ABSTRACTS

In alphabetical order by family name

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A A

Acabado, Stephen Anthropology, University of Hawai'i

5L GIS and the archaeology of the rice terraces: implications of spatial data for the intensification of production and the dating of the rice terraces in Ifugao, Northern Philippines

For the past two and a half decades, archaeologists have employed GIS technology to understand and explain cultural patterns. GIS has become an indispensible tool for field workers; from site indentification to landscape analysis, this tool has expanded the ability of archaeologists to reconstruct and model past lifeways. In the Philippines, the importance of GIS in archaeology is becoming apparent. Its ability to process spatial data in a fraction of time previously required, makes it invaluable for the analysis of cultural landscapes and processes. This paper explores the use of GIS in developing a methodology for dating the rice terraces of Ifugao as well as in understanding the process of agricultural intensification in the area.

Addison, David J. and Frédérique Valentin American Samoa Power Authority (ASPA) Archaeology Program

4N The Fatu-ma-Futi site in the context of Tutuila prehistory

The Fatu-ma-Futi site is the first well-documented site on Tutuila containing extensive midden remains. The site also has a 1500 year sequence of basalt tool manufacture, numerous burials, and evidence of multiple episodes of house building. This presentation summarizes initial findings from Fatu-ma-Futi and discusses the site in the context of the prehistory of Tutuila Island.

Allen, Jane International Archaeological Research Institute, Inc. Honolulu, Hawai‘i

3A How (and how not to) share contract archaeological research results with the rest of the world: two case studies from O‘ahu

Sharing commercial research results with the academic and public worlds is affected by many constraints, not all having to do with researcher motivation and energy. Other influences include funding sources and associated laws, community and academic politics, and the individual developer’s previous experiences with the results of information-sharing. Research conducted by Bishop Museum contracts staff in the 1980s-1990s in two large and “high-profile” site areas in windward O‘ahu was funded and governed in two different ways, with different effects on communication. The H-3 Highway Kāne‘ohe Interchange project was in part federally funded and was guided by fairly stringent federal preservation laws. The Royal Hawaiian Golf Course project in Maunawili Valley, Kailua, was privately funded and less stringently legislated; additionally, the golf course changed hands during the course of the research.

Some community members and academic researchers opposed both projects, and both developers were a bit wary of open communication. But two different communication patterns transpired. Publication in journals and a monograph, speaking engagements at public meetings, and guided site tours were encouraged in the federally funded freeway case. In the case of the golf course, it was more difficult to convince the owners to allow open sharing of research information; since funding was also held up during changes in ownership, the main report remains a part of the “gray” contracts literature.

Communication in the other direction, initiated by academics and activists, was infrequent in both cases and typically disregarded reported project findings. Perhaps for political or other personal purposes, a few academic researchers, very disturbingly, interpreted sites for news agencies in ways that were not supported by the evidence, and did so without visiting the sites or communicating with the project archaeologists. A question for discussion concerns how to communicate findings in future effectively enough that political and other concerns remain in the background, and productive professional dialogue is encouraged.

Allen, Melinda S. Anthropology, University of Auckland

5C Late Holocene climatic variability in the central Pacific and implications for island populations

For the last fifty-odd years, Pacific archaeologists, geographers, and other social scientists have used a model of late Holocene climate change based largely on climate variability known from other regions of the world. Until recently there was little reason to expect that conditions in the central Pacific diverged from those of the better known Northern Hemisphere where two major climate periods are recognised, the Medieval Warm Period (or Little Climatic Optimum) dated to ca. A.D. 900-1200 and the Little Ice Age typically assigned to ca. A.D. 1550-1900. Increasingly, however, new studies are demonstrating that large-scale climate change in the central Pacific co-varied with that of other global regions in indirect and sometimes poorly understood ways.

Anggraeni Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta

2B Exploitation of natural resources in the Early Holocene: a case study from Bentar Rockshelter, Southern Mountains of Java.

Archaeological records obtained from the Bentar rockshelter at the western part of hilly region of the southern mountains of Java (Gunung Sewu) strengthen the former assumption reveals that this region has been occupied by communities of hunter-gatherers in the prehistoric time. The occurrence of stone tools along with shell and bone tools, fragment of animal bones, freshwater and marine shells in lots of caves and rockshelter suggested that this region provided convenient environment for living in the past. An excavation conducted in the Bentar site uncovered some important evidence about the degree of human exploitation on natural resources in the early Holocene.

