Zheng He's Fleet Visits Aden and East Africa

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The fourth treasure voyage reached the Arabian port of Aden and the Swahili coast of East Africa, exchanging Chinese porcelain and brocaded silk for frankincense, myrrh, and African exotica including giraffes that Ming courtiers joyfully identified as the mythical qilin, an omen of imperial virtue. Chinese diplomatic reach now spanned the entire Indian Ocean basin, from the Yangtze shipyards to the coral ports of Mogadishu.