AN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT ON
ADULT JAR BURIAL PRACTICE
IN THE CENTRAL CORDILLERA
NORTHERN PHILIPPINES
June Prill - Brett, Ph.D.
CSC Working Paper 30
CORDILLERA STUDIES CENTER
University of the Philippines College Baguio
2600 Baguio City
Philippines
AN ETHNOARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT ON
ADULT JAR
J AR BURIAL PRACTICE
IN THE CENTRAL CORDILLERA
NORTHERN PHILIPPINES*
June Prill - Brett, Ph.D.
CSC Working Paper 30
*
An earlier version of this paper was delivered as a UPIP Professorial Lecture at the
Bulwagang Juan Luna, U.P. College Baguio, 26 January 2000
The CSC Working Paper Series makes recent research on the Cordillera
available in order to stimulate comment and discussion
First Printing
December 2000
© Cordillera Studies Center, 2000
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Printer: Allied Printers, Inc.
The views expressed in this publication are those of
the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of
the Cordillera Studies Center.
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
ABSTRACT
Burials in jars –primary or secondary, multiple or partial, have been encountered
throughout the Philippine archipelago in pre-historic sites. These sites date back from the
late Neolithic, beginning at least 1000 B.C. to the 16th Century A.D., shortly before the
Spanish contact (Fox 1970).
This paper presents preliminary findings on the practice of adult jar burial in the
Central Cordillera, based on field research carried out in October to December 1969, and
March 1970. Four out of the five burial sites investigated around Alab, Bontoc, Mountain
Province were found to contain burial jars called linayan, characterized by the large orifice,
barrel-shape body and a conical shape cover specially made for primary jar burial.
The following methods and approaches were used:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Mapping of the site locations;
Measurements and description of the burial jars and associated artifacts;
Ethnographic descriptions of the burial practices and artifact associations;
Interviews with knowledgeable informants such as elders, traditional potters, and
weavers;
(e) Collection of folklore related to the Alab jar burials;
(f) Comparison with earlier interpretations such as the findings of Dr. Larkin; and
(g) Analysis of findings in relation to other jar burials in the Philippines and elsewhere
regarding theories of jar burial origins.
Preliminary findings show that the Ganga burials –such as the Sung porcelain plate
containing traces of blood and millet, indicate that some of the burials could have occurred
before the appearance of rice in the area. The Ganga site also shows the association of burial
clothes made from the bark of a tree that was processed and dyed with local vegetable dyes
and woven on a back-strap loom. In 1987, archaeologist Connie Bodner reported her findings
from the Fekes, Tukukan, Bontoc archaeological site, which shows that by 570-680 A.D.,
stone spindle whorls were present, indicating that weaving was already a practice in the
Bontoc area.
Preliminary interpretations of findings in the Ganga burial site show two periods: 1)
where there was an absence of rice or pre-rice (associated with the Sung plate), with millet as
the sacrificial food offering, and 2) a period when rice was already the ritual food offering.
I conclude in this paper by arguing that the opposing theories, one which favors the
northern migration route, and the other theory that proposes a southern origin as suggested by
the different archaeologists need not be incompatible with each other. It appears that the jar
burials found in northern Philippines have closer relationships to those found in Botel
Tobago, Batanes, Formosa, southern China and southern Japan, while those found in the
central and the southern Philippines have closer relationships with jar burials found in
Borneo, Indonesia, Indochina, Malaysia and surrounding areas.
I view the possibility that there may have been two or more directions of entry
regarding the jar burial culture in the Philippines: Beyer’s northern Philippines entrance,
possibly from southern China and southern Japan, including Solheim’s suggestion of
1
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
southern China or Indochina, and Fox’s suggestion of a southern entry for the southern
Philippines. These views need not contradict each other. Furthermore, I argue that jar-burial
practice in the central Cordillera may not have been introduced directly by people of a jarburial culture who migrated from elsewhere into the Cordillera, but rather was a local
diffusion of the jar burial practice from the coastal areas of northern Luzon into the interior.
The discovery of more undisturbed jar burial sites in northern Philippines should shed further
light on the problem concerning the origins and movement of the practice in the central
Cordillera highlands and other Philippine jar burial sites.
2
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
INTRODUCTION
Burials in jars –primary or secondary, multiple or partial, have been encountered
throughout the Philippine archipelago in pre-historic sites which date back from the late
Neolithic, beginning at least 1000 B.C. to the 16th century A.D., shortly before the Spanish
contact (Fox 1970).
