How Junk Boats Became a Symbol of Hong Kong

Writer - Nicholas

Posted September 30, 2025

Look down on Victoria Harbor, and you’ll see one of Hong Kong’s cultural icons—the traditional Chinese junk with its red sails and ornately decorated stern.

A Brief History

In the 475-221 BC era of the Warring States Period of ancient China, Chinese inventors began developing new technologies for their wooden junk boats. For instance, their watertight chambers beneath the deck made such ships far larger.

Fast-forward to the Song Dynasty, around 960-1279 AD. The junk was fitted with its signature sails and unique hulls. These boats were used for various purposes, including trade, exploration, and warfare. Consider admiral Zheng He’s voyages in the 1400s: his armada of 300 ships and 20,000 sailors dwarfed the old wooden boats of Europe, which couldn’t venture as far. By the 19th century, these ships were outfitted with projectiles of shattered glass, fire arrows, and even afloat bombs, used to repel British invaders in the First Opium War (1839-42).

Branding an Icon

When Hong Kong became a thriving port under British rule in the mid-19th century, Chinese junk boats fluttered about Victoria Harbour. Due to Hong Kong’s distance from England, the British relied on traditional Chinese vessels to transport goods and people between Hong Kong, Mainland China, and beyond.

In 1957, the newly established Hong Kong Tourist Association (renamed Hong Kong Tourism Board in 2001) used a stylized version of a red-sailed junk boat as their corporate logo. From then on, the prototypical junk endlessly replicated Hong Kong to international audiences. This logo was reproduced on millions of tourism brochures and advertising materials, souvenirs, shopping bags, and postcards. Today, the junk boat has remained the Tourism Board's lead logo and still appears prominently in advertisements aimed at travelers interested in an ‘authentic’ taste of Hong Kong.

Preserving the Past

In the 1970s, however, a cascade of economic boom and industrialization in Hong Kong rendered those traditional fishing junk fleets obsolete. Dirty, noisy diesel engines replaced them.

Eventually, junk boats became a rare sight. Sailors who used these archaic vessels periodically sailed them around the harbor for tourists or students. The Duk-Ling junk boat, built with traditional methods and materials, attracted viewers. People would swoon over the vibrant colors and aesthetics, and citizens kept the tradition alive by attending public cruises and private charters.

Tourists still board her hand-hewn wooden decks for brief spins of the harbor to view Hong Kong’s skyline on the water. Passengers ride beneath the red sails and hear traditional Chinese music ringing in their ears. These Duk-Ling junk bots are now replicated as toy models in gift shops and markets throughout the city.

Final Thoughts

These junk ships once ruled ancient China as explorers, traders, and naval warriors. They represent both Chinese cultural icons in an ever-modernizing world and the Western colonial era. The icon survived COVID-19 and increasingly strict travel regulations; despite the closure of borders and lack of tourists, The Duk-Ling was repositioned for locals on new routes and private trips.

Throughout the last several centuries, junk boats have represented Hong Kong. As one of the city’s most beloved symbols, it will continue to represent Hong Kong for years to come.