Page 58 - Chinese and Asian Ceramics from an Indonesian Collection

Chapter 4. Glazed Ceramics in the Musi River

Figure 32. Plate, incised leafy spray in well, more sketchy lines
in cavetto, diameter 23.2 cm, Yuan Dynasty, Zhejiang
Province, Longquan kiln, C14, from the Musi River.
Catalogue No. K2444.

of human and animal figurines which were so popular
during the Tang Dynasty.
The variety of classic ceramic wares and styles developed Figure 33. Bowl, incised floral pattern connected by leafy vines,
diameter 18.6 cm, Late Song to Yuan Dynasty, Fujian
during the Song Dynasty were usually associated with a Province, Tongan kilns, C13–C14, from the Musi River,
specific region. Those that were successful were imitated Boom Baru site. Catalogue No. K1464.
in other areas. These included the court-patronized Ru–Ju
ware, Guan–Ge ware, early-Jun ware and Shufu ware. Non- and had a coarser body and a glaze that often stopped
court wares were: longquan celadons, northern celadons, halfway down vessels, such as in dishes and bowls.
Ding ware, Cizhou ware, Jizhou ware, Chien ware, Yue
ware, Qingbai ware, Guan ware, Sancai ware and blue and The best examples of Jun ware were fine-grained, light
white ware. Additionally there was a wide range of more grey bodies with graceful shapes and delicate famous
pedestrian ceramics produced such as black wares and blue glazes. By late-Northern Song and onward, splashes
products from provinces such as Guangdong and Fujian. of crimson or purple colour were deliberately added to
Not all these are mentioned below because they were the glaze. Although the Northern Song emperor Hui
either so rare, were produced only for the Emperors Tsung (1100–25) ordered vast amounts of this attractive
and their court, or not known to have been exported stoneware, some experts considered that it was not an
internationally. Consequently, it is extremely unlikely official court ware. Others, however, consider that during
that they would be found in the Musi. These included: the Song Dynasty it was in fact restricted to the Imperial
northern Song period Ru/Ju ware of which only about one court. The significant collection of Jun ware in the Taipei
hundred pieces survive; the ‘Official or Imperial’ Guan/ National Palace Museum includes utilitarian wares, such
Ge ware of the early-Southern Song period; and some as vessels, bowls, plates, and incense burners, as well as
early-Northern Song types of Jun ware, and Shufu ware planters, pot stands and a tsun vase.
that were apparently made specifically for the imperial Only a few examples of Jun and Jun-type ware were
courts. The Liao, Xia and Jin partly nomadic tribes, seen from the Musi, and these were all collected. They
that conquered parts of China, continued to produce were a beautiful bowl with a blue glaze and purple splash
pottery from kilns under their rule. This pottery, which (Figure 31) which is probably Southern Song, as were a
was stylistically a fusion of their own pottery traditions miniature bowl with degraded pale blue finely crackled
and that of the Song Dynasty, was not known to have glaze and four purple splashes around the rim (K1864)
been exported to Indonesia or elsewhere in South East and a miniature jarlet–urn, also with a fine crackle glaze
Asia (N.K. Koh pers. comm.) and was not found by us and unglazed lower parts (K1972). A badly damaged
from the Musi. ‘lamp’ (K1966) and two Jun-type small bowls (K2563–4),
all three of which are coarser Jun-types and have similar
Jun wares (C11–C15) pitted blue glaze over a greenish background and a body
Jun ware was originally produced from kilns in Yuzhou City which appears to have burnt brownish edges and unglazed
during the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1126). During the lower parts. These latter three may have been produced
Song and Yuan dynasties and perhaps into the early-Ming during the Yuan Dynasty.
Dynasty, many kilns in the Henan province manufactured
Jun ware and many kilns in Hebei and Shaanxi provinces Longquan celadons (960–1279)
and Inner Mongolia produced imitations. During the The celadon ware made at the Longquan kilns was the
Yuan Dynasty, production of Jun ware increased greatly most refined green ware of the Song Dynasty and its

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