Ceramics from the 1st - 3rd Centuries at the Quang Ninh Museum, Vietnam

Ngo Thi Nhung

This study introduces ceramic artifacts dating from the 1st to 3rd centuries CE that were recovered from excavations of Han Dynasty tombs and are currently housed at the Quang Ninh Museum, Vietnam. The collection comprises more than 300 artifacts from two main sites, Mao Khe and Duc Son (Dong Trieu, Quang Ninh). Among these, Mao Khe is one of the largest concentrations of Han tombs in Vietnam during the early Common Era. The collection is rich in types and forms, including bowls, basins, jars, vases, and storage vessels, most of which were used in daily life. In addition, it includes terracotta models such as houses, latrines, stoves, architectural elements, wells, and building bricks. The objects are simply shaped; the glazes show unstable colours with mixed hues. Decorative motifs are mainly geometric, such as squares, lozenges, horizontal incised lines, and applied circular designs, executed using incising, relief application, mould-impressing, or piercing techniques. The ceramic bodies are generally light and porous, primarily wheel-thrown, often combined with hand modelling or mould forming. Through comparative analysis with other Han tomb artifacts from northern Vietnam, the collection is suggested to originate from the Tam Tho pottery kilns in Thanh Hoa Province.