Bacus_2004- Archaeology of Philippine Archipelago

8/13/2019 Bacus_2004- Archaeology of Philippine Archipelago

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JOHN N. MIKSIC

ARCHAEOLOGY OF THEARCHIPELAGO

THEPHILIPPINE

11Kulke, H. 1986) T he early and the imperial kingdom in Southeast Asian history , in D. Marr

and A. Milner eds) SoutheaST Asia in the lIinth to jourrecl1lh eel wry Singapore: Institute forSoutheast Asian Studies, pp. 1-22.Latham, M. trans.) 1958) The Travels cif l\1arco Polo Harmonds\.vorth: Penguin.Wolters, O. W. 1971) TI,e Fall cifSrivijaYil Malay History Ithaca: Cornell University.Wo lt ers, O. W 1979 ) Studying Srivijaya , JOHmal the 1\1alaysian Branch rhe Royal AsiaticSociery 52 2): 1-32.

r de nd exchange Elisabeth BacusChristie, W (l999) Asian sea trade between the tenth and thirteenth centuries and its impacton the states ofJava and Bali , in H. P Ray ed.) Archaeology of Seafaring: The Indiall Ocean illthe Allciwt Period Delhi: Pragati Publications , Indian Council of Historical Research,pp. 221-70.

Manguin, P- 1993) Trading ships of the South China Sea , jOl wal the Eco lomic and SocialHistory the Oriem 36: 233-80.Wolters, O. W. 1967) Early II dol esian Commerce Ithaca: Cornell University.Wicks, R. S 1992 .. \10Iley j\lfarkets alld Trade il Early SOl theast Asia Ithaca: Cornell University.Introduction

The Philippine archipelago, lying between 5 and 20 degrees nonh latitude, is made up ofmore than 7,000 islands scattered over a 300,000 square kilometer area. Bounded on theeastby the Pacific Ocean and on thewest bythe South China Sea, the majorityof the landmass is composed of eleven islands grouped into three main regions: the nonhern regionwith Luzon and Mindoro; the Visayas or Central Philippines) with Masbate, Palawan,Panay, N egros, Cebu, Bohol , Leyte and Samar; and the southern region with Mindanaoalong with the smaller islands of Basilan, and the Sulu and Tawi Tawi archipelagos.

The islands are pan of a wes tern Pacif ic arc sys tem that is characterized by activevolcanoes. Palawan is the only island in the archipelago that is part of the Sundacontinental shelf, the large expanse of land exposed during various times during thePleistocene when sea level dropped, which may have enabled it to be o cc upi ed byhumans earlier than the other islands. The latter belong to the biogeographical provinceof Wallacea and have never been completely joined together as dry land, ei ther withSundaland or with each other.

The archipelago has a tropical climate, with the southern and eastern parts of thearchipelago lying within the equatorial tropics characterized by year-round rainfall, andthe northern and wes tern areas lying within t he seasonal t ropics marked by clear lydifferentiated wet and dry seasons of varying lengths. These broad divisions in tropicalclimate tend to be associated with different general types of forest, evergreen rain forest,a nd mor e o pe n, deciduous monsoon forest, respectively. Significant differences inaltitude, along with those in rainfal l, resul t in marked variation in the types of flora thatwould have been found in various areas during the prehistoric and protohistoric periods.Tropical plants and trees would have prevailed in the lowland and coastal area, while nthe higWands, hardwood and pines would have covered extensive areas.

The archaeology of the Philippine archipelago encompasses a study of myriad topics:of initial human occupation; of a more than 10,OOO-year span of hunter-gatherersocieties evolving within dynamic environmental and cultural contexts; of Austronesianlanguage expansion; of rice farming communities; of interactions with the larger Asianregion; of maritime technology; of elaborate burial practices; of the emergence of tradeoriented polities; and of Spanish conquest, name a few. While touching on many ofthese topics, this chapter focuses particularly on the complex lowland politieswhich aroseduring the first and second millennia AD in various areas of the archipelago.

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Hunter gatherers to r ice farming: the early prehistoric backgroundLAte Pleistocene Early Holocene hunter gatherers

Human occupation of the Philippine archipelago occurred by late Pleistocene timesand a t present the earliest securely dated evidence only dates to around 30,000 yearsago. Thi s e vi denc e comes f rom Tabon Cave l oca ted on Palawan, the only mainPhilippine island that was part of Sundaland, the land mass exposed at various timesduring the Pleistocene that connected Mainland with parts of Island Southeast Asia.Thus human expansion into the rest of the archipelago would have necessitated theuse of boars. Located on the west coast of Palawan, overlooking the South China Sea,Tabon Cave has yielded evidence of use by hunter gatherer populations from around30,000 to 10,000 years ago > This evidence is comprised almost entirely of stone tOolswith the earliest remains consisting of flakes, cores and flake tools, together with piecesof charcoal and the bones of small birds , bars and other animals, some of whichprobably represent hunted prey. Subsequent use of the cave, a t a round 23,000 yearsago, is evidenced again by charcoa l and numerous animal bones ; hundreds of chertpieces from various stages in the manufacture of flake implements; basalt choppers; andquartz and basal t halumer stones (Figure 11.2). Of particular significance are thecranial fragments of at least three omo sapiens individuals, the earliest such remains inthe archipelago.

At around 7 8 000 years ago, hunte r-ga therers using nearby Duyong Caveexploited shallow-water marine and brackish water shellfish species as a food source,along with crab and some birds and land animals. The stone tool kits of these populationsconsisted of smal l flake tools and blade tools , the lat te r appea ring to have been a newtechnology.

Hunte r-gathe re r sites contemporary with the Tabon and Duyong sequences onPalawan are also known from el sewhere in t he archipelago, par ti cul ar ly from thenorthern and central Philippines. The lithic assemblages from such sites include complexand sophisticated industries involving a variety of flake tools, some blades and core tools.In northern Luzon, for example, several cave sites in the Cagayan Valley have yieldedpebble tools, vith somesites dating to as early as 11,000 years ago. Also around this time,Musang Cave, located in the foothills of the Sierra Madre in northeastern Luzon, wasused as a frequentation site by hunter-gatherers who gathered shellfish in the nearbyriver; hunted wild pig , dee r and bird; and used flake too1s.4 On the island of Samar,hunter-gatherers used Sohoton I Cave as a temporary hunting camp as early as around12 13 000 years ago. They btOught marine fish with them t o t he cave, t he sea beingapproximately 25 kilometers away at that time, and presumably also exploited freshwaterfish found in the nea rby river . They hunted deer and pig , though t he bone remainsindicate tha t they t ransported most of the mea t away f rom the cave, leav ing onlybutchering refuse and bones from parts bea ring l it tl e mea t behind. Birds , snakes andother small animals were also caught and probably consumed.5 Th e southernmost part ofthe archipelago has also yielded evidence of early Holocene hunter-gatherers. BalobokRockshelrer on Sanga Sanga Island, for example, was occupied around 8 9 000 years ago,and sites dating back to the late Pleistocene are also reported from neighboring Sabah(East Malaysia) on the island of Borneo.

