Village 10.8

Village 10.8 was discovered by chance during laterite mining activities for road construction. The site was reported to the Memot Centre in 2000. Surveys and excavations by the MCA took place in 2001, 2002, 2004 to 2006 and are continued.

The site is an Iron Age cemetery on a low river terrace near the Village 10.8 in the Krek rubber plantation, Krek District. Numerous broken and complete pots – often piled up -, several pieces of a small Dong Son drum, carnelian, garnet, agate and glass beads, glass earrings, bronze and iron ornaments, iron weapons, even with remains of fabric and spindle whorls, but only few stone tools were uncovered. Human bones are found only in small fragments inside iron bangles due to acidity of the laterite.

The dead were buried in a wooden trunk and put in a 50 – 80 cm deep burial pit, with the offerings inside and beside the coffin. The body was wrapped in fabrics and the coffin was lined with a mat.

Radiocarbon dating of the organic tempering of the potsherds put the four up-to-date distinguishable layers of the cemetery between 400 and 100 BC.

         Excavation at Village 10.8                      Ornaments from Village 10.8