Ban Chiang, Northeast Thailand, Volume 2A : : Background to the Study of the Metal Remains / / ed. by Elizabeth G. Hamilton, Joyce C. White.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter EBOOK PACKAGE COMPLETE 2018 English
• MitwirkendeR: Hamilton, Elizabeth G.,; Muhly, James,; White, Joyce C.,
• HerausgeberIn: Hamilton, Elizabeth G.,; White, Joyce C.,
• Place / Publishing House: Philadelphia : : University of Pennsylvania Press, , [2018]; ©2018
• Year of Publication: 2018
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (296 p.) :; 27 illus.

The emergence and adoption of metallurgy is one of the seminal topics of investigation in the history of archaeology, particularly in the history of archaeological research in Southeast Asia. The site of Ban Chiang, Thailand, is a central site in debates surrounding the chronology and significance of early metallurgy in the region. This book is the first in a series of four volumes that review the contributions of Ban Chiang and three related sites in northeast Thailand excavated by the Penn Museum to an understanding early metallurgy in Thailand.As the study of archaeometallurgy is a complex topic that draws on numerous technical and social science disciplines, this introductory volume presents in several chapters the background needed to assess the metal and related evidence presented in the subsequent volumes in this series. A history of perspectives on the role of metals in ancient societies generally and Southeast Asia, specifically, is provided. Other chapters debunk the conventional paradigm for understanding metals and society and provide current theoretical perspectives and new paradigms for the study of ancient metals. The geological basis for the presence and location of metal ore resources in the region is reviewed. The final chapter presents a technical overview of ways material properties of ancient metals may be studied. While providing a background to the study of metals at Ban Chiang, the volume also reviews, synthesizes, and repositions the method and theory for the study of archaeometallurgy generally.Thai Archaeology Monograph Series 2A; University Museum Monograph 149

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Dedication -- Contents -- Figures -- Tables -- Contributors -- Foreword -- Preface -- 1. Ban Chiang, Northeast Thailand, and the Archaeology of Prehistoric Metallurgy -- 2. Ban Chiang, Ban Tong, Ban Phak Top, and Don Klang: Summary of Excavations and Sequences -- 3. Debunking the Conventional Paradigm: Metals and Prehistoric Society -- 4. The New Archaeometallurgy Paradigm -- 5. Metals in Economic Context -- 6. Geomorphology of Metal Resources in Mainland Southeast Asia -- 7. Chaînes Opératoires and the Study of Archaeological Metals -- Appendix: Glossary -- References -- Index