The results of pollen analysis shows that this recently barren zone used to be relatively wet and humid. The appearance of the extinct animal bones of Sus brachignatus and especially Hippopotamus sp. bones proves that such animals have lived there, when the water catchment still available in a suitable amount. Fragments of animal bones from the lowest level taken for dating samples is dated back to 40,000 BP. However, there is an hiatus between the dated layer and the upper layer relates to the human occupation.

Types of stone artifacts from the site suggested that the hunter-gatherers used mainly flake tools and retouched their tools before discard. The appearance of silica gloss on some stone tools supports the assumption that they also exploited vegetational resources. In such case, it can be assumed that the hunter-gatherers have exploited their environment moderatly. Moreover, the extinction of certain animals might more relate to the climatic changing.

Ampansri, Anusorn Highland Archaeology Project in Pang Mapha, Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand

2B Late Pleistocene subsistence organization at Tham Lod rockshelter, northwest Thailand

Recent research on the late Pleistocene Tham Lod rockshelter, northwest Thailand has revealed rich lithic and faunal assemblages. According to the evidence, a pattern of recurring occupation was in place between approximately 24,000-12,000 BP.

This paper attempts to investigate whether there were any changes in the late Pleistocene subsistence organization and environment through time. Over 267,056 fragments of animal bones from Area I at Tham Lod rockshelter were analyzed. The preliminary results show that a high diversity and varying sizes of animal species were commonly utilized, including at least 21 species of animals such as Cervidae, Bovidae, Ursidae, wild pig, mountain goat, bamboo rat, porcupine, turtle, snapping turtle and fish. Most of fragments are limb bones, including large-, medium-, and small-sized animals. The variety of identified species, especially cervids, indicates a generalized exploitation of diverse species and animal sizes, though deer appeared to be the predominant prey.

The evidence from faunal and mollusk remains indicates a local vegetation in the past of tropical monsoon forests, including mixed-deciduous, dry dipterocarp, and hill evergreen forests, similar to the present day vegetation in the Highland Pang Mapha area and other provinces in northern Thailand. The faunal assemblage closely resembles the local modern fauna implying that there are no significant environmental differences between the late Pleistocene and recent times.

Arifin, Karina Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta

2A The Punan Basap: the last hunther gatherers of East Kalimantan

Amongst the various Punan groups in Borneo, probably Punan Basap was the most “primitive” one. Although they have been influenced by other tribal groups who were farmers, and some of them even practiced simple agriculture, most of their lives were spent as semi nomadic hunter gatherers. At certain times of the year they live in rock shelters in the middle of the rainforest, collecting wild fruits and tubers as well as hunting wild animals. Their knowledge of different kinds of plants and animals were extraordinary and can be very useful for prehistorians who study hunter gatherer communities in the rain forest area. This paper will provide some information about the Punan Basap knowledge of their habitats and their attitude towards their environment that might be helpful to understand the archaeological remains found in similar environments as the one occupied by the Basap.

Arrell, Katherine University of Leeds, UK

4B The MMAP survey: preliminary assessment of environmental context

The Middle Mekong Archaeological Project's (MMAP) exploratory survey along three left bank Mekong tributaries in Luang Prabang province identified variation in the geomorphological characteristics of the identified archaeological sites and river basins. We observed differences in the river systems, surrounding relief, and site qualities, like size and accessibility to natural resources. We hypothesize geological and microenvironmental characteristics affected settlement use of these tributaries over the past 10,000 years. This paper will discuss some of these factors and the implications these might have on the locations and characteristics of sites.

Asaua, Tautala S. American Samoa Power Authority (ASPA) Archaeology Program

4N Samoan houses: Fatu-ma-Futi and other Samoan sites

Various forms of dwelling structures have been recorded in the Samoan archipelago. No study has attempted to make a distinction between these various forms of dwelling structures. Rather much of the focus has been on trying to find archaeological correlates of house types, as observed and reported by early Europeans. This typically involves looking at ‘high status’ dwellings. This paper will examine the development of house structures over time, using data from past investigations and comparing it with a recent project at Fatu-ma-Futi in Tutuila, Samoa.

