CERAMICS & SHIPWRECK ARCHAEOLOGY

A ray and a school of fish swimming over a seabed of ceramic bowls from the Cirebon wreck.

Divers holding artifacts salvaged from the Belitung wreck

presented by Dr GY Goh, History Group, HSS

(Top) Changsha bowls stacked within a large stoneware jar which had been cut in half; these ceramic pieces are from the Batu Hitam wreck, off Belitung island. (Right) Yue wares from Cirebon wreck.

Ceramics represents an importantcomponent of maritime trade between

Southeast Asia and China.

The cargo of a ship can tell us much about trade between China and Southeast Asia and intraregional trade within the Southeast Asian region.

BATU HITAM/BELITUNGSHIPWRECK

The ship sank off the coast of the island of Belitung; it is believed that the ship dates to circa 835 CE based on numismatic and ceramic evidence, and carbon dates. Note that the date 835 CE is only an estimate.

Changsha wareChangsha bowls are a well-known ceramic type produced during the Tang dynasty.

Hebei White WareGongxian Jarlet

Zhejiang incense burner

Zhejiang Yue bowl

Guangdongstoneware jar

Zhejiangstoneware lugged jar

Green-splashedewer & dragon-headed stopper

Green-splashedgoblet with

bird motif

Rare Tang blue and white

CIREBONSHIPWRECK

The ship is dated approximately to the second half of the 10th century. It sank off the coast of northern Java, near Cirebon. The main cargo consists of ceramics and ingots, but there are also other metallic objects, pearl, shells, glass, coins, etc. The wreck also retains some of the personal belongings of the crew who sailed it.

Cirebon wreck

Cirebon wreck

Bronze Vajra

Bronze foot of an animal

Bronze mirrors and sculpture of a monkey

INTANSHIPWRECK

This ship was sailing from Sumatra to Java when it sank near Bangka island. The ship was carrying a diverse cargo, but one which contains large quantities of metal objects.

Intan wreck

PULAU BUAYASHIPWRECK

This ship dating to the late Song period sank off the coast of Pulau Buaya in the Riau-Lingga archipelago. The wreck has not been well-studied, and the 12th-century date is largely predicated on ceramic finds.

Pulau Buaya wreck

Silver ingots with stamped Chinese writing

JAVA SEASHIPWRECK

The ship sank near Bangka island and dates approximately to the 13th century.

Black underglazed stoneware jar

Java Sea wreck