Man,aJSantaAna

B R N E 0

igure 11. 1 Location of archaeological sites in the Philippines mentioned in the text.

t

Various chronological frameworks exist for understandingprehistoric and protohistoricchange and continuity as seen through the archaeological record of the Philippines. Whiletechnologically-based periodization is still often used (i. e. , S tone Age, Metal Age, andNeolithic), other proposed frameworks emphasize assumed social changes. An exampleof thelatter would be thedivision of Philippine prehistory into a Formative period, fromhuman occupation of the archipelago until 500 BC during which a pattern of adaptationto Pleistocene and postglacial Holocene environments developed; an Incipient period,from around 800 BC to AD 1, when the archipelago became less isolated; and a finalE me rgen t per iod w he n interna tional contacts great ly expanded and ident if iableFilipino cultural patterns appeared. 1 The following discussion of the Philippine pastdoes nOt specifically use terminology associated with any particular periodization,though itdoesdraw on them identifyingperiods of significantchange. In addition, theestablishment of an historical framework this chapter is based on the use of securelydated sites (see Figure 11.1) forlocation of sites discussed); sites that can only be datedby suggested broad similarities material culture are generally omitted.


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use of pottery, pol ished stone adzes and stone hoes for forest clearance and gardeningactivities, implements for cloth making clay spindle whorls and stone barkcloth beaters ,marine shell adzes and fishhooks, and marine shell ornan1ents.

As i n many other areas of Southeast Asia, not all groups incorporated such economicand technological changes. Hunter-gatherer societies thus continued throughout this andsubsequent periods, and engaged in various interactions with agriculmral communities,through whom they acquired Neolithic material culture (as has been suggest ed forMusang Cave . Hunter-gatherer groups also interacted wit h more recent complexsocieties where they played an important part in the e:> }Janding international trade of thelate first to mid-second millennia D The Neolithic is thus the first period marked by adiversi ty in cul tural pract ices; that is, in subsistence, set t lement, technology, ritual,presumably language and so forth which distinguished communities primarily dependenton cultivated crops - particularly domest icated rice - from those dependent on wild andmanaged resources. This Neoli thic-period diversity is important to consider inreconstruct ing the fourth to early first millennium BC, in part because the majority ofarchaeological evidence still comes fi-om caves which were used for various purposes byhunter-gatherers and farmers.

The earliest direct evidence of rice cult ivat ion, dating to a round t he ea rly tomid-second millennium BC, comes from pottery found at the Andarayan sit e, an opensire located in the CagayanValley of northern Luzon. 6 Probably added as temper by localp ot te rs t o t he clay, t he carboni zed r ic e in cl us ion s sugge st t ha t the makers of thered-slipped pottery concerned belonging to a widespread style considered a hallmark ofthe Philippine Neolithic were part of a settlement cultivating a dryland variety of rice.This community of rice growers also used clay spindle whorls in cloth production, chenflakes and ground stone adzes, and ornamented themselves with ceramic earrings.

Some Neoli thic sites, however, suggest even somewhat earlier fanning activities inLuzon. Rabel Cave was a f requen ta tion s it e v is it ed by pottery and flaked-stone usinggroups beginning around rhe mid-fourth or late third millennium BC. Pilltu Rockshelterwas a


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Figure 11.3 House plans from Dimolit northern Luzon. From Peterson 1974: Map 2. Reprintedwith permission of Archaeology ill Oceallia.)

= ; ; ~ ~ ~ .Figllre 11.4 Double-headed jade earring/pendant and jade fillglillg-o from Tabon avePalawan. From Fox 1970: Fig 37.)

containing a Tridactla shell rool, a piece of a large Tridactla shell gouge, a number of shelldisk ear pendants , and possible hearth remains.10

Towards t he e nd of the Neoli thic, the pract ice of secondary burial, specifically ofindividuals interred in earthenwarejars and placed in caves, may have begun. This formof mortuary ritual becomes more common in subsequent periods, and may be betterunderstood in connection with the emergence of social ranking in the archipelago andrelated developing links between the Philippines and other areas of Southeast Asia. 11

By around 2,500 years ago, objects craftedof iron, bronze, glass and exotic stone firstappeared in Island Southeast Asia and areused as markers for the end of theNeolithic. More signifIcantly, objects suchas the knobbed pennanular stone earringslillgling-o) and double animal-headed pendants Figure 11.4) indicate the part icipation of Phil ippine societies in exchangenetworks that l inked them with complexsocieties on the mainland of SoutheastAsiaThailand, Sa Huynh i n Vie tnam) andwi th o ther parts of Island Southeast AsiaSarawak). Based on comparative studies ofemergent complex societies elsewhere inthe world, the appearance of such exoticasuggests the emergence of social eliteswhoact ively sought these i tems as markers oftheir status and links with distant sources of knowledge, as well as for use in the creationof social and economic obligations. The archaeological evidence for this period ofemergent complex society 500 C ro D 500) is far from abundant , deriving primari lyfrom the mortuary use of caves.

Mortuary practices of this period provide some support for developing socialcomplexity. As the sites discussed below suggest , a prevalent pract ice at this t ime vassecondary burial , often of multiple individuals, in pottery jars or s tone urns. Suchmorruary practices suggest relatively small, sedentary corporate groups, with some levelof internal status differentiation, who controlled stable, localized resources such as landfor farming. 12

The most famous group of jar burials comes from Manunggul Cave Chamber A onPalawan, which may date to slightly before the period under consideration, early firstmillennium BC based on dating of r it ua l fire s ), a lt hough this da te r emai ns ro b esecurely established. Within tlus cave, both on the surface and in subsurface layers, lay atotal of 78 broken jars, jar covers and smaller earthenware vessels. Amongst these was the ship-of-the-dead ja r burial Plate 14), as well as others with sculpted lids including onewith three animal or b ird heads surrounding the opening. The burial jars and associatedearrhenwares were often decorated with curvilinear scroll designs on their upper bodies.Body ornaments were an important part of mortuary practice, and included black and

Emergent complex society an d contacts beyond th e archipelago

; t l

. .11 PDst hoi

IE m larll post h1 modern posl hoir ~ i h vy s h sh ow ditch

to the early third or late second millennium HC tIlls site has yielded postholes of twoseasonally-occupied square houses measuring about three meters on a side Figure 11.3),each with remains of a hearth, as well as postholes belonging to two other structures. Theliving floors were littered with plain and red-sl ipped earthenware sherds from globularpots, shallow dishes on a ring foot some decorated) and carinated vessels. Flakes somewith silica sheen suggesting their possible use as harvesting knives), mortars, grinders, andtwojadeite beads were also found.

Mortuary practices of Neolithic-period groups involved burial in caves, althoughpeople presumably also buried their dead near their residences. On Palawan, caves onceused for occupation appear to have been selected as a realm for Neolithic burial. DuyongCave, for example, contained the skeleton of an adult male who was buried i n a f lexedposi t ion and face down with his arms and legs doubled underneath h is body. A largepolished stone adze or axe and four Tn daCl1a giant clam) shell adz-axes were placed alonghis sides. He was also buried with two shell ear ornaments - shell disks perforated in theircenters - with one lying next to his right ear; a perforated shell pendant i.e., a shell disk,perforated o n t he edge) on his chest ; and near his feet s ix Area shells, one of which wasfilled with lime perhaps chewed with betel nut. This burialmay date to within the fourthto nud-third millennium C and appears ro have been contemporary with a cultural layer

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igure 11.6 Anthropomorphic earthenwarebur ial j ar s f rom Ayub Cave. From Dizo n1996. Reprinted with permission of the author.

THE PHILIPPINE ARCHIPELAGO

figures, either moulded, or applied in thecases of the ears, mouths and chins Figure11.6 . Jar covers rook the shape of humanheads with faces 49 complete and restorable heads plus a round 100 fragments ofother heads , s ome life size, w it h th ebodies of the jars formed as human tOrsosand somet imes indicat ing gender. Somealso portray jewel ry and possibly otherforms of body decoration. Some of theheads were plain, some were painted withred hematiteand black organic carbon, andothers had perfora tions possibly for theattachnlent of hair. No t all the jar coverswere anthropomorphic; for example, somewere of s imple rounded shape with fourhandles while others had applique designs.Associated with t he se bur ial j ar s weredecorated earthenware vessels, and in somedecorat ed jar le ts were t eet h and f ingerbones . A range of ornaments also accompanied the dead, including glass beads andbracelets, earthenware beads and shell ornaments. Suggested differences in quantity anddistribution of these with respect to individual burials may indicate variability in thesocial identities - possibly including status - expressed at death.

