Sumarah Adhyatman rescues ceramics for posterity

Sumarah Adhyatman rescues ceramics for posterity

By T. Sima Gunawan

JAKARTA (JP): Nationalism moved Sumarah Adhyatman to become an
expert in ceramics.

It was back in 1969 when there was no books on ceramics in
Indonesia and people didn't care about earthenware.

"Foreigners bought all the Chinese, Vietnamese and Myanmarese
ancient ceramics found in Indonesia," Sumarah, director of the
Adam Malik Museum, said in an interview with The Jakarta Post.

"They sold the ceramics or opened antique shops and made a big
profit. The Americans gave them as gifts and asked for an income
tax deduction," she added.

Sumarah learned from the late Adam Malik, who represented
Indonesia at the United Nations in New York in 1970, that the
Americans sold the antiques at prices 50 times higher than the
amount they bought them for.

Sumarah's husband, T.K. Adhyatman was the special assistant to
Adam Malik.

"Whenever my husband or Pak Adam Malik traveled abroad, I
always asked them to bring me back books on ceramics," she said.

She never had formal training in the study of ceramics or
other ancient things, and therefore relied on books for her
education. Sumarah, who speaks English, French, German and Dutch
dropped-out of the English department at the National Academy.

She realized that the flow of antique ceramics to foreign
countries had to be stopped, otherwise, Indonesia would lose part
of its heritage. To improve the public's appreciation for
ceramics and to preserve the invaluable estate, Sumarah and her
husband set up the Indonesian Ceramics Society in 1978. Adam
Malik, who also had a special interest in ceramics, helped out.

Adam Malik, who was Indonesia's vice president from 1978 to
1983, died in 1984. The Adam Malik Ceramic Museum was later
established with Sumarah as the director.

"I want to improve the cultural image of Indonesia," she said.

Sumarah has written several books on Indonesian ceramics,
including Tempayan Martavans, Keramik Kuna yang Ditemukan di
Indonesia (Ancient Ceramics Found in Indonesia), and Kendi. She
also wrote a book on Indonesian beads.

"Imported ancient ceramics found here were exclusively made
for Indonesia," Sumarah said.

One of her white and blue dishes, made between the 17th and
19th century, was used as an example. There were images of wayang
Bima on the dish -- an unusual drawing for Chinese ceramics. Bima
was the name of a wayang character which was quite popular during
the time of Majapahit, an old Indonesian kingdom situated in East
Java.

In many parts of the country ceramics had become precious
family heirlooms and a status symbol. Like the European kingdoms,
the Sultan palaces in Yogyakarta and Surakarta, Central Java, had
special rooms to store ceramics, according to Sumarah. She added
that several tribes even used ceramics for dowries.

"The Dayak men could not get married if they did not have guci
(jars)," she said.

A lot of fine Chinese ceramics were found at the site of the
Dayak tribe in Kalimantan. Driven by poverty, the people sold the
ceramics to newcomers coming in to run the massive logging
ventures in 1970s.

"At that time, there was a flood of ceramics in Jakarta. You
could find many, many Chinese jars along Jl. Surabaya (the
antique market in Central Jakarta)," Sumarah said.

The porcelain jars were available for Rp 75,000 each, which
was equivalent to US$25.

"I was bargaining for a better price when a snobbish French
man came and said he would buy all of the jars in the shop," she
said, adding there were about 100 blue jars.

"He said he was an architect and that he would put the jars in
the houses he built in Paris," Sumarah said.

"I was terribly upset. I was afraid all the ceramics were gone
before we knew their functions and things about them. That's why
I wrote the book," she said, pointing at her 456-page book on
ancient ceramics found in Indonesia.

The Badui tribes in West Java still believe that Chinese
ceramics are magic, according to Sumarah. She said they used the
local-made dishes with 18th century Ching dynasty patterns for
the celebration of the Islamic New Year. Sumarah learned about
this in 1991 by accident when she visited a ceramics workshop in
Plered, Central Java, and saw the Chinese dishes.

"I was told that they made the dishes upon the request of the
Badui people, who ordered 200 dishes every year for the
celebration of the Islamic New Year," she said.

