Blue and White Charger Swatow (Zhangzhou) Export Ware, Recovered from the Bin Thuan Shipwreck, Vietnam 16th Century AD

Provenance: Bin Thuan Shipwreck, Vietnam, ex Christies Auctions, Melbourne
Circa: 16th century AD 
Age: Approx. 550 years old
Size: 27cm
Condition: Large chip to the rim, under-firing natural crack to the base, underwater encrustation also evident.

Chinese Sawtow (Zhangzhou) Export Ware Large Charger (Dish) with a bird and floral blue and white painted decoration. Circa 16th Century AD recovered from the famous Bin Thuan Shipwreck, off the coast of Vietnam.

Swawtow Export ware is believed to have been mainly made for the large Chinese expatriate communities spread through-out South East Asia. Sawtow Ware is generally coarse, crudely potted and often under-fired producing cracks in the base amongst other things.