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Jar

15th-16th century

Thailand

Stoneware with incised design under glaze (Si Satchanalai ware)

H. 8 1/8 x Diam. 7 3/4 in. (20.6 x 19.7 cm)

Asia Society, New York: Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, 1979.92

Provenance

John D. Rockefeller 3rd, New York, NY; acquired from Peng Seng, Bangkok, Thailand, 1962.

The Asia Society, New York, NY, bequest of John D. Rockefeller 3rd, 1979.

Licensing inquiries

The unusual shape, body, and glaze of this jar point to the striking variety of wares that have been associated with the Sawankhalok kilns in northern Thailand. The buff-colored body of this jar is decorated with a deeply incised design of curving lines that has been covered with a thin, transparent sea-green glaze. These incised decorations are typical of those from Sawankhalok which were rarely naturalistic and instead are usually stylized versions of Chinese motifs or motifs borrowed from other, already developed local art mediums such as textiles or architecture. Much of the ceramics produced at the Sawankhalok kilns were destined for export, especially during the late 14th and 15th century when the Chinese court attempted to ban private Chinese overseas trade, claiming that their coastal peoples would be corrupted by contact with the "southern barbarians." At sites dated 15th to mid 16th century in Indonesia and the Philippines, Thai wares often comprises 20 percent and sometimes as much as 40 percent of the ceramic finds.