William S. Ayres Anthropology, University of Oregon

5F Colonization of Eastern Micronesia

The archaeological record shows human presence in the Micronesian area, West-Central Pacific, from 3000 to 4000 years ago in the western islands and from somewhat more than 2000 years ago in the eastern chains. These settlements then span a critical time frame for documenting the derivation of early Oceanic populations in the Pacific Islands. While archaeological evidence regarding colonization of the Micronesian area provides as yet incomplete data with regard to origins or directions of colonization, the broad outlines can be recognized. Archaeological and linguistic data reviewed in this paper show a complex pattern of inter-relationships among the high islands and atolls in the Eastern Carolines. In particular, the hypothesis that atolls were the first islands to be colonized is questioned.

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B B

Bacus, Elizabeth University of Northern Iowa

4F Transformations in the landscapes of south-central Bali: an archaeological investigation of early Balinese states

The nature of pre-colonial Balinese states is a topic of long-standing debate among scholars, and one central to the comparative study of states (e.g., the nature of state political power and whether it arises from and exists only for ceremony, or from and for the control over materials resources and lives of its people). While this debate theoretically and empirically informs us as archaeologists about Balinese states, it is essentially concerned with later periods, not the period of the formation and transformation of the earliest Balinese states. Though these early states are poorly known, evidence - edicts inscribed on copper plates and monumental architectural remains attesting to the presence of royal families, a ruler’s establishment of Buddhist institutions, and existence of various administrative specialists - does suggest the presence of a state by the 9^th-10^th centuries AD. The Transformations project focuses on Balinese states, and aims to investigate, through survey and excavation, the changes and continuities in aspects of the social, political, religious and economic landscapes of south-central Bali - the traditionally-viewed center of early states - during the late 1^st to early 2^nd millenniums AD. This paper presents a summary of the project, and the preliminary results of the survey conducted in 2000 in the Sebatu area - an area located at the northern edge of the presumed core of state formation - and of the first test excavations conducted in 2004 in Timbul - one of the villages within the Sebatu area from which survey and previous work has identified stone-carved sarcophagi, statuary and architectural fragments from possible royal shrines suggesting dates from around 2000 years ago to the early/mid-2^nd millennium AD.

Bacus, Elizabeth University of Northern Iowa

5M Further Insights on the Political Economy of Lowland Philippine Polities

As a graduate student, the prospect of conducting research overseas was both exhilarating and overwhelming. That I was able to do so with some success in the Philippines owes, in no small part, to my first trip there with Bion Griffin and Annie Estioko-Griffin who, at that time, were conducting research in northeastern Luzon. During this visit, they provided me with important introductions to Willie Ronquillo and other archaeologists at the National Museum, shared insights into conducting fieldwork, and encouraged me in my own research plans. While my archaeological work on the political economy of Philippine lowland complex society was undertaken after I moved to the University of Michigan, the research developed while I was a student at the University of Hawaii and its later funding was successful due to Bion’s support. In this paper, I extend my examination of the political economy of the 11^th-16^th century Dumaguete polity of southeastern Negros, both empirically by considering the non-craft sector of its economy and that of other lowland polities to gain further understanding of possible political dynamics, as well as theoretically in light of more recent views on complex society economies.

Barua, Upala, Guwahati University, Assam, India

4A Archaeological potential of the ancient city of Guwahati

Founded prior to the fifth millennium AD, Guwahati is one of the oldest cities in India. It is located in the bank of the river Brahmaputra – known as Lauhity or eastern sea in the ancient times. It has been referred to as the capital city of the frontier state Pragjyotisha which later came to be known as Kamrupa. Formerly known as Pragjyotishpura, the capital city is a unique mysterious and extremely interesting realm to explore. The Umachal rock inscription is the earliest rock inscription discovered so far in Assam. Till now as many as 29 rock inscriptions pertaining to different periods have been discovered in Guwahati. Another important Copper plate inscription of Ratnapala belonging to 10 or 11 century AD was also discovered.

