Institute for Southeast Asian Archaeology

Chapter 5 in the Ban Chiang metals volume 2C synthesizes the metallurgical evidence in northeast and central Thailand in terms of "socio-technical systems". Subregional variation in metal technology is described, and noteworthy evidence for founder's burials is reviewed. The image is a snapshot of a comprehensive relative regional sequence for northeast and central Thailand. This is part of a foldout in volume 2C that will be useful for archaeologists interested in the nitty gritty aspects, especially ceramic cross-dating, of Thailand's prehistoric chronology. Get chapter here: https://iseaarchaeology.org/chapter-5-of-volume-2c-now-ava/ .

In a suite of global articles where bioarchaeologists look at nonranked societies, Chinhsin Liu has published "Bioarchaeology of Prehistoric Central Thailand: A Heterarchical View" DOI: 10.1111/aman.13489 . She argues from human skeletal and isotopic data from the central Thai sites of Non Mak La, Nil Kham Haeng, Ban Mai Chaimongkol, Promtin Tai, Ban Pong Manao, and Khao Sai OnNoen Din) that aspects of human lifeways support the heterarchical structure of prehistoric Thailand. Good dental health and localebased diets across prehistoric central Thailand over time can be interpreted as products of a steady regional development trajectory rooted in environmental heterogeneity.

Chapter 4 in volume 2C of the Ban Chiang metals monograph suite is entitled The Archaeometallurgy of Prehistoric Northern Northeast Thailand in Regional Context by Elizabeth Hamilton and Joyce White. It can be accessed here https://iseaarchaeology.org/chapter-4-of-volume-2c-now-ava/ The chapter reviews archaeometallurgical data published in English from dozens of metal age sites in northeast and central Thailand, in order to synthesize the status and understanding of basic metallurgical data available from those two regions. The map illustrates the sites discussed in the text.

"Lead Isotope Characterization and Provenance of Copper-base Artifacts from Ban Chiang and Don Klang" by Oli Pryce is chapter 3 in volume 2C of the Ban Chiang metals suite. A link to the chapter can be accessed here https://iseaarchaeology.org/chapter-3-of-volume-2c-now-ava/ .

Ono et al. recently published "Island migration and foraging behaviour by anatomically modern humans during the late Pleistocene to Holocene in Wallacea: New evidence from Central Sulawesi, Indonesia" in Quaternary International https://www.sciencedirect.com//arti/pii/S1040618220301610 . They report on new archaeological research on the eastern coast of Sulawesi, which could have been a potential location for the early anatomically modern human migration by sea crossings f...rom the Maluku Islands along the northern routes towards Sahul. In light of their new findings, they examine the evidence and timeline for migrations of early modern humans into the Wallacean islands. This includes an overview of the excavated stone and bone artefacts and faunal remains in the region in the context of changes in human foraging behaviour as well as the technological and cognitive aspects of human adaptation as a response to rapidly changing ecological conditions during the late Pleistocene to Holocene periods. The map illustrates the northern and southern routes discussed in the text. See more

Miriam Stark recently published "Landscapes, Linkages, and Luminescence: First-Millennium CE Environmental and Social Change in Mainland Southeast Asia" in Primary Sources and Asian Pasts [scroll down here to get the chapter https://www.degruyter.com/view/title/569054 ] . Understanding how Southeast Asians used a South Asian idiom to establish a regional identity through religious ideologies and ritual practice is the goal of this chapter. From ca. 300 to 600 CE, formalized... Indic architectural forms appear across much of the region’s coasts and river valleys. Across the Lower Mekong Basin (and particularly in the Mekong Delta), aspiring Khmer elites used South Asian ideological systems to build religious and social landscapes that became the foundation for early urban centers. Check out the chapter for new insights into the timing and process by which Southeast Asia incorporated South Asian religious, political, and technological attributes. Image shows an example of a fragmentary brick structure in LOMAP region: Ang Yay Nuon. OSL date: 65050 CE. See more

"Environmental drivers of megafauna and hominin extinction in Southeast Asia" by Louys and Roberts was recently published in Nature https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2810-y?proof=t . They state that Southeast Asia has emerged as an important region for understanding hominin and mammalian migrations and extinctions. High-profile discoveries have shown that Southeast Asia has been home to at least five members of the genus Homo. Considerable turnover in Pleistocene meg...afauna has previously been linked with these hominins or with climate change. In the traditional hominin evolutionary core of Africa, attempts to establish the environmental context of hominin evolution and its association with faunal changes have long been informed by stable isotope methodologies. However, such studies have largely been neglected in Southeast Asia. Here they present a large-scale dataset of stable isotope data for Southeast Asian mammals that spans the Quaternary period. Results demonstrate that the forests of the Early Pleistocene had given way to savannahs by the Middle Pleistocene, which led to the spread of grazers and extinction of browsers. Savannahs retreated by the Late Pleistocene and had completely disappeared by the Holocene epoch, when they were replaced by highly stratified closed-canopy rainforest. The map shows the biogeographical subregions examined, land extent during the Last Glacial Maximum, and the proposed extent of the ‘savannah’ corridor. See more

