Kiln Sites Research Articles

Tides of Celadon: Glaze Color Chronology from the Edgefield Pottery District, South Carolina

ABSTRACTLarge alkaline-glazed stoneware vessels from the Edgefield District of South Carolina have long been studied by ceramic historians and collectors. Manufactured by enslaved laborers in the antebellum period, these vessels were sold throughout the South. Based on extant vessels from collections, scholars have proposed that a lighter green glaze, often called celadon, was manufactured earlier than a darker green-brown glaze. This assertion has not been tested systematically using archaeological evidence. Understanding how glaze color changes over time at one kiln site allows us to better understand antebellum aesthetic and economic systems. Establishing that there is change over time is the first step toward asking why this may be the case. Was it purely an aesthetic choice, an economic one, or due to experimentation with glazes by enslaved laborers? Excavations in 2011 and 2013 at the Pottersville site (38ED11) uncovered thousands of alkaline-glazed stoneware sherds that can illuminate this topic.

The Social Landscape of Potteries: Refined Earthenwares at Pottersville, South Carolina

ABSTRACTThis article provides an analysis of refined earthenwares uncovered in the Pottersville kiln site and associated work areas in Edgefield, SC, during excavations in 2011 and 2013. Past ceramic studies have largely focused on the significance of alkaline-glazed stoneware produced in the Edgefield Pottery District. Refined earthenwares in the Pottersville work areas represented a small percentage of the total ceramic assemblage. Yet, they prompt a variety of social, political, and economic questions. What does the presence of these European wares across work areas indicate about social landscapes and daily experiences? Given the pottery owner’s initial desire to manufacture refined earthenware, and his unionist (American protectionist) political allegiances, how do such imported goods relate to national identity issues in the decades before the Civil War? Lastly, data from makers’ marks helps to situate Pottersville within broader market networks and political currents during a period of intensifying global realignments.

Red Lustrous Wheelmade ware: Analysis of organic residues in Late Bronze Age trade and storage vessels from the eastern Mediterranean

Transport and storage vessels in Red Lustrous Wheelmade ware (RLWm ware) were traded across a large area of the eastern Mediterranean for approximately 300years (c. 1500–1200BCE) during the Late Bronze Age (c.1600–1000BCE). The extreme consistency of the ceramic, in form, fabric, chemistry and mineralogy, points to a single production source for the ware, which, although no kiln sites have been identified, is generally accepted to have been on Cyprus. The aim of this study was to determine whether organic residues were present in this very fine, dense ware, and to characterise the contents of RLWm ware vessels from different sites, contexts and periods, and of different forms, to improve our understanding of the trade in this ceramic type. To that end, 101 RLWm ware sherds, together with three visible residues, were examined from sites in Turkey, Cyprus, Egypt and Syria. Residues were identified in more than half of the samples, indicating that organic material is absorbed into and preserved in this very fine fabric. Four commodities were identified: fat (probably plant oil), which in four residues was identified further as castor oil; beeswax; bitumen; and Pinaceae spp. resin. The commodities were found alone or, occasionally, one of the latter three was combined with the fat or oil. Fatty material was the only commodity present at all sites and its wide distribution may indicate that generally the vessels were used for a mixture or mixtures based on plant oils, in some cases containing castor oil. It was impossible to determine whether the beeswax, bitumen and resin formed part of this mixture or represented post-firing treatments of the ceramic to make it less porous. The identification of more than one type of residue indicates that RLWm ware vessels did not always contain the same commodity. No significant correlation could be detected between the vessel forms, and the dating of many of the sherds was not precise enough to reveal any variation through time. The type of residue present did vary depending on the geographical location of its final use. Beeswax was, with two exceptions, only present in samples from Turkey, while bitumen was found exclusively in samples from Cypriot sites. The occurrence of at least one example of every commodity in the samples from Cyprus is consistent with the theory that this ware was manufactured on Cyprus, and indicates that the vessels could also have been filled and exported from there. The variation in content of the vessels found in different geographical areas could highlight a special trading relationship between the Hittite heartland in Turkey and the Cypriot potters who produced the ware, and a possible trade in bitumen as a raw material between the north Syrian coastal area of Ugarit and Cyprus.

