Tradeware ceramics in the Philippines are ceramics produced in different countries and traded within the Philippines. They are often referred to as export ware and became popular due to their kaolin-type clay that was difficult to replicate. Tradeware ceramics in the Philippines range from Pre-Spanish arrival through the Manila Galleon of the Colonial period. Leading scholars in this field are Carl E. Guthe, Li Jian'an, Li Min, Olov Janse, and Robert Fox. The main periods of this trade include Yuan (1271–1368), Early Ming (1368–1464), Middle Ming (1465–1522), Late Ming (1522–1644), and the Transitional Period (1644–1683). The primary types of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain found in the Philippines are Jingdezhen and Zhangzhou ware. These porcelain are classified from type I-V. The case studies of burials and ritual in relation to Philippine tradeware ceramics illustrate the sociopolitical importance of these vessels.
Materials Tradeware ceramics in the Philippines consisted of Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese porcelain. The materials discovered can be identified as 70-75% Chinese, 22-25% Thai and 5-8% Vietnamese. The wares are named by their place of manufacture, individually by various popular terms and the period in which they were produced. The most common ceramics found in this region are Chinese blue-and-white porcelain, primarily Jingdezhen and Zhangzhou ware.
Jingdezhen Jingdezhen, a hub for Chinese ceramic production in Jiangxi, was a main source of high quality porcelain that dominated the international Chinese porcelain market. By the end of the 14th century, primary production sites in Jingdazhen shifted from bluish-white colored wares to predominantly blue-and-white porcelain. This blue-and-white porcelain was extremely valuable by the Middle Ming Period. Its widespread distribution is revealed through Kraak porcelain found in European, colonial, and shipwreck archaeological contexts. Kraak ware can be classified as any thin, blue-and-white glazed porcelain with a rough base that has diverging chatter markings. The surface is embellished with dividing panels that illustrate an array of motifs such as plants, birds, insects, and humans. Kraak primarily originated from Jingdezhen production sites and was intended for the Middle Eastern and European market. Exported products proved to be more profitable than domestic products; because of this, Kraak ware is typically of higher quality than that of wares traded within local markets. Jingdezhen ceramic production applied local technological traditions that involved smaller gourd-shaped kilns. Only a small amount of wares could be fired per round and at a slower rate, which resulted in the highest quality wares with smooth glazes and translucent white color. In addition, the Jingdezhen potters implemented a multitude of measures to inhibit sand and other debris from the floor from adhering to the firing vessel.
Zhangzhou In the 16th century, the seaport of Yuegang in the Zhangzhou region prospered as it took part in the expanding international maritime trade. A predominant portion of the ships leaving the Yuegang port were headed towards the Philippines on a journey that only took fifteen to twenty days. The Yuegang seaport soon shifted to the forefront of international maritime trade, and as a result, export-driven businesses that focused on silk and ceramics were multiplying all throughout Zhangzhou at an exponential rate. By the end of the sixteenth century, the Zhangzhou products still proved to be extremely valuable in an international market that was customarily overshadowed by suppliers with Jingdezhen products. European traders generally bought lesser quality Zhangzhou wares as financial capital for products and services offered by indigenous groups, whereas they typically used the refined Jingdezhen wares for their own European local markets (and the elites that live there). As a result, the study of Zhangzhou porcelain has broader implications such that it can point to interactions between colonizers and the colonized since archaeologists often find porcelain that originated from Zhangzhou in diverse archaeological contexts that range from California to South Africa. As newly discovered trade routes enabled for the expansion of international trade, the ceramic production in Zhangzhou increased in order to maximize profits. The production sites in Zhangzhou are closely associated with the mass-production of unrefined and substandard quality tradeware. This is due to the applied shortcut version of firing the wares in large step-chamber kilns which, in turn, compromised the quality in order to save time and produce a high volume of wares. These relatively lousy quality wares were intended to replicate the sophisticated quality wares produced in Jingdezhen.
Periods The age of tradeware ceramics are divided into two main periods based on Spanish contact with the Philippines: Pre-Spanish arrival and Post-Spanish arrival. The Pre-Spanish arrival consists of the Yuan, Early Ming, and Middle Ming periods. The Post-Spanish arrival includes the Late Ming and Transitional periods.
Prior to Spanish arrival and the Manila Galleon trade, tradeware ceramics were limited to high-ranking elites and chiefs. During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries of the Yuan period, porcelain was traded at large volumes. Near the end of the fourteenth century, the primary ceramic for trade shifted towards blue-and-white porcelain.
In the Late Ming period, 69% of all tradeware ceramics discovered in burial sites and caves are Zhangzhou ware and 31% are Jingdezhen ware. The quality of Jingdezhen ware are much finer than the standard Zhangzhou ware.
Classification of Blue & White Porcelain In order to compare the quality of different types of porcelain across varying eras found at different production sites, a classification system produced by Li Min (2013) is often used. It comprises five different types and has enabled archaeologists to analyze the broad trends in porcelain utilization within the local societies.
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
