What an exciting possibility! Maritime archaeology in Southeast Asia is one of the most exciting parts of Southeast Archaeology today, and the ceramic finds in each maritime site really provides hoards of data in understanding SEA’s past. It would be great to go for this conference and produce a podcast on this, but am unable to afford the $200 conference fee. Would anyone like to sponsor (in part or full) me? Email me at seaarch@gmail.com
Symposium on Chinese Export Trade Ceramics in Southeast Asia
Date: 12 – 14 March 2007
Time: 0900 – 1800
Location: National Library Board, Imagination & Possibilities Room (Level 5), 100 Victoria Street, Singapore
Description:
The Symposium will bring together archaeologists and ceramic scholars from China, Southeast Asia, and the western hemisphere, highlighting recent advances in archaeological, maritime, and ceramic research on the ceramic export trade. The three main themes for the symposium are:
1) Maritime Archaeology
Shipwrecks and port sites are important sources of information regarding the transport and exchange of ceramics. Important new discoveries in this field are revolutionizing our knowledge of early Southeast Asian commerce, both within the region and with China.
2) Production Centers of Ceramics
In the past few years, Chinese archaeologists have conducted work at kiln complexes in southern and eastern China which produced many of the wares which are found in Southeast Asian archaeological sites. This burst of activity is rectifying a long period of relative neglect of this subject. Though much remains to be accomplished, preliminary results have already begun to create a much clearer picture of the ebb and flow of production in different parts of China.
3) Consumers of Trade Ceramics
This subject has received the most attention in the past. Much of our early knowledge of Chinese ceramic trade with Southeast Asia was derived from burial sites, often looted, where intact items were found. The archaeology of settlements began later, but has also yielded significant insight into the role of imported ceramics in the economy and belief systems of Southeast Asia. The importance of the export ceramic industry for China’s economy in the period from the 9th to the 15th centuries is another subject which new research is beginning to clarify.
PRESENTERS
Prof. Chen Kuo-Tung (Institute of History and Philosophy, Academia Sinica, Taiwan)
Dr. Edmund E. McKinnon (United Nations Development Programme Banda Aceh)
Mr. John Guy (Victoria & Albert Museum)
Dr. Marie France Dupoizat (France)
Ms. Ke Fengmei (Centre for the Management and Preservation of Artefacts, Putian)
Prof. Li Jian An (Archaeological Institute, Fujian Museum)
Mr. Lou Jianlong (Archaeological Institute, Fujian Museum)
Dr. Michael Flecker (Maritime Explorations, Singapore)
Prof. Morimoto Asako (Japan)
Prof. Qin Dashu (Peiking University)
Prof. John N. Miksic (National University of Singapore)
Prof. Qi Dongfang (Peking University)
Prof. Robert E. Murowchick (Boston University, USA)
Ms. Rita Tan (KAISA Heritage Centre, Manila)
Dr. Roxanna M.Brown (Southeast Asian Ceramics Museum, Bangkok University)
Mr. Shen Yuemin (Archaeological Institute, Zhejiang Museum)
Prof. Wang Xiaoyun (The Academy of Science of Chinese Literature)
Prof. Yang Zhishui (The Academy of Science of Chinese Literature)
Dr. Zhao Bing (College de France)
The symposium will be conducted in English and Chinese.
For full details, visit the National University of Singapore: Asia Research Institute website here.
Related Books:
– Lost at Sea: The Strange Route of the Lena Shoal Junk
– The Ceramics of Southeast Asia : Their Dating and Identification by R. M. Brown