Sometimes, jar burial mortuary ritual also took place outside caves. At Magsuhot insoutheastern Negros Island, three groups of secondary burials were interred in an openarea and poss ibly date to the late f irst mil lennium or early first millennium ADBur ia l I i nc luded t hree j ar s pl aced wit hi n a single grave p it whi ch was l ined withearthenware sherds from possibly deliberately broken vessels. This burial also contained40 earthenware jars and [\:vo clay figurines, one of a WOlnan and the other of a cal foryoung water buffalo. One of the three jars contained the multiple primary burials of anadult female, an infant and a child of6-7 years of age. With them were placed hundredsof orange glass beads, one orange glass bracelet, two iron implements, and fragnlentarychicken and pig bones. Neither skeletal remains nor funerary objects were uncovered inthe other two associated burial jars, although hematite was present in one.

Magsuhor Burial II included a large burial jar, presumably once containing skeletalremains that have since disappeared due t o soil acidity, as well as glass beads and ironimplements. Associated with this burial jar was a pottery coffin containing a single tOoth,a glass bead and iron implements, and 70 earthenware vessels, one w it h two femalefigures sitting around the opening of the jar Figure 1J.7 . More than 20 vessels overlaythe burial jar. M,agsuhot Burial consisted of one burial jar which contained neitherskeletal remains nor artifacts, though earthenware sherds appear associated with it. s\vith other ja r burial sites, these variations at Magsuhor toO are suggestive of statusdifferentiation of the kind found in emergent complex societies.

Unfortunately, despite the detailed information available on mortuary practices,acquisition of exotic goods, involvement in far-reaching exchange networks, bodyornamentation and the production of elaborate pottery vessels for ritual purposes, little is

1 4 ~igure 11.5 Bronze axes, adzes and pot te rymou ld s for cas ting socke ted too ls from theTabon Caves, Palawan: a from Duyong Cave;b provenience unspecified; c possibly from theTabon Caves area; d from Batu Pun Cave;e, from Uyaw Cave. From Fox 1970: Fig 39.

ELISABETH A. BACUS

whi te banded agate beads, jade and shellbeads and bracelets, agate bracelets, ajasperear pendant, and a possible red chalcedonyor carnelian pendant. Most of these stonematerials represent new types not usedpreviously in the manufacture of ornamentsin t he Philippines

During possibly the last few centuries BCor early centuriesAD the adjacentChamberB became a Inorruary arena. Sherds of ja rburia ls now lacking decorat ion, unl ikethose in Chamber A were found togetherwith imported iron objects, glass beads andbtacelets, beads of jade, carnelian, etchedagate and other stone, and a jade bracelet.Other caves i n t he area also con tai n jarburial s. Although undated, they are s ignificant in also containing copper/bronzeitems, including socketed axes and spearheads, a tanged and barbed arrowhead, anda possible barbed harpoon, as well as potterymoulds for casting socketed bronze axesFigure 11.5 . Also present by this time aregold beads, jade lillglillg o earrings, jadedouble animal-headed ear-pendants andjade bracelets.

In Luzon, contemporary groups alsopracticed secondary burial. At Arku Cave,located in the Cagayan Valley bones fromapproximately 60 ind iv idua ls mainJyadults but also including several children and infants were interred during the firstmillennium Be Various forms of bur ial were emp loyed, i nc ludi ng in j ar s, onecontaining the disarticulated bones of two adults, and another containing a skull withthe rest of the bones buried outside of the j ar ; in a small pit which contained bones oftwo adults; and in groups of four or f ive adult s with a portion of the bones heavilycovered in red ocher. Mortuary ritual also involved the placement of red-slipped andpolished black earthenware pots, bowls, globular vessels, jars and vessels with ring feet.Ornaments tOok the form of stone and shell beads, shell bracelets, and earrings of shell,ground stone, jade and fired clay. Four of the stone and all nine of the shell earringssuggest the lill lill o style. Other material remains included Bake tools, stone adzes,bone points, horn ta ttooing chisels, a stOne barkcloth beater and clay spindle whorls.This is not t he only s ite in Luzon yie lding exotica a t thi s r ime; Pintu Rockshelter ineastern Luzon, while not used for mortuary purposes, also has glass beads dating toabout 2,000 years ago.14

Portrayal of the deceased individual appears as a theme of secondary burial practice insouthern Mindanao. I5 At about 2 ,000 years ago, mortuary pract ices in Ayub Caveinvolved the use of anthropomorphic earthenware jars with feantres formed as human

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igur 11.7 Earthenware vessel with femalefigures from Burial II Magsuhot site (photograph courtesry of K Hutterer.)

involvement of China that was to significantly impact the scale of trade from the late firstmillennium AD onwards. With the closure of the overland silk route, China s lnaritimetrade expanded during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907). Beginning in the late Tang orearly Song Dynasty (AD 960-1279), Chinese trade with the Philippines and other areas inthe South China Sea began to flourish. The most prominent indicators of this earlyperiod of t rade with China are the presence of Tang and Song glazed rradewares porce la ins and s tonew-are vessels - which occur in a rchaeologica l sites. Whi le thequantities of Tang tradewares are relatively small , particularly in relation to laterporcelains and stonewares, they are known fronl sites the Babuyan Islands, along thenocos and Pangasinan coasts of Luzon, and Mindoro, in the north; from Bohol and Cebuin theVisayas; and in the south along the Mindanao coast, in Cagayan de Sulu andJolo.By [ate Song (1127 -1279) and Yuan (1280 -1368) t imes , impor ts of tradewaressignficantly and rapidly increased, with sites yielding considerable numbers of southernSong vessels located in the central and northern parts of the archipelago, including Cebuand around Manila Bay and near by Laguna de Bay

This initial period of early trade, until the end of the protohistoric period (sixteenthcentury), saw the further development of complex politiesin various lowland areas of thearchipelago, participating directly and indirectly in international trade. Their involvement was to intensify significantly d ur in g t he M in g Dynasty, when the Chine seproduced ceramics specifically for overseas trade, and lasted until the time of Spanishcolonial usurpation of trade in the mid-sixteenth century. The archaeological record ofthis marit irne trade, and of the development of these complex polities, is presentedbelow.

While boats must have been central to human settlement of the archipelago and tolater coastal dwelling commun.ities, the earliest boats yet recovered archaeologically in thePhilippines date to this period of increasing involvement in long-distance exchange withChina. Parts of nine wooden plank boats with internal lashings and the use of dowels tohold the planks togethe r edge-to-edge - a constmction method typical of historicalSoutheast Asian boat-making technology - have been located along the banks of theLibertad River in Buruan, Mindanao.18 They are associated with evidence of a settlementyielding tradewares (including some Islamic sherds) dating to as early as the nineth tenthcenturies. Three of these boats have been excavated; the timber of the earliest dates tobetween AD 150 and 650, and belonged to a hull approximately 15 meters in length by3 meters in width. Theother two boats date to somewhat later, to between the late tenthand early thirteenth centuries AD, and the late twelfth and early futeenth centuries AD.Probably provided with outriggers and propelled either by sail or by paddles, these boatsmay have carried trade goods brought by the larger Chinese junks to other islands in thearchipelago.

