SEAArch - The Southeast Asian Archaeology Newsblog

An ambitious experiment to trace the migration route of the Polynesians as they colonised the pacific is underway! A team of made up of scientists, cameramen and native sailors are seeking to retrace maritime passage by island-hopping from Philippines eastwards to the Polynesian islands of Tikopia and Anuta (see route here). The Polynesian migration into the pacific was one of the largest in the history of man, and exceptional because it occured over water, and in a relatively short period of time (1,000 years). Linguistic and DNA evidence has shown that the Polynesians, along with much of island Southeast Asia, were part of a population originating from Taiwan around 5,000 to 6,000 BC, which travelled down Philippines before spreading east and west.

 Lapita Voyage

6,000km trip to reveal clues to ancient migration
06 November 2008, Eureka Alerts
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Last month, a hoard of rare potsherds that were looted from an archaeological site in Mindanao, Philippines, was intercepted by law enforcement officials. While it is fortunate that the artefacts were recovered, the damage has already been done in the loss of valuable contextual data. Furthermore, the ongoing war between the Philippine military and seccessionist groups in the region are threatening to further destroy any archaeological potential found in Mindanao, by inadvertently destroying sites or facilitating looting to fund further conflicts.

Maitum jars: the other casualty of the war in Mindanao
05 November 2008, Minda News
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It’s taken a long time, but Philippine archaeologists are finally examining a set of anthropomorphic jars that were recently seized from looters. The artefacts are thought to have been excavated as far back as 10 years ago. The unique nature of these jars coupled with ethnographic knowledge of the peoples currently inhabiting the region indicate that these jars may be the remains of an as-yet-unidentified population that once lived in Southern Philippines.

Artifacts from smugglers in Sarangani may lead to lost tribe
ABS-CBN News, 26 October 2008
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It’s almost been a month since the last Wednesday Rojak, and that’s because I’ve been traveling quite heavily for the last three weeks because of the term break and some family matters. On the flip side, it also means that I’ve amassed a few stories for this week’s very belated edition of rojak! Beside visiting Borobudur and Angkor, we also have a closer look at some of the sites in the Philippines.

photo credit: thumbbook
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KAPI, a community of archaeologists in the Philippines, has released a statement calling for better enforcement of heritage protection laws,  after the discovery of 22 bags of archaeological material that were looted from the vicinity of Maitum in Southern Philippines. The complete press release from KAPI was posted in the comments section here.

Archaeologists want end to illicit trading of our cultural heritage
Minda News, 17 October 2008
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The Philippine National Museum, in conjunction with an underwater archaeology foundation surveying for shipwrecks in Philippine waters, reiterated that the surveying activities in the waters of the eastern Catanduanes province do not have a detrimental environmental impact. The survey is searching in particular for two Spanish galleons said to have sunk off the coast in the vicinity.

Nat’l Museum says HNAF galleon search “safe”
Catanduanes Tribune, 15 October 2008
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Hukay: The Journal for Archaeological Research in Asia and the Pacific, published twice a year, is the refereed journal published by the University of the Philippines- Archaeological Studies Program. Hukay accepts articles on the archaeology, ethnoarchaeology, and heritage of the Asia and Pacific regions. Reviews of books and articles on similar and related topics are likewise accepted. On occasions, we invite a guest editor to come up with a theme volume. Papers may be submitted throughout the year while contributions for theme volumes have specific deadlines. Articles are reviewed by at least three specialists from a pool of international scholars. Reviewers’ comments and suggestions are forwarded to the author(s), who should implement them in the final version of the paper.

Manuscripts may be mailed or personally submitted with a soft copy to: The Editor, Hukay, Archaeological Studies Program, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, 1101 or sent to mdbarretto@up.edu.ph

For more information, visit the official HUKAY webpage at http://www.upd.edu.ph/~asp/hukay/