Page:Brinkley - China - Volume 1.djvu/50

 1200, was Chan-chêng, a district included in Cochin China. It might be conjectured that specimens of Tu-Ting-yao, included among these imports, found their way to Japan from Chan-chêng, and were identified with their port of shipment rather than with their original place of manufacture, as was the case with the well known "Old Japan" ware of Western collectors, which, though produced at Arita, was everywhere called Imari-yaki, after its place of export (Imari). Against such a theory, however, has to be set the well established fact that there existed, during the Sung dynasty, a much brisker direct trade between China and Japan than between the former and Cochin China. Indeed, the very author (Chao Ju-kua) quoted by Dr. Hirth in this context, says that large Chinese junks were engaged, in his time, transporting timber—notably planks of the Cryptomeria Japonica—from Japan to the Chinese port of Ch'üan-chou, and it is scarcely credible that these junks, on their return journey, would have failed to bring Chinese keramic wares to Japan, where such objects of art had been held in high esteem ever since the sev- enth or eighth century of the Christian era. Of course a general inference of this sort does not necessarily include a special product like the Tu-Ting-yao. Specimens of that particular ware may have reached Japan viâ Cochin China, and thus been erroneously attributed to the factories of the latter. Unfortunately the evidence available does not suffice to elucidate this matter.

It has to be remembered that when the Sung dynasty is spoken of there is question of a period of over three centuries. Under ordinary circumstances, great progress should have been made in the keramic