Blue and White Porcelain

Chinese junk of yesteryear

Qing Republic Five Fish bowl.

 A 14^th century shipwreck, the ‘Temasek Wreck’, was discovered in shallow, but dangerous, waters in the eastern entrance to the Singapore Strait and excavated intermittently between 2016 and 2019. The marine archaeologists who located the site took four years to sift through the remains for, despite the shallowness of the water, there were strong currents and shocking visibility. The ship, probably a Chinese junk of the type widely used in the Middle Ages, had completely vanished in the intervening centuries, but the remains of its cargo of porcelain and stoneware were there in the form of 3.5 tonnes of chiefly shards though some intact examples were also discovered. Stoneware bowls and storage jars formed most of the cargo, but, impressive to see now, is the extensive repertoire of rare Yuan dynasty blue and white porcelain, more than has ever been discovered from a documented wreck before. A record haul indeed. The recovered blue and white weighed approximately 136 kg and comprised over 2350 shards plus a 

Yang Dynasty four gourd bottle.

few intact vessels. Archaeologists concluded that the cargo had included fourteen differently shaped vessels of which the majority had been bowls closely followed by vases and then jars. They also eventually decided that there had been over 300 blue and white bowls of varying sizes on board, and the evidence suggests that the quality of the ceramics was, in many cases, superlative. It is concluded that the junk, loaded in Quanzhou in the mid-fourteenth century, was bound for the thriving duty-free commercial hub of Temasek (early Singapore). Historians suggest that the shipwreck hints at the extent of local consumption and demonstrates the wealth of the settlement. Unlike sites that have accumulated items over time, because the shipment can be dated so closely, it provides a reliable reference for identifying similar Yuan dynasty wares, found elsewhere without a clear archaeological context.

Mandarin ducks in a lotus pool.
Very early bottle, probably 14th century. 

The small number of intact objects enabled archaeologists to identify from the ornate designs, the identity of the intended owner and even the date of the shipwreck. One of the designs featured a four-clawed dragon; another depicted a phoenix surrounded by a band of chrysanthemums. One design recurred frequently; mandarin ducks in a lotus pond and this had been the signature motif of Emperor Wenzong who restricted it to his personal use during his reign from 1328 to 1332. This restriction almost certainly ceased soon after he was deposed though commercial kilns probably continued to produce many more ceramics featuring this motif for some time, intended for export and not the home market. The Imperial kilns were shut down around 20 years later when a peasant rebellion movement, the Red Turbans, arose, which further narrows the period in which the ship could have sunk. Even if some kilns had continued producing ceramics, the Yuan Dynasty nonetheless, fell in 1368 and the first Ming Emperor                                                                                    who followed, banned commercial trade around 1371 

During the time that Yuan porcelain was produced, it became coveted by the wealthy elites across Eurasia, only a little less prized than gold, calligraphy or exemplary architecture, but as ceramics, it had a translucency and hardness which seemed almost miraculous to the cognoscenti.  Professor Shane McCausland of SOAS University of London [School

    Flower vase pattern, 1638.

of Oriental and African Studies] says, “There’s even a belief that Yuan blue and white had magical properties so that if you put poison on it, it would crack……. That partly explains why paranoid rulers did like to have a bit of blue and white around.” Yuan pottery also illustrates the extent of the trade networks which existed at the time. Made by Chinese craftsmen, utilizing cobalt originating in Persia [modern Iran] before being exported along the maritime silk routes dominated by the Mongols. Prof. McCausland suggests that Yuan porcelain represented a major technological breakthrough in Chinese art under Mongol rule. As soon as the Mongols retreated from China in 1368, the knowledge of that breakthrough gradually faded and was eventually lost.  As late as the 1930s, scholars would misidentify blue and white porcelain as produced by other dynasties. It was said, “What could the Mongols have had to do with this? They pillaged, they raped, they destroyed.”  

Blue and white porcelain is the most splendid variety in the history of Chinese ceramics. Its charm lies in the pure white body, vibrant blue colour, (cobalt), various patterns and decorations and exquisite craftsmanship. Those examples that have been passed down as heirlooms through generations, also reflect the social cultures of different eras. Not only has Blue and White become a treasure of traditional Chinese culture, but it also occupies an important position in world art.