Beyer was the first scholar to call attention to the urgent need to further investigate
the jar burials that are widely distributed in the Philippines. He identified a “Jar-burial
culture,” with the migration of people
from South China into northern Philippines during
the “Early Iron Age” (Beyer 1948).
Both Fox (1970) and Solheim (1960: 144-145) have introduced notes of caution
concerning Beyer’s interpretation of the origin and dispersal of jar-burial practice. Since
1956, much new archaeological data from Philippine sites have become available such as the
excavation in the Bato caves, Sorsogon Province, and on Cagraray Island, Albay Province
(Fox and Evangelista 1957), and in Palawan where C-14 dates show that pottery and the
practice of burial in jars entered the Philippines during the Neolithic times. Evangelista
(1957) excavated a jar burial site in Carranglan, Nueva Ecija, which was dated as late
Neolithic. Ronquillo, et al. (1992), reported a proto-historic open-air jar burial site in
Cabarroan, Solona, Cagayan Province. According to Fox (1970:159) this site is unique
because the burial site is not found along the coasts or near coastal regions of the Philippines.
Using his Tabon Cave findings (1970:160), he suggests that the number of actual movements
of people involved in the appearance and development of the jar burials, as found in the
Tabon Caves in Palawan—is clearly shown by the abrupt changes in the type and material of
tools and ornaments associated with the jar burial complex. This includes some stylistic
changes in the forms and decorations of the pottery. Fox has further maintained that the
practice of jar burial (as found in the Tabon Caves) came from the south and southwest, not
from the north. He came to this conclusion by comparing the characteristics of the pottery,
as well as the associated tools and ornaments, with other pottery complexes and other
archaeological assemblages found in Southeast Asia. Fox further stated that the Tabon
pottery complex shows striking similarities with the pottery of Niah in Borneo, Malaysia, and
Sahuynh in Indochina and Thailand. But such pottery complex differs greatly from the
pottery and artifacts of the central and northern Philippines due to the absence of or rarity of
cord marking and paddle-impressed designs as a major feature of surface treatment found
among the early potteries of Thailand and Malaysia.
Solheim (1960:125), on the other hand, concludes from his Batanes finds that the
origin of the jar burial practice may possibly be South China or Indochina, possibly occurring
during the Tang or Sung times.
The purpose of this paper is to present the preliminary findings, based on field
research carried out in Oct. to Dec. 1969, and Mar. 1970,1 on the practice of adult jar burial
1
The writer first called attention to the pre-historic practice of adult jar burial in the Central
Cordillera, based on her field research carried out in Alab, Bontoc, Mountain Province in 1969-1970.
A report of the presence of the Ganga burial site was published in the Baguio Midland Courier in the
June 11, 1972 issue. The report also called the attention of Mountain Province Government officials
3
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
in the central Cordillera. The burial jar called linayan is used as a primary burial coffin,
which I have investigated2 in four out of five open-air rock shelter sites located in Alab
Bontoc, Mountain Province. However, these burial sites were already disturbed, as I had
reported in 1972, calling attention to the importance of systematically investigating these
sites. Since then, there has been no archaeological investigation of the jar burial sites –which
have been badly disturbed and vandalized. I therefore, find it necessary to report my 1969
preliminary findings, including some findings of an earlier investigation of one of the jar
burial sites.
One of the five jar burial sites, called Ganga, had been visited in the 1950s by a
certain Dr. J. Crate Larkin, a medical doctor. He was the first to investigate the burial jar,
including some of the wooden coffins in this rock shelter. He communicated with Mr. Larry
Wilson, reporting some of his findings which are also reported in this paper.
In the 1960s Mr. Kip Moore of the Heald Lumber Company at Mt. Data, was invited
by Alab sawmill workers to visit the Ganga burial site. Kip Moore3 described the condition of
the site during his visit. He called attention to some of the artifacts (musical instruments,
basketry) that he observed in the burial site, and the petroglyphs approximately eight meters
by eight on the surface of a large limestone rock overlooking the Kagewean rice terraces
below. However, the artifacts that Moore mentioned were already missing from the Ganga
burial site during my 1969 field research.
In the late 1960s I visited the burial site because of my interest in investigating the
other jar burial sites, aside from the Data jar-burial site which I was already familiar with.
My interest in tracking down the distribution of these adult burial jars in Alab was the
objective of the research that is reported in this paper.
