A number of Chinese ceramic shards found in Indonesia's Maluku province two years ago were from China's Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), an archeologist said.

"During our research, we found a number of ceramic shards, but only two were taken as samples for further analysis. One of the samples came from China during the Qing Dynasty," archaeologist Lucas Wattimena was quoted by Antara news agency as saying in Maluku province's capital of Ambon on Tuesday.

According to him, the team he led accidentally found ceramic shards from China lying on the floor of a cave while conducting a survey of archaeological data collection in Southeast Maluku district in 2019.

Shaped like a plate, the ceramic shards are white with floral motifs in black, he said, adding that after being analyzed, the ceramic shards were known to come from China and were produced during the Qing Dynasty.

The discovery of Chinese ceramic shards was believed to have something to do with trade transactions, but it is not yet known why these foreign ancient objects could be in the Batu Han cave which is a burial site of the past.

"Chinese ceramic shards were found lying on the floor of the cave along with a number of ceramic shards and other potteries," Wattimena said. The cave is located about 50 meters from Somlain village in Maluku Province.

"Batu Han" in local terms means a tip of a stone. Located in a cluster of cliffs that stretch along the western coastline, the cave faces westward with a height of approximately 10 meters from the base of the cliffs.