Save the date for the next IPPA congress! Secretary General Phil Piper announces that the Executive Committee voted to support the Thailand proposal to host the 2022 IPPA Congress to be held at the Le Meridien Hotel, Chiang Mai from the 6th-12th November 2022. The successful Thai application to host the Congress is a joint project between Silpakorn University, Fine Arts Department of Thailand, SEAMEO SPAFA and the Princess Maha-Chakri Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre. Further i...nformation will follow on the website over the coming months as they make progress in the organisation. https://www.ippasecretariat.org/22nd-ippa-congress As is IPPA policy, the Association will have a new president. IPPA thanks co-Presidents Dr. Nguyen Chiang Hai and Dr. Phanh Thanh Hai for all their hard work in organising and implementing the very successful 2018 IPPA Congress. Their four year term (2016-2020) is now completed. IPPA welcomes the new President: Professor Rasmi Shoocongdej (Silpakorn University). Rasmi will lead the organisation of the 2022 Chiang Mai Congress.

Check out this detailed overview of TAP (Thailand Archaeometallurgy Project) research in Vincent Pigott's chapter in Volume 2C of the Ban Chiang metals suite: "Prehistoric Copper Mining and Smelting in Southeast Asia: Evidence from Thailand and Laos." Access the chapter here https://iseaarchaeology.org/chapter-2-of-volume-2c-now-ava/ . The photo is of one of the prehistoric founder's burials that have been excavated in Thailand.

Rodil recently published "In Postcolonial Lens: Analysis of Philippine Archaeology’s History and Direction" in Archaeologies https://link.springer.com/artic/10.1007/s11759-020-09404-9 . The historical context of archaeology in the Philippines is reviewed, showing how it was shaped by colonial influences, and various foreign archaeologists who initially worked and contributed to the archipelago. The study uses the framework of Edward Said’s Orientalism to carefully extract t...he colonial features of Philippine archaeology through an overview of the discipline’s history from the late nineteenth century up to the present. The study finds that the practice of Philippine archaeology became a hybrid of its western origin and nationalistic viewshowcasing a unique blend of indigenous knowledge, scientific advancements, and antiquarian perspectives. The discipline also moved away from its western roots as it leans more on actual fieldwork and public archaeological efforts rather than pursuing theoretical discourses. The study reveals the importance of nationalism in archaeological practice in postcolonial states in Southeast Asia such as the Philippines as it was used to promote common heritage and unity to its multicultural landscape. See more

Dylan Gaffney recently published "Pleistocene Water Crossings and Adaptive Flexibility Within the Homo Genus" in the Journal of Archaeological Research https://doi.org/10.1007/s10814-020-09149-7 . He points out that the earliest secure global evidence for open water crossings comes from Island Southeast Asia including in the Early and Middle Pleistocene. Because of the region’s steep geomorphology, records of Pleistocene island and coastal occupation survive in island SEA, wh...ere in other parts of the world it is now submerged. As such, Wallacea allows us to think about how different hominins adapted to specific insular biogeographic zones and how these changing environs impacted long-term behavioral trajectories and water-crossing routes. The evidence is reviewed and placed into a global ecological framework of human adaptive flexibility. See more

Ceramicists! Check out this upcoming event. Free registration to participate!

The Journal of Asian Studies has just published on line "Ban Chiang's Contribution to Prehistory," a review by Penelope Van Esterik of volumes 2A-2C of the Ban Chiang metals monograph suite DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021911820001606 . Her review states "These are not coffee table books.... They are definitive reference works for those interested in the prehistory of Southeast Asia or archaeometallurgy. For other readers, the volumes provide brilliant theoretically sophist...icated insights into the relation between technology and social change, and the development of social complexity and class, while proposing a new way to look at the development of states. They challenge colonial notions of Southeast Asia as a cultural backwater receiving the benefits of civilization from elsewhere (India, China, Europe); at the same time, they present new ways to think about the attributes of civilization itself." The figure shows the earliest grave with a bronze grave good, BCES Burial 76. Those lacking institutional access can request a pdf from the author Penelope Van Esterik . See more

"Iron Smelting Industry of Kedah Tua: A Geophysical Mapping for Buried Furnace" was recently published by Rahman et al in Archaeologies https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11759-020-09402-x . Being one of highly skilled iron producers in the prehistoric world, Sungai Mas of Kedah Tua was an entrepot for various world civilisations including China, India and Arab due to its iron industry beginning according to the article by 535 BC (see figure). With Muda River as the backbone of Kedah Tua’s trading, the river connects numerous iron smelting sites to the entrepot for supply. This study aims to locate a potential iron smelting site using 3D resistivity method at Kuala Ketil; a site situated along Muda River.