In 1972, a team from the National Museum visited the Ganga burial site as reported in
an article in the Baguio Midland Courier (June 4, 1972) entitled, “Find hieroglyphic
drawings in Bontoc.” It mentioned that the team took pictures and made sketches of the
petroglyphs “for further study.” However, there was no mention of the presence of any burial
jar by the National Museum team, since this burial jar is quite significant due to its
uniqueness among other burial jars found in Philippine archaeological sites.
to take steps to protect the burial sites and the petroglyphs that were being vandalized and
weatherworn. This report was in reaction to a published June 4, 1972 article, also in the Baguio
Midland Courier, erroneously referring to the petroglyphs as hieroglyphics.
A preliminary report on the jar-burial practice was the subject of a term paper (1971), in
partial fulfillment of a requirement in a course in Archaeology, submitted to the Department of
Anthropology, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City.
2
This researcher first knew of the presence of one of the burial jars when she was a child.
During summer vacations the ideal playground, together with her cousins, was the limestone rock
shelter above the settlement/village called Data and Negansad. One of these burial jars is believed
th
to be the burial place of Langba, an ascendant (8 generation) of this researcher. It is also the only
jar burial whose identification is known to the elders of Alab. It was during the late 1960s when the
writer, as a student of anthropology, took an interest in inquiring deeper into this practice when other
jar-burial sites were reported by villagers who own rice fields around the limestone rock shelters.
3
Personal communication with Kip Moore in 1970.
4
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
In 1991, a newspaper report in the Baguio Cordillera Post, dated July 21: “Ganga
caves cry for protection”, described the state of the burial site as “desecrated and
vandalized”. Some of the coffins that were left undisturbed by earlier investigators had been
opened, with the skeletal parts interchanged, and some broken. Several have ribs smashed
and skulls printed over with names, dates and other graffiti.4 The newspaper report further
commented on the lack of government’s efforts to preserve the site from further destruction
despite the implementation of P.D. 260.
Presidential Decree 260, issued in September 22, 1972 by President Ferdinand
Marcos declared the Ganga caves along with the Ifugao rice terraces, among others, as
“National Cultural Treasures.” However, the protection and preservation as provided by
legislation, has not been implemented. There appears however, to be no effort by government
to preserve and restore whatever remains of the Ganga burial site. The barangay council
submitted a petition (1980s) to the Department of Tourism for the cementing of the pathway
leading to the site and the fencing of the perimeters, but this has reportedly not been acted
upon up to 1991.5 (Baguio Cordillera Post 21 July 1991)
A recent preliminary report on the Ganga burial sites has been reported by Eusebio
Dizon of the National Museum (1999)6 , based on findings from the investigation of the burial
rockshelters in the Ganga area. This is twenty-nine years since the last investigation of the
Ganga jar burial site. A systematic investigation of the burial sites has been recommended by
Dizon, making use of more sophisticated mapping methods and the employment of DNA on
the skeletal remains to find out if the present population is related to the past inhabitants
found in the Ganga burials.
4
The Ganga burial site is approximately 2-3 kilometers from the village, and people who want
to visit the site need not pass through the village to get to the Ganga area. This has made it difficult
for the villagers to check on the kinds of visitors entering and leaving the place, thus making it difficult
for the community members to control the people going to the site. Furthermore, the place has no
protection against vandals.
5
In 1991, Peter Gawe, officer-in-charge of the DOT, Cordillera Administrative Region,
lamented the seeming non-cooperation of the concerned government agencies as reported in a local
paper:
“I have asked the provincial and local governments, especially the Provincial Planning and Development
Office, for proposals but to no avail. In fact 10 million pesos has been appropriated for the region (2 million
for each province) for project proposals to develop these sites of cultural heritage which are in themselves
tourist spots…Records of the DOT-CAR show that as of 1991, only one project has been bidded. This is
the Tinongchol Burial Rock development in Kabayan, Benguet.” (Baguio Cordillera Post, July 21, 1991)
6
Preliminary report on the Archaeological survey of Bontoc and Alab, Mountain Province,
th
Northern Luzon, Philippines. Paper presented at the 20 National Conference on National and Local
History, held from 21-23 Oct. 1999 at the University of the Philippines College Baguio.
5
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
METHODS AND APPROACHES
1. Mapping of the jar burial site locations;
2. Measurements and description of the burial jars and associated artifacts;
3. Interviews with knowledgeable informants such as elders, traditional weavers and
potters;
4. Ethnographic description of the burial practices and artifact associations;
5. Collection of folklore as folk explanation for the presence of the Ganga burial
site;
6. Comparisons with earlier interpretations and cross checking with the findings of
Dr. Larkin;
7. Analysis of findings in relation to other jar burials in the Philippines and
elsewhere regarding theories of jar burial origins.
