The discoveries of a prehistoric culture at Ban Chiang, in the northeastern province of Udon Thani, have aroused considerable archeological controversy, with some historians questioning the early dates originally ascribed to the appearance of copper and bronze. Most now accept that the initial dating of 4000 BC is too early but still maintain that the two metals could possibly be elated to between 2500 Be and 2000 BC -later than their first appearance in the Middle East but approximately contemporaneous with copper in Chinaand that Thailand had a true Bronze Age. Painted pottery found in the burial sites at Ban Chiang and elsewhere in the northeast was produced relatively late in the culture’s history, between 1000 BC and 500 BC, The most recent level of the Ban Chiang excavation is dated at around 2S0 Be.
Ban Chiang
Ban Chiang