EXPLORE THE JOURNEY OF CHINESE MING PORCELAIN TO 17TH-CENTURY JAMESTOWN

Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation and Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation Collaborative Exhibition Opening November 15

^{Shown at right: "Dragon bowl" sherds found archaeologically at 1607-1625 James Fort at Historic Jamestowne. Courtesy of Jamestown Rediscovery (Preservation Virginia). Shown at left: "Dragon bowl," Jingdezhen, China, c. 1572-1620. Found in Bantam, Java and like one found archaeologically by Jamestown Rediscovery. Collection of Joseph P. Gromacki. Photo by Rob Hunter.}

Williamsburg, Va., November 11, 2025 —  From palaces to palisades, take a journey of discovery in "Following the Dragon: Chinese Ming Porcelain in Early Jamestown," a special exhibition at Jamestown Settlement, a museum of 17th-century Virginia history and culture, debuting on November 15, through July 12, 2026.

Presented by the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation in partnership with the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation, the joint special exhibition of Chinese Ming porcelain uncovered archaeologically at James Fort reveals unexpected cultural connections that link colonial Virginia with imperial China, spanning continents and empires.

Featuring Chinese porcelain uncovered during excavations of the 1607-1625 James Fort at Historic Jamestowne, the exhibition examines who may have owned these evocative pieces, how they may have been acquired, and offers fresh insights into the social life of the early 17th-century Virginia elite.

More than 100 Chinese Ming porcelain vessels have been discovered during archaeological excavations of the 1607-1625 fort at Historic Jamestowne. For this exhibition, a total of 31 vessels recovered during Jamestown Rediscovery excavations will be paired with intact parallels from English, Dutch and American museums, as well as private collections from across the globe.

^{Photo Credit: China, One of a pair of bottles, Ceramic 1580, gilt bronze mounts, late 17th-early 19th century. ©Royal Collection Enterprises Limited [2025] Royal Collection Trust.}

Among the notable objects, on loan for the first time from the Royal Collection and usually displayed at Buckingham Palace is a Ming bottle with gilt-bronze mounts that features a fenghuang, a mythical bird representing the Chinese empress and symbolizing joy, peace, and sincerity. One of only three examples known to exist, the Ming bottle will be displayed near archaeological fragments of a bottle uncovered at Historic Jamestowne.

The early Jamestown colony has long been overshadowed by historical accounts depicting a muddy, military settlement rife with bouts of starvation, disease and high mortality. Archaeological discoveries of Chinese porcelain vessels by Jamestown Rediscovery in James Fort provide new insights to life in 17th-century Virginia. The exhibition explores how this struggling isolated outpost would house the most exquisite and expensive ceramic of its time.

Chinese porcelain, regarded as “white gold,” was seen as an exotic ware from the East that was difficult to obtain, making it a rarity that was usually associated in England with royal and upper-class households. As early Jamestown colonists sought to display their global awareness and social status, Ming porcelain became prized possessions among Virginia’s elite.

UNIQUE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN TWO PROMINENT HISTORICAL INSTITUTIONS

The joint exhibition was developed in collaboration between Jamestown Settlement Senior Curator Beverly “Bly” Straube, Ph.D., FSA, and Jamestown Rediscovery Senior Curator Merry Outlaw, and was inspired by the remarkable discoveries of Chinese Ming porcelain from the archaeological contexts of James Fort at Historic Jamestowne. Outlaw’s illustrated book – “Following the Dragon: Late Ming Porcelain from James Fort, Jamestown, Virginia”– traces how fragments of porcelain unearthed at Jamestown connect the Virginia colony to the vast networks of global trade in the early 1600s. The book will accompany the exhibition and be available with a selection of museum shop merchandise at both Jamestown Settlement and Historic Jamestowne.

"Following the Dragon" special exhibition is supported in part by James City County, James D. and Pamela J. Penny, Wilma and Marc Sharp, Ms. Lydia Kay Wilkinson, Mark A. and Iris Coblitz, Linda T. Baker, Carolyn Abbitt, Bruce H. and Eleanor Knowles, Larkin and Danny Schmidt, Stephen and Jean Louie, and Jerry E. Dalton.

HOW TO VIEW THE SPECIAL EXHIBITION

The “Following the Dragon” special exhibition is included with daytime admission to Jamestown Settlement: $20.00 for adults, $10.00 for youth, and children 5 and under are free. Residents of James City County, York County and the City of Williamsburg, including William & Mary students, receive free admission with proof of residency.

Jamestown Settlement, open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., is located at 2110 Jamestown Road near Williamsburg, Va., near the Colonial Parkway and adjacent to Historic Jamestowne.

For more information, call (757) 253-4838 or visit jyfmuseums.org/following-the-dragon.

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MEDIA CONTACTS

Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation at Jamestown Settlement
Tracy Perkins, tracy.perkins@jyf.virginia.gov or (757) 253-4114

Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation at Historic Jamestowne
Angel Johnston, ajohnston@preservationvirginia.org or (757) 229-4997 ext. 124

About the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation at Jamestown Settlement
The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation (JYF), an educational agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and a commemorative partner of the Virginia American Revolution 250 Commission, raises awareness and understanding of the shared legacies of American history through its two history museums, Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, and education programs.

Jamestown Settlement, a museum of 17th-century Virginia history and culture, presents the shared stories of early America through innovative galleries, with artifacts, interactives and films, and immersive living-history experiences in re-created settings. Discover the convergence of cultures in America’s first permanent English colony in 1607, the Virginia Indians who have occupied Virginia’s landscape for centuries, and the circumstances of the first recorded Africans to Virginia in 1619. For more information, visit jyfmuseums.org.

About Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation at Historic Jamestowne
The Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation (JRF), under the auspices of Preservation Virginia, preserves and shares the original site of James Fort and Jamestown, established more than 400 years ago in 1607. JRF is dedicated to uncovering, preserving and sharing Jamestown’s diverse history, and highlighting its major contribution to the foundations of modern American society.

For over three decades, Jamestown Rediscovery has brought to vivid life the stories of James Fort through ongoing archaeological excavations, living-history programs, engaging exhibits and more. JRF is a private 501(c)(3) nonprofit and jointly administers Historic Jamestowne alongside the National Park Service. For more information, visit historicjamestowne.org.