Measurements of some of the coffins and the burial jars were recorded, and a
description of the sites is included here. Locations of the rock shelters are likewise indicated
on the map; directions on the compass were noted to facilitate easy location by later
investigators who may wish to visit the sites. Informants were interviewed on oral traditions
relating to the practice of infant and adult jar burial. Some informants who have witnessed
this practice related recent cases of child burial and infant jar burial. Oral traditions
pertaining to the Ganga burial jar were retold by informants who had heard these from their
grandparents.
Interviews with Samoki potters were also carried out for the purpose of finding out if
this pottery center was a possible source of the large burial jars. The traditional potters of
Bila, in western Mountain Province, have likewise been interviewed and cross-checked with
Samoki, the latter having a rich lore on women-traders of pottery with other villages.7
Finally, the paper concludes, arguing for two or more possible routes of the spread of
jar burial practice into the Philippines, based on archaeological and ethnographic data
available at present. The availability of archaeological data from a study carried out in the
central Bontoc area (see Bodner 1986)8 which dates the habitation site (C-14 and dendrocorrected) at A.D. 570-680,9 allows us to make some inferences regarding ecological
conditions and cultural practices in association with cultural artifacts in the Alab burial sites.
7
During his field research in 1903, Albert E. Jenks observed that the Samoki potters were
trading their wares around the central and northern Bontok villages.
8
This archaeological excavation was carried out in two sites –Lufok and Fekes, in Tukukan,
Bontoc, Mountain Province. This is the first systematic archaeological excavation in Mountain
Province.
9
See Prill-Brett, A brief cultural history of Mountain Province, Paper presented at the
Regional Seminar Workshop on Cordillera Historiography, 6-7 August 1999, Mountain Lodge and
Restaurant, Baguio City. Sponsored by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA),
The University of the Philippines System-wide Centennial Committee, and the Division of Social
Sciences with the Cordillera Studies Center, U.P. College Baguio.
6
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
SITE LOCATION
The jar burial sites are found in Alab, one of the Barangays of Bontoc municipality
(see Fig. 1). Alab is 9 kilometers south of Bontoc town. It would normally take from 7-8
hours travel by bus or car from Baguio City. The village of Alab is divided by the Chico
River into two geographic divisions named Dongyuan and Demang.10 These main geographic
divisions are further divided into several sitios and wards called atu/ato.11 The settlement is
situated on the shoulders of two mountains divided by the river where the irrigated rice
terraces and swidden gardens (uma) of the villagers, in most cases, are found at a distance
away from the settlement. Above the settlement on the slopes of the mountains are large
limestone rocks, of which some have traditionally been used as burial sites of the ancient
inhabitants of Alab; many of these sites have been forgotten by the present inhabitants.
Under these rock shelters called liyang or lu’keb, are found pinewood coffins and some large
earthenware jars with wide mouths which contain individual human skeletal remains.
A Description of Ganga Burial Sites
Ganga is located 60 degrees SE of the Episcopal Church, below the national road (see
Fig. 2). The site is about forty-five minutes to an hour’s climb from Dongyuan across the
Chico River, following a path used by Alab farmers since ancient times to get to their rice
fields and swidden gardens, and to hunt and gather firewood from the forest above. Rice
terraces are found around the lower slopes of the mountain area with a number of swidden
gardens which are usually planted to beans, sweet potato and millet. The trees, which are
found in the area, are a mixture of pine and local oak called dapong or kalasan in the pagpag
(oak- forest).
10
Dongyuan is the original settlement while Demang (meaning “across” or “opposite”) is an
expansion of the original settlement when population began to increase. Other geographic areas
were settled by expansions from the mother settlement across the river.
11
This institution is called Atu/Ato in Bontoc town, while the term is ator in northern and
eastern Bontoc villages; in the western Mountain Province it is referred to as dap-ay/ at-ato, batog,.
7
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
FIGURE 1. MAP OF THE MOUNTAIN PROVINCE
8
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Ganga Burial Site Visited in the 1950s
The Ganga burial site, one of the jar burial sites, was first visited by Dr. J. Crate
Larkin Jr., M.D., in the 1950s (see Photo 2, and 4). Larkin was not aware of the other three
jar burial sites then. As a medical doctor he was interested in the physical contents of the
burial jar and a few of the coffins which he investigated. His findings which were sent to Mr.
