• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.75-90
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• 2011

At the beginning of the Chos$\breve{o}$n dynasty, punch'$\breve{o}$ng began as a simplified form of inlaid celadon, and in the two following centuries it developed into a popular folk craft in various styles and expressive decorations; overtime, it was increasingly made to resemble whiteware, and its production stopped after the Japanese invasion of Korea. In the present study, the body and glaze compositions of punch'$\breve{o}$ng were examined and compared with those of celadon and whiteware, whose compositions have previously been compared with those of Chinese ceramics. Here, the analyzed shards were organized into 28 groups based on their production sites and archaeological characteristics. For each group, the body and glaze compositions of several shards(usually three to five) were obtained, averaged, and compared with those of the other groups. These comparisons showed that the majority of the punch'$\breve{o}$ng bodies were formed, like those of celadon and whiteware, with mica-quartz porcelain stone, which was commonly used in Yuezhou, Jingdezhen, and other southern Chinese kilns. The glazes consisted of clay materials and flux components made from various proportions of wood ash, burnt limestone (glaze ash) and crushed limestone. Overall, the punch'$\breve{o}$ng glazes resembled the Kory$\breve{o}$ celadon and Kory$\breve{o}$ whiteware glazes more closely than the Chos$\breve{o}$n white wareglazes. However, the $TiO_2$ levels found in the tested punch'$\breve{o}$ng were low, similar to those of Chos$\breve{o}$n whiteware; this indicated that glaze stone was used as the clay component of the punch'$\breve{o}$ng glazes, as was the case for Chos$\breve{o}$n whiteware. This study of the material characteristics of punch'$\breve{o}$ng may be used as a comparative framework for analyzing ceramic shards discovered at current and future excavations within Korea.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.61-74
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• 2011

The material characteristics of Chos$\breve{o}$n whiteware were investigated by analyzing and comparing the body and glaze compositions of whiteware shards excavated at the Kwangju royal kilns, Ch'unghyodong, and four other local-level kilns. In Korea, the rise of whiteware technology began in the early years of the Chos$\breve{o}$n dynasty, when the indigenous tradition of Kory$\breve{o}$ celadon was strongly influenced by the whiteware aesthetics of the Chinese Ming dynasty. The Kwangju royal kilns eventually made hard-textured whiteware of a quality equivalent to that of the Chinese by using type of porcelain stone that contained slightly less $Fe_2O_3$ and $TiO_2$ and slightly more $K_2O$ than that used for celadon. In contrast, the potters of Ch'unghyodong achieved the same level of quality by finding and using a totally different material: kaolinitic clay. The porcelain stone used at the Kwangju kiln was commonly found in Korea and south China, whereas kaolinitic clay (which has a high aluminum content) was typically found in north China, and was only rarely used in Korea. The flux component of the glaze compositions was mostly limestone, first in burnt form and later in crushed form, and the clay component was often glaze stone, which was a finer-grained porcelain stone with a higher proportion of feldspar. In the future, this comparative analytical study of Korean whiteware components should be extended to the $18^{th}$- and $19^{th}$-century kilns that are currently being excavated at a rapid pace.