What fate for swidden agriculture under land constraint in tropical forests? Lessons from a long-term study in an Amazonian peasant community

What happens when swidden cultivation systems in tropical forests become land-constrained? In this paper we report the findings of a long-term, interdisciplinary project on swidden farming, swidden farming households, and the forest landscape in a Peruvian Amazonian peasant community that has faced growing land scarcity over the past 35 years. Data were gathered at the household and plot level in 1994/95 and 2007 on land use, land cover, demographics, income and assets. By employing ‘retrospective field history assessment’, we reconstructed the historical land portfolios and demographic profiles of households since inception, enabling us to track changes in cropping and fallowing as well as land cover change and household composition through time. These data were combined with aerial photograph and satellite imagery interpretation to independently assess change in forest cover and type. We find that farmers confronted growing land scarcity through outmigration, diversification of land holdings, increased use of fallow products and of orchards as both an income source and as fallows, and agricultural innovation through the use of biochar on charcoal kiln sites and home gardens. The forest surrounding the community has become younger over time and more heterogeneous in age but more homogeneous in biodiversity. The paper concludes with five general lessons: (1) forest peasants are highly resilient to land scarcity; (2) forests play an overlooked role in agricultural intensification; (3) the ‘modal’ forest farmer does not exist; (4) early land endowment is key to understanding farmer land use and poverty dynamics; and, (5) swidden forests are social landscapes.

RESPONSIVENESS OF SOIL ORIBATID MITES TOWARD KILN EMISSIONS

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of field wood carbonization (kiln) emissions on soil oribatid mites. A completely randomized design was used. Five kiln sites at Qaranshu village, Al-Gharbiya Governorate, Egypt, were chosen. From each site, a number of soil samples were taken at four distances (5, 10, 15 and 20m) and three depths (0-5, 5-10 and 10-15 cm) on both sides of the kiln, viz, windward and leeward. Soil oribatid mites were extracted from each soil sample using modified paper funnel extractor (Berlese funnel). Species richness, species diversity and vertical distribution of soil oribatid mites were determined. The present data showed that kiln emissions had a marked effect on species richness, diversity and vertical distribution of soil oribatid mites.

The resistance of centennial soil charcoal to the “Walkley-Black” oxidation

The “Walkley-Black” oxidation with dichromate is a routine protocol for the estimation of soil organic carbon (SOC) content. Dichromate oxidation is also used to quantify black carbon (BC) in soil and sediments based on the larger resistance of BC to dichromate oxidation than uncharred SOC. The aim of this study was (i) to evaluate whether dichromate-based SOC quantification methods discriminate between uncharred SOC and charcoal residues in the topsoil of pre-industrial charcoal kiln sites and (ii) to test the influence of aging on the recovery of charcoal by dichromate oxidation. We selected 40 topsoil samples from 20 pre-industrial charcoal kiln sites of Wallonia, Belgium, and adjacent reference soils unaffected by charcoal production. Samples included soils from forest and cropland, with a diversity of soil types and textural classes. SOC content was estimated by the original Walkley-Black procedure (results were multiplied by the traditional correction factor of 1.32), and by an adapted method that includes external heating of the digestion mixture to overcome incomplete oxidation of uncharred SOC and get rid of the correction factor of 1.32. Results were compared to the amount of total organic carbon (TOC) content, measured by dry combustion, and to the content of charcoal-C in soil, estimated by differential scanning calorimetry. The soil of a currently active charcoal kiln site was also analyzed and used as a reference subject to limited aging. 23.6% of charcoal-C was recovered by the Walkley-Black procedure in the soil of the currently active kiln site against 65% for the soil of pre-industrial kiln sites, which indicates that the resistance of charcoal to dichromate oxidation decreases with aging. The recovery of charcoal increased to 90% after boiling of the digestion mixture, providing evidence that heat catalyzes the oxidation of charcoal. The substantial oxidation of charcoal by dichromate and the variability of recovery according to the degree of alteration of charcoal and conditions of reaction support the idea that the quantification of BC based on its chemical resistance is challenging and can be subject to important biases if calibration is not adapted to the quality of BC of the sample of interest. Because the recovery of BC by the Walkley-Black method is incomplete, the presence of large amounts of BC in soils frequently affected by fire might be a significant cause of underestimation of SOC by the Walkley-Black method in regional and global databases.

