The Plain of Jars Megalithic Archaeological Landscape

This popped up on the Asia-Pacific World Heritage Site Projects Web site recently.

The "Plain of Jars" is in the Xieng Khouang plateau of Laos, contains thousands of megalithic jars across hundreds of sites. The "jars" date to the Iron Age, around 500 BC to 800 AD, and can stand up to 3 meters in height, weighing several tonnes.

The landscape of the Xieng Khouang plateau is dotted throughout with thousands of stone jars, in clusters from one to over a hundred jars. Initial study of the Plain of Jars by French archaeologist Madeleine Colani in the 1930's suggested that the stone jars are associated with the burial practices of the protohistoric communities living in the area.

Little is known about the culture that made them, the jars are thought to be associated with burial practices. UNESCO has moved to place the plains under protection, as they have received little care since their discovery in the 1930's. They list the site as "important, but imperiled."

More at:
UNESCO Bangkok (unescobkk.org)
Plain of Jars Website (image galleries)
The mystery of the megalithic stone jars in Laos

i have never seen this.

I expected to see the ones made of clay left as offerings in that desert. This is far cooler. That is quite some craftsmanship for "protohistoric" peoples.

a reply to: Blackmarketeer

Wow great find S&F!

I like the idea that they could have been used for burial Purposes, but so many? Over the years it could be

I think they would be handy during times of harsh winter perhaps? Build up of snow/ice leaving the ground level higher so instead of digging into the ice to store food in the winter the ready made stones keep the food clean and fresh due to the cold all winter while still stoping animals from getting a free meal

They are high up it seems.....

Altitudes within the plateau area may reach 1000 m

Wiki....

Beautiful, mysterious place.
I once posted these personal pics of Site 1 and 2 near Phonsavan (Laos) in a thread:




Some of the jars still have their lid on top of it. If I get home I might find some more pics.

Different plains spread out over other parts of Asia, but the Laos ones are the most known and/or most accessible. Some of the sites are still hardly explored or covered in landmines and cluster bombs from the Secret War.

The competing theory is that these were for water/food storage, with these sitting in a home's courtyard, but the homes/village have long since vanished.

They remind me of cocoons!
Obviously for storing something; water, food, power source? Raising guinea pigs?
My mind can have a field day playing with ideas here! S&F

oops!

Would a Costa Rican stone ball fit in one of those?

With so many, I wonder if they had some sort of factory like purpose to help produce something for a large group of people such as an army.

The Chinese invented gun powder. Some of them look like cannons aimed at something.

One thing's for sure if they are ancient cannons, I wouldn't want to be anywhere near where one of the projectiles hit, those babies are huge!

Totally cool find OP!

Very cool info OP!

I was checking out one of your links for more pics and saw this..

plainofjars.net...

WTF is the "beam" coming out of the jar just left of center?

Ok I have never seen these and now I am intrigued!

I would believe they could take a sample from the inside of the jars to determine what they held especially if there were as suggest gun powder there would be a residue.

FASCINATING!

a reply to: CAPT PROTON

Exactly my thought when I saw those jars - Ah, I know what fits into them except its elsewhere in the world.

They appear so randomly spread for me to make any senser of them and so large for the locals. I wondered how they would have tipped them over to get to the contents unless one spent the day ladling away.

a reply to: Shiloh7

Are you thinking the Easter Island Heads ? cause they are full bodies and from what i remember, would be too big to fit in there. would be funny though i must admit !

a reply to: Blackmarketeer
Surely if they were for burial some would still hold bones. Also think how long to prepare for a burial the chipping away to make a hollow stone like this and lid would take a long while!

a reply to: Char-Lee

They did find bones/mummies in some, but those could have come after the original builders left or died out.

originally posted by: LockwithnoKey
Very cool info OP!

I was checking out one of your links for more pics and saw this..

plainofjars.net...

WTF is the "beam" coming out of the jar just left of center?

I see your beam, but I think it is likely a raindrop, or a twig hanging in front of the camera. It is very wet, making the likely candidate a raindrop near the camera streaking by. If it was a beam, I would expect it to be centered and filling the whole opening.

As far as in favor of a beam, it is very much aligned with the angle of the jar, so great find for a conspiracy site.

a reply to: Blackmarketeer

Pretty cool, aren't they? Notice the dating: not really that old. Technological civilization came late to this corner of Southeast Asia. In Vietnam, the Bronze Age lasted until the Christian era.

The reason for that is also the reason why so little remains of these cultures. In a word: the jungle.

Not hospitable to civilization. Tears up the remains of any culture that does manage to establish a foothold.

*

a reply to: Cynic

Stone cannon? Come on.

pretty elaborate for a big or large storage.

i took a walk with friends the other day and saw some things like that but are old ceramic jars that hold ashes of ancestors.

lantau island. no where near that size. but way bigger than a shelf sized urn.

science can find some residue on the inside to see what was in there and how long ago.