There is no dearth of historical literature or scholarly writings on the famous maritime expeditions to the “Western Oceans” undertaken by the grand-eunuch-admiral Cheng Ho on the order of the Ming emperors T’ai-tsung (Yung-loTi) and Hsüan-tsung (Hsüan-te Ti) during the first ha1f of the fifteenth century. However, much of the research has been concentrated on the leadership of Cheng Ho, almost to the exclusion of his colleagues. There has not been a substantial study, for example, of the career of Wang Ching-hung, a grand eunuch who had served with Cheng Ho in command of the armada, probably in all the seven voyages to the foreign lands. This paper attempts to fill the void with a reconstruction of his biography. Wang Ching-hung became a subject of dramatization in the late Ming historical romance San-pao t’ai-chien Hsi-yang chi yen-i. He is portrayed as a seasoned naval commander and an ingenious military strategist to whom Cheng Ho frequently turned for consultation on various voyages and exuded unconcea1ed adoration. Folktales about Wang Ching-hung abounded in popular literature since the late Ming and so were legends among the Chinese ethnic communities in Southeast Asia, transforming him into a semi-mythical protector of the Chinese travel1ers and overseas settlers. Legend has it that he died in Semarang, Java, on the last voyage, and his alleged buria1 site, the ‘Grotto of Sam Pao,’ became a shrine frequently visited by both Chinese and Javanese pilgrims. These folkloristic materials thus vividly project the popular impression of Wang Ching-hung’s extraordinary achievements and enhance our understanding of his special contribution. In short, our reconstruction of Wang Ching-hung’s biography shows that historians have underrated his manifold achievements. Although most of the extant records characterize him as a deputy of Cheng Ho in the maritime expeditions, Wang Ching-hung was in fact his equal in official rank and in knowledge about navigation and naval manoeuvre, and enjoyed as much trust of the Ming emperors as did Cheng Ho. He is also said to have compiled a manual on sailing directions, which provided an important source for Cheng Ho’s famous navigational chart. It is indisputable that Wang Ching-ho had made an important contribution to the early Ming maritime expeditions, and therefore should be ranked on the par of Cheng Ho for an objective appraisal of his historical stature.