CERAMIC ART IN CHINA. 353 



portion of Cochin China, with Cambodia (^Vi^w/^^), with Java (xS'A^-j9o), 

 with San-po-ch^i, which another Chinese work, the Ylng-hal-sheng-lan, 

 states to be another name of Palenibang {Po-lin-pang) in Sumatra — at 

 which hitter place the products of China and countries south of it were 

 stored up for barter with Arab traders for the goods of Europe, India, 

 west Asia, and Africa — and with Lambri, on the northwest coast of 

 the same ishmd. Occasionalh' Chinchew junks proceeded onward to 

 Coilom, a well-known seaport (the present Quilon) on the coast of 

 Malabar, which is described under the name of Lampi; but as a rule it 

 would seem that the trade westward was in the hands of the Arabs, 

 and Chao Ju-kua mentions, indeed, incidentally that a family from 

 Malabar was established in the southern suburb of Chinchew itself. 

 From this point the goods were carried to Guzerat {^Huch^a-la)^ as 

 part of the country of Lampi, and thence to the Arab colony in Zan- 

 zibar {fs'engpa, Cantonese ts^'ang pat^ ts^ang par). Porcelain is dis- 

 tincth^nentioned among the principal articles carried away from China 

 by the vessels to each of these ports and to Cej'lon.^ The correctness 

 of this author's statements has lately been confirmed in a striking man- 

 ner. Sir John Kirk, during his residence in Zanzibar as consul-general, 

 formed a collection of ancient Chinese celadon porcelain, some of the 

 specimens having been dug up from ruins, mixed with Chinese coins 

 of the Sung dynasty. 



Indeed it seems ver}" probable that porcelain was sent at least as far 

 west as India in the tenth century, or even earlier; for commercial rela- 

 tions between China and Sumatra are stated to have existed from the 

 T'ienyu period (904 to 909) of the T'ang dynast\', and the name Sar 

 baza, or Palembang, was known to Arab traders of that time, as we learn 

 from translations of their travels by Renaudot and Reinaud. They 

 were also acquainted with Chinese porcelain, for mention is made by 

 one of them. Soli man by name, who visited China toward the middle 

 of the ninth century, "of a very fine clay in that country, of which 

 vases are made having the transparence of glass; water can be seen 

 through them. " ' Indeed earlier, during the eighth century, Arab writ- 

 ers mention the presence in the Persian Gulf of fleets of large Chinese 

 junks. 



At that date the Arab trade with China was evidently exten- 

 sive, and the colonies of Arabs at Canton and at Canfu, the port of 

 Quinsai (the present Hangchow), very large. They are said to have 

 been so numerous at the former place in the eighth century as to 

 have been able to attack and pillage the city. AVhile at Canfu the 

 Soliman above referred to (the manuscript account of whose travels 

 was written, says his commentator, Abu Zaid Al Hasan, in A. D. 851) 



^ F. Hirth, Ancient Chinese Porcelain, pp. 45 et seg. 

 '^ Reinaud's translation, p. 3-4, quoted by M. du Sartel. 



