A Chinese Yue Ware Lotus Jar, from Cirebon Shipwreck, Five Dynasties Period

An important artefact recovered from a shipwreck discovery. A Chinese Yue ware pottery jar of compressed globular form, with a flat inverted rim and supported on a short foot ring. The body is decorated with a continuous band of lotus petals carved in delicate relief, beneath a dense network of crackle glaze. The vessel was likely originally fitted with a lid and covered in a pale olive-green glaze. Dating to the late Five Dynasties period, circa AD 968, this jar was recovered from the cargo of the Cirebon Shipwreck, discovered approximately 100 kilometres off the coast of Indonesia, and is accompanied by recorded provenance.

Measurements: 13.5cm high x 12.5cm diameter.

Condition: As recovered from a marine environment, having remained submerged for approximately one thousand years. The surface exhibits marine encrustations and accretions consistent with prolonged underwater burial. There is associated loss and thinning of glaze, with areas of surface dullness and abrasion commensurate with age and recovery conditions. A minor chip is present to the foot rim. A small crack to the base is visible, likely from chemical degradation and physical trauma, resulting in the jar no longer being watertight. The jar remains structurally stable overall, with these characteristics considered typical and expected for shipwreck material of this period.

Provenance: Transported from Indonesia to Singapore following an initial attempt to sell the material as part of the original shipwreck discovery collection. Subsequently commercially dispersed into several international private collections, with this example forming part of a sale to a Singapore private collection in 2012. Later exported to Australia and offered at Mossgreen Auctions in 2014 and later offered through Philips Auctions Australia on behalf of a deceased estate.

References: Cite: ORIENTAL CERAMICS The World's Great Collections, Vol. 3: Museum Pusat, Jakarta, 1982, colour pl. 73, and discussed p. 170 (12.6cm diameter, dated as Five Dynasties or Song dynasty). For another globular jar with similar lotus petal decoration, also as Yue ware from the Five dynasties or Early Song period, 10th century, see ORIENTAL CERAMICS The World's Great Collections, Vol. 10: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1980, fig. 103 (10.4cm diameter).

See this short online catalogue of Cirebon Shipwreck artefacts for similar examples: https://www.cirebon-shipwreck-2.ceramics-and-shipwrecks-of-southeast-asia.com/set/eef9f435-cae4-4a5c-9915-586e01500f08