Stress induced by heavy metals on breeding of magpie (Pica pica) from central Iran

The aim of this study was to address the impacts of some heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Zn, Ni and Cu) contamination on laying behavior, egg quality and breeding performance of Pica pica in north of Isfahan Province, Iran. During the breeding season of 2013, magpie's egg content and eggshell as well as nestling excrements and feathers were collected and total concentrations of heavy metals were measured by ICP-OES. Except for Zn in nestling feathers, the significantly higher concentrations of heavy metals were observed in nestling excrements than other samples. Also, comparison of heavy metals concentrations in egg content and eggshell showed that egg content had significantly higher concentrations of Zn and Pb, instead eggshell had significantly higher amount of Cu and Cd. Except for Cu, all heavy metals concentrations in eggshell had a negative relationship with morphological characters; and also concentration of Cu in egg content showed a significantly negative correlation with egg weight and volume. The most of heavy metals in nestling feathers and excrements had strongly positive correlations with each other. Also all heavy metals levels in eggshell and egg content had significantly positive correlations (except for Cu). Unhatched eggs had significantly lower weight but also greater levels of Zn, Cd, and Pb, than randomly collected eggs. No significant differences were observed for morphometric measurements of eggs between different sites, however, a decreased gradient was observed in egg volume toward the brick kiln site. Samples collected in brick kiln site accumulated higher concentrations of heavy metals than other sites. Although numbers of clutch size in brick kiln site were significantly higher than other sites, however, other breeding variable were lower than other sites. It can be suggested that ecosystem contamination may be caused to decrease the reproduction rate of Pica pica in brick kiln, probably by laying more poor quality eggs per clutch and nestling mortality.

Variation of past wood use across local edaphic gradients reflects tree species ecology – Examples of the fine spatial resolution of kiln site anthracology

Archaeological sites of charcoal burning represent one of the most important sources of evidence for past wood use in mountainous regions of western Central Europe. Thousands of historical wood charcoal kiln sites are known within the Black Forest alone. The wide distribution and high density of kiln sites indicate the great importance of wood charcoal production in the past. The preserved charcoal fragments associated with kiln sites provide unique opportunities to obtain detailed information on past tree species composition and the changes of forest landscapes with high spatial resolution. Furthermore, spatial relations and dependencies of past wood use on the natural diversity of the growth conditions, tree species distribution and wood supply could be verified. In our study we have analysed charcoal samples from traditional wood charcoal burning on a local spatial scale, characterized by groups of neighbouring kiln platforms lying close together in the landscape. Examples of the spatial resolution of kiln site anthracology already have been given of several regional or altitudinal landscape profiles and the corresponding ecological gradients in the Black Forest and Upper Rhine regions. By the study presented here, results from three local scale profiles lying within the same altitudinal belt of the Black Forest are given to evaluate the fine spatial resolution of such studies. The sites analysed from this area range over landscape profiles of several hundred metres only, but covering diverse ecological conditions in its surrounding. Charcoal samples have been collected from 60 postmedieval kiln platforms and undertaken an anthracological standard analysis including taxa and diameter determination. The results mirror the diverse topographic-edaphic characteristics (terrestrial, boggy and alluvial sites) of the charcoal burning platforms and the surrounding forests in detail. In conclusion, the local wood used by the charcoal burners seems to be closely dependent on the natural wood supply.

Frames of Production: The Case of Ceramics

The ceramics material from Nya Lodose comes from many different places in Europe and represents a variety of production forms, from small-scale sideline household production to almost an industrial level. However, not much is known about production during the sixteenth century and the different agents involved in this sphere of production, distribution and consumption. This article seeks to identify and discuss different types of production forms in the ceramics from Nya Lodose and problematize the complexity of the contact networks. Methods such as ICP-analysis can provide opportunities to further understand production and distribution. We demonstrate how we have traced a presumably local production despite the absence of any known kiln site. We argue that the influx of ceramics from such a variety of production places is key to understand better how the contact of network on different levels.

