Landscape and Myths: Ethno-Historical Archaeology ...

2 downloads 0 Views 4MB Size Report
Was the town completely abandoned after the major floods? • How did the ... Preliminary question: Was there a flood? ... Dr. Supaporn Nakbunlung (1955-2013),.
Landscape and Myth: Ethnohistorical Archaeology of the Northern Thai Cultural Landscape Piyawit Moonkham Department of Anthropology Washington State University

45th Annual Meeting of the Society for Cross-Cultural Research, February 17-20, 2016, Portland, Oregon

Mainland Southeast Asia

Modern Chiang Mai

Waing Kum Kam archaeological site

Research questions • Was there a flood? • Was the town completely abandoned after the major floods? • How did the community adapt to the changing landscape? • How do local myths and folktales help us to better understand the community’s adaptation?

Wiang Kum Kam archaeological site • Southeast of modern Chiang Mai, on the east side of Ping River • Chiang Mai-Lamphun Basin (largest river basin in northern Thailand) • One of the most important archaeological sites in northern Thailand, dating from c. 14th – 15th century • Monuments: most are Buddhist temples, approximately 50 excavated and unexcavated sites • Temporary capital city for Lanna Kingdom (Northern Thailand) in 13th century

Archaeological site at Wiang Kum Kam

Preliminary question: Was there a flood? • River flood plains: elevation approx. 300 meters above sea level; Slope is approximately 2 - 3 %; Sloping plain; Braided drainage pattern • At Wat E-Kang, in every corner of the main hall; soil sediment consists of big and small grains of sand; thick cross-bedding layers 1.8 - 2.3 m (5-7 feet); very coarse sand; Easily eroded • Most temples currently found 1.5-2 m (4-6 feet) below ground • Area floods annually; major flood may have occurred in c. 1200s AD and 17th 18th century • Ping River changed its course c. 17th -18th centuries

Ping River courses changes

Old Ping River course Modern Chiang Mai

Recent Ping River Course

Was the town completely abandoned after the major floods? • First major flood, c. 1200s AD • Difficult to store goods and livestock • Reason to move to new capital city, Chiang Mai

• Second major flood c. 17th – 18th century • Ping River changed course • Most places abandoned • Some villages still within city after that?

How did the community adapt to the changing landscape? After first major flood • Architecture modified; stucco, decorative artifacts, monumental renovation • Historical evidence: Chiang Mai Chronicle, Yonok Chronicle, plus inscriptions (c. 14th- 17th century) • Large and small dikes and irrigation systems (Muang Fai); Divert river for farming • Remains location for the trading center, river port for the Kingdom

Architectural decorative artifacts

How did the community adapt to the changing landscape? After second major flood • Though most places (Buddhist temples) are abandoned, community survived the flood and revived the city • Turning to farmland; recent major location to grow longan (indigenous fruit) and other vegetables

Wiang Kum Kam

Longan Plantation

How do local myths and folktales help us to better understand the community’s adaptation? • Myths as collective memory; Myths as actor-network agency • E.g. The dam and the Buddha (Wat Pranon Ban Ping and Wat Pranon Nongphung) • Memory as a learning tool for communal interaction with the environment • Community adaptation to unpredictable landscape

Pranon Nongphung (approx. 57 feet long)

Conclusion and further research ideas • Archaeological implications; understand the communal pattern through collective memory and agency • How can early society be(come) complex? • The role of collective memory, e.g. learning tool to interact and modify the surrounding environments

• Integrated approaches; cultural theories incorporated with material remains, e.g. landscape, myths, and collective memory • Better approaches to understanding communal adaptation to surrounding landscape, especially changing landscape, such as flood and earthquake

Thank you Acknowledgement Department of Anthropology Washington State University Dr. Julia Cassaniti, Dr. Colin Grier, Department of Anthropology Washington State University

Dr. Supaporn Nakbunlung (1955-2013), Northern Archaeology Center Chaing Mai University

References • Bloch 2012; Dincauze 2000; Ingold 1993; Latour 2007; Serene et al 2015; Ongsakul 1994, 2005; Prachakitkorachak 1973 Velechovsky et al 1987; Wood 2008; Wyatt and Wichienkeeo 1995