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The use of coffins and jars as funerary receptacles was common across Southeast Asia. During the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries AD, cremation was the dominant mortuary tradition on the Angkorian plains, but in the Cardamom Mountains to the south, contemporaneous groups practised a unique burial tradition involving the deposition of un-cremated bone in exposed ceramic vessels and log coffins. The authors present the first geochemical analysis of individuals from this highland culture, specifically the site of Phnom Pel. The childhood diets of those interred in jars and coffins may have been sourced from different areas within the Cardamom Mountains, suggesting that the individuals came from discrete groups. Keywords: Southeast Asia, Cardamom Mountains, mortuary traditions, mobility, strontium isotopes, Introduction Compared to the contemporaneous lowland Khmer cultures, little is known about the fifteenth--to seventeenth-century AD highland communities of the Cardamom Mountains of southern Cambodia. Archaeologically, they are characterised by [...]

The Late Iron Age to early historic period site of Non Ban Jak (ca. fourth to eighth centuries A.D.), in the Upper Mun River Valley, northeast Thailand, provides one of the largest and best preserved skeletal samples from an important period of change in social and technological complexity in prehistoric Southeast Asia. This study assessed the patterning of individual-level trauma prevalence and long bone fracture rates in this community to determine the level of risk of injury and the possible relationship with cultural change. One quarter (25.5%) of adults experienced antemortem or perimortem trauma. This level of trauma is high when compared to other Iron Age sites in the Southeast Asian region. Injury patterning suggests the majority of antemortem trauma is the result of accidental injury through occupational hazards and lifestyle activities. However, cranial injuries such as a depressed fracture, facial fractures, and perimortem sharp force trauma, as well as a possible parry injury and multiple trauma observed in some individuals, are indicative that at least a portion of the population had been engaged in interpersonal violence. This study emphasizes local variation. Non Ban jak is one of only a few excavated sites that contributes to an understanding of the transition from the late Iron Age to the early protohistoric period in Thailand as well as the wider region in Southeast Asia. KEYWORDS: trauma, interpersonal violence, bioarchaeology, Iron Age, protohistoric period, Southeast Asia, northeast Thailand., INTRODUCTION THIS STUDY FOCUSES ON THE BIOARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL evidence for trauma and conflict in a single community in Upper Mun River Valley, northeast Thailand, that of Non Ban Jak, [...]

The date and significance of the megalithic jar sites of central Laos are comparatively poorly understood features of the Southeast Asian archaeological landscape. First explored systematically in the 1930s, only limited research on these sites has been undertaken since. This article presents the recent excavations at Ban Ang--or site 1--a megalithic jar site of nearly 400 jars, located in Xieng Khouang Province. The results confirm the findings of earlier research, but additionally reveal a range of mortuary practices, high rates of infant and child mortality, and new evidence dating these interments to the ninth to thirteenth centuries AD. Keywords: Southeast Asia, Laos, Plain of Jars, megaliths, mortuary archaeology, Introduction The megalithic jar sites of northern Laos, comprising groups of large, hollowed, oblong stone vessels, boulders and carved discs, have long inspired fascination (Figure 1). The 'Plain of Jars'--a [...]

Recent archaeological investigations and technological applications have increased our appreciation of the intricacies of pre-Angkorian societal development. The results reveal a transformative period characterised by increasing socio-political complexity, exchange and [...]

The impressive architecture of Angkor Wat conveys a sense of harmonious design, but recent survey using ground-penetrating radar (GPR), coupled with targeted excavation, reveals a more complex picture. Fragmentary traces of a quincunx of earlier towers have been detected, which were partially demolished when the outer enclosure and western gateway were completed. Are these the remains of a shrine used during the construction period? If so, they throw new light on associated ritual activity during the building of Angkor Wat. Keywords: Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Angkor, ground-penetrating radar, Introduction Angkor Wat (Figure 1) is an icon of World Heritage and one of the worlds most intensively visited and studied monuments (Fletcher et al. 2015: 1390 & 1398). Yet [...]

The existence of moated mounds in the archaeological record of north-east Thailand has long been known, the majority constructed during the earlier first millennium AD. Despite considerable research, the purpose of the substantial and sometimes multiple moats surrounding raised occupation mounds has remained a mystery. Combining locational, hydrological and rainfall data with the archaeological evidence, this study of the moated mounds of the Khorat Plateau seeks to resolve the question through statistical analysis. The results suggest that water storage may have been the primary purpose of the moats, enabling communities to survive dry seasons and droughts. Keywords: Thailand, Iron Age, moat, rainfall, water management, irrigation, statistical analysis, Introduction Irregular mounds surrounded by moats and embankments were first noted in north-east Thailand over a century ago (Damrong Rajanubhap 1995). Since then these sites have continued to be the [...]

Prehistoric archaeology in Cambodia is in its infancy and our understanding of the rise of the powerful civilisation of Angkor is deficient. There have been strides made in this field [...]