A Dragon Kiln in the Americas: European-American Innovation and African-American Industry

ABSTRACTArchaeological investigations at the Pottersville kiln site in Edgefield, South Carolina in 2011 sought to identify the dimensions of the kiln and any architectural features associated with that structure’s design. Locating and identifying key architectural elements would allow for a better understanding of kiln technology in the American south region during the early nineteenth century and daily operations around the Pottersville kiln. This article provides a discussion of the archaeological findings from those investigations and postulates possibilities regarding the origins for kiln designs in the Old Edgefield District. This research revealed that African-American workers and European-American entrepreneurs constructed a type of kiln at Pottersville that was never seen before in the Americas.

A Characteristics Analysis of Archaeological Chemistry on the Ceramics Excavated from Kiln Site in Dongkok‐Town, Gimje in Korea

본 연구는 김제 동곡마을 도요지에서 출토된 15~17세기 분청사기와 백자에 대하여 색도와 비중 및 흡수율, 미세구조 관찰 등의 물리적 특성, 태토와 유약의 조성에 대한 화학적 특성에 대하여 분석하였다. 물리적 특성에서 가마운영 상황과 제작 시기에 따라 제작기술이 점차 발전되는 변화가 관찰된다. 원료적 측면에서 동...

Tang dynasty (618–907) bowl measured with PIXE

Brownish bowl originating from an underwater shipwreck located near Belitung island in the Java Sea, some 600km south-east from Singapore, has been measured with particle induced X-ray emission. This study was a pilot project for the – now a spin-off company – Recenart research team where one target was to evaluate the authenticity of the different type of art objects. PIXE measurements were done from three different material positions from a single bowl received from a customer. These locations were categorized as a bluish/greenish pigment (under glaze), thick glaze and the body clay. When the obtained data was compared to the other references from different dynasties and kiln sites, the closest match was indeed the Tang dynasty, Tongguan/Ghangsha kiln-site potsherds – from where the bowl in question was also suspected to originate.

Characterization of the rare oil spot glazed bowl excavated from the Xiao kiln site of north China

Abstract “Oil spot”, which is a famous decorating technique of black glazed porcelain in the Song Dynasty, is a representative handicraft of Jian bowls found in the Jian Kiln in southern China. An oil spot black glaze bowl was found in the Xiao Kiln in Anhui Province in a field investigation, which is the first time that this pattern of porcelain was found in this area. Various techniques were performed on this bowl and on another black glaze porcelain piece from the same archaeological layer, including optical microscopy, scan electron microscopy, XRF, Raman spectromicroscopy and XRD. The results show that its main chemical composition is similar to the black glazed porcelain from the Xiao kiln, and the chemical characteristics of the glaze are high Fe 2 O 3 (5.14%) and CaO (7.26%) and low Al 2 O 3 (11.85%) and the RO content is 0.83which is indicative of a calcium glaze and is close to the components of oil spot porcelains from Shanxi in northern China. The ferric oxide crystalline on the glaze surface indicates the phase transformation of γ-Fe 2 O 3→ e-Fe 2 O 3→ α-Fe 2 O 3 in the crystallization layer on the glaze surface and the anorthite crystalline at the junction between the body and the glaze. The vessel could be produced at a relatively high temperature in a specific oxidizing environment.

The old charcoal kiln sites in Central Italian forest landscapes

Production of wood charcoal in the Mediterranean countries started over two millennia ago and vanished almost completely only in the last century. The legacy of this activity are thousands of abandoned charcoal kiln platforms, in which soil and vegetation characteristics are deeply affected. Understanding the consequences of such effects at the forest level demands a better knowledge of the density, distribution and morphology of these sites, as well as the influence of forest type and local geomorphological characteristics. We examined these aspects using field surveys and Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) data in 1-ha sample quadrats distributed along an altitudinal gradient in three major forest types of Central Italy, namely evergreen sclerophyllous forest, oak-dominated thermophilous deciduous forest and montane beech forest. We found on average 5.5 kiln sites per ha. The highest overall surface proportion covered by charcoal platforms was recorded in oak-dominated forests, due to their generally larger size. In beech forests, kiln platforms were more numerous than in the other two forest types, but smaller. Density was intermediate in the sclerophyllous forests, where the overall proportion of surface was lowest. The charcoal-enriched soil layer was usually single and continuous (e.g. not interrupted by mineral layers). The thickness of this layer was similar in the three forest types, but increased with slope inclination. Several features of our kiln platforms such as density and shape were distinct from others in Central and Northern Europe, probably reflecting different forest histories and purposes for which they were built. Using ALS, we could detect all kiln platforms in beech forest on steep slopes and approximately 75% of the kilns in oak forests on hilly terrain. Hence, all further ecologically- or archaeologically-oriented study in our region at the landscape level will benefit from the use of hillshade and/or slope images from ALS data.

