ANCIENT CERAMICS SITES EXCAVATED IN SARAWAK AND BRUNEI

 

Between 1948 and 1967, more than 30 sites were excavated in Sarawak under the guidance of Tom Harisson, the then curator of Sarawak museum.  Since then, a further 15 sites were located and excavated. The most important sites are located at:

 

Site Location Ceramics finds
Sarawak river delta sites Santubong being identified by Prof. Cheng Te kun as a significant port in the 12th to 13th century. Song/Yuan Chinese ceramics
Gedong situates 56 miles inland at the junciton of the Batang Krang and the Sadong River.  It is about 40 miles to the southeast of the Sarawak River Delta sites Song/Yuan Chinese ceramics
Bukit Sandong

Situates about 15 miles upriver from Gedong 

Song/Yuan Chinese ceramics and ceramics datable to 15th to 17th century.  They includes Ming blue and white, Thai and Vietnamese ceramics.

Nangka Kalaka and Tebing Tinggi in the coastal Kabong   

Situates northeast of Kuching Song/Yuan Chinese ceramics and ceramics datable to 15th to 17th century.  They includes Ming blue and white, Thai and Vietnamese ceramics.

 

 

Some of the ceramics sherds were found were attributed to Tang Dynasty.   During this period, wares from Changsha, Yue and Xing kilns are common export ceramics mix.  This can be substantiated by the ceramics finds in the Belitung shipwreck.  However, so far I have yet to see any sherd datable to that period. The earliest Yue wares that I have seen were produced from 5 Dynasties/Northern Song period. 

Sarawak museum classifies the Chinese ceramics into 7 categories: white wares (including qingbai), Yue type (actual Yue and those that possess similar features to Yue wares), celadon (longquan wares), Temmoku (wares with dark brown or black glaze), Green glazed wares, Chizhou and Coarse Stonewares.

Since the 1990s, quite a number of shipwrecks were salvaged in the Southeast Asia sea.  Coupled with more published kiln excavations reports from China, we now have the ability to provide more accurate dating and able to identify the origins of many the ceramics finds.  For those Yue-type wares, we now know with certainty that they originated from Longquan and Fujian/Guangdong wares.  For the so call Cizhou wares found in Southeast ASia, those from the Song period actually originated from Fujian/Guangdong.  So far, archaeological evidences available showed that actual Song/Jin Cizhou wares exported were mainly only found in Korea and Japan.  However, some Yuan/Ming period Cizhou wares from Hebei Pengcheng were found in Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia.

For more on the various types of Chinese trade Ceramics of the Song/Yuan period, please read below:

 

For Ming Period, the main type found is Blue and white from Jingdezhen and Fujian Zhangzhou.  For more information of these types of Blue and white, please read below:

 

During the 15th/16th Century, Vietnamese and Thai Ceramics were exported in substantial quantity to Southeast East Asia as a result of the Ming Ban on export of Chinese ceramics.  For more on these type of trade ceramics, please read below:

 

Brunei Sungai Limau Manis archaeological site

 

The site is located approximately 22km from Bandar Seri Begawan, on the bank of Sungai Limau Manis, a tributary of the Brunei River.    It was accidentally discovered in March 2002 during the government project  to widen  and deepen the river. The artifacts were found at the depth of 4 to 5 metres and dating from the l0th to 14th centuries A.D.   It is the most significant and richest archaeological findings in Brunei.  Most of the artifacts that have been found were in relatively good condition and consisted of most of the the varieties of Song/Yuan ceramics, ie.  celadon, white wares, Qingbai, black/brown glaze and lead glazed wares.  Other findings included Chinese coins,  coloured beads, wooden, iron, bronze, stone and golden objects.  Small quantity of Ming and Qing blue and white as well as Siamese and Vietnamese ware were also found. So far, more than 50,000 ceramic shards have been collected from the Limau Manis site.  It is one of the most important archaeological findings since Kota Batu (1950s), Sungai Lumut (1968), Terusan Kupang (1974) and The Brunei Shipwreck (1997).
 
This archaeological site substantiated the information in the Chinese documented sources of trading relationship between China and Brunei, called Po-ni, since the Song Dynasty.   According to Song period Zhao Rushi's work "zhufanzhi" (赵汝适《诸番志) dated 1225,  46 countries (including Annam, Cambodia, Srivijaya, malay peninsula, Po-ni [most likely reference to Brunei], java, eastern Indies, the Philippines and even Zanzibar) were listed as China's trading partners.  He also commented that  "Nau-tzi (camphor) comes from Po-ni...)".   The discovery provides physical evidence of the existence of  Brunei as a significant polity since the 10th Century.   The Sungai Limau Manis site declined when Kota Batu became the capital of Brunei and a major settlement area and trade centre.  It emerged as a powerful Islamic Kingdom in the 15th and 16th centuries A.D.

 The earliest ceramics from the site are Yue greenware of the 5 Dynasties/Northern Song Period.    Those from the Northern Song period consisted of mainly Guangdong Ceramics.  The Southern Song/Yuan period ceramics consisted of mainly Longquan celadon, Jindezhen Qingbai and Fujian produced celadon and white/Qingbai, brown and lead glazed wares. 

Chinese Ceramics Found from the Sungai Limau Manis site 

5 Dynasties/Northern Song Yue ware pot Northern Song Yaozhou or Guangdong Xicun/Huizhou kiln Yaozhou type celadon
   
Northern Song Guangdong Xicun kiln brown glaze basin  Song Fujian Brown glaze ewer 
Southern Song Fujian Qingbai ewer  Northern Song Fujian Celadon bowl with carved motif
   
Southern Song Longquan celadon bowl with carved lotus motif Song JIngdezhen Qingbai small vase 
   
Song/Yuan Fujian Cizao kiln lead glaze pot  Southern Song Fujian celadon bowl 
Yuan JIngdezhen Qingbai bowl  Yuan Longquan celadon bowl 
   
Yuan Longquan celadon bowl  Yuan Fujian Qingbai ewer 
   
Song/Yuan Fujian Cizao Kiln lead glaze Kendis   Yuan Fujain Cezao kiln brown glaze bottle 
   
Yuan Dehua White glaze vase  Song Guangdong brown glaze Kendi 

Northern Song Ding shard with molded decoration

 

by: NK Koh (28 Jul 2015)

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