Guwahati is a land of temples. Most of these temples were constructed or reconstructed during the Ahom and Koch rule beyond thirteenth century AD. The Kamakhya temple has an ancient mythology; as well as historical background too. Among the other medieval temples Nabagraha, Vashistha, Sukleswara or Sukreswar, Aswakranta, Ugratara, etc are important. The architectural patterns of these structures bear the testimony of early medieval period structures, which is a perfect blending of indigenous style and Muslim architectural style of Bengal.

There are several numbers of excavation sites of which mention may be made of Ambari, Narakasura hill site, and Cotton College excavation site. In Ambari more than forty icons of pre ahom period sculptured on stone block were discovered. From Narakasura, near Kahilipara village, apart from others, one bronze image of Indra was discovered which is a piece of beautiful artistic work and dated as 6^th to 10^th century AD.

Another notable archaeological evidence is the megalith of Karbis found in large numbers in and around Guwahati. These are the memorial stones erected in memory of a deceased. This practice has been associated with this tribe since time immemorial.

This paper makes an attempt to map the archaeological resources of Guwahati, evaluate their values from both archaeological and ethno-archaeological point of view and their present status of preservation. It would be attempted in this paper to find out as to what can be done to mobilize the local or national or international NGOs for creating an atmosphere conducive to archaeological studies.

Barua, Tiluttama Cotton College, Guwahati

4A Swidden cultivation and the indigenous people of Assam

Swidden cultivation, popularly known as jhum cultivation is still in practice in some hill areas of Northeast India. Known for its primitive methods and the resultant destruction of forest resources, swidden cultivation has been discouraged by experts. Because of this, the federal government was forced to warn its federal units to eliminate this system as early as possible, introducing alternative systems. Several alternative measures were experimented with in the hills of Assam to change this habit of the indigenous people. But in most cases they have failed, and there are instances where these indigenous people are going back to their own swidden traditions. Today, some indigenous organizations demand that they be allowed to continue their traditional ways of using natural resources. They argue, despite opposition from other groups, that their practices, such as low-impact slash and burn, hunting, fishing, and other traditional forms of use, can guarantee the survival of the communities and the sustainable use of the resources with only a low impact on nature, when the territory is large enough to support the population. Under this backdrop, it is time to make a comprehensive study as to how these indigenous people living in these areas since ages past can be provided with the right type of occupation. This paper focuses on the strength of swidden cultivation in these areas, and the factors that led to a policy failure of the Government.

Basu, Durga Archaeology, University of Calcutta

4H Early overseas trade and the Krishna Godavari region in Andhra Pradesh.

Rising in Sahyadri hills and flowing across the states of Maharastra and Karnataka, the river Krishna enters the state of Andhra Pradesh through the gorgeous valleys of the Nallamalai hill. The region harbours rich diversity of flora and fauna and possesses fertile land mass. The rivers flowing over this region have easy access to the sea. The fertile Krishna-Godavari valley and its open coast line with at least a couple of major and a few minor ports formed the nucleus which helped to draw the plateau and plains of hinter land into one unit as it were. Excavations at Amaravati on Krishna river reveals in the river side an embankment cum wharf abutting a deeply cut navigational channel, connecting the main river Krishna, which has flowed into the sea at Masalia or Masulipattam of Ptolemy. Masalia, the famous port deeply involved in the Indo-Roman trade, located a few miles from the site.

In the Andhra region, the river Krishna forms a rich delta along with the Godavari. The deltas of Krishna-Godavari valley and the entire coastal region along with sea board from Kalingpatnam (Salihundam) in the north to Ramatirtham on the Penar in the south, including the caravan routes passing from the north of the Vindhya far into the southern part of the country, emerged as the land of attraction for the traders in the early centuries of the Christian era. As a matter of fact, the entire gamut of trade both internal as well as the external, concentrated into this valley.

Discovery of great quantities of Roman gold, silver coins, glass of foreign origin, as well as pottery of western world like arretine, rouletted ware and amphora from a number of sites in the delta amply show the flourishing India/western trade during first – second century AD. The evidence relating to such trade, found the Periplus of the Erythrean sea confirms India – Western trade in general and the Roman trade in particular. This is further corroborated by the finds of Roman coins from a number of sites, recording the reign period of the Roman empire from Tiberius to caracolla i.e. from C. 14 AD. To 211 AD.