Th e mid-ftfteenth cenrury Pandanan shipwreck, located off the southernmost tip ofPalawan Island, provides information on the variety of cargo that was brought into thePhilippines for trade with later polities.19 Th e remains of this wooden boat, perhaps ofeither Vietnamese construction or southern Chinese construction - though more likelythe former, since from 1433 to the 1460s the Ming rulers of China fotbade overseastravel and the construction of ocean-going vessels - indicated a vessel approximately25 30 meters long and 6 8 meters wide. More than 4,700 [ate Yuan-early Ming periodartifacts (fourreenth-mid-fifteenth century) were recovered. Th e majority weretradewares, with approximately seventy percent deriving from northern and central

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Th e rise lowland polities an d maritime tradeWhile Philippine communities had clearly engaged in exchange relations involving thelarger Southeast Asian sphere since at least the later centuries BC it \vas the eventual

known of set t lements and details ofsubsistence during this period. But twoopen sites, both located in southeasternNegros, were roughly contemporary wthMagsuhot. Solamil lo may have been thesettlement whose residents interred theirdead in the adjacent Magsuhot area.Midden and pit features here have prilnarily yielded earthenware sherds, some verys imilar to those found in the Magsuhotburials. There is also a possible hearth and aburial (though no skeletal renlains werefound). Th e latter was mar ked by fivepartially intact earthenware vessels clustereda round a dis turbed oval shaped area andsurrounded by five postholes, associatedwith i ron fragments , a s tone ornament, aglass bead and several pieces of iron slag.The marked difference with the otherburials suggests a complexity to mortuaryritual practices, with the ja r burialsrepresent ing only one form and possiblyreceived by only certain social groups.

Apparently contemporary with Solamillo, and possibly with the Magsuhotburials, is the Unto settlement, approximately one hectare in size. This containedat least one residential structure. The pitf eatures and midden depos it c on ta inedearthenware sherds with fragJuents of charcoal and other burnt organic material. Mostof the pot te ry was plain, though sonle vessels were red-slipped, black burnished/polished, orhad incised or other decoration. Vessel types included mainly cooking vesselsand at leas t one bowl, and all appear to have been 10caUy made as there was someevidence for earthenware production. The inhabitants of this settlement appear to haveengaged rice farming as several earthenware sherds contained rice husk impressions. I?

The patterns of long-distance exchange and emergent social complexity seen in thePhilippines during the later centuries BC and early centuries AD began to intensify andbecome more evident by the mid-late f irst mil lennium AD. Th e subsequent period,sometimes referred to as the Porcelain Period , is marked archaeologically by thepresence of glazed t radewares from China , and later (during the f o u r t e e n t h ~ f i f i e e n t hcenturies) from Vietnam and Thailand. In this period we witness the development ofmatitime-trade oriented polities.


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igure 11.8 Stoneware jars from Vietnam.(Photograph courtesy of Allison Diem.)

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igure 11.9 Copper-pla te i l15cript ion from Laguna de Bay, Luzon. (Photograph courtesy of Postma.)

polities (sometimes referred to as chiefdoms ) existed by the early prorohistoric periodis suggested by intra-site and regional analyses. Th e archaeological record of severalpolities located in central Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao is discussed below. Chineseaccounts of Philippine societies commenced possibly as early as the tenth century andcontinued throughout the protohistoric period. These, with sixteenth-century accountsof Spanish contact, further indicate the pre-Spanish e:- lstence of cOlllplex lowlandsocieties with a hierarchical sociopolitical structure with hereditary classes. In addirion,an apparently authentic tenth-century copper-plate inscription (Figure 11.9) concerningan acquittal of debt, found in the Laguna de Bay area bur lacking archaeological context,mentions specific chiefly leaders and nobiliry.:w

The Butuan evidence for a polity engaged in large-scale maritime trade, pre- andpost-eleventh century, derives not on ly from the boats, b ut from settl emen t andmortuary remains.21 Buruanmay have been the polity recorded in tlle Chinese Song Sl ilas P u-tuan which senr a tributary mission to the imperial court at the beginning of theeleventh cenrury, and was described as having regular connections with Champa. If so,Buman would have been the first Philippine polity have sent such a mission. Politiesthroughout Southeast Asia sent tributary missions t o t he Chinese court seeking officialrecognition and the preferred trading status such recognition conferred. Over rime, anincreasing number of Philippine polities appear to have sent such missions t o t he Chinesecourt, suggesting increasing competition for trade goods during the protohistoric period.

The Butuan habitation deposits takethe form of a shell midden (locatedstratigraphicallyabove BoatOne) and, extending below it, wooden posts from possibly severa] small houses.Within the midden \-vere large quantities of ninth-twelfth century Chinese tradewaresincluding Tang, Five and Song Dynasty, Yue, Yue-rype and Guangdong wares. Also

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Viemam (Figure 11.8) and the remainderf rom Tha il and and China . Amongst t hetradewares were blueand white bowls, cups,saucers, bottles, large plates, jarlers, saucers,covered boxes with inset dishes, kendis, andd o ub l e- g ou r d p o ur i ng vessels; brownglazed s toneware jars in a range of sizes;and celadon (mainly Chinese ) sauce rs ,bowls, plates, cups, botcle,jarlets and kendis.Bowls (fromVietnam) constituted the mainvessel form (ll1ore than 3,220 ou t of over4,700 artifacts).

Also recovered (amongst other items)were earthenware globular pots, cookingstones and lids; grinding and sharpeningstones; iron cauldrons (probably fromChina) a nd rools, a sword /mache te a ndknife; bronze gongs, fish hooks, mirrors, adisk, pos sib le l amp , c overed box , a ndweighing scale; and Chinese coins includingone dating to 1403-24. Some of these itemswere probably for use by theship s crew andpassengers. The cargo also included thousands of glass beads, some of which werestored within stoneware jars for transport.This ship also had two small copper-alloy cannons, though these may have been for socialdisplay purposes as they would not have been effective weapons.

Shipwrecks are also known from elsewhere in the archipelago. Near southern Balabacare the remains of two ships conta ining Song mater ia ls , though only porce la in andstoneware sherds, and corroded iron were recovered as the site had been extensivelylooted. Remains of fourteenth-fIfteenth-century Chinese junks have been found off theshores of Zambales and Busuanga near northern Palawan. A shipwreck off the PuertoGalera coast of Mindoro contained M.ing period tradewares, and o n e o f f of the southwestcoast of Marinduque yielded possible Swatow tradewares of the late Ming period(sixteenth century).

While rradewares were clearly the dominant inlports, cargo remains together withcontemporary accounts indicate the importation of other types of goods including thosenot archaeologicaUy recoverable (or that could be sourced as foreign), such as silks andother textiles, lacquerware and wine. Iron and glass were probably imported objects thatwere subject to reworking. In exchange for these foreign goods, Philippine polities offereda range of items, most of which, because of their perishable nature, are primarily knownfrom Chinese and Spanish descriptions. They included forest products such as resins,aromatic woods, rattan and beeswax, textiles of cotton and other plant fIbers, unwovencot ton, gol d, a nd mar ine p roduct s such as pearls, beche-de-mer (sea cucumber),tortoiseshell, and bird s nests.

