Accruing new meaning as they move from one place and context to another, material objects enable imaginative encounters between the indigenous and foreign, the familiar and unfamiliar. As curious containers of knowledge, culture, and purpose, these objects can spark a variety of reactions, from rejection to assimilation to appropriation and creative transformation.

This roundtable includes four ten-minute presentations on examples that embody conceptions of space and spatial movement within maritime Asia: Dutch and Portuguese maps of Indonesian islands, trade ceramics and spices, mirrors painted in Canton for domestic and western markets, and images illustrating the cosmopolitan Qing empire of the Manchus. Held in conjunction with the ongoing exhibition Chronicles of a Global East at the Seattle Art Museum, we invite you to join historians and archaeologists for a conversation that will deepen your understanding of the interconnected ancient global world.

Where: Seattle Art Museum - Nordstrom Lecture Hall; 1300 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101

When: Saturday, Feburary 24 from 1:30 pm to 3 pm

Names of the Interpreters: TBD

ID: Long orange coral intertwine a collection of faded porcelain ceramic plates