Investigation of Kiln Sites and Signification of Research on Goryeo Celadon during the Japanese Colonial Rule

일제강점기는 한국미술사의 출발점이라는 시각에서 기존 논문에서 다루지 않았던 당시의 요지(窯址) 조사와 고려청자 연구가 어떠한 배경속에서 시작했으며 시기별로 어떤 변화를 보이고 그 내용은 무엇이었는지에 대해 살펴보았다.BR 당시 요지조사와 고려청자의 연구는 일본 제국주의가 설정한 조선예술쇠망론의 식민사관과 식민지에 대한 인류학적 자료조사라는 큰 틀에서 시작되었다. 1910년대부터 1930년대까지 강진을 비롯하여 공주 학봉리, 광주 분원리, 부안 유천리·진서리, 고령사부동·기산동 등 중요한 요지 대부분이 조사되었으나, 현재 각 요지의 발굴보고서는 공주 학봉리를 제외하고는 확인할 수 없는 한계가 있다. 그러나 1914년 강진 요지 발굴자료도 다른 논문에서 단편적으로 확인되기 때문에 모든 발굴보고서는 작성되었던 것으로 보인다. 그렇기 때문에 각 요지의 발굴조사보고서 부재(不在)는 조선총독부박물관의 의도적인 자료 폐기 또는 누락를 추정하는 근거이기도 하다. 고려청자에 대한 인식과 연구는 요지조사 자료 축적과 함께 50여 년간 시기별로 변화를 보였다. 19세기부터 1900년대는 본격적인 요지조사가 실시되기 이전으로 고려청자는 고가의 골동품으로서 수집과 감상의 대상으로 여겨지던 시기이다. 전세품(傳世品)이나 개인적인 수집품만을 분석하여 한국 도자기의 역사를 관념적인 시각에서 계보(系譜)를 정리하고 종류를 구분하였다. 이후 1910-1920년대에는 일본의 대외확장에 따라 식민지에 대한 인류학적 조사가 본격적으로 진행된 시기이다. 도자기 연구는 고고학적 발굴을 통한 요지 현황파악과 조사를 바탕으로 한 것이었으나 여전히 감상도자(鑑賞陶磁)라는 관점도 유지되었다. 특히 도아회(匋雅會), 도자기연구회(陶磁器硏究會), 채호회(彩壺會) 등을 중심으로 감상, 품평활동과 도자사적인 연구를 병행했다는 것이 특징이다. 고려청자를 도자산업 진흥을 위한 중국 도자기 연구의 부수적인 연구대상으로 다루면서 비색청자를 생산할 수 있었던 기술적 요인과 문양소재의 원류를 찾는 논문이 발표되기도 하였다.BR 1928년과 1933년 각각 강진과 부안 청자요지가 발굴되면서 1930년대부터 1945년 까지는 그동안의 조사결과를 토대로 고려시대의 시기별 변화, 고려와 중국의 문헌사료 분석, 소비지 출토 편년(編年)유물, 간지(干支)명을 비롯한 명문(銘文)청자 연구 등으로 연구범위를 확대해갔다. 오늘날의 도자사 연구, 문헌사 연구, 고고학적 연구와 같이 분야가 세분화된 단행본들이 출간되었다. 그중에서 나카오 만죠(中尾万三)는 중국 도자기 역사에 대한 지식을 배경으로 중국과 고려의 영향관계, 원류 규명, 시기구분 등 미술사적 시각에서 연구한 반면, 노모리 켄은 고고학적 조사 결과를 세부항목으로 분류하고 정리, 비교하는 방식이었다. 서로 다른 연구 방식을 취했으나 두 사람의 연구 결과는 광복 이후 국내 도자사 연구의 토대를 형성했다.