Complementing the maritinle finds are numerous settlements and mortuary remainsfrom various polit ies located throughout the archipelago. That numerous complex


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ELISABETH A. BACUS

discove re d was a n i n t h ~ t e n t h c entury Middle Easte rn polyc hrome glass jarlet. Otherremains indicate the practice of various crafting activities at Buman, including weaving indicated by spindle whorls), wood working indicated by the presence of wooden toolsand animal figures), glass working,and metal working. Glass bead working or reworking issuggested by the presence of incomplete glass beads in various stages of manufacture, and ofmulticolored drippings in some of the crucibles. The presence of m or e t ha n 10 0 claycrucibles, together with wooden tools, iron slag, lea d waste a nd worke d a nd unworke dgold fragments indicate the working of various metals. Some of the products may haveincluded iron adzes, blades, knives, points and tangs; bronze basins, bells, cymbals, earpendants, dishes, gongs and mirror mountings; and gold buckles, ear ornaments and rings.S uc h ite ms we re rec overed a t Butua n, a lthough some may have be en imports.

Whether c ra ft production at Butua n was conducted by full-time specialists or parttime specialists is not yet known. Archaeological and histo.t: ic evidence from elsewhere inthe archipelago e.g., Cebu Manila, Dumaguete, Tanjay) suggests that at least some naftproduction was under e lite c ontrol a nd this may have also been the c ase a t Butua n. Thelocation of a gold source n this a re a may be one reason for the existence of such a largesettlement. Butuan s ability to offergold ore and craft goods would have certainly made itattractive to local and foreign traders alike.

Food remains have also been recovered from the Butuan midden, indicatinga range ofhunting and fishing techniques. Among the remains were marine and brackish shellfishspecies, bones of other marine animals such as sharks and sea turtles, and remains of pig,deer and domestic chicken. Bone and shell materials were crafted into implements suchas squid lures, shell sinkers and awls, as well as into bracelets, pendants and rings.Evidence of mortuary activities at Butuan a pp ea rs i n l at er p er io ds . F ou r b ur ia ls ,tentatively dated to the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries, were accompanied by numerousgrave goodsincluding porcelainbowls, saucers, water droppers and shell bracelets. Woodencoffins appear somewhat later, and are associated with fifteenth-si..xteenth century blue andwhiteporcelains, earthenwares, goldjewelery, a bronze gong, andwooden and stone tools.

A l ar ge s et tl em en t w as d ev el op in g s ub se qu en t t o B ut ua n in t he Man il a area. A tS pa nish c onquest, Manila was one of the most importa nt inte rna tiona l tra de c ente rswithin the archipelago. t may have a cted as an e nt re po t f ro m which imported goodsw er e t he n u se d i n e xc ha ng e r el at io ns with smaller polities in the archipelago.22 Th eentrance to the port h ad a wooden palisade, and was defended by warriors and cannonslalltakas . T hi s c om pl ex polity, p ro bab ly ak in in s om e aspects to m ar it im e stateselsewhere Island Southeast Asia e.g., the earlier kingdom of Srivijaya in Sumatra), wasruled by a paranlOunt chiefwho expressed aspects of Muslim identity, as indicated by histit le a nd name, Ra ja h S oliman. His residential c omplex within a fortified se ttlement nM an il a was d es cr ib ed b y t he S pa ni sh as very large a nd c ontaining valua bles suc h asmoney, porcelain, copper, iron, and \Va.x; that is both inlporte d goods a nd loc al goodsu se d i n e xc ha ng e. A dj ac en t t o the h ou se was a s tr uc tu re in w hi ch w er e s to re d i ro n,copper and cannons, as well as clay and wa.x molds and unfinished cannons, suggestingthat this paramount chief directly controlled their production.

Th e site of Manila was oc cupie d by a t lea st the eleventh century, as e vidence d by asettlement mound underlying Santa Ana church.23 A t hi ck m id de n d ep os it within themound contained sherds of trade\vares and earthenwares, shells, and bones of pig, de erand water buffalo, as well as huma n buria ls. Metal c ra fting was a lso e ngaged in a t thissettlement with one area yielding large quantities of iron slag.

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T H E P H I LI P P IN E A R CH I PE LA G O

Approxima te ly 300 buria ls have bee n e xc avated from various loc ations within theSanta Ana area. Of the burials from the churchyard area, 202 were accompanied by morethan 1,500 tradewares from the Song to Yuan/early Ming dynasties i.e., late eleventh-fourteenth centuries). Most of the later period blue and white porcelains were associatedwith burials located to the north of those with earlier tradewares, indicating expansion oft he c em et er y o ve r t im e. Other grave accompaniments, with a sma ller number ofprimarily later period burials, included decorated earthenware vessels, glass a nd stonebeads, metal ornaments, iron and bronze implements, bone artifacts, clay spindle whorls,clay net sinkers, and three eleventh-century Chinese coins. Th e differential distributionof grave goods suggests that various social identities, probably including statuses, weree xpre ssed through mortuary ritua l. W ithin the inne r c hurc h c ourtyard were a nother78 burials, including some of individuals who had undergone the practice of teeth filingsometime during their life. Accompanying these burials were eleventh-fifteenth centurytradewares, spindle whorls, net weights, iron knives, bronze jewelery and animal bones.Some of the ceramic vessels contained grain or seeds. Nails a round the e dges of theburials suggested placement in coffins. Interestingly, infants and children appear to havebeen segregated n death; 19 child burials, accompanied by 170 late Song rradewares andone b y a d og , w er e f ou nd in a n a re a south of the c hurc hyard. S ome were burie d with asubstantial number of the tradewares, suggesting social differences among children, atleast as expressed by the participants in the respective mortuary ceremonies.A lo ng L ag un a d e Bay a s et tl em en t a nd b ur ia l s ite present-day Pinagbayanan24 74 kilometre s from Manila, a nd a round 10 kilometre s from the loc ation of the c oppe rp la te i ns cr ip ti on ), c on te mp or ar y w it h San ta A na , s ho ws s om e of the varia bili ty inmortuary pra ctic es tha t e xisted in different polities during the protohistoric period.While t he ar ea m ay have b ee n Llsed for the buria l of a few individua ls in the late firstmillennium AD, i n t he e le ve nt h- tw el ft h c en tu ri es it was used as a c em et er y forinhunla tion buria l. Although with few tra ce s of skeletal remains, 174 excavated burialswere accompanied by early Song porcelain vessels, earthenware vessels, spindle whorls,iron bladesand other implements, gold ornaments, bronze objects i.e. bowl, disk, mirrorand ornaments), beads, net sinkers, coins, fragments of glass bottles, potte ry disks a nd aglass bracelet. One type of butial practice involved the bundling of the cotpse cogethetwith grave goods in some type of matting. The n o n ~ m o r t u r y context of metal slag inthis area suggests that part of the settlement overlapped with the cemetery.

Mortuary practices changed significantly in t he f ol lo win g p er io d, a ro un d thethirteenth fourteenth c enturie s, with c remation a ppe aring as the primary form oftreatment of the dead. Of the 55 burials, 50 were cremated, \vith 38 placed in vessels and12 in pits. Vessels containing cremated remains ranged from a small, brown four-eared ja rto large, brown stonewarejars, the latter being the most corrunon. Other than the vesselsin which they were placed, most of the cremations lacked grave goods, though somewereaccompanied by additional tradevnre vessels. A crematory complex was also uncovered atPinagbayanan. Made of lateric materia l, this t h r e e ~ c h m e r e d structure containedcharcoal and other evidence of burning. S ma ller basins, possibly for burning onlydisarticulated skeletal remains, were also found. Above one such basin was a cremationburial n a brown spherical jar.Settlement evidence is m or e a bu nd an t f ro m t hi s p er io d a t P in ag ba ya na n, t ho ug hpossibly of shortduration. Postholes and pit features, along \vith sherds, net sinkers somewith a pha llic sha pe ) a nd the remains of pig and horse comprised the habitation remains.

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though Cebu also imported gold from places such as Thailand; pearls which Morosfrom Luzon and Mindoro received in exchange for their gold and rice; cotton textiles forexport to China and elsewhere; and silver. The latter may have been a Spanish-periodtrade item.

