The Kingdom of Ayutthaya Celadon

This wreck was discovered at a depth of 46 meters, 40 nautical miles offshore from Kuantan, Malaysia. Four years of excavations were completed in September 1998. The recovered cargo from the Royal Nanhai includes 20,973 pieces of pottery. The largest portion is celedon in various shapes from the Si-Satchanalai, or "Sawankhalok" kilns. The most unusual thing about this site is that it does not contain any remains of a ship's structure. Seven pieces of blue and white pottery from China and Vietnam were also discovered and the style of their painted designs, suggests a date for the wreck of mid 15th century. This date is supported by a carbon - 14 date corresponding to AD 1400 +/- 70 years.

Celadon is a term for ceramics denoting both a type glaze, and a ware of a specific color, also called celadon. Celadon glaze refers to a family of transparent, crackle glazes, produced in a wide variety of colors, generally used on porcelain or white stoneware clay bodies. However, the most famous celadons range in color from a very pale green crackle to deep intense greens, often meant to mimic the green shades of jade. By the end of the 14th century, Ayutthaya was regarded as the strongest power in Indochina, but it lacked the manpower to daminate the region. Eventually Ayutthaya subdued the territory that had belonged to Sukhothai, and the year after Ramathibodi died, his kingdom was recognized by the emperor of Ming Dynasty as Sukhothai's rightful successor.

The kingdom of Ayutthaya was a Thai kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767. King Ramathibodi I (Uthong) founded Ayutthaya as the capital of his kingdom in 1350 and absorbed Sukhothai, 640 km to the north, in 1376. Over the next four centuries the kingdom expanded to become nation of Siam, whose borders were roughly those modern Thailand, except for the north, the Kingdom of Lannathai. During much of the fifteenth century Ayutthaya's energies were directed toward the Malay Peninsula, where the great trading port of Malacca contested its claims to sovereignty. Ayutthaya was successful with the military support of Ming China and Japan, who wanted to share the wealth of trade at Malacca.