Air pollution tolerance index of plants around brick kilns in Rawalpindi, Pakistan

In any contaminated environment, the sensitive plant species can serve as bio-indicator of air pollution while tolerant plant species can act as a sink for air pollutants. Air pollution tolerance index (APTI) is an important tool to screen out plants based on their tolerance or sensitivity level to different air pollutants. The present study was aimed to identify the sensitive and tolerant plant species in the vicinity of brick kilns in the Rawalpindi city. To determine the susceptibility level of the selected plant species, four biochemical parameters, ascorbic acid, total chlorophyll content, relative water content and pH of leaf extract, were assessed and APTI was calculated. Plant sampling was carried out with increasing distance of 100, 300 and 500 m around three brick kiln sites and APTI values were calculated by following the standard methods. The results of the study revealed that among nine studied plant species, Calotropis procera (APTI = 20.05) and Althernanthera pungens (APTI = 17.13) were found to be the most tolerant species, whereas Malva neglecta (APTI = 8.83) was found to be the most sensitive species. Inconsistent trend of variations was seen in the APTI values at each site. The present study suggested that the most tolerant species, C. procera and A. pungens, could be grown in the vicinity of such pollution sources as a remedial measure of brick kiln pollution.

Geological resources and their exploitation in the Berkshire chalklands of the later nineteenth century: a first survey

ABSTRACTThe Chalk Group downlands and the closely associated outcrops of early Tertiary sediments provided to farmers, estate owners, and business men during the later nineteenth and early twentieth century a wide variety of earth-materials that were exploited at many hundreds of sites for mainly local but also regional needs. Chalk was used for soil-conditioning, road metal, flooring and hard-standing, as a walling material, and for lime-burning and the manufacture of whiting and putty. The early Tertiary silts and clays (Reading Beds, London Clay, Bagshot Beds) that unconformably overlie the Chalk Group, together with the closely associated Clay-with-Flints, were the basis of a major building-ceramic industry (bricks, tiles, chimney pots, drain-pipes) that served both regional and local markets. More than ninety kiln sites are known. Flints present in or derived from the Upper Chalk were extracted at many sites for hard-core, rough walling, typically combined with brick, and for facing and repairing important buildings, such as Victorian churches. Today almost no physical evidence of these various activities has survived in the landscape. Pits and scrapes are no longer evident in the fields and along the lanes, and smoking chimneys no longer rise above estates, villages, and towns such as Reading and Wokingham. Improvements in transportation, and a lowering of transport costs, have effected a transformation of the landscape.

Les jarres de stockage khmères (IXe-XIVe siècle)

From the beginning of Khmer stoneware production, at the end of the ninth century CE, at least ten kilns manufactured large jars. The oldest jars, made in kilns around the City of Angkor, were similar to the Chinese jars of the Tang period. Most of the jars from this first group are unglazed. They show some evolution in the shape of the rim before the end of the production during the 11th or the 12th century. Later, a second group of three kiln sites, about 50 km east of Angkor, produced big brown glazed jars between the 12th and 14th centuries. Two other provincial kiln sites also produced large jars: Choeung Ek near Phnom Penh, which made unglazed jars, and Ban Kruat (Thailand). Their production probably began during the 11th century and lasted until the 14th century. The production of jars under the Khmer Empire was very important, with a lot of kiln sites in different regions, and a rich range of shapes. But archaeological evidence available so far seems to indicate that they were used only inside the Khmer territory, and not for sea trade.

Early Results of an Investigation into Ancient Kiln Sites Producing Ceramic Storage Jars and Some Related Issues

Storage jars, in spite of size variance, share some common characteristics in terms of their coarse body and glaze and rare decoration and thus had received little attention from researchers. However, more attention was recently paid to these jars, in terms of their production places and their functions: first, scholars in Japan studied these jars in relation with tea drinking rituals; secondly, the development of underwater archaeology resulted in the exposure of many jars, in various sizes. This paper introduces some kiln sites where jars were unearthed after systematic excavations, along the coastal areas of southern China (kiln sites of Guanchong, Dagangshan and Qishi in Guangdong, and of Cizao in Fujian). The paper also discusses the functions of the jars. It also pays attention to insufficiently studied jars produced in northern China. Based on archaeological findings, the paper shows that large-size jars only appeared there in the latter part of the 11th century, later than in southern China. During the Yuan and Ming dynasties, the major production places of these jars were Cizhou kiln in Hebei and Juntai kiln in Henan. The basic function of these jars was to store water.

