Crossing Borders: Selected Papers from the 13th International Conference of the European Association of Southeast Asian Archaeologists

Chapter 12: Defining the Neolithic of Southern Vietnam: The Ceramics of An Sơn

143 Defining the Neolithic of Southern Vietnam Chapter 12 Defining the Neolithic of Southern Vietnam: The Ceramics of An Sơn Carmen Sarjeant Abstract The increase in archaeological research in recent years in southern Vietnam permits the inclusion of relevant sites from that region into the wider regional understanding of important cultural phenomena in mainland Southeast Asia. This paper considers the ceramic technology in relation to the appearance of rice cultivation, animal husbandry, ground and polished stone tools and related cultural signatures that are commonly associated with the “Neolithic” period. Comprehensive analyses have been conducted on the ceramics of An Sơn in southern Vietnam, and are ongoing. A study of ceramic form, decoration and fabric has been applied to comparative analyses of available material from other sites within the southern Vietnam region to uncover local and regional ceramic traditions. Beyond Long An province, the Neolithic ceramics of southern Vietnam were correlated with similar contemporaneous developments in other regions of Southeast Asia. While An Sơn shares ceramic affinities with a wider Neolithic expression in mainland Southeast Asia, there is also a distinct regional ceramic tradition in southern Vietnam, as well as unique local ceramics at An Sơn itself. This situation implies local innovation in addition to the expansion of cultivating groups during the Neolithic of Southeast Asia. An Sơn: A Neolithic Context in Southern Vietnam This paper considers the preliminary results of the ceramic analysis of the An Sơn assemblage, excavated in 2009. An Sơn is a mound site located on a natural terrace in the middle reach of the Vàm Cỏ Đông River in Long An province, southern Vietnam [Fig. 12.1]. Excavations and surveys in the region have revealed that the landscape was used during the Neolithic into the Metal Age. Neolithic occupation is evidenced at a number of sites in the Vàm Cỏ Đông and Đồng Nai river valleys. The An Sơn mound is around 170m in diameter, and 6m higher than the surrounding landscape. The mound is not in its original state as it has been modified by road and house cuttings, particularly at its western and southern edges. An Sơn was initially reported by Louis Malleret and Paul Levy (Malleret 1963: 94–5). The excavations began in 1978 at the top of the mound, and subsequent investigations took place in 1997 (Nishimura Masanari and Nguyễn Kim Dung 2002). A 2004 excavation focused on areas with burials beyond the eastern edge of the mound, and a small excavation unit was opened in 2007 in the same area. The Australian National University participated in the excavations of 2009 in collaboration with the Centre for Archaeological Studies of the Southern Institute of Social Sciences in Ho Chi Minh City. The three 2009 excavation trenches were positioned adjacent to the 2004 trenches, with the intention to uncover more extended burials. A small test square was also opened to the west of the mound. The radiocarbon dates for An Sơn [Table 12.1] suggest that the earliest occupation may have been between 2300 and 2150 cal. BC. The burials were cut from upper layers and dated to 1600 to 1150 cal. BC, from AMS dates of human tooth enamel, after which the site appears to have been mostly abandoned. 143 Crossing Borders hi res combined143 143 8/23/2012 7:45:41 PM 144 Carmen Sarjeant Fig. 12.1: Southern Vietnam with sites mentioned in the text (Illustration: C. Sarjeant). The lack of metal, the material culture, the presence of rice chaff temper and the radiocarbon dates suggest that An Sơn was contemporary with other sites in Southeast Asia that have been described as “Neolithic”. This paper addresses the ceramic assemblage of An Sơn, placing it within the wider regional understanding of Neolithic developments. Crossing Borders hi res combined144 144 8/23/2012 7:45:43 PM 145 Defining the Neolithic of Southern Vietnam Abbreviations: AS: An Sơn, H: Trench, L: Layer, M: Burial, ANU AMS: Australian National University Accelerator Mass Spectrometer, TKa: University of Tokyo Accelerator Mass Spectrometer, NZA: Rafter Accelerator Mass Spectrometer, Bln: Berlin. Table 12.1: Radiocarbon dates from all excavations at An Sơn Sample name Sample identifiMaterial δ 13 C % Modern 14 C Age OxCal 4.1, 95% cation number carbon (BP) cal. age (BC) An Sơn 2009 09 AS TS 230-240 AMS ANU 9709 residue on sherd...