Prologue

During the Song and Yuan dynasties, ceramics served as “quasi-currency,” fulfilling the function of exchange during bans on copper coinage. Later, the Ming dynasty’s “Single Whip Reform” would officially usher China into “the Age of Silver.” Yet the metal was not only a currency: as silver from the Americas flowed into China via the Manila galleons, exchanged for blue and white porcelain destined for international markets, artisans around the world also began to create silver fittings for these ceramic vessels. Silver thus evolved from simply a means of payment into a material link connecting a global network of collaborative production.

Here, we trace the journey of silver and ceramics as they traversed oceans and continents. From the bartering of ceramics to the monetization of silver, from Chinese porcelain vessels to European metal fittings, from Ancient Egyptian lotus designs to the rolling clouds on Song and Yuan vases—every material, every decorative motif, was redefined through the very act of circulation. These objects themselves bore witness to a world that was already deeply interconnected.

Evolving Mediums of Exchange in the Ceramics Trade 

Barter

During the Song and Yuan dynasties, the large-scale outflow of copper coinage led to a severe currency shortage within China. Governments therefore prohibited the use of metal coins in overseas trade and ceramics assumed the role of a “quasi-currency,” emerging as a vital medium of exchange that could be directly bartered for goods such as spices and ivory. Thanks to their stable value, portability, and durability, they became a widely accepted form of “hard currency.”

Concurrently, overseas markets were defined by the coexistence of multiple monetary spheres: shells and tin ingots were used as currency in Southeast Asia, while the Arab world used silver dinars. Within this trade network that stretched from East Africa to Japan, ceramics circulated freely across the monetary boundaries of different civilizations, becoming a truly international commodity. 

From the Single Whip Reform to the Inflow of Silver

During the Wanli period of the Ming dynasty, the implementation of the “Single Whip Reform” consolidated taxes and corvée obligations into payments collected in silver, ultimately establishing silver as China’s dominant currency. Silver resources in China were limited, yet the discovery and exploitation of the Potosí silver mines in the Americas had dramatically increased global silver production. The Spanish minted this American silver into silver dollars (pesos), which were transported to China through the Manila galleon trade and exchanged for commodities such as porcelain, silk, and tea. China maintained a substantial trade surplus within this global exchange, resulting in a continuous inflow of silver.

Silver was used not only for tax payments but also became the principal medium for commercial settlement. The shift from copper coinage to silver thus represented a reconfiguration of global trade patterns in addition to a transformation of the local monetary system—marking China’s deep integration into the emerging early modern world economy.

Silver as Accessory

Silver’s role extended far beyond that of currency. Once Chinese ceramics were exported overseas, craftsmen in Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia often added metal mounts to them—silver, brass, and tin were fashioned into lids, stands, and ornamental fittings—forming a trans-regional network of collaborative production using customer-provided materials. Silver thus underwent a transformation in identity, shifting from a medium of exchange to a decorative material, while also serving as tangible evidence of globalized collaborative production.

Silver and Ceramics in Global Circulation

The porcelain body of this ewer (a type of jug or pitcher) is an early seventeenth-century Chinese kendi,1 decorated in blue and white in the Kraak style.2 An English silversmith added a set of gilded silver mounts, transforming the vessel into an ewer.3 This precious metal modification elevated what was originally a piece of export porcelain into a cross-cultural luxury object combining Eastern ceramics with Western metalworking techniques.4 The cost and craftsmanship of the mounts far exceed the value of the ceramic vessel itself.5 Treating rare Eastern porcelain in this manner was typical amongst European aristocratic collectors in the seventeenth century.

01. Kendi

The kendi is a type of ritual water vessel, originally from India. In the Tang dynasty, China began producing a large number of kendis specifically for export to India, Southeast Asia, and West Asia. Over the course of this trade, traditional Chinese decorative motifs were gradually incorporated into kendi designs. Initially, foreign traders brought examples of original kendis to China to commission direct copies. However, over the course of this commercial relationship the vessels slowly absorbed Chinese design elements, serving as a testament to cultural fusion.

