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- wrecks of 1613 and 1643, respectively, and the finds at Drake�s Bay, California, of slightly before 1579 (Sir Francis Drake), and the San Augustin wreck there between 1590 and 1595, have demonstrated the types of kraak porcelain in production at the dates in question.
In 19791 made, what was almost the first attempt in trying to assign more accurate dating to kraak wares, in an article written in the exhibition catalogue entitled �South East Asia and Chinese Trade Pottery� of an exhibition organized by the Oriental Ceramic Society of Hong Kong. My groupings then proposed with revised suggested dating for each group, are set out at the end of this article. I have, in the light of further thoughts, slightly revised the dating as shown from the dating suggested in 1979. My initial work in this regard has been further developed in a book entitled �Kraak Porcelain� by Maura Rinaldi published in 1989. That particular book is by far the most interesting study of the subject which has yet been produced; but, unfortunately, it does not seem to take into account some of the Japanese evidence that is available, and seems to pay too much attention to the borders and reverses of the blue and white pieces in question, whereas it is the overall composition of the decoration which, I believe, indicates the period, not just the borders and reverses, though these are undoubtedly important. The finds of kraak wares discovered after my article, principally those at Drake�s Bay, more or less confirmed the dating sequence in-so-far-as they covered the period from 1570 to 1600. Once a design becomes popular, however, it may be revived at a later date and this certainly occurred with regard to the decoration of pagodas and junks in a land and seascape, which was a popular decoration from about 1560 through to about 1580. This decoration became popular again from about 1610 to 1625 but the decoration of the earlier pieces is quite detailed and carefully done; whereas in the later pieces, the decoration is hastily drawn and the designs on the reverse of the later pieces are not the same as those on the earlier pieces, the designs of which are being copied. There was definitely also some overlapping of styles and in determining the dating,
I think the decoration on the back is almost as important as the decoration on the front.
For the purposes of tentative dating of kraak wares, they should be grouped as follows:
Group I characterized by an undecorated rim and cavetto.
Group II characterized by a decorated rim and generally an undecorated cavetto with
generally animals in the central medallion. Occasionally the cavetto of this group has a floral spray. In this group falls, also, the bowls with a broad band of decoration round the interior rim.
Group III characterized by a broad border divided into vertical segments by mere lines.
Group IV characterized by the vertical segments of a broad border being in turn sepa�rated
by smaller panels with tassels or the like.
Group V characterized by similar decoration to Group IV but diaper patterns are intro�duced round the central medallion and are occasionally found partially filling up the narrow vertical border panels.
Group VI characterized by the border panels being reduced to round or shaped medal�lions, a continuation of diapers and a preference for symbolic decoration such as the eight precious things, rather than animals.
Group VII characterized by the disappearance of diapers and appearance of tulip-like flowers and people who are seldom represented in the previous groups in which the main decorative themes are drawn from the animal world.
The decoration on the reverse of the kraak wares, as time goes by, becomes more and more perfunctory, but in contrast to the position with Swatow wares, it does not disappear altogether.
Great assistance in resolving dating can be gained from the Ardebil Collection formed pre-1612 (in which collection most types of earlier kraak are represented) and from the kraak wares recovered recently from the Witte Leeuw wreck, a vessel sunk off St. Helena in
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