The main objective of this paper is to highlight the early overseas trade in Krishna –Godavari valley during 1^st -3^rd c. AD. The archaeological and literary evidences have thrown sufficient light on early trade connection of India with the Roman world. The Satavahana-Ikshaku political base of this region accelerated the pace of trade which eventually made itself felt in the growing urbanization of the region. The present paper aims to review the socio-economic condition of this region through an introspective study of different sites that have been laid bare in the valley.

Bautista, Giovanni National Museum of the Philippines

3B The challenges that beset cultural resource management in the Philippines

Safeguarding the archaeological heritage of the Philippines has been a concern especially in the enactment of laws decades ago by the Philippine Government to help protect, conserve and preserve the non-renewable and finite archaeological resources of the country. This paper will tackle the development of the practice of Cultural Resource Management (CRM) in the Philippines and the various problems and intricacies that constantly hound the management of these irreplaceable resources. The challenge to CRM practice in the Philippines deepens as treasure hunting has been legalized by the Philippine Government.

Bayman, James M. Anthropology, University of Hawai‘i

5H A comparative perspective on the ideology and political economy of technological change in post-contact Hawai‘i

Interpretations of European and American contact with Oceania often highlight the rapid changes that took place in the technologies and practices of traditional societies. In the Hawaiian Islands, for example, many scholars have assumed that stone adzes (ko‘i pōhaku) were quickly replaced with metal adzes, and that such change was an inevitable consequence of a superior and more efficient western technology. However, my synthesis of archaeological and documentary evidence reveals that traditional stone adze technology persisted in Hawai‘i for almost a century after European contact in AD 1778. The timing and pace of this particular technological change is put into a comparative perspective by reviewing information on the rate at which western styles of clothing (i.e., holokū) and architecture were adopted by indigenous Hawaiians. This analysis confirms that different suites of ideological, political, and economic factors governed the speed with which particular items of European and American material culture were incorporated by native Hawaiian society.

Beardsley, Felicia Sociology and Anthropology, University of La Verne, California

5F Passage to Eastern Micronesia: archaeology and oral history in the service of settlement scenarios

The settlement of Micronesia is as complex as the populations within its expanse. As reflected in the archaeological record, the region consists of a melange of material culture, architecture, settlement patterns, landscape modifications, resource use, agricultural and subsistence practices, extra-island alliances, and the appearance and disappearance of social-, political- and economic empires and institutions. Encapsulated within this record are the imported symbols, features and tangible expressions of the founder population (s) and it(s) ancient homeland. An added boon to settlement research in the region is the existence of shared oral histories, albeit fragmentary, transferred down successive generations. The integration of oral testimony (sometimes referred to as myth, sometimes as history) into archaeological settlement research puts a human face on the archaeological record, and provides a context through which it can be understood. Oral histories relay information about such topics as founder family lines, migration routes, marriage alliances, and economic and political interaction spheres. This paper will focus on potential settlement models within the eastern half of Micronesia, examining the archaeological record in concert with extant oral histories.

Bedford, Stuart and Matthew Spriggs Archaeology and Natural History, ANU, Australia

5F Lapita at Teouma, Efate, Central Vanuatu. One of the first steps in the colonisation of Remote Oceania.

Vanuatu lies in a crucially strategic region of the Western Pacific, to the south of the Solomons, north of New Caledonia and west of Fiji and Polynesia. Its locale and north south alignment of islands was particularly important in terms of facilitating and sustaining the initial settlement of Remote Oceania. Regular tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions have combined to facilitate the exceptional preservation of some of the early colonising Lapita sites of Vanuatu which are providing new and detailed information on these first settlers. The Lapita site of Teouma is one such example. Two field seasons of excavation at the site have revealed the earliest cemetery in the Pacific along with associated midden deposits. The recovered pottery, including three whole decorated vessels demonstrate many stylistic similarities to the pottery from the Reef Santa Cruz and even sites further to the west which supports a model of rapid population movement from the Bismarck Homeland region. The early date of the cemetery, the detailed insights into burial practice and the well preserved associated pottery recovered from Teouma make it one of the more imortant archaeological sites yet found in the Pacific.