02. Kraak Ware

Kraak ware takes its name from the Portuguese merchant vessels known as carracks. In the early seventeenth century, the Dutch intercepted a number of these ships, obtaining large quantities of Chinese blue and white porcelain for the first time. Henceforth, the ships would lend their name to a category of ceramics. As the Dutch East India Company came to dominate the porcelain trade with China, kraak ware flooded into Europe. Produced according to orders from clients in Europe, kraak ware’s decorative motifs blended traditional Chinese themes with European aesthetic sensibilities. As such, these wares established a model of customized production oriented towards global markets.

03. Modified Vessels

This set of fittings added to a ceramic vessel include a handle, a spout, and a base, each made of gilded silver. These metal fittings altered the vessel’s function, transforming it from a kendi—intended for the pouring of water during religious ceremonies—into a vessel for wine or water used by European nobles. Such modifications were common practice when it came to export porcelain: objects were adapted to suit European lifestyles, with bowls becoming cups, jars used to drink alcohol, and vases repurposed as pouring vessels.

The practice of mounting metal fittings on Chinese export porcelain was not unique to Europe—it was equally prevalent across the Middle East, India, and Southeast Asia. Modifications of this nature were closely linked to specific trade routes, the identities of intermediary merchants, and regional craft traditions, resulting in wares customized in different countries boasting their own distinct characteristics. This phenomenon serves as both a direct manifestation of the globalized trade networks of the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries and the catalyst for the emergence of a trans-regional manufacturing system linking Chinese porcelain manufacturing with localized modification.

The Fonthill Vase, made around 1300, is currently recognized as the earliest documented piece of Chinese porcelain to have reached Europe. It is thought to have been brought to Europe by a Yuan dynasty diplomatic mission in 1338, where it ended up in the collection of the Hungarian royal family. Around 1381, it was fitted with gilded silver mounts and inlaid with gemstones, transforming it from a yu hu chun ping (pear-shaped vase) into an ewer tailored to the needs of the European aristocracy. The original metal mounts bore coats of arms and other inscriptions from several European noble families, while the vessel’s modified appearance was documented in a watercolor painting in 1713. These records corroborate its historical trajectory through Europe, and demonstrate its unique value as a modified object that encapsulates the fusion of Eastern and Western craftsmanship. 

04. Silver’s Material Transformation

In early modern China, silver underwent a dual transformation, simultaneously serving as a trading currency and decorative material. Metal mounts fulfilled not only the practical function of reinforcing porcelain but also acted as potent symbols of status and taste. Once adorned with silver fittings, ordinary porcelain wares were elevated from ordinary commodities into works of art and coveted collectibles. Britain and the European mainland emerged as major centers for this mounting craft—a development that was closely linked to local silver mining as well as well-established metalworking traditions and a robust aristocratic market. Silver resources in the Islamic world and India were limited in comparison, but these areas nonetheless developed highly sophisticated mounting techniques—a feat made possible by the trans-regional circulation of silver. 

Beginning in the sixteenth century, silver from mines in the Americas including Potosí was shipped across the Pacific to Manila, entering China and Southeast Asia markets as part of what was known as the Manila galleon trade. Simultaneously, silver from the Americas also traversed Atlantic-Indian Ocean trading networks to reach India and the Islamic world. These trade networks transformed port cities such as Malacca and Hormuz into pivotal centers for both the transshipment of porcelain and the craft of metal mounting. In this way, silver completed a global odyssey, traveling from mines to trading hubs, and ultimately undergoing its final metamorphosis into the decorative fittings that adorned porcelain wares.

05. From Acanthus to Scrolling Vines

The scrolling vine motif carved into the handle of this ewer traces its origin back to the lotus and papyrus patterns used in Ancient Egypt, which later evolved into acanthus motif common in Ancient Greece. This motif would follow two distinct evolutionary paths in the East and West: in Europe, it evolved from realistic depictions of the acanthus into the intricate scrolling vines characteristic of the Baroque and Rococo styles; in the East, it was introduced alongside Buddhism and localized during the Gandhara period in Central Asia and China’s Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern dynasties. It gradually transformed from a honeysuckle motif into the rolling cloud designs found on Song and Yuan dynasty ceramics. The cloud patterns adorning the vessels produced for export at Quanzhou’s Cizao kilns serve as a testament to the evolution of this form. 

Although these two visual lineages share a common origin, one became a secular form of ornamentation, the other a Buddhist symbol. On the silver mounts of Kraak wares, these closely linked motifs—which traverse the history of decorative arts in both the East and West—serve as a crucial entry point for understanding international artistic exchange.