The Provenance of Export Porcelain Recovered from the Nan’ao One: A Shipwreck in the South China Sea Jian Zhu1,2, Hongjiao Ma3, Naisheng Li4, Julian Henderson5, Michael D. Glascock6* 1Department of Scientific History and Archaeometry, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Shijingshan District, Beijing 100049, P.R China 2Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 142 Xizhimenwai Str., Beijing 100044, P.R China 3Institute for Cultural Heritage and History of Science & Technology, University of Science and Technology, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100083, P.R China 4Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, No. 2 Gaoyuan Str., Beisihuan donglu, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100029, P.R China 5Department of Archaeology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK 6Research Reactor Center, University of Missouri, 1513 Research Park Drive, Columbia, MO 65211, USA *Corresponding author’s E-mail address:
[email protected] Jian Zhu email:
[email protected] Hongjiao Ma email:
[email protected] Naisheng Li email:
[email protected] Julian Henderson email:
[email protected] Michael D. Glascock email:
[email protected] Abstract A compositional study employing neutron activation analysis was performed on eleven fragments of Ming dynasty blue-and-white export porcelain recovered from the Nan’ao One shipwreck and 64 samples from three kiln sources. Examination of the compositional data was successful in determining the provenance of the porcelain fragments from the shipwreck. The results indicate that the blue-and-white export porcelain recovered from the Nan’ao One came from two sources: the Jingdezhen and Zhangzhou kilns.