up.
Kathakali (literally' story performance') is Kerala's most colorful performance art, which many believe was inspired by Chine...
Kathakali actors in Kerala prepare for a performance as a troupe member lights an oil lantern.
Kathakali actors use dramatic hand gestures, stylized make-up and facial expressions to convey their stories.
Kathakali actors use dramatic hand gestures, stylized make-up and facial expressions to convey their stories.
Zanzibar, at its pinnacle when Zheng He arrived in the 15th century, was an important trade link with Arabia, the Persian Gul...
The colorful cotton known as calico was developed and still produced here, and was a coveted trade item even centuries ago.
For the people of Vizhinjan, the sea is a way of life.
Coir fiber, used to make ropes and rugs, is one of the many uses the Indians have found for the coconut.
Bollts of both bleached and dyed cotton stretch across fields in Gujarat, India to dry under the baking sun.
Bollts of both bleached and dyed cotton stretch across fields in Gujarat, India to dry under the baking sun.
Date palms originated in the Persian gulf thousands of years ago. Their fruit, a prized commodity for Zheng He's fleet, is st...
A woman of Musandam wears the traditional birka, or facemask, of Omani women.
Sailors clean the hull of a dhow in Sur.
Sailors clean the hull of a dhow in Sur.
Al Mukalla backed by rugged volcanic mountains: this bustling port city has its face to the sea.
Al Hodeida is main fishing port of Yemen, and its fish market is the largest on the Red Sea.
Most famours for its shark market, Al Hodeida exports the fins to China to be made into shark fin soup.
Persian Gulf fishermen mend their nets in Basra. Even though over half of the world's oil reserves are here, fishing has rema...
Most famours for its shark market, Al Hodeida exports the fins to China to be made into shark fin soup.
In the old "salt" market, Souq al Milh, the central market area of Sana'a, a merchant displays his varieties of jambiya (dagg...
An elder reads the Koran at Jibla's Queen Arwa Mosque. The queen, who ruled Yemen in medieval times, left a rich legacy, buil...
Eager students clamor for their teacher's attention at Koran school at the Queen Arwa mosque in Jibla.
The looming mud-brick towers of Al Hajirah, some as many as ten stories high, rise from the valley, just as Ma Huan described.
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