Changing social inequality from first farmers to early states in Southeast Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (47) ◽  
pp. e2113598118
Author(s):  
Mattia Fochesato ◽  
Charles Higham ◽  
Amy Bogaard ◽  
Cristina Cobo Castillo
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Social Inequality ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Rice Farmers ◽  
Early States ◽  
The North ◽  
Agricultural Revolution ◽  
Phase Sequence ◽  
Wide Range

When the first rice farmers expanded into Southeast Asia from the north about 4,000 y ago, they interacted with hunter-gatherer communities with an ancestry in the region of at least 50 millennia. Rigorously dated prehistoric sites in the upper Mun Valley of Northeast Thailand have revealed a 12-phase sequence beginning with the first farmers followed by the adoption of bronze and then iron metallurgy leading on to the rise of early states. On the basis of the burial rituals involving interment with a wide range of mortuary offerings and associated practices, we identify, by computing the values of the Gini coefficient, at least two periods of intensified social inequality. The first occurred during the initial Bronze Age that, we suggest, reflected restricted elite ownership of exotic valuables within an exchange choke point. The second occurred during the later Iron Age when increased aridity stimulated an agricultural revolution that rapidly led to the first state societies in mainland Southeast Asia.

Economic change after the agricultural revolution in Southeast Asia?

Antiquity ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 88 (339) ◽  
pp. 112-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte L. King ◽  
R. Alexander Bentley ◽  
Charles Higham ◽  
Nancy Tayles ◽  
Una Strand Viðarsdóttir ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Iron Age ◽  
Regional Differences ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
River Valley ◽  
Seventh Century ◽  
Early States ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Agricultural Revolution ◽  
North Eastern

Three prehistoric sites in the Upper Mun River Valley of north-eastern Thailand have provided a detailed chronological succession comprising 12 occupation phases. These represent occupation spanning 2300 years, from initial settlement in the Neolithic (seventeenth century BC) through to the Iron Age, ending in the seventh century AD with the foundation of early states. The precise chronology in place in the Upper Mun River Valley makes it possible to examine changes in social organisation, technology, agriculture and demography against a background of climatic change. In this area the evidence for subsistence has been traditionally drawn from the biological remains recovered from occupation and mortuary contexts. This paper presents the results of carbon isotope analysis to identify and explain changes in subsistence over time and between sites, before comparing the results with two sites of the Sakon Nakhon Basin, located 230km to the north-east, to explore the possibility of regional differences.

Farming, social change, and state formation in Southeast Asia

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles F. W. Higham
Keyword(s):  
Social Change ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Water Buffalo ◽  
Domestic Animals ◽  
Hunter Gatherers ◽  
Early States ◽  
Agricultural Revolution ◽  
Social Elites ◽  
Rapid Formation

Farming in Southeast Asia is dominated two major crops, rice and millet, and domestic pigs, cattle, water buffalo, chickens, and dogs. The domestication of these species took place in China, and the first farmers began to settle Southeast Asia in the early second millennium bc. They integrated with the indigenous hunter-gatherers, and were heavily reliant not only on their crops and domestic animals, but also on hunting, gathering, and fishing. An agricultural revolution took place during the Iron Age, involving plough agriculture in permanent fields. Ownership of improved land would have stimulated the rise of social elites and dependent craft specialists, factors underlying the rapid formation of early states.

