SEAArch - The Southeast Asian Archaeology Newsblog

8 August 2006 (Viet Nam Net Bridge and Thanh Nien Daily) - The find of a stone instrument near the coast forces archaeologists to relook at their origins - they were previously only found in highland or mountain regions.

Ancient musical instrument unearthed in Vietnam

A musical instrument made of stone, thought to be centuries old, has been discovered on a beach in south-central Vietnam.

The dan da (lithophone), which was in Binh Thuan province, possibly belongs to the Sa Huynh Culture, which existed between the second and early nineteenth centuries.

Ancient instrument rewrites theory

According to experts from the museum, these finds are a Dan Da, a stone instrument made by ancient peoples in the neolithic era.

However, these were all found in highlands or mountain areas, and archaeologists had thought Dan Da were only made by ancient highland tribes. With recently discovery, the hypothesis must be reconsidered as Ham My is very close to the coast.

Related Books:
- Uncovering Southeast Asia’s Past: Selected Papers from the 10th International Conference of the European Association of Southeast Asian Archaeologists by E. A. Bacus, I. Glover and V. C. Pigott (Eds)
- Early Civilizations of Southeast Asia by D. J. W. O’Reilly
- Early Cultures of Mainland Southeast Asia

Tags: Binh Thuan province, Dan Da, musical instruments, Sa Huynh culture, Vietnam Archaeology

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