Bellwood, Peter¹ Nguyen Viet² Bui Van Liem³ and Judith Cameron^{4 1}Archaeology and Anthropology, ANU, ²Centre for SE Asian Prehistory, Hanoi, ³Institute of Archaeology, Hanoi, ⁴Archaeology and Natural History, ANU

4H The Dong Xa boat and “Phoenician joints”: a Dong Son/Western Han/Indo-Roman transfer of technology linking Vietnam and the Mediterranean

The Australian-Vietnamese Research Project on Dong Son textiles recovered, in December 2004, a stern portion of a logboat with mortise and locking peg holes for strake attachment (Dong Xa), and a mortuary house constructed of dismantled 4 m long boat timbers with exactly the same technology (Yen Bac). Both came from waterlogged alluvial clay deposits close to the Red River and date to the Dong Son and later Han periods. The Dong Xa boat was buried with a shrouded corpse about 30 BC, the Yen Bac child was entombed evidently in the later Han period. This paper presents the remarkably-preserved woodwork from these finds. Both the Dong Xa logboat and the Yen Bac planks were once parts of river boats like the ones shown on the sides of Heger 1 drums, constructed using both logboat and plank-fitting techniques. Planks were fitted edge-to-edge using the locked mortise and tenon technique typical of Phoenician, Punic and Roman shipping in the Mediterranean between 1500 BC and about AD 700. No claim is made that the Vietnam finds represent a definite transfer of technology from the Mediterranean, since we lack comparative material from this time period from South and East Asia. But the similarities are so strong that independent invention is not a convincing explanation. Contact and technology transfer in some form is in evidence, at a time when the Eurasian world was entering its first phase of true globalization.

Bellwood Peter and Bong Dizon ANU and National Museum of the Philippines

5C The Batanes Archaeological Project, and the current state of the “Out of Taiwan” debate with respect to Neolithic and Austronesian language dispersal

Since 2002, a joint ANU-Philippine research project in the northern islands of SE Asia (the Asian Fore-Arc Project) has concentrated research in the Batanes Islands, northern Philippines. We have now established an archaeological sequence here that begins with settlement by users of red-slipped pottery of southern Taiwan origin about 2000 BC, through a phase characterised by strong Beinan influences (SE Taiwan) about 1500-500 BC, then a phase of intensive local manufacture of items of imported Fengtian nephrite from Taiwan (c.1000 BC to AD 1000). The flow of material culture throughout Batanes prehistory is heavily weighted towards Taiwan, even though contact and interaction with northern Luzon was clearly established very early in the sequence. The flow of Taiwan material culture includes the actual movements of slate and nephrite, neither of which occur naturally in Batanes, and many influences in pottery shapes, spindle whorls, net sinkers, stepped adzes, and shell ornaments. There is no evidence that Neolithic cultures initially entered Taiwan and Batanes from the south, although later contacts with the Cagayan Valley could have introduced stamped pottery to Batanes around 1000 BC. Iron Age interaction perhaps also stimulated the eventual spread of a Batanic language to Lanyu (Botel Tobago), probably in the period of intensive nephrite working after 500 BC.

Berger, Amelie African Archaeology Network, Swedish University of Agriculture Sciences, Uppsala

5N Food is more than rice

Foods consumed over the last two thousand years in Eastern Africa derive from terrestrial freshwater and marine plants and animals both domestic and wild. An assessment of the variety and growing conditions of food resources used today by people living near the archaeological sites of Chibuene and Manyikeni, Southern Mocambique, and in the Anosy valley, South-East Madagascar, provides analogues for resource usage in earlier times and raises questions about the provenance of these resources in the wider Indian Ocean region. The three research areas represent different vegetation systems and special attention is paid to edible wild plants, of which fifty species have been identified. In Anosy valley the application of Geographical Information Systems analyses points out how the archaeological sites develop in relation to the environmental setting as well as how the distribution of paddy rice cultivation changes with time.

Bergh, Julie Van Den and Samlane Luangaphay Archaeological Assessments Ltd, Hong Kong

4B Archaeological findings at the Plain of Jars

The paper will present the results of the recent archaeological findings at the Plain of Jars, Lao PDR. The three most visited jar sites located in the vicinity of Phonsavan, Xieng Khouang’s provincial capital, were recently cleared of unexploded ordinance (UXO) by the Mines Advisory Group (MAG). The concurrent archaeological data retrieval programme conducted by the Lao Provincial Department of Information and Culture in partnership with UNESCO-Lao aimed to retrieve and record cultural material found in the course of the clearance programme. The recorded finds included pottery, glass, stone, bone, and metal objects and few in situ burial assemblages. New C14 dates were obtained for two stratigraphical different burial assemblages at Site One. The results of the material and stratigraphical findings will be reviewed with reference to previous investigations on the Plain of Jars.