The Long and Winding Road that Leads to Angkor

2012 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Higham
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Eleventh Century ◽  
Southern China ◽  
Hunter Gatherers ◽  
Rice Farmers ◽  
Late Iron Age ◽  
Colonial Empire ◽  
French Colonial

In the late sixteenth century, Portuguese missionaries encountered a vast city at Angkor. Abandoned for 150 years, it had been partially restored as a Buddhist piligrimage centre but many of the monuments had been given over to the forest. They wondered about its origins. Some suggested that it was the work of Trajan, others of Alexander the Great. Following the establishment of the French colonial empire in Southeast Asia three centuries later, and in the absence of any information on prehistoric societies, the civilization of Angkor was seen as the result of Indianization, whereby Indian religions, architecture, writing and language were adopted by the indigenous inhabitants. This article presents the results of twenty years of research in the upper Mun Valley of northeast Thailand, an area that was part of the Kingdom of Angkor and seat of the dynasty of two of its greatest kings, Suryavarman II and Jayavarman VII. For the first time, the entire prehistoric cultural sequence from late hunter-gatherers to the end of the Iron Age has been documented and dated. We find that after the ingress of rice farmers from southern China in the mid second millennium BC, there were two surges in social complexity. Both were coincidental with the availability of new exotic goods through exchange. The first took place in the initial Bronze Age, in the eleventh century BC, and was followed by several centuries of relative poverty in mortuary practices. The second took place in the late Iron Age and led directly to the foundation of powerful chiefdoms from which can be traced the genesis of early civilizations in Southeast Asia, including that of Angkor.

Bronze Age Barrows on Charmy Down and Lansdown, Somerset

1950 ◽  
Vol 30 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 34-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audrey Williams
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
The South ◽  
Stream Flows ◽  
North East ◽  
The North

Charmy Down is a plateau three miles north-east of Bath (fig. 1, 1), east of the Bath-Tetbury road. About a square mile in extent it has a general height of well over 600 ft. To the north the scarp falls swiftly, on the east more gently, to the wooded valley of St. Catherine's Brook, a tributary of the Bristol Avon and the modern Somerset–Gloucester boundary. At the foot of the steep western scarp a second stream flows south to the Avon. On the south Chilcombe Bottom separates Charmy Down from Solsbury Hill, distinguished by its Iron Age earthwork. The underlying rock is oolite, a southward continuation of the Cotswold formation.

scholarly journals THE LAND BEHIND THE LAND BEHIND BAGHDAD: ARCHAEOLOGICAL LANDSCAPES OF THE UPPER DIYALA (SIRWAN) RIVER VALLEY

Iraq ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 79 ◽  
pp. 47-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesse Casana ◽  
Claudia Glatz
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Physical Geography ◽  
River Valley ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Archaeological Survey ◽  
Near Eastern ◽  
The North ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Regional Project ◽  
The Rich

While the Diyala (Kurdish Sirwan) River Valley is storied in Near Eastern archaeology as home to the Oriental Institute's excavations in the 1930s as well as to Robert McC. Adams’ pioneering archaeological survey, The Land Behind Baghdad, the upper reaches of the river valley remain almost unknown to modern scholarship. Yet this region, at the interface between irrigated lowland Mesopotamia and the Zagros highlands to the north and east, has long been hypothesized as central to the origins and development of complex societies. It was hotly contested by Bronze Age imperial powers, and offered one of the principle access routes connecting Mespotamia to the Iranian Plateau and beyond. This paper presents an interim report of the Sirwan Regional Project, a regional archaeological survey undertaken from 2013–2015 in a 4000 square kilometre area between the modern city of Darbandikhan and the plains south of Kalar. Encompassing a wide range of environments, from the rugged uplands of the Zagros front ranges to the rich irrigated basins of the Middle Diyala, the project has already discovered a wealth of previously unknown archaeological sites ranging in date from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic through the modern period. Following an overview of the physical geography of the Upper Diyala/Sirwan, this paper highlights key findings that are beginning to transform our understanding of this historically important but poorly known region.