Yakal et al. recently published "EDUCATION AND HERITAGE CONSERVATION IN THE PHILIPPINES ARCHAEOLOGY’S ROLE IN CURRICULAR CHANGE (PART 2)" in The SAA Archaeological Record starting on page 33 http://onlinedigeditions.com/publication/ . They provide case studies from different areas of the Philippines: Rizal, Kalinga, and Camarines Sur, Bicol to show how utilizing indigenous epistemologies within local ethnic communities can foster positive research and local support for the... maintenance of tradition and heritage. By collaborating with community stakeholders and developing models of support, archaeology can both uncover and help sustain important places of heritage. The photo shows an exhibit at the Rizal, Kalinga, Public Library showcasing the rhinoceros remains that suggest hominin activity in the Philippines dating to 700,000 years before present. See more

Stephen Acabado and Ellen Hsieh have recently published the chapter "East and Southeast Asia at the Age of Contact: Post-1500 Archaeology of Asia" in The Routledge Handbook of Global Historical Archaeology. They argue that post-1500 archaeology has been understudied, but complements archaeologies that have investigated the deep past of the region. This historical archaeology is the best way to study the profound changes of settlement and landscape that emerged out of the region's diverse interactions with colonial societies. Contact Stephen Acabado for a pdf [email protected] .

Just published is "Fishbone artefacts from the Samrong Sen site, Cambodia, cast new light on Bronze Age networking between inland and coastal communities" by Boulanger et al. in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oa.2922 . They examine previously unstudied archaeological fish remains recovered during Mansuy's first excavation in 1902 from the inland Samrong Sen midden site in Cambodia and which are currently stored at ...the Musee de l"Homme Paris, France. The remains are dated by association to the Neolithic/Bronze Age between 2206 and 1892 cal. BC from a time when the development of metal age trade and exchange networks contributed substantially to the success of many cultures in this diverse region. We focus on the taxonomy of the fish captured and the implications for technology, and regional networks. The identification of two perforated shark vertebrae beads indicates that, during the late Neolithic to Bronze age period, trade and exchange between coastal and inland communities was prominent on mainland Southeast Asia. See more

Acabado and Barretto-Tesoro recently published a chapter "Places, Landscapes, and Identity, Place Making in the Colonial Period Philippines" in the book The Global Spanish Empire. The authors provide two case studies that describe divergent responses to Spanish colonialism, the Ifugao and the Tagalog, both of which were anchored on landscape and place making, The chapter argues that culture contact provided the venue for the Philippine groups to craft their identities in rela...tion to the more powerful Spanish Empire. Among the Tagalog of Pinagbayanan, San Juan, Batangas, classes of material goods were used in ways that were distinctly different from how colonial elites utilized exotic goods, which became the link of Pinagbayanan to a new form of social hierarchy. Similarly, the Ifugao rice terraces became the impetus for the intensification of social differentiation. The figure shoes a bone toothbrush (top) a bottle of a pain balm (left) and cod liver oil bottle (right), imported goods recovered from Tagalog contexts. Those wishing a pdf of the chapter can contact Stephen Acabado [email protected] . See more

A very thoughtful review of Volume 2B of the Ban Chiang metals suite was recently published by Katheryn Linduff in the journal Asian Archaeology https://link.springer.com/artic/10.1007/s41826-020-00034-2 . She states: "The set of volumes, but particularly this one, has as a goal to illustrate the value of analyzing full assemblages of metallurgical remains from anthropological and technological perspectives in order to understand ancient metals in their social contexts. She... makes clear the organizing principal of the chapters to address: systematic assessments of the typological range, variation in metal composition and manufacturing techniques, evidence for on-site production activities, and contextual evidence for deposition of metal finds. The plan is to give a comprehensive and far richer understanding of ancient metals and generate a model for others who pursue the same. A more thorough, introspective and critical examination of this, or any other, set of material would be difficult to find!" Getting a hold of this review may be difficult for many, as the journal has especially strict policies against even the author sharing pdfs. However, I was able to get a copy of the pdf by requesting it through Interlibrary Loan at the University of Pennsylvania Library. If your institution does not provide access directly - try to get it through your university's Interlibrary Loan program.

Amano et al. published "Archaeological and historical insights into the ecological impacts of pre-colonial and colonial introductions into the Philippine Archipelago" in The Holocene https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0959683620941152 . They evaluate archaeological and historical evidence for the integration of novel plants, animals and economic strategies into local Philippine cultures and economies from 4000 years ago to the 19th century AD. This includes materia...l culture, archaeozoological and archaeobotanical analysis, as well as archival references to pre- and post-colonial urban settlements, the evolution of land management and rural settlements across the Archipelago. We argue that prehistoric land-use changes, as well as the colonial introduction of crops and domesticated animals, represent a potentially interesting contrast to other tropical regions that came under Spanish imperial control between the 15th and 19th centuries. The figure shows the location of key archaeological sites in the Philippine archipelago as well as known 10th16th century maritime trading centres (underlined). See more