“Mrs K. J. (Margaretha) Ratnam, originally a resident of Penang, together with her husband Professor K. J. Ratnam, were well-known collectors of Southeast Asian ceramics. Several of their pieces were featured in an article … written by Dr C. Nelson Spinks, author of The Ceramic Wares of Siam: “In 1969, the Art Gallery of South Australia’s collection policies were reviewed and redefined, and it was decided to focus the Chinese collection on ceramics that were made for export to both Western and South-East Asian markets. It was further decided to begin collecting seriously the wares of South-East Asia, principally Thai, but also Khmer and Vietnamese. The Ratnams’ decision to focus on Southeast Asian ceramics resulted in a sizeable collection. It was their decision that gave the ceramic gallery of the Art Gallery of South Australia its great leap forward.” In 1969, “M. J. M. Carter donated the first group of Thai and Vietnamese ceramics purchased from the collection of K. J. and Margaretha Ratnam, who then lived in Singapore. The Ratnams’ first offer was followed by a second, after which they decided to part with their entire collection of 300 ceramics from the Sukhothai and Sawankhalok kiln sites in northern central Thailand.” This acquisition “made the museum’s collection of Thai export wares “one of the most important in any museum in the world” (The Southeast Asian Ceramic Society 1969-2019, pp 48-50)