Blue and white Qing plate
Blue and white Chinese Ming or Qing kitchen ware, 19th C or earlier ? Comments most welcome !
Small Sang de Boeuf, long neck bottle. Tongzi- Guamgxu period ? Particular seal ? Comments are welcome
Longwy with date engraved
Very fine, covered Annamese box (Vietnam)
globular form, decorated with underglaze blue and overglaze green enamel spots, floral pattern. 15/16th C.
Unusual coloured boxes (Chinese, Annemese ?) highly appreciated in Indonesia. Hardly any information available. Comments are most welcome
Sawankhalok/Si Satchanalai (northern Thailand) Black underglaze cover Box, 14-16 th C.
Similar boxes dated from approx 1540 were excavated in 1996 from the Shipwreck Xuande
in Malaysia. In the 70's - 80's many had been recovered from burial sites in Ujung Pandang area. Dim. left : H 8 x D. 10 cm, right H 11 x D 12 cm.
Dish of Longwy : FIsch series
Sawankhalok brown ware jar, .
13-14th C.
Bell soup dishes Johore 1887, both with one or two colours
Adams Thunstall Djellakeng 1893-1917
Qianlong, Chinese Celadon porcelain pot. 18th C
During the 19th and up to early 20th Century, UK , France and Holland produced large quantities of ceramics foreseen for exportation to South East Asia. The specifically designed rice dishes and soup plates had fairly sophisticated Chinese motifs and the pottery marks were completed with English or Malay texts (site) . Many were still used in Indonesia in the 70's often rented on the occasion of social gatherings.
Puzzled by the variety of motifs we visited a supplier and under the beds in his servants room we saw hundreds of dishes and plates piled up. They were for rent or purchase thus we could select the one we liked most. They are still quite attractive and when we eat Asian food we often use them. Below you can see some of the over 20 models we found.
19th Century imported wares
Blue and white Qing bowl
Small tea pot (Yixing ?). No further information. Handwritten, carved signature ? Any comments welcome
Collection of 4 White Ware unhearthed from a grave in 1984 at Banggi Islands, Central Celebes, given to us in 1985 by close Indonesian Chinese friends :
1 moulded conical bowl with delicately decorated cavetto
1 moulded conical bowl with plain cavetto
2 conical deep dishes one with decorated exterior, the other with decorated interior side.
Specified as Song/Yuan wares but no expert assessment done. Any comment will be welcome.
Another beautiful Ming Swatow dish, 16-17th C. purchased in Sumatra in the 70's, signed. . .
Annamese jarlet, underglaze black. floral pattern, H 4 x D 5 cm
Traditional Sulavesi carved stone vase (one can be seen at the Ujung Pandang.Museum) No further information. Comments most welcome.Dim H 12.5 x D. 17 cm
Sawankhalok/Si Satchanalai (northern Thailand) brown and pearly glaze,
incised body, floral decoration, 14/16th C. H 5 x D 6.5 cm
Sukhothai - Si Satchanalai Celadon jar 14th-15th C.
Antiques and Art in Indonesia
Blue and white Ming cover box.
Two Glasgow Bell Pottery dishes. "Ikan China" = Chinese Fish and Makassar (today Ujung Pandang) site
Blue and white bowl, back and front side , large variety of motifs.
Bell soup dish Peacock & Lilies 1887,
Annamese iron black, painted rim, floral spray inside, decorative signs outside. 14/15th C.
Antique Martaban purchased in Yogyakarta. The origin of such jars as well as their dating is extremely difficult (site)
Annamese bowl, iron black parot design inside and floral outside, 14/15 C. H 6 x D 16 cm
Already a thousand years before the arrival of the Europeans, Indonesia peacefully and profitably traded with its neighbours, India, the Arab world and China.
The first records state that Chinese were already active in the 7th century, probably earlier, and later Java became part of the Silk Road between China and the Arab world.
Being highly appreciated in the Archipelago, ceramics were actively exchanged for products such as raw materials, for instance precious wood, tin, gold and many other exotic items such as ivory, tiger bone and fur, rhino horn and spices.
These trade relations gradually led to the development of important Chinese settlements in Indonesia, initially as traders but much later, under the Dutch, as workers to fill labour needs.
Shipwreck recoveries along the Indonesian coasts, especially around the year 2000, proved that trading was considerable, with goods coming not only from China but also from other places such as Vietnam and Thailand. In 2005 the recovered Cirebon shipwreck, contained over 270’000 pieces of various pieces of goods, among others 50'000 Yue ceramics from the 10th Century.
Although a considerable part of the importations were of the so called “Kitchen ware” quality the goods were perceived as very valuable by the Indonesians and the favoured pieces were often buried with the deceased.
Thus in the 70’s – 80’s most of the ceramics available had been excavated from old graves. Celebes (today Sulavesi) and some of the eastern islands were the main source of antique Chinese, Annamese or Thai ceramics.
Numerous "tukang antik" (ambulant traders of antiques) offered the best pieces to the guests of country side hotels and at expatriates homes.
In Jakarta, along Jl. Surabya (the flea market) large quantities of Blue Ming/Qing bowls and dishes were available at very reasonable prices so that it was possible to assemble almost complete sets.
Gien disch
Blue Ming Swatow dish.
Some examples of Blue and White ware marks