Scientists Closer to Solving Plain of Jars Mystery

Scientists Closer to Solving Plain of Jars Mystery

A new group of human remains¹ has been uncovered on the Plain of Jars in Laos. They are believed to date back to the Iron Age, some 2,500 years ago.

The Plain of Jars is in the central Lao province of Xieng Khouang. The area covers hundreds of kilometers in which can be found thousands of ancient stone jars. They are grouped together at about 100 sites.

The Plain of Jars has been a puzzle to archaeologists—scientists who study prehistoric² people and their culture.

A joint³ research team from Australia and Laos found the remains.

Dougald O’Reilly teaches archaeology⁴ at Australian National University. He led the field work in Laos.

“This is one of the great enigmas⁵ of the Jars’ sites,” he said. “These massive stone jars – some of them weighing up to 10 metric tons, that have been dragged eight to 10 kilometers from a quarry⁶ site and set up in groups.”

Little is known about the people who made the jars. What did the jars hold? How and why did people place them where they did?

O’Reilly said a central question that needs to be answered is who created the stone jars. There are no known sites offering answers to the ethnicity and identity of the people who made them.

The latest field work uncovered an ancient burial ground in an area known as Site 1, in Xieng Khouang Province. It has more than 300 stone jars, stone discs and markers.

The scientists uncovered different burial methods. They include burial of whole bodies, the burying of bones grouped together, and bones placed inside ceramic⁷ vessels⁹ and then buried.

Louise Shewan of Monash University in Australia led one of the teams involved in the field work. Archaeologist Thonglith Luangkhoth, of the Lao Ministry¹⁰ of Information, Culture and Tourism, also led a research team.

Thonglith told Lao media the newly uncovered remains were found about eight kilometers from the center of Phonsavanh district.

“This discovery marks a significant milestone¹¹ since archaeological excavations¹² began in the area in the 1930s in collaboration¹³ with a French archaeologist,” he said.

Dougald O’Reilly said the researchers hope to get really good information from the find.

“With our research, because we’ve been able to uncover a fair amount of human bone – we’ve got seven burials and four probable burials with ceramic jars – so a total of 11 mortuary contexts.”

He said they are excited to have the opportunity to work at one of South East Asia’s more important—and probably least understood archaeological sites.

Scientists will do isotopic¹⁴ and chemical tests on the remains. They may provide information on the ethnicity of the people connected to the sites.

O’Reilly said it is possible that the Lao sites may be linked to similar jar sites in India.

The Australian Research Council is paying for the project. It will continue over five years with field work in Laos and some in northeastern India as well.

The effort may soon provide answers to one of Southeast Asia’s greatest cultural mysteries.

Words in This Story

jar -n. a vessel⁸ to hold something inside

mortuary –adj. of or relating to burial or death

quarry – n. place where large amounts of stone are dug out of the ground

ethnicity –n. a particular race or group of people who have a culture different from the main culture of a country

disc –n. a flat, thin, round object

burial –n. the act or ceremony of burying a dead person in a grave.

significant –adj. very important

isotope¹⁵ –n. any one of different forms in which the atoms of a chemical element can occur

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

3 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

4 archaeology   

n.考古学

参考例句：

• She teaches archaeology at the university.她在大学里教考古学。
• He displayed interest in archaeology.他对考古学有兴趣。

5 enigmas   

n.难于理解的问题、人、物、情况等，奥秘( enigma的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The last words of Night Haunter stand as one of the great enigmas of Imperial history. 暗夜幽魂最后的临死前的话成为了帝国历史上的最大谜团之一。 来自互联网
• Heraclitus saith well in one of his enigmas, Dry light is ever the best. 赫拉克里塔斯在他的隐语之一中说得很好，“干光永远最佳”。 来自互联网

6 quarry   

n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找

参考例句：

• Michelangelo obtained his marble from a quarry.米开朗基罗从采石场获得他的大理石。
• This mountain was the site for a quarry.这座山曾经有一个采石场。

7 ceramic   

n.制陶业，陶器，陶瓷工艺

参考例句：

• The order for ceramic tiles has been booked in.瓷砖的订单已登记下来了。
• Some ceramic works of art are shown in this exhibition.这次展览会上展出了一些陶瓷艺术品。

8 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

9 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

11 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

12 excavations   

n.挖掘( excavation的名词复数 )；开凿；开凿的洞穴（或山路等）；（发掘出来的）古迹

参考例句：

• The excavations are open to the public. 发掘现场对公众开放。
• This year's excavations may reveal ancient artifacts. 今年的挖掘可能会发现史前古器物。 来自辞典例句

13 collaboration   

n.合作，协作；勾结

参考例句：

• The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
• He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。

14 isotopic   

adj.同位素的，合痕的

参考例句：

• The isotopic signatures of most ancient limestones indicated the same process. 大多数古代石灰岩的同位素特征说明了同样的过程。 来自辞典例句
• Isotopic discrimination is not likely. 同位素甄别是不可能的。 来自辞典例句

15 isotope   

n.同位素

参考例句：

• The isotope ratio is directly used for comparing oils or gases.同位素比率直接用于比较各种石油或天然气。
• How to apply a radio isotope?如何运用放射性同位素？