GUANGZHOU: After 800 years on the seabed, the Nanhai No 1 is now just weeks away from being lifted from the water, an official said on Wednesday.

Jing Lihu, deputy director of the Guangdong culture department, said the sunken cargo vessel should be lifted out of the water by the end of the year.

The plan is then for the ancient ship to go on show to the public in the second half of 2008, he said.