Excavations and Metal-working at Llwyn Bryn-dinas Hillfort, Llangedwyn, Clwyd

1992 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. R. Musson ◽  
W. J. Britnell ◽  
J. P. Northover ◽  
C. J. Salter ◽  
P. Q. Dresser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Copper Alloy ◽  
Radiocarbon Date ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Metal Working ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Alloy Casting ◽  
The North ◽  
Local Evidence

Small-scale rescue excavations at Llwyn Bryn-dinas hillfort, on the Welsh Borderland, showed that the earliest fortification belonged to the late Bronze Age, with radiocarbon dates in the late 9th and 8th centuries be. A terrace, subsequently cut into the rear of the rampart to accommodate a metal-working floor, was associated with a radiocarbon date centred in the late 3rd century bc. Detailed analysis of the metal-working debris suggests that copper-alloy casting, iron forging and possibly bronze production were carried out within a single workshop. The finds include a distinctive form of handled crucible. The industry appears to have been fairly small-scale, of short duration, and probably only designed to meet the internal needs of the hillfort population. The excavation adds significantly to the local evidence for metal-working during the later prehistoric period. A distinctive zinc-impurity pattern in the copper alloy and raw copper, previously identified in material from other sites nearby, confirms the suggestion of an Iron Age bronze-working industry based on a specific metal source in the north Powys area. In addition, analysis of the iron-working debris suggests the exploitation of a distinctive local ore body. The metal-working activity appears to have come to an abrupt end, possibly with the enlargement or local repair of the rampart. Later phases of activity include a final occupation deposit with an associated radiocarbon date centred in the mid 2nd century bc.

scholarly journals The Prevailing Art and Tradition of Intentional Dental Modification in Prehistoric Southeast Asia | Ang Namamayaning Sining at Tradisyon ng Intensyonal na Modipikasyon ng Ngipin sa Sinaunang Timog-Silangang Asya

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Kathryn N. Purnell ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Data Representation ◽  
Body Modification ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Rite Of Passage ◽  
Archaeological Record ◽  
Cultural Aspects ◽  
The Bronze Age

Since prehistoric times, humans have changed select characteristics of their bodies, such as tattooing, hair-dyeing, cranial and feet deforming, and teeth modifying. Teeth are some of the most well-preserved remains in the archaeological record, with which we can study past cultural and ritualistic beliefs. Previous publications on dental modifications in Southeast Asia are mostly limited to the mainland, thus this paper reviews modifications observed in prehistoric sites across Southeast Asia, identifying common techniques and motivations. Findings show occurrence of dental ablation, filing, plating, and coloration, which began in the Neolithic, disappeared in the Bronze Age, but reappeared in the Iron Age, although the absence may be due to sampling shortage. Modifications have been associated to aestheticism, group identity, rite of passage, practicality, and medical benefit, but whether these all ring true remains uncertain. It is recommended that future research expand scope for better data representation, analyze modifications with context of community profiles, and investigate the significance of migration in the prevalence of certain techniques and patterns as part of understanding the cultural aspects of past humans’ lives, and assess the cultural (dis)continuity of these traditions into modern-day forms of body modification, art, healing, self-expression, and identity. Magmula sinaunang panahon, maitatala ang mga pagbabagong pisikal sa katawan, tulad ng pagtatato, pagkukulay ng buhok, at pag-iiba-anyo ng ulo, paa, at ngipin. Nabibilang ang ngipin sa mga lubos na napepreserbang artepakto sa arkiyoloji, at sa gayo’y magagamit pang-aral ng mga nakalipas na kultura at ritwal. Kasalukuyang limitado sa mainland ng Timog-Silangang Asya ang saliksik sa intensyonal na modipikasyon ng ngipin, kaya tatalakayin dito ang mga sinaunang modipikasyong nabanggit sa buong rehiyon, at tutukuyin ang pagkakatulad sa mga teknik at motibasyon. Nagsimula ang paglaganap ng sadyang pagtatanggal, pagliliha, pagkakalupkop, at pagkukulay ng ngipin noong Panahong Neolitiko, naglaho noong Panahong Tanso, at bumalik muli pagsapit ng Panahong Bakal, ngunit maaaring iukol ang paglaho sa kakulangan ng datos. Hindi pa tiyak, pero pwedeng ang mga modipkasyon sa estetisismo, pakikisama, pagriritwal, praktikalidad, at benepisyong-medikal. Inirerekomendang palawakin sa susunod na saliksik ang sakop para sa mas mabuting representasyon ng datos, suriin ang mga modipikasyon sa konteksto ng komunidad, at imbestigahan ang kahalagahan ng migrasyon sa paglaganap ng mga partikular na teknik at padron habang inuunawa ang mga aspetong kultural ng sinaunang panahon, at tasahan ang pagpapatuloy (o hindi) ng mga tradisyong nabanggit sa kasalukuyang modipikasyon ng katawan, sining, paggagamot, pagpapahayag ng sarili, at identidad.

