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This article was the subject of an educational assignment in 2014 Q1. Further details were available on the "Education Program:University of Washington/Archaeology of mainland southeast Asia (Spring 2014)" page, which is now unavailable on the wiki.

Location and Chronology

The Lang Kamnan Cave is located at 13°58′N and 99°25′E, and in a limestone upland near Tung Nagarat village, Kanchanaburi province, in western Thailand. It faces northeast and is about 110 m above sea level, it has a distance of 1 km access to underground water and 4 km to the Knwae Noi River in the lower area. The vegetation around it is a mixed-deciduous and dry dipterocarp forest along with a profusion of bamboo. ^[1]The chronology of the cave is defined into three periods: Late Pleistocene period, approximately from 27,000-10,000 BP, during which the life pattern was a combination of hunting and collection; Early Holocene period, dated from 10,000-7500 BP, with a similar occupation pattern to the late pleistocene period; Middle Holocene period, form 7500-2500 BP, during which the inhabitants were using ceramics, while the subsistence economic was still a co-existed hunting and collecting pattern.^[2]

Stone Artifacts

There were 874 stone artifacts recovered from the site, including utilized, wasted and resharpened cores, flakes and hammers. As the site is located near the river, raw materials were abundant^[why?] and could be locally procured. Due to the easily accessible organic material such as shells and bamboo, the lithic artifacts were made for immediate use with an expedient technology, resulting in rough manufacturing and unregulated shapes. Stone artifacts broken from the procedure were recovered from the site, indicating that the artifact-manufacturing and maintenance activities were carried out on-site. According to usage^{[needs copy edit]}, different stone artifacts can be distinguished as flakes for common use, utilized cores for heavy duties, and utilized flakes for light duties.^[3]

Faunal Remains

The faunal remains contain bones of mammals and reptiles of various^[quantify] taxa and sizes. Animal bones include various{{quantify} types of deer, cattle and rodents. Reptile remains include lizards, snakes and turtles. Freshwater mollusks and terrestrial snails were also found in the assemblage. The bones uncovered contained a high^[quantify] level of breakage and were difficult to identify. The majority^[quantify] of the unidentified bones were limb elements of medium sized animals. The identifiable taxa inhabit various types of habitats including forests-wooded, dense, highland, bamboo-swamps/riverines^{[needs copy edit]} and could be found in present-day western Thailand. ^[4]^[5]

Archaeological significance

The faunal remains contained a high diversity of taxa, indicating that generalized subsistence procurement was carried on at the site. The prehistoric foragers hunted a variety of species and exploited locally-available resources. The strategies utilized include encounter hunting and collecting in various habitats of bamboo, dry dipterocarp, open deciduous forests and riverine areas. The site might have only been occupied for a short period of time because of the low density of the faunal assemblages. The presence of snail and mollusk remains that thrive in wet conditions suggests that the foragers occupied the site during wet seasons.^[6] Chester Gorman’s excavation at Spirit Cave also indicates that a wide variety of faunae was exploited by Hoabinhians^[7]. The faunal assemblage consisted of bats, rats, lemurs, langur monkeys, macaques, gibbons, weasels, otters, Asian bears, mongooses, cats, hares, squirrels, porcupines, suids, cervids, muntjaks, cyprinid fish and various jungle birds. The assortment of species suggest a similar general procurement strategy associated with Lang Kamnan Cave. While Gorman originally classified Hoabinhians as a techno-complex^{[citation needed]}, the Lang Kamnan Cave excavations helped^[how?] to identify it as an industry.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b Shoocongdej R 2010 Subsistence-Settlement Organization during the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene: The Case of Lang Kamnang Cave, Western Thailand. In: B Bellina, EA Bacus and TO Pryce (eds). 50 Years of Archaeology in Southeast Asia: Essays in Honour of Ian Glover. River Books, Bangkok
^ Shoocongdej, R. (2000). Forager mobility organization in seasonal tropical environments of western Thailand. World Archaeology, 32(1), 14-40
^ Shoocongdej, R. (2000). Forager mobility organization in seasonal tropical environments of western Thailand. World Archaeology, 32(1), 14-40.
^ Shoocongdej R 2010 Subsistence-Settlement Organization during the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene: The Case of Lang Kamnang Cave, Western Thailand. In: B Bellina, EA Bacus and TO Pryce (eds). 50 Years of Archaeology in Southeast Asia: Essays in Honour of Ian Glover. River Books, Bangkok. 50-65
^ Peregrine, P. N. (Ed.). (2001). Encyclopedia of Prehistory: Volume 3: East Asia and Oceania. Springer. 71-76
^ Shoocongdej R 2010 Subsistence-Settlement Organization during the Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene: The Case of Lang Kamnang Cave, Western Thailand. In: B Bellina, EA Bacus and TO Pryce (eds). 50 Years of Archaeology in Southeast Asia: Essays in Honour of Ian Glover. River Books, Bangkok. 50-65
^ Gorman C, 1971 The Hoabinhian and After: Subsistence Patterns in Southeast Asia during the Late Pleistocene and Early Recent Periods. World Archaeology 2: 300-20