S10-2

Non Nong Hor: A Local Bronze Drum Producing Workshop in Late Prehistoric Thailand

The 9th Regional Office of Fine Arts Department, Thailand

The archaeological site of Non Nong Hor is located in Nikhomkhumsoi District, Mukdahan Province in Northeastern Thailand, 50 kilometres to the west of Mekong River. This site was discovered in 1993-1994, and was followed by a decade of archaeological research conducted by the Fine Arts Department of Thailand during 2000-2010. Discoveries at the site have shed new light on local bronze drum production during the late prehistoric period of Southeast Asia (500 BC - AD 500). Twenty-two pieces of clay moulds associated with the lost-wax casting of bronze drums were found, and dated radiometrically to 2105±25 cal. BP. The patterns on the moulds are comparable with the Heger I and Heger II types, including geometric and zoomorphic designs. These are similar to the patterns that appear on a bronze drum found in Mukdahan Province. In this study, remnant fragments of bronze that remained in the clay moulds were analysed chemically (X-Ray Fluorescence, Differential Thermal Analysis, Metallography) and compared with the chemical characteristics of various Thai bronze drums with an aim of exploring the technological relationship between this local workshop and bronze drums found in Thailand. The results suggest a direct relationship between the bronze casting technique and production identified at Non Nong Hor and bronze drums discovered in Thailand.