Traditional Korean Ceramics: A Look by a Scientist by Carolyn Kyongshin Koh Choo

Reviewed by: Traditional Korean Ceramics: A Look by a Scientist by Carolyn Kyongshin Koh Choo Lim Jongtae Traditional Korean Ceramics: A Look by a Scientist by Carolyn Kyongshin Koh Choo (Ko Kyŏngsin 高慶信). Seoul: Designnanoom, 2016. 292pp. As can be surmised from its title, this book is a comprehensive survey of traditional Korean ceramics written by a scientist. Its author, Carolyn Kyongshin Koh Choo, is a scientist who has taken an unusual career path. Trained as a physical chemist at MIT, she turned her research focus to traditional Korean ceramics in the early 1990s, establishing the Department of Science of Cultural Properties at Chung-Ang University as the institutional base for her extraordinary project to “understand the beauty of [Korean] ceramic wares from a scientific point of view” (9). The guiding motive of this book is not especially different from that of the prominent 20th-century connoisseurs of Korean ceramic arts. Like Yanagi Muneyoshi, Ko Yusŏp, and other modern art historians, Koh Choo also searches for the uniqueness of the Korean ceramic tradition by identifying its subtle differences from the grossly similar but technically more sophisticated Chinese tradition. To this common search for Korean uniqueness, she adds her own “scientific point of view.” She presents the microscopic and chemical analysis of ceramic shards excavated from major kiln sites as a new way to investigate the unique technical and aesthetic characteristics of Korean ceramics. Reflecting the author’s self-positioning as a scientific connoisseur of Korean ceramic art, this book takes a different approach from that of ordinary art history works. Rather than following the conventional historical succession of the main ceramic types, from Koryŏ celadon to Chosŏn white porcelain, she [End Page 257] arranges its four parts (each consisting of three chapters) according to major decorative methods employed by Korean potters (15). After giving an overall introduction to Korean ceramics in Part 1, the remaining three parts are devoted to discussions of major techniques that characterize Korean ceramic art: underglazing and inlaying (sanggam 象嵌) (Part 2), various decorative methods applied to Chosŏn punch’ŏng wares (Part 3), and finally, uses of pigments (iron-rich clay, copper red, and cobalt blue) in brush painting on ceramic surfaces (Part 4). This arrangement of topics according to decorative techniques enables the author to freely commute between the two realms of art and science in her discussion of specific methods. She thus connects the prominent aesthetic features, imparted to the ceramic wares by certain techniques, with the scientific analysis of the ceramic bodies, glazes, and pigments that were employed in the technical processes. In order for readers to follow this oscillation between artistic and scientific discussions, it is essential to rely on the introductory Part 1, which offers a well-arranged and highly enlightening overview of the book’s contents. Chapter 1 presents the aesthetic characteristics of Korean ceramic arts, compared with those of China. Unlike the Chinese ceramic tradition, which developed a technically sophisticated overglazing method as a response to ever increasing international demands, the Korean tradition remained in isolation from global market trends, continuously relying on the underglazing method. This was the technical base upon which Korean potters imparted to their wares the “subdued and restrained beauty” (25) which, according to many modern connoisseurs, came to represent the “quintessence of the Oriental spirit” (18). Chapter 2 portrays the historical process of how Chinese ceramic techniques were imported and assimilated, while identifying the major sociopolitical and philosophical environments that shaped the fundamental characteristics of Korean ceramics. The high concentration of ceramic production into a few government-controlled centers (Kangjin and Puan in Koryŏ, and Kwangju in Chosŏn) explains the lack of diversity in the Korean ceramic tradition. Philosophical trends of the ruling class, especially Chosŏn Confucianism with its emphasis on frugality and simplicity, discouraged technical sophistication and colorful decoration, thus giving birth to what might be called the minimalist aesthetics of Chosŏn punch’ŏng ware and white porcelain. In Chapter 3, the author introduces an entirely new, scientific way to view the methods of traditional ceramic arts. For the careful reader, discovering how certain aesthetic features of ceramics can be explained by the chemical composition of the raw...