On the nearby of island of Negros, twO smaller chiefly polit ies - Dumaguete andTanjay- are known to have been contemporary with Cebu. The former was centered atDumaguete27 (referred to as the Yap site) and dates from at least the eleventh century tothe fifteenth to sLxteenth centuries. Elite residential structures are known f rom theeleventh and fifteenth to sixteenth cenUlries. The earliest elite residential structures herewere ones associated with an extensive midden yielding glass beads, plain and decoratedearthenware sherds, iron fragments, and possibly glazed Asian tradewares. The continuedpresence of e li te individua ls at Dumaguete in the twe lf th to fourteenth centuries issuggested by similar artifact classes including the presence of porce la ins, and in thefifteenth to sixteenth centuries by a large residential structure, and possibly others,associated with similar cultural materiaL

The Yap site, the political center of the Dumaguete polity, appears to have extendedalong the coast for atleast 1 kilometre and inland for at least 0.5 kilometre in the fifteenthto sixteenth centuries, \ ith other settlements of this poliry distributed a lit tle furtherinland. This linear coastal arrangement, similar t o Cebu but on a smallerscale, appears tohave been t he more common of two settlement configurations of political centersdescribed at initial Spanish contact. The other comprised compact nucleated villagesfound only in a few areassuch as Manila. Rice cultivation may have occurred in the area,as suggested by the presence of carbonized rice remains in local earthenware pottery.Mortuary remains of a single burial (accidentally uncovered during constructionactivities) from within the Yap sett lement lend support to interpreting it as a politicalcente r by the fif teenth to sixteenth cemury. The burial consisted of a l og cof fincontaining glazed ceramic vessels among other items. Though only tlle log coffin wassaved from looting, the type of buria l and the nature of the mortuary goods appearssimilar to those described in early historic accounts of interring high ranking chiefs inboat coffins .

The Dumaguete polity participated in internationally-connected exchange relations,as indicated by the presence of tradewares from China, Thailand and possibly Viemarn.These ceramics may have been acquired through Dumaguete's direct engagement inlong-distance trade relations with China and Mainland Southeast Asian states, either bysending trading vessels, or recei ,, ;ng foreign ships, through exchange and otherinterac tions (e.g. raiding) with pol it ie s in the a rchipe lago. However , such Asiantradewares were restricted in their distribution within the polity. n y the chiefly centerhas evidence of Thai earthenwares and glazed ceramics of the twelfth-thirteenthcenturies. During later periods, glazed ceramics continued to be present at the center butalso appeared at several other settlements, including ones possibly occupied by lesser eliteindividuals (Figure 11.12). Such a restricted distribution suggests they were items ofwealth used as prestige goods within the polity, at least prior to the sL,>:teenth century,or that they were specific markers of elite status. In the sixteenth century, porcelainsbegin to appear at smaller, presumably non-elite occupiedsitessuggestinga change in thevalue of tradewares or direct elite---commoner relations.Dumaguete's exchange activities also involved plain and decorated eanhenware vesselsproduced within the archipelago; the decorated vessels may have been locally-made

TH E PHILIPPINE ARCHIPELAGO

ff. ,-:: : i.\ i: j do em

c

b

o,

ELISABETH A. BACUS

elite may have nonetheless controlled the distribution of iron goods. Crafting of decoratedhilts for iron knives/daggers, as evidenced by pieces of carved antler (some in the sameshape as those found on hilts from burial come:\'tS), also took place. The elite apparentlycontrolled the entire production sequence fat crafting iron knives/dagger (Figure 11.11);these items may have been llsed intra-archipelago exchange. Given the evidence for theelite control of exchange activities, it is possible that theyalso controlled the production ofgoods valued as exchange items. Textile fragments (cotton or abaca) have also beenrecovered from Cebu burials (ofapproximately the tenth cemury and fourteenth-fifteenthcentury), although evidence of cloth production has not yet been found.Excavations at Cebu have also yielded locally-made valuables such as gold je\:velery, acopper r ing, clay and glass beads, and glass and shell bracelets frolll fourteenth-midfifteenth century burial and habitation deposits. Their association with elite residentialstructures and elite controlled activities suggest they were elite scams items or prestigegoods.

Archaeological evidence provides lit tle indication of t he goods or resourcesoriginating from t he Cebu poliry for export. However, six:teenth century accountsprovidesome information on items exported or re-exported from Cebu. These includedgold, unspecified form, which \yas exchanged with Chinese and other foreign traders,

igur 11.11 Iron daggers: a, from Burial 2 at site LA in Cebu City; b, from Argao, Cebu withshell inlay in the handle; c-f, worked bone and antler for use as inlays the hilts ofiron knives and, daggers. From Hurterer 1973: Fig. 2. Reprinted with permission ofSan Carlos University Press.

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Political relations among the archipelago s polities, including Dumaguete, may haveentailed elite alliances marked by shared decorative styles. Analyses of several protohistorice ar thenwa re styles sugge st the y w er e pa rt of elite symbolism, and nOt items whosesimilarities and inter-island distributions can be explained by movement of the vesselsthemselves.

C ra ft g oo ds w er e also p ro du ce d w it hi n t he D um ag ue te p ol it y a nd s uc h a ct iv it iesprobably occurred at the household level. Evidence of pottery production occurred in allperiods of occupation at the center, some of which took place within the elite residentialareas. Both pla in a nd dec or ated vessels w er e produce d, a nd the vessel sha pe s includedglobular pors probably cooking vessels and various types of bowls. One other site withinthe polity also yielded evidence of the production of plain and decorated earthenwarevessels. Most of these were globular cooking pars or storage vessels, with bowls poorlyrepresented. Interestingly, local decorated earthenwares appear to have bee n limited int he ir d is tr ib ut io n s ug ge st in g r es tr ic te d access a nd t he ir use as w eal th i tem s. I ro nproduction also occurred at Yap during all periods of occupation. The specialized skillsand knowledge required for iron production, and its occurrence within elite residentialareas, suggest it was a specialized craft under chiefly elite control, as at eebu. Around thesixteenth century, one other settlement may have also engaged in iron production withinthe polity. The types of iron goods produc e d w ithin the Dumageute polity are no t yetknown.

The Tanjay polity,28 with irs chiefly center located in what is now the present town ofTanjay, dates also from at least the eleventh century t o t he fifteenth-si..xteenth centuries.During this time the center expandedfrom 3 5 to 30 50 hectares in size. The patterningof settlements within the region suggests an hierarchical organization, and one tha tby thelater period was r e giona lly- integr ate d f or e ff ic ie nt c oastal-inte r ior tr anspor t ofmanufactured goods and possible forest products for use in more intensive participationin external trade. As with other polities of this period, the earliest Tanjay tradewares datef rom the twe lf th to fourteenth centuries, indicating direct or indirect participation inforeign trade. Tanjay s, as well as Cebu s and Dumaguete s, access to or participation inf or eign tra de inc re ased through the protohistor ic per iod. Suc h tra de wa re s occ urr e d inhigher densities more at elite residences in Tanjay than at non-elite residences, providingfurther evidence for porcelain vessels as items of prestige. Within the polity, porcelainswere also restricted in their distribution, and may have been involved in elite-restrictedexchanges. Tanjay also engaged in intra-archipelago exchanges with the center receivingdecorated earthenwares produced in or near Kaulungan Island off the w est c oa st ofMindanao.