Larry Wilson, together with some pictures taken during his investigation of the Ganga burial
site, were given to Dr. W. H. Scott, upon the death of Larry Wilson. Dr. Scott who learned
about my study, turned over to me the pictures, together with the handwritten comments of
Dr. Larkin in 1990.
From one of the coffins that he opened, Dr. Larkin was able to retrieve a broken
Chinese porcelain plate (see Photo No. 6), which he found resting on top of the corpse’s
chest. The skeletal remains were in a supine position, flexed at the hips and knees. These
remains belonged to a man, calculated by Dr. Larkin, as “past 70 years old” at the time of his
death. The contents of the plate were “dried human blood and cooked millet.” He further
noted that the blood type coincided with that of the coffin occupant. This was “determined on
marrow scrapings by Candela technique,” and suggestive that this was a container to catch
the “drippings” from the cadaver during the wake period before the burial. According to Dr.
Larkin, the Chinese porcelain plate was identified by a Chinese scholar, based on the style of
calligraphy, as “about the Sung Period”. Also taken from another coffin, closest to the
entrance of the rock shelter, was a bowl made from red clay, which was unglazed and
appeared to be of local manufacture. This bowl was also reported to have contained human
blood and cooked rice (dried).
There are two rock shelters in the Ganga area -- which I have, for convenience,
labeled as No.1 and No. 2 (see Fig. 2).
Description of Rock Shelter No. 1
1. The vertical entrance of the rock shelter is approximately 7-8 feet and gradually
diminishing in height toward the back of the rock shelter to about a foot. The horizontal
opening is approximately 20 feet. Both ends of the horizontal entrance have been walled
with stone and sealed with white clay called oklin.12
2. There were approximately 46 coffins; the orientation of the innermost coffins was
eastward. The coffins near the entrance of the rock shelter were deteriorating; some
completely disintegrated. Bones from these coffins were found scattered on the floor of
the rock shelter and some were deposited in the other coffins..
3. The innermost coffins were massive and roughly made, with a thick patina of dust
indicating its antiquity (see Photo 2). They varied in sizes and appeared to have been
hollowed-out from a whole trunk of a tree (all of the coffins examined were of
pinewood). The lid of the coffin must have been made from the same log that was used
for the base of the coffin. There were no nails used to construct the coffin. The two ends
12
Oklin clay is found around the village. It is a type of white clay used for “cementing” rocks
when building terraced walls. According to some informants, oklin was also used for hair shampoo
and for washing the body long before soap was introduced.
9
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
of the coffin (lengthwise) come to a narrow end, about 8-10 inches; these also appear to
have functioned as handles for carrying the coffin. The only attachments seen in the
coffin were wooden pegs that secured the lid to the coffin base to keep it sealed. These
wooden pegs were also made of pinewood, about 8-10 inches in circumference and from
½foot in length to 2 feet; the tip (at one end) was sharpened to a point. These pegs were
passed through two holes bored on each end of the coffin, passing through the cover and
base compartment (see Photo 2 and 3).
4. The coffins varied in size and length; some measured from 5-10 feet long, the base or
lower compartment being slightly longer than the top lid. Most of the coffins were
grooved longitudinally where the cover (lid) meets the lower compartment (base) to fit
the cover securely. The average width of the coffin is from 15-20 inches; the average
height from base to cover is from 28-30 inches.
5. Some of the coffins were tied at both ends with rattan strips about ½ inch wide; the lid
was sealed with a ribbon of white clay oklin mixed with resin called lifo, from a local
resinous tree. 13
6. The general orientation of the coffins had the head oriented toward the West and /or
Northwest. The position of the skeleton was supine with flexed knees. All that was left of
the corpse’s burial clothes crumbled to dust upon touch. No associations were found with
the skeletons.
7. On top of the rock shelter was found vertically erected rocks, about 2-3 feet high that
were erected there probably for some ritual purpose in the past, since these were in a
semi-circular formation. The area was covered with tall grass that had grown over the
soil that had accumulated over time on the surface of the rock.
There were three jars found in rock shelter No. 1, together with the above-described
coffins. The largest jar with skeletal remains was disturbed, but fairly preserved.14 Another
jar at the left side of this large burial jar was found broken and only fragments were left.