building techniques and materials, Roman

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger B. Ulrich
Keyword(s):  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Roman Architecture ◽  
The North ◽  
Mediterranean World

The inherent strengths, weaknesses, and availability of diverse Roman building materials governed the techniques used in construction and greatly influenced the final appearance of Roman architecture. Trace archaeological evidence exists of buildings and burials in Rome from the Italian Bronze Age (second millennium bce) or earlier, and substantial physical remains, in the form of Iron-Age huts and grave goods, roughly correspond to the Romans’ own belief of the foundation date of their city (traditionally 753 bce). Rome’s earliest builders sourced materials obtainable from the immediate environment and transformed them using practical knowledge. Within the span of a couple centuries, architectural design, implementation, and decoration reflect a broad interaction between Roman builders and their counterparts in the regions around central Italy (particularly Etruria to the north and Campania to the south) and also the wider Mediterranean world, particularly those areas where Greeks traditionally lived or had placed colonies. While southern Italy and Sicily represent the closest areas for the transmission of Greek ideas, Greek building practices on the Greek mainland and in Asia Minor also influenced Roman projects from the Archaic period onwards. As Rome grew wealthier and expanded abroad, patrons and builders imported marble to the capital from the Aegean, well before the discovery of more local, Italian sources. The importation of exotic stones grew exponentially over the period of the late Republic and the first two centuries of empire. The coloured marbles that embellished the buildings of Rome served as physical testimony to Rome’s control over the eastern Mediterranean. Nothing, however, was as transformative as the adoption of concrete in the late 3rd century bce, the mass production of fired brick, and the ensuing experimentation that resulted in the vaulted structures that have become the hallmark of Roman architecture.

scholarly journals Application of Image Analysis for the Identification of Prehistoric Ceramic Production Technologies in the North Caucasus (Russia, Bronze/Iron Age)

Heritage ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 2327-2342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ki Suk Park ◽  
Ralf Milke ◽  
Erik Rybacki ◽  
Sabine Reinhold
Keyword(s):  
Image Analysis ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Data Availability ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
North Caucasus ◽  
Archaeological Ceramics ◽  
The North ◽  
Production Technologies

The recent advances in microscopy and scanning techniques enabled the image analysis of archaeological objects in a high resolution. From the direct measurements in images, shapes and related parameters of the structural elements of interest can be derived. In this study, image analysis in 2D/3D is applied to archaeological ceramics, in order to obtain clues about the ceramic pastes, firing and shaping techniques. Images were acquired by the polarized light microscope, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and 3D micro X-ray computed tomography (µ-CT) and segmented using Matlab. 70 ceramic sherds excavated at Ransyrt 1 (Middle-Late Bronze Age) and Kabardinka 2 (late Bronze–early Iron Age), located in in the North Caucasian mountains, Russia, were investigated. The size distribution, circularity and sphericity of sand grains in the ceramics show site specific difference as well as variations within a site. The sphericity, surface area, volume and Euler characteristic of pores show the existence of various pyrometamorphic states between the ceramics and within a ceramic. Using alignments of pores and grains, similar pottery shaping techniques are identified for both sites. These results show that the image analysis of archaeological ceramics can provide detailed information about the prehistoric ceramic production technologies with fast data availability.

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