Tanjay also produced earthenware pottery and iron goods, possibly all for use at t hecenter or w it hi n t he p oli ty. P ot te ry m ak in g a nd m et al w or ki ng of iron a nd possiblybronze) tOok p la ce w it hi n e li te c on te xt s, s ug ge st in g it was an e li te- sp oI lS or ed orcontrolled craft at Tanjay as well. The upland distribution of a standardized earthenwaretype from Tanjay, and possibly indicative of a presence of full-time pottery specialists,suggests it may have been a n ite m e xc ha nge d f or those f ore st products a nd ore s use d byc hief s in f or eign tra de . Within the polity, one fifteenth to sixteenth century settlementalso produced evidence of iron extraction and smelting activities. Tanjay s elite may alsohave sponsored production of high status decorated earthenwares. These wares, alongw ith metal objec ts a nd glass beads, appear to have be en loc al pre stige goods w ithin thepolity.

THE PHIL IPP INE ARCHIPELAGO

Survey r:>100 Meters

I

BACONG

U nt o Si te

\

~ m a g e ~ ~

Lq :?km

igllr 11.12 i s t r i ~ t i o n .ofglazed tradeware ceramics within the Dumaguete polity. The Yap siteexcavabon Ylelded glazed tradewares frOI11 the twelfth and thirteenth to fifteenth andsixteenth centuries. Sites marked \vith squares yielded fourteemh and fifteenthcentury tradewares and sites marked with triangles yielded fifteenth to seventeenthcenturies trade\vares.

ELISABETH A. BACUS

prestige items. Exchanges involving earthenware vessels, though o y in small numbers,occurred between Dumaguete and Tanjay, Siquijor island, and the Manila area. Beads.also found only at the center, presumably entered through exchange. Whether theseforeign i t e ~ 1 S is not yet known. Both Butuan and Manila have produced evidence for glassbead working, suggesting the possibility that the glass beads from the twelfth to fourteenthcenturies occupation at Yap could have been produced within the archipelago.

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ELISABETH A. BACUS

278

Early hunter-gatherersFox, R. (1970) TI,e Tabol/ Caves Manila: National Museum of the ~ h i l . i p p i n e . s . .Hutterer, K. (1985) The Pleistocene archaeology of Southeast ASIa n regiOnal perspective ,

Nlodem Quaternary Research ll Southeast Asia 9: 1-23. atinis, K. (1996) Prehistoric lithic technology, workshops, and chipp1l1g stattons 10 thePhilippines , Asian Perspeaives 35: 27-50. . .Mudar, K. (1997) Panems of animal utilization in the Holocene of the Philippmes: a compansonof faunal samples from four archaeological sites , Asiml P e r s p e a j ~ 3 ~ : 6 ~ : - 1 0 5 : .Thiel, B. (1990) Excavations at Musang Cave, northeast Luzon, Phihppmes SIaI i PerspeallJes28: 61-81. 5Tuggle, H. and Hutterer, K. cds (1972) Archaeology rlle Soll l1 Area cif SOl1rhll esrem a JlarPhilippilles. Lcyte-Salllar Swdies 6 2).

Select BibliographyIntroduction and publications relating to several periods.Bellwood, (1997) Prehistory cifrhe Illdo-Malaysian Archipelago. Chapter 6. Honolulu: Universiry of

Hawai i Press.Casal, G., Jose, R., Jr., Casino, E., Ell is, G., and W ?olheim 1 9 ~ 1 . TIle ~ e o p l ~ alld An thePhilippilles. Los Angeles: Museum of Cultural HistOry, Umverslry of C a ~ l f o r ~ l a . . .\Vemstedt and Spencer,]. (1967) TIle PlIilippilie Islalld World. Berkeley: UllIverslry ofCahforl1laPress.

279

NeolitJricBellwood, P., Stevenson, J.. Ander son, A. and Di zon, E. ~ 0 0 3 A r c h a e o l o ~ c a lpalaeoenvironmental research Batanes and Boeos Norte Provrnces, northern Philippmes .

BlIlIerill cif tile indo-Pacific Prehistory Associatioll 23: 141--61.

THE PHILIPP INE ARCHIPELAGO

incised red-slipped pottery with strong southeastern Taiwan affinities on the island of Batan.The Batan sites are buried by deep layers of volcanic ash. These new ~ ~ g a y a n .valleyBatanes sites appear to mark the beginning of a red-slipped pottery.tradltlon which rapIdlyspread south, about 1500--1000 e t ~ r o l l g h the P ~ p p i n e s and mto Sabah and ~ a s t e n ~Indonesia, emerging in the western PaCIfic as the Laplta cultural complex. Some of thIS newmaterial is illustrated in chapter 2.12 Hutterer 1986.13 Fox 1970.14 Thiel 1990; Peterson 1974.15 Dizon 1993.16 Tenazas 1974.17 Bacus 1997.18 Burton 1977; Clark, Green, Vosmer and Santiago 1993; Ronquillo 1987.

19 Loviny 1996.20 POS01l3 1991.21 BurroI 1997; Ronquillo 1987.22 Peralta and Salazar 1974.23 Fox and Legaspi 1977.24 Tenazas 1968.25 Fox 1959.26 Nishimuara 1992; Hutterer 1973.27 Bacus 1999.28 Junker 1999.

Figure 11.13 Burials of a fifteenth or sixteenthcentury mass grave at Tanjay. (E. A. Bacus.)

NotesI Wernstedt and Spencer 1967.2 Casal Jose, Jr., Casino, Ellis and Solheim II 1981.3 Fox 1970.4 Thiel 1990.5 Tuggle. and Hlltterer eds 1972; Mlldar 1997.6 Snow, Shutler, Nelson, Vogel and Southon 1986.7 Peterson 1974.8 Ogawa 1993.9 Peterson 1974.10 Fox 1970.

Ne \vevidence for me eolithic in the northern Philippines, conting to light as this chapter ispublished, includes red-slipped, dentate scamped and lime-infLlled pottery from beneath theshell mound of Nagsabaran the Cagayan Valley, and a widespread horizon of stamped and

Tanjay may have been the target ofviolent raiding or warfare i n th e fifteenthto sixteenth centuries. Nine of a total of17 excavated burials) appear t o have beeninterred in a single-event mass grave(Figure 11.13). These individuals wereaccompanied by five human crania, possibly heads of enemy individuals caprured raiding or warfare. Visayan societies werenoted to have engaged in such activities byChinese chroniclers, which may haverepresented alternative strategies for acq ui ri ng t he f or ei gn a nd local goodsnecessary for engaging in maritime tradeand hence in th e maintenance. politically and economically, of th e ruling elite and thei rpolities.

The archaeological record summarized here, together with Chinese and early Spanishaccounts , indicates that the pro toh is tor ic complex polities of th e Phil ippines sharedcommonalities, bu t also varied in their sociopolitical, ideological and economic natures.Th e long-term processes l eading to the formation of these polities, as well as t o t he irindividual historical trajectories, are not clearly understood; and more research is neededon all periods of Philippine pre and proto-history. That the initial development of suchpolit ies was no t a s impl e r es ul t of trade alone is clear on both theoretical andarchaeological grounds from polities such as Tanjay. At the same t ime, fore ign goods - asprestige goods, elite s tatus i tems, mortuary necessities, were clearly important for themaintenance and reproduction of lowland polities a nd the ir predecessors. They alsoimpacted upon other societies with whom these polities interacted in the archipelago:hunter-gatherer groups and conU11Unities based on swidden agriculture. none of whichare well-known archaeologically. Th e contex tS i n whi ch trade for s uch goods had longbee n c onduct ed w it hi n t he Phi li pp in e archipelago, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia,ultim..ately collided with a system of trade undertaken by an expanding European capitalistsystem. With this came the establishment of Spanish colonial rule, which consequently ledto transformations among the diverse range of societies of the Philippine Islands.