Bhattacharyya, Banani Jadavpur University, India

4H Harinarayanpur: A flourishing trade centre in coastal Bengal

Bengal was literally known as an important segment of eastern seaboard of India The land, lying to the south of the Varendra and to the east of the Radha regions, formed by the distributaries of the Ganga-Brahmaputra river system or the delta of these two great rivers, including coastal area comprises lower Bengal. Geologically it belongs entirely to the Holocene period. However, the archaeological finds of the last century have brought this region into focus, which suggest extensive maritime trade network with Southeast Asian countries during the early part of Christian era.

The early historic period saw the rise of many urban centres throughout the region. Tamluk and Natsal seem to have continued to thrive, while many new centres arose, like Bahiri and Tilda in Midnapur district, Chandraketugarh, and Goplapur in North 24 Parganas district, and Deulpota, Harinayanpur, Pukurtala, Atghara, Boral and Bhangankhali in South 24 Parganas district.

Coastal Bengal precisely covering the districts of Midnapur, both north and south 24 parganas incliuding Sunderban region, Howrah and Hooghli was once vibrante with cultural/social and economic activities. Infact agriculture was extended, trade and commerce was encouraged to bring about changes in the material culture of the people leading to second urbanization. This region became the focal point of history of eastern India. On the basis of different discovery it can be said that the trade contacts between Bengal and Southeast Asia must have been maritime in nature. In this context the position of Harinarayanpur is very significant. It is approximately 10 km. north of the Diamond Harbour, in the left (northern) bank of the Ganga River.

The terracotta figurines (both male and female) found from the site displaying the kind of dress, ornaments and accompanied musical instruments and other Jewelers leave the impression of an urban affluent society. The products involved in maritime trade include Grains, Textile products, Spices of diverse nature, Horses, Beads etc. The discovery of a number of seals and seal impressions depicting above objects from this unfortified urban centre emphasis the fact that the people of this area were once involved in overseas trade. Semi precious stone beads are item of long distance trade network. A large number of beads, which were once strung and worn as ornament, have been found from Harinarayanpur. These were made from semi-precious stones like agate, carnelian, crystal, garnet and jasper. Other materials used for making beads include glasses of various colours, terracotta, copper, bone etc. There are beads of agate and carnelian, which were etched with lime, and beads of transparent glass encasing gold foil, which are thought to have come from Alexandria. The beads that were transported to Southeast Asia through the ports of Bengal include etched carnelian, etched agate and glass beads. As these beads have been reported from different parts of Southeast Asia specially Thailand, there are reasons to believe that might have been imported from the ports of Bengal.

The present paper attempt to discuss the archaeological objects (such as Black –knobbed Ware, Rouleted Ware, Kharasti – Brahmi Script, Grains, Textile, Spices etc) found from Harinarayanpur and its relation to overseas trade with Southeast Asia.

D.D. Bintarti National Research Centre of Archaeology, Jakarta

4F Archaeological research in the Jember Regency, East Java, Indonesia

Prehistoric research in East Java was implemented since a long time before, among others by H.E Stein Etz (1898), J.B. Hubenet (1903), B. de Haan (1921), W.J. A. Willems and H.R. van Heekeren (1939). Research was mainly executed at Bondowoso resulting megalithic and Neolithic remains at Banyuwangi, Paleolithic remains at Pacitan, remains of fossil men at Mojokerto, stone-cist burials at Bojonegoro and other remains in other sites.

In 1985 illegal diggings were executed in big scale by the local inhabitans in the regency of Jember particularly in the district of Gumuk Mas, Kencong, Ambulu and Krjana. The results of these diggings consist of artifact made of earthenware (jars, different types of pots, and moult), metal artifact, iron spearheads, iron and bronze axes, bracelets, bonze rings, gold decorations, kettledrums, sickles), beads of different sites, c