Cham Islands

This guide to the Cham Islands off Da Nang follows the 1990s scramble after a fisherman named Trang snagged centuries-old porcelain in his nets, sparking a wave of looting until officials caught two dealers smuggling pieces through the Da Nang airport. It traces the licensed excavation that followed, led by a Singaporean businessman working with Oxford archaeologists, and the enormous haul of ceramics they brought up from the seabed. A parting thought: much of what the fishermen missed may still be resting undisturbed beneath these waters.