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ELISABETH A. BACUS

Ogawa , H. (1993) Lal -Io she ll m iddens on t he l ower Cagayan River , Northern Luzon,Philippines . Japall Society for Southeast Asiall Archaeology 13: 64-66.Pererson, W (1974) Summary report of twO archaeological sires from northeastern Luzon ,Archaeology and Physical Amhropology ill Oceania 9: 26-35.Snow, B., Shutler. R. elson, D., Vogel,j. and Sourhon ]. (1986) Evidence of early rice in thePhilippines , Philippine Quarterly of CI/lture alld Society] 4: 3-11.Spr iggs , M. (1989) The dating of t he is land Sou thea st As ian Neo li th ic : an anempt atchronometric hygiene and linguistic correlation , Amiquity 63: 587-613.Spriggs, M. (1999) Archaeological dates and linguistic subgroups in the senlemen( of the IslandSoutheasrAsian-Pacific region , Illdo.Pacific Prehistory: The Allelaka Papers, Vol 2. Bulletill cifrheIlldo-Pacific Prehistory Associatioll 18; 17-24.

Emergent complexityBacus, E. (1997) Th e Unto site: excavat ions at a lare fIrSt millennium lie and mid-secondmilletmium AD habitation site in southeast Negros island , Asian Perspectives 36: 106-141.Dizon, E. (1993) Maguindanao prehistory: Focus on the archaeology of rhe anthropomorphicponeries at Pinol, Mairum, South Cotabato, Mindanao, Philippines . l\ ariollal Nfl/sew Papers4 1-21.Fox, R. (1979) The Philippines during the first millennium Be in R. Smi th and W Watson(eds) Early Solllh East Asia, pp. 227-241, New York: O:...-ford University Press.Hurterer, K. (1986) A balance of trade: rhe social nature oflate pre-Hispanic Philippines , theFirst Annual Hart Collection Lecture, DeKalb: orthem lllinois University.Tenazas, R. (1974) A progress report on the Magsuhot excavations in Bacong, Negros Oriental,summer 1974 . Philippine Quarterly of Culture alld Society 2: 133-55.Thiel, B. (1989) Excavarions at the Lal-lo shellmiddens, Nonheas[ Luzon, Philippines , Asia

Perspecti es 27: 71-94.Thiel, B. (1990) Excavarions ar Arku cave, norcheast Luzon, Philippines , Asiall PerspectilJes 27:229-263.

Lowland complex polities and maritime tradeBacus, E. (1999) Prestige and potency; political economies of protohisroric Visayan polities , inE. Bacus a nd Lucero (cds) Complex Polities ill the Allcielll Tropical ,,yorld, pp. 67-87.Archaeological Papers of rhe Ameri can Anthropolog ic al Assoc ia ti on o. 9. Arl ington ;American Anrhropological Association.Blair, E. and Robertson j. (eds) (190:Hl7) TIle Philippille 1slollds, 1493 1803 50 vols, Cleveland,

The Arthur H. Clark Company.Bunon L. (1977) Setdemem and burial sKes in Butuan City: a pre liminary repon PllIJippilleStl/dies 23: 95-112.Clark, P. Green, j Vosmer, T. and Santiago, R. (1993) The Butuan Two boa t known as abalallgay in the Narional Museum, Manila, Philippines , The Il1temariot1alJoumal cif Nal/rical

Archaeology alld U dem arer Exploratioll 22; 143-59.Fox, R. (1939) Th e Calatagan excavations: twO f if teenrh century buria l sires in Batangas,Phibppines , PhifljJpifle Srudies 7; 325-90.Fox, R. and Legaspi , A. (1977) EXCQllQtioll5 Of Sama Alia, Manila; National MuseumPublications.Huttcrer, K. (1973) All Archaeological Piallre cif a Pre-Spallish Ceb1fal1o COJl1l11lllliry Cebu City:University of San Carlos.Hutterer, K. (1986) A balance of trade: the social nature of late pre-Hispanic Philippines , rheFirst Annual Han Collection Lecture, DeKalb: Nortllern illinois University.Junker, L. (1999) Raiding, nadillg, and Feastiflg: TIle Political Economy of PllilipP;/Ie Chiefdoms,Honolulu; University of Hawai i Press.Loviny, C. (1996) TIle Pearl Road: Tales i Ti-easure Ships, Philippines: Asiatype, [nc and ChristopheLoviny.

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THE PHILIPP INE ARCHIPElAGO

ishimura, M. (1992) Long distance trade and the development of complex socie ties in theprehisrory of the Centra l Phi lippines: The Cebu Central Set tl emen t Case , Ph.D.disserration, University of Michigan.Peralta, and Salazar, L. (1974) Pre-Spallis1l1\1allila: A RecollStmctioll of the Pre-History i Malli/a,Manila: National Historical Commission.Postma, A. (1991) Th e Laguna-copper plate inscription: a valuable Philippine documenr ,Bulletin cifthe llldo-Pacific Prehistory Association 11: 161-71.Ronquillo, W. J 987) The Butuan archaeological finds: profound i m ~ l i t i o n s for PhilippineandSoutheast Asian prehistory , A1all and ClIltlIre ill Oceallia 3 SpeCIal Issue): 7 ~ ~ .SCOtt W. (1984) Written Records , in Prehispalljc Source .Materia s for rhe Swdy of PllIlJppllle Hl5rory,pp. 63-90. Quezon City: New Day Publishers.Tenazas, R. (1968) A R ep or t on the archaeology of the Locsin-University of San CarlosExcavations in Pila, Laguna, Manila , unpublished manuscripL

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SOUTH ST SIrom pr history to history

dited by an lover and Peter ellwood

outledge urzonaylor rancis roupON ON N NEW YOR


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First published in 200by RoutledgeCurzon2 Park Square Milton Park Abingdon Oxfordshire OX 14 tRNSimultaneously published in the USA and Canadaby RoutiedgeCurzon29 West 35th Street. New York NY 1 1

ROl lledge urzoll is all imprim Ihe Thylor Francis Group2 4 Edirorial maner and selection Ian Glover and Peter Bellwood;individual chapters the contributors

Typeset in Bembo by LaserScript Ltd Mitcham SurreyPr imedand bound in Great Bri ta in byTJ International Ltd. Padstow Cornwall

ll rights reserved No part of this book may be reprinted orreproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronicmechanical or other means now known or hereafter inventedincluding photocopying and recording or in anyinformation storage or retrieval system without permission inwriting from the publishers.British IJbrar Cataloguing ill PublicatiolJ Data

catalogue record for this book is available from the British LibraryLibrary Congress Cataloging i l Publieatioll DataA catalog record for this book has been requested

ISBN {}-415-29777-X

CONTENTS

iS plalesList illllSlrario1/.5 iS lablesLise i comribworsForewordNDREW SHERR TT

IntroductionI N GLOVER ND PETER ELLWOOD

1 Southeast Asia: foundations for an archaeological historyPETER ELLWOOD ND I N GLOVER

2 The origins an d dispersals of agricultural cornrnunities inSoutheast AsiaPETER ELLWOOD

3 Mainland Southeast Asia from the Neolithic to th eIron ag eCH RLES HIGH M

4 Th e archaeology early c on ta ct w it h I nd ia a nd t heMediterranean World from th e fourth century Be t o t hefourth century ADERENICE ELLIN N D I N GLOVER

5 Pre Angkorian an d Angkorian CambodiaMIRIAM T. ST RK

6 Th e archaeology the early Buddhist kingdoms ThailandPH SOOKINDR WOOTH

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Bacus_2004- Archaeology of Philippine Archipelago