Origins and Movement of Tradeware Ceramics in the Bicol River, Philippines: Applying pXRF Technology to Trade and Interaction Research

Summary

The presence of tradeware ceramics (stoneware and porcelain) in the Philippines indicates interaction and exchange with foreign traders. Of particular interest is the spread of Ming (1368-1644) porcelain, which overlapped with the Spanish colonization of the Philippines. Ming ceramics are abundant in the archaeological record of the Philippines, spanning pre- and post-contact periods. These ceramics even became one of the major trade items during the Spanish Philippines. To establish the movement of these goods in the Bicol Region and adjacent Southern Tagalog Region, I utilize portable X-ray florescence to analyze tradeware ceramics from sites adjacent to the Bicol River. Elemental analysis of tradeware ceramics excavated at various Philippine sites, as well as collections obtained from salvage archaeology, may provide insights into where these ceramics were made, who was trading them, and the nature of their movement across the archipelago. For comparison, I also analyze tradeware ceramics from archaeological sites in nearby Southern Tagalog Region. Through this analysis, I expect that the elemental composition of Ming porcelain in the Philippines will provide a glimpse of the exchange relationships between the sites investigated. Furthermore, these markers of culture contact are important to understanding the role of exotic, nonlocal goods in Philippine society.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 83rd Annual Meeting, Washington, DC (2018)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 22564