Iron Age burials discovered in central Thailand

Pink canopy tents were erected over two opened pits in a small sugar-apple plantation not far from the Central Mosque, or Masjid Ban Suan, in Muang district of Lop Buri. At first glance, it looked like nobody was here. Then someone emerged from the site. He had a broken piece of clay pot in his hand.

Sorathach Rotchanarat excavating the second pit [Credit: Karnjana Karnijanatawe]

Sorathach Rotchanarat, an archaeologist from the Fine Arts Department, spent a couple months with his team to dig out the soil and collect evidence to indicate that there was a community living in the area since the New Iron Age, around 3,100-3,800 years ago. The site he most recently discovered is called Khok Phutsa, the newest archaeological site out of 116 that have been excavated in the Lop Buri River Basin over the past 80 years. Khok Phutsa is located about 5km from the King Narai the Great's Monument, the landmark of the city.

"I was very excited and happy when we first discovered some artefacts last December. So far we've found more than 10,000 broken clay pots and other items at this site," he said.

The human skeleton in the first pit and potholes indicating the use of land after
the new Iron Age [Credit: Karnjana Karnijanatawe]

The excavation of Khok Phutsa started in December last year, after the land owner informed the Fine Arts Department about the discovery of ancient clay pot fragments. Alongside Sorathach, a team of archaeologists led by Pakpadee Yukongdi of the Fine Arts Department, together with Dr Roberto Ciarla and Dr Fiorella Rispoli from Italy, visited the site. The Italian experts worked with the Fine Arts Department through the joint Thai-Italian Lopburi Regional Archaeological Project (LoRAP), founded in 1988 to study archaeology in the Lop Buri River Basin.

Before starting the excavation at the Khok Phutsa site, the team created a map of the area. They selected two vacant lots where there were no sugar-apple trees. The size of the first pit is 4x4m and the second, 3x2m. They are a little bit far from each other.

Armbands of multiple bangles made of tin and bronze were found on the wrists
of an adult's skeleton at Phu Noi site in Ban Mi district
[Credit: Karnjana Karnijanatawe]

While working on each pit, they gradually removed the soil inch by inch until they reached to the natural layer of soil where there is no evidence of anthropogenic activity.

"I was thrilled when we found a human skeleton during the first month of excavation. The depth was only 1.5m," said Sorathach.

Collections of pottery dating back to the Iron Age found in Lop Buri. The items are displayed in the exhibition
at King Narai National Museum in Lop Buri [Credit: Karnjana Karnijanatawe]

After the human bones were found, the team removed dirt by using smaller and softer tools like archaeology brushes. Later, they discovered the whole skeleton. It was straight with the face up. But the team can't yet tell if it's a he or a she.

When they finished digging the first pit, they found two skeletons. There was broken pottery beside the bodies. They also found a clay pot, not broken, next to the feet.

Beads made from giant clam shells [Credit: The Fine Arts Department]

Currently, the team is working on the second pit at the Khok Phutsa site. Besides the skeletons found in both pits, the team has found shells of giant clams and ornaments made from them, such as broken bangles and beads. Axes made from the shells of giant clams were also found.

"The evidence showed that the area used to be a community where people knew how to create products from giant clams. The species lives on corals, but its shells are found on land. It confirms the old knowledge that the area of Lop Buri and other provinces in the Central Region were part of the sea 8,000 years ago," he said.

A clay whistle, which may have been a musical instrument used by people in the Iron Age. The artefact
was found in Tha Kae site in Muang district [Credit: The Fine Arts Department]

The team found additional artefacts belonging to people from other periods. These include small, loaf-shape skin-rubbing stones, stone axes, drum-shaped ear-studs, clay beads and pottery.

"The items show that people have lived in the area of the Khok Phutsa site since the New Iron Age to the Dvaravati period [6th-11th century]. If we look around, we will see that the site is located in a Muslim community. It means that people have lived in the area from prehistorical times until today," he said.

Carbonised rice grains [Credit: Karnjana Karnijanatawe]

All artefacts found in the two pits will be removed. Some items will be further studied in the laboratory to date them accurately, while the human bones will be extracted to get DNA. The information will also help discover if people migrated during ancient times.

The team expects to finish excavation and remove all artefacts before the monsoon season. They will cover the pits and return the site to the owner, as there is no plan to develop Khok Phutsa to be a new tourist attraction in Lop Buri.

Dr Fiorella Rispoli, left, and Dr Roberto Ciarla, middle, the Italian archaeologists, excavated
the first pit of the Khok Phutsa site [Credit: The Fine Arts Department]

"We only need to collect all items we found at the site because every artefact is important evidence letting us know our history. It tells us how people lived their lives in the area that we live in today," he concluded.

Author: Karnjana Karnijanatawe | Source: Bangkok Post [April 12, 2019]