Question 3.
What are Chinese ceramics? Compare two ceramics found on a shipwreck.

Main Source

Krahl, Regina. Shipwrecked: Tang Treasures and Monsoon Winds. Edited by John Guy, J. Keith Wilson and Julian Raby. Washington, D.C.: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; Singapore: National Heritage Board; Singapore: Singapore Tourism Board, 2011.

Introduction

• Discovery of Belitung shipwreck (Tang shipwreck) : the retrieval of Chinese ceramics
• This leads to the maritime route of China’s Silk Road during the ninth century
• Networks connecting China to ports all over Asia : continuous exchange of goods & ideas
• The development of pottery’s manufacturing techniques is seen through the different ceramics
• The change of preferences through the years : the evolution of ceramics
• Claim: The evolution of ceramics was due to the influence of foreign trade on their domestic production.
• A comparison between two types of ceramics :
  1) Changsha ware
  2) White ware with green decor

Body

• I will be doing a visual and contextual analysis on the two ceramics to identify the main factors influencing the changes

Similarities
– Forms & uses (made for export? daily utility wares? for nobility/officials?)
– Colours
– Paints/glazes used

• Differences
  – Decorations (any rare shapes/designs? symbols?)
  – The amount of each type of ware recovered (is it mass-manufactured?)

• It was in the making of functional ceramics for daily use and export that Tang potters achieved their greatest technical innovations and artistic refinements

Conclusion

• Shipwrecks revealed the immense capacity and technical sophistication of Chinese kilns
• Provided evidence of shifting tastes through the years
• The development of stoneware pottery revolutionised the production of everyday ceramics and created a dynamic new artistic tradition
• The spread of innovation and demands of foreign markets