Page 288 - Vol_2_Archaeology of Manila Galleon Seaport Trade

262 K. Castillo and P. Fournier

Fig. 15.6 Artemisia leaf motif. a Mexican majolica (watercolor of a majolica sherd from Templo
Mayor, Mexico City); b Chinese porcelain (San Jerónimo Convent, Mexico City)

Motifs that had no particular appeal for the local society were rarely copied
(Lister and Lister 2001: 85). This was the case of the dragon, a creature associated
with the stars, the sun, great men, rain and thunder, good harvest, and depending on
the number of claws it could represent the emperor or a member of the nobility
(Macintosh 1986: 153; Rinaldi 1989: 102; Wilson 1990: 286). While extremely
popular in Asia, dragons are rarely represented in the majolica of New Spain. One
of the scant examples appears on a majolica tile from the Franz Mayer Museum
collection (Castillo Cárdenas 2015: 37).
For the potters of New Spain, understanding the meaning behind the motifs they
were copying was irrelevant and when they imitated the decoration of Chinese
porcelain, they were not worried about copying with precision the whole orna-
mental program. As long as the overall visual effect of the majolica piece conveyed
an Asian impression, the goal of emulation was considered accomplished. Colonial
potters integrated the motifs of Chinese porcelain into majolica, adapting them
according to their own aesthetic ideas, but retaining their oriental flair. Chinese
ornament integrated so well into colonial majolica that some of its elements per-
sisted until the early nineteenth century even as new styles became popular (Cortina
1997: 84).