A reproduction of China's first modern battleship, Dingyuan, sunk during a Sino-Japanese naval battle docked on Saturday morning at Weihai Port, east China's Shandong province, where it exploded in 1895.

The flagship of the Qing government's (1644-1911) Beiyang Fleet, the battleship was made in 1880 by a German shipmaking company at the cost of 1.7 million taels of silver.

Dingyuan measured 94.5 meters long and 18 meters wide and the body was covered with 30-cm armor. It took part in the sea battles between Qing and Japanese on China's Yellow Sea and near the Weihai Port and exploded itself in 1895 after being seriously hit.

To commemorate this period of history, the administration of Weihai Port and the local Weigao Group invested 50 million yuan (US$6 million) three years ago in building a mock Dingyuan battleship.

One Saturday morning, the new Dingyuan sailed along the historic sites of the naval battles 110 ago and berthed at the Weihai Port at 10:00 AM, where 110 navy soldiers saluted to heroic battleship.

People from all circles attended the commemorating ceremony. The citizens sprinkled flowers and rice into the sea, showing their condolence to the men who fell in the battles.

The battleship will be open to public on May 1 after some preparatory work for the exhibition.

(Xinhua News Agency April 16, 2005)