Most of the local ceramics are categorized as gerabah, which
are made of clay, dried, shaped and then fired with grass. The
firing technique is very simple, just like making bricks.

Batuan is harder than gerabah and is glazed, but the quality
is still far below porcelain -- the finest ceramic.

Porcelain is shiny and is the hardest of its kind. "It cannot
be scratched by a knife," said Sumarah.

The basic material for porcelain is kaolin, a fine white clay
largely found in China. Porcelain requires a sophisticated baking
technique.

The Chinese started making porcelain in the 7th century,
Europeans in 18th century and Indonesia in the 20th century,
following the discovery of kaolin on the islands of Bangka and
Belitung in the 1930s, according to Sumarah.

Most precious ancient ceramics in Indonesia are from the
Majapahit kingdom in East Java. The Majapahit clay-based
ceramics, made between the 14th and the 16th centuries, are hot
items among collectors.

The Archaeology Research Center is scheduled to publish a book
on Indonesian earthenware written by archeologist Santosa
Sugondo.

"I'm too old to write. But I will edit the book," the 66-year-
old Sumarah said.

As a developing country trying to boost its economy, Indonesia
has been criticized for forgetting arts and culture. In 1992 the
government enacted Law No.5 on archeological preservation.

"The law is not enough. What is more important is the actual
efforts to preserve the cultural heritage," Sumarah said.

She suggested that customs officers become stricter to prevent
artifacts from leaving the country.

Sumarah said she was very surprised to find experts on
ceramics, statues and wooden crafts at the Vietnam airport when
she left the country in 1982. They were at the airport to prevent
people from smuggling artifacts out of the country.

"I give Vietnam two thumbs up for their great love of cultural
things," she said.

Sumarah said that Indonesian ceramics are good and she
believes they could become a potential trade commodity. Technical
knowledge and skill are important, but the artists must be aware
of market tastes to produce what the public wants, she said.

Ceramics are part of Sumarah's life. They make her happy.

"In the beginning, I considered ceramics as things to decorate
the house. But, they have become very interesting and have
widened my horizons and knowledge," she said.

"In writing my books, I have to read the histories of the
countries which produce ceramics. Apart from that, I have made
friends through ceramics," she added.

Her love for ceramics also makes her respect the people who
produce them and get closer to the people before visiting their
countries.

She has a collection of 100 pieces, mostly blue-and-white
Chinese items. One of her favorites is a Chinese dish with an
image of a phoenix.

"It looks like a phoenix with two heads, which is very
strange. But actually, this is a picture of two phoenix's
mating," she said.

She used to have about 200 pieces, but reduced her collection
to save time and energy on cleaning.

Even though she has a large collection, Sumarah refuses to be
called a collector.

"I would prefer to be called a researcher or hobbyist than a
collector. A collector would not buy a broken dish, but I will if
I want to examine it," she explained.

She said that ceramics could be very expensive, depending on
the type and the trend.

Blue-and-white Chinese ceramics, as well as celadon items,
have long been the favorites of collectors.

In the past, no one wanted to buy Japanese pottery, Sumarah
said, but it has now become popular with rich Japanese.

"The price of all Japanese ceramics have recently rocketed.
Its now more expensive than the Chinese," she said.

The prices have increased by 100 times within 10 years, she
added, explaining that they become more and more expensive as the
exchange rate goes up.

Sumarah herself had a role in popularizing Japanese ceramics
as she made public the discovery of Japanese porcelain from the
17th century found in Indonesia. She told a seminar in 1979 that
Japanese wares were found in graves in South Sulawesi and Banten,
West Java.

"People started to realize that there were valuable Japanese
ceramics in Indonesia," she said.

Even though she was aware of the rising prices, Sumarah did
not take the opportunity to invest in Japanese ceramics. She
bought the wares for the Adam Malik Museum, but not for herself.

"I only buy what I really like, Chinese and Vietnamese," she
said.

There are many ceramics collectors, but only a few truly care
about ceramics as cultural things, not as an investment. Sumarah
Adhyatman belongs to the few.