When we look at an old thing we see it in the present moment. We see it only for a tiny fraction of its total existence in time.
What might it look like to the people who first held it? How might it look at other moments in time, past and present, real and imagined?
Generative AI helps us imagine.
Small jars like this were widely exported from China to island SE Asia in the 16-17th centuries. They were especially treasured by people in present-day Indonesia and Philippines.
Jars like this (1200s) were exported much earlier. In remote areas, they were very scarce, with glazes unlike anything people had ever seen.
In places the they were owned by shamans and healers. A potion known in Indonesia needed a small chip off the rim of the jar itself as an ingredient!
