Historic wares

Little is known about the development of earthenware in Southeast Asia in the early historic period. It is likely that a common type of utilitarian ware was made throughout the region since similar shards from this period have been found in Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. A comparison of shape, method of potting, and decoration of the few reported finds, indicates that vessels continued to be made in the prehistoric tradition.

Unglazed earthenware has been excavated from Dvaravati period (seventh - eleventh centuries) sites occupied by the Mons in central Thailand. Most of the vessels were thrown on a potter's wheel, so it is evident that a development in technology from hand building and coiling to the wheel had already taken place. However, the wares were fired in a primitive open pit, so the knowledge of constructing a kiln that could achieve and sustain a temperature high enough to fire stoneware was obviously not known.

Another Mon settlement produced a distinctive type of unglazed pottery called "Haripunchai" ware, an ancient name in northern Thailand where the pieces are believed to have been made. They were probably an outgrowth of the Dvaravati pottery tradition but the wares are entirely different. They consist mainly of heavy jars potted from coarse clay. A molded base is common, with geometric designs incised on the body and the neck.

Unglazed pottery produced in Laos in the ancient historic period has been identified through an analysis of pieces recovered from a chance discovery of a kiln located outside of Vientiane, the modern capital of Laos. The site dated between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. Earthenware vessels, sometimes called Luang Prabang ware, are very thinly potted with elaborate carved and molded surface decoration. The shapes are primarily bottles used as containers for drinking water at home and at temples. The porosity of earthenware is generally a desirous characteristic for water vessels because it keeps the water cool but these bottles have a unique stone90like finish that makes them non-porous.

In many parts of the region, such as Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand, contemporary counterparts for ancient unglazed vessels are made today. It is likely that the production of earthenware pottery made in villages for local use has continued through history. Many of the functions of agrarian life in Southeast Asia have remained the same for centuries and the need for pottery vessels has probably persisted continuously also.

The transition from low-fired earthenware to high-fired stoneware originated in China in the first millennium BC. At some time between the first and third centuries AD, the technology required fro producing stoneware reached Vietnam. When the transition took place in other parts of the region is uncertain, but excavated storage vessels confirm that stoneware was made in Cambodia by the eight century. The jars were thrown in two parts on a potter's wheel and joined together with a clay coil.

Stoneware, more than any other type of pottery, is associated with Southeast Asia. Using available local material and improved technology to produce a high-fired, hard, durable, and non-porous ware, the potters of the region provided a ware e3ssential for daily life in an agrarian society. Above all, stoneware is a practical pottery with a broad range of uses in daily life, encompassing storage and cooking. Variations in the clay throughout the region affect the end product, producing an intriguing individuality, for no two pieces are alike. They reveal a freedom of form with no restrictions to preciseness. Irregularities in shape, glaze, and color abound to create a pleasing aesthetic response. Changes in texture show strength and character.

Shards of unglazed stoneware excavated at a temple in northeastern Thailand dated to the mid-eleventh century. Since glazed stoneware was made in Thailand by the tenth century, this find provides evidence that the production of unglazed stoneware continued after glazed wares were being made. However, the quantity diminished and the shapes were limited to utilitarian, upright vessels.