A “Red-and-Green Porcelain” Figurine from a Jin Period Archaeological Site in the Primor’ye Region, Southern Russian Far East

Abstract

This paper considers the results of an examination of a polychrome glazed anthropomorphic ceramic figurine from the Prmor’ye region (southern Russian Far East) discovered at one of the Jin period (1115–1234 CE) archaeological sites. The study attests to the hypothesis about the attribution of this unique art object to the “red-and-green porcelain” produced in Northern China since the mid-Jin period. At present “the red-and-green porcelain” is the object of certain research interest as an important stage of Chinese ceramics history preceding the invention of famous porcelains with overglazed enamel decoration. The main technological features and material properties of the studied object were determined using analytical methods of optical and electron (SEM) microscopy with the use of X-ray elemental composition analysis (EDS, pXRF). The main result of the study presented in the paper includes evidence that the polychrome ceramic figurine found at the Anan’evka walled town in Primor’ey in the south of the Russian Far East belongs to the category of “red-and-green porcelain”, or “red-green ware”. As supposed, the figurine portrays Zen monk Budai—a person popular in Chinese arts and spiritual culture of the Song and Jin periods. Therefore, the polychrome ceramics figurine from the Primor’ye region may be considered today as the most northeastern case of “red-and-green porcelain” discovered in an archaeological context.