Title The Study on Myanmar trade ware:Martaban Jar and ... - 金沢大学

金沢大学考古学紀要 30 2009, 101-136. <strong>The</strong> study of Myanmar trade ware : Martaban jar and white dish
<strong>The</strong> thick wall is made of brick composed of sandy red clay with
pebbles as am inclusion. <strong>The</strong> bricks measurement about 5cm
thick 130 wide, were laid flat and were long enough to reach
across the width of the wall.
<strong>The</strong> firing chamber is larger than kiln#2, #3 and #5, being about
150cm at its greatest diameter with the upper opening 90cm
across. Patchy green coloured glaze covers the inner surface.
<strong>The</strong> fire-hole is relatively large measuring 65cm wide. As
with one of the other kilns it appeared that the bricks had been
corbelled to create the enclosing curve of the firing chamber.
<strong>The</strong> axis is 270 degrees (similar to that of kiln#3 and #6, and
opposite to kiln#1, #2 and #5). This is the only one of the kilns
to have no rear vent. <strong>The</strong>re are no holes or glaze deposit on the
top surface (which may have been eroded).
A few beads, tubes and lumps of yellow, green, blue, black and
brown glass were found in the vicinity of the kiln. <strong>The</strong> small
amount of glass found in association with the kiln may have
been due to its location on the boundary of the monastery and
near a frequently used path.
Kiln#5 (Fig.15.e): (GPS.N:21 º 08’ 55.6”, E: 94 º 51’ 33.7”) is
located about 170m west of Abeyadana Temple. <strong>The</strong> size and
shape of the kiln (fig.66.a) is the same as kiln#2, #3 and #6 and
it has an axis of 100 degrees. <strong>The</strong> kiln has inside and outside
brick walls, and red sandy clay was used as a fill between them.
<strong>The</strong> outer wall bricks measure 11cm wide by 4cm thick by
approximately 20cm long, and the wall thickness at its widest
is about 60cm.<strong>The</strong>re are signs that the upper part of the kiln
had been repaired or rebuilt during the period of operation and
it appears from the inner curvature and raw top surface that
some of the upper is eroded and that no original top remains.
However, a few globules of glass can be seen in gaps or cracks
in the wall, this apparently originating from glass that penetrated
the wall through the top of the kiln. <strong>The</strong>re are no holes in the top
surface. <strong>The</strong> firing chamber is slightly smaller than kiln #2 and
#3 and the inner face has a whitish green slag. Both the fire-hole
and vent aperture have thin skirt extensions which were made
from shaped clay (which hardened after firing).
<strong>The</strong> area around the kiln was scattered with thousands of
sherds in heaps (a typical by product of digging for gold)
ranging from orange earthernware pottery vessels including
many kendi to dark gray near stoneware objects. Some of the
sherds had transparent or bluish glaze on one side. Many others
had a thick layer up to 1.5cmthick of glaze- glass on the bottom
of the inside or around the mouth rim. In 1990 a few small
blue glass beads were found on the ground surface near the
kiln and in 1994 beads, tube and lumps of monochrome yellow,
black, green, blue and brown glass were found in association
− 115 −
with the kiln.
About 50m to the east of kiln#5 large quantities of glass
were seen and 35 beads, numerous tubes and lumps of yellow,
black, green, blue, brown and white(pearl coloured) glass were
collected in 1994. <strong>The</strong> presence of kiln brick suggested a kiln
probably existed in the area.
Kiln#6 (Fig.15.f): In 1994, another updraft kiln type was
found by U Aung Kyaing about 500m south of Myinkaba and
200m west of Sein-nyet Nyi-ma temple (at GPS.N: 21 º 08’
20.9”, E: 94 º 51’ 32.6”) <strong>The</strong> kiln is located on the slope of a
hill in undulating ground on the sandy, pebbly sediment and
lots of petrified wood, common to Bagan. <strong>The</strong> solid mass of
conglomerate rock that exists close to the present ground surface
in the area is more apparent at kiln#6 because of the disturbance
due to gold diggings. <strong>The</strong> base of the kiln is below the surface
of the conglomerate layer meaning the kiln must have been dug
into the ground rather than being built on the ground surface.
<strong>The</strong> kiln has horseshoe -shaped ground plan (similar to kiln#4)
and a top opening of 60cm diameter. <strong>The</strong> walls are about 35cm
thick and partly built of bricks placed horizontally across the
wall. <strong>The</strong> bricks measured 18cm wide, about 5.5cm thick and
about 32 to 35cm ling.
<strong>The</strong> firing chamber is inclined inwards toward the top but
not as enclosed or “bee-hived” as kilns #2, #3 and #5. Parts
of the upper wall are displaced inwards due to fusion and heat
damage. Some repair appears to have been made to the top of
the kiln where some layers of clay are very thin and may have
been applied as raw slab clay rather than as formed bricks.
Fill in the bottom of the kiln prevented the observation of the
floor, but about 90cm of the inner height could be seen. A rear
vent of about 20cm diameter is located close to the top of the
wall and it appears to exist at ground level which at that point
is near the top of the wall. In this case, the vent is much higher
than for kilns #2, #3 and #5. <strong>The</strong> axis of the kiln is 265 degrees
mag. which is similar to kilns #3 and #4. Very thick amount of
dark green glaze exist on the upper third of the firing chamber
wall and the wall surface is very irregular. Some glaze extends
to the rim of the firing chamber opening and onto the surface.
Penetration of glaze into cracks and gaps in the wall can be
seen.
Around the kiln depressions and mounds resulting from
digging unglazed ware sherds are the most common along with
a few glazed sherds with a low temperature blue or brown glaze
and fragments from Chinese blue and white wares. Many of the
earthernware sherds have a whitish deposit on the surface which
may be calcite causes by effect of burial in lime rich soil.
Kiln#7 (Fig.15.g): <strong>The</strong> kiln lies about 50 yards, southeast of