The congress was held in Lisbon from 4 Sep. to 12 Sep. 1960 under the auspices of the Portuguese Government. The file includes Joseph Needham’s handwritten notes, typescript drafts of his lectures ‘The Chinese Contribution to the Development of the Mariner’s Compass’ and ‘The Chinese Contributions to Vessel Control,’ correspondence and administrative papers. It includes 2 letters from Dorothy Needham to Joseph Needham dated 10 Sep. 1960 and 11 Sep. 1960, souvenir postcards of Lisbon and 5 black and white photographs of Joseph Needham, Lu Gwei-Djen and other participants in the congress with names annotated on the back.

It also includes a sub-file entitled ‘Vth International Colloquium on the History of the Ship, Lisboa 1960’ which contains correspondence, administrative papers, newspaper clippings and 4 black and white photographs of Joseph Needham, Lu Gwei-Djen and other congress participants with names annotated on the back.