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SUMMARY:The archaeobotany of Khao Sam Kaeo and Phu Khao Thong  - Cristina 
 Castillo\, UCL
DTSTART:20121022T150000Z
DTEND:20121022T160000Z
UID:TALK41132@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Jennifer Bates
DESCRIPTION:The Thai-Malay Peninsula lies at the heart of Southeast Asia. 
 Geographically\, the narrowest point is forty kilometres and forms a barri
 er against straightforward navigation from the Indian Ocean to the South C
 hina Sea and vice versa. This would have either led vessels to cabotage th
 e southernmost part of the peninsula or portage overland across the penins
 ula to avoid circumnavigating. The peninsula made easy crossing points str
 ategic locations commercially and politically. Early movements of people a
 long exchange routes would have required areas for rest\, ports\, repair o
 f boats and replenishment of goods. These feeder stations may have grown t
 o become entrepôts and urban centres. This study investigates the archaeo
 botany of two sites in the Thai-Malay Peninsula\, Khao Sam Kaeo and Phukha
 o Thong. Khao Sam Kaeo is located on the east whereas Phukhao Thong lies o
 n the west of the peninsula and both date to the Late Prehistoric period (
 ca. 400-200 BC). Khao Sam Kaeo has been identified as the earliest urban s
 ite from the Late Prehistoric period in Southeast Asia engaged in trans-As
 iatic exchange networks. There is evidence of craft specialisation and mat
 erial culture that links the site to India\, China and the rest of Southea
 st Asia. Phukhao Thong has similar material culture as Khao Sam Kaeo. The 
 purpose of examining the archaeobotanical results from Khao Sam Kaeo is to
  add to the understanding of how an early urban site with an active exchan
 ge network and specialised craft production would have supported itself. T
 he results provide insights into exchanged foodstuffs and the agricultural
  base that sustained the different communities at Khao Sam Kaeo: the local
  population\, temporary settlers and transient voyagers. The archaeobotany
  of Khao Sam Kaeo is compared to the contemporaneous site Phukhao Thong. P
 hukhao Thong lies closer to the Indian Ocean and has more Indian domestica
 tes in the assemblage. 
LOCATION:Seminar Room\, McDonald Institute for Archaeology\, Downing Site
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