Ceramics along the spice trade route in the Indonesian Archipelago in the 16th-19th century*

The spice trade was one of the world’s ancient commercial activities. The Indonesian Archipelago (Nusantara), as spice producer, was crucial in this trade network, particularly in the 17th – 18th century. The emergence of big ports as the main trade harbours marks the peak of the thriving long distance spice trade connecting India, the Middle East, China, and Europe. The trade was also marked by the existence of foreign communities in the archipelago in their search for spice. The presence of foreigners influenced the types of commodities that they brought from their homelands, among which is ceramics. Ceramics were key to the history of sea navigation and trade. The presence of ceramics offered additional detail of the spice trade and evidence of reciprocal relations between spice producers and their consumers. For example, in shipwrecks, we find ceramics and natural product in their cargo and these commodities prove the reciprocal trade relations that took place. This article will particularly discuss the spice trade, which had an impact on the existence of other types of commodities, including ceramics. This can be carried out by means of archaeological investigations.This mode of research can be viewed as one of the regional–interregional studies to be used as a foundation to reconstruct the ancient trade network.