There were no skeletal remains found present around the broken pot. Fragments from the
neck of the pot (earthenware) reveal that the pottery was made of black clay, and exhibited a
brownish color on the outer portion. The thickness of the jar was approximately 1/3 inch. It
had no glaze, or any decorations. There was a third jar at the far end on the right side of the
entrance. The jar was only noticed when one of the coffins in front of it was moved. With the
aid of a flashlight the jar could be seen but could not be examined closely as it was not
possible to squeeze through the crack on the side of the rock shelter to get to it. There were
many coffins piled one on top of the other and it was quite impossible to get to the lower
corner of the rock shelter, unless the massive coffins which were blocking access to the jar
were removed. It was not advisable to disturb the arrangement of the coffins, which was
disapproved by the elders for fear of displeasing the anito (spirit).
13
When a piece of the resin was burned, it emitted a smell similar to pine tar.
This is the same burial jar investigated by Dr. Larkin more than forty years ago. However,
he did not seem to be interested in the cultural history of the burial jar, or the associated remains.
14
10
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
FIGURE 2. MAP OF BURIAL SITES
11
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
Photo 1 — Rockshelter burial site in the Ganga area showing the low entrance into
the natural “burial cave.” J. Prill-Brett, 1969.
Photo 2 — The Ganga burial jar being opened by
Dr. Larkin (ca. 1950)
12
Photo 3 — The Ganga burial jar in 1969.
J.Prill-Brett
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Photo 4 — Showing the contents of the Ganga
burial jar just after Dr. Larkin removed the sealed
cover. J.Crate Larkin, Ca. 1950.
Photo 5 — Showing the contents of the Ganga
burial jar in 1969. J. Prill-Brett, 1969
Descriptions of the Burial Jar in Rock Shelter No. 1
1. The largest jar in this rock shelter is situated near the entrance. It is made of reddishbrown clay, with traces of glazing from some local resin, which is not a true glaze. The
jar has no decorations or designs at all. The cover of the jar has a cone shape, with
handles on both sides of the cover for lifting. The body of the jar had rattan strips woven
around it with a circular groove (see Photo No.2). The inner circular groove was where
the cover rested; around this area were remains of a mixture of dried white clay, resin
and beeswax used to seal the jar cover, which confirms the earlier description by Dr.
Larkin.
2. There are three vertical loop “ears” on the outer circular groove of the mouth; these
appear to have been used for securing the rattan strips around the body of the jar and the
cover. Remains of these strips were still glued to the white clay and resin material.
3. The jar had a very short neck that abruptly joined the body. The shape of the jar is barrellike. It had a wide orifice and a slightly rounded base.
13
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
4. Inside the jar was a complete skeleton of an adult. At the base of the jar is part of the
man’s death jacket. Dr. Larkin found the skeletal remains intact and the death blanket
was identified as woven from bark cloth wrapped around the male (“approximately 45
years at the time of his death”).
I further investigated the cloth associated with the skeletal remains by conducting
interviews among the traditional weavers who identified the clothing remains and the source
of the dye used. The death jacket was identified by some local weavers (Ubey, 50 years old,
and Antonia, 52 years old in 1972), as woven from the bark of a tree called ladso, which was
dyed after it was processed by a toto (wooden bark cloth-beater).
According to these informants the fiber (bark) from the tree is stripped, beaten with a
bark cloth beater, rubbed and dried for several days, then soaked in water and then dried for a
couple of days. It is shredded by hand, and then twisted into thread and joined together by
rolling between the palm and thigh. The twisted bark is dried, and resoaked in water. The
threads are then spun onto a spindle with a stone whorl. Weaving is carried out on a backstrap loom.
The death jacket is called baygan; it was worn by the wealthy in the olden days. The
blue dye was extracted from some local vegetable material called bayusig, and the reddishbrown color was identified as atiba. According to these informants, iron and copper needles
were quite scarce during their great-grandmother’s time; however, bamboo needles were
commonly used for sewing clothes.
14
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Burial jar measurements from the 4 sites
Jar Burial Sites
Burial Jar Measurements
1. Height from base to tip of
cover
2. Circumference of the
neck
3. Circumference at widest
part of the body
4. Base circumference
5. Width of the base from
side to side
6. Width of the mouth rim
7. Mouth opening side to
side
8. Depth of the jar from
base to mouth rim
9. Thickness of the mouth
rim
10. Thickness of the outer
mouth rim
11. Thickness of the body
Ganga
37 inches
Data
38 ½ inches
Negansad
44 inches
Patok
***15
67 inches
69 ½ inches
62 ½ inches
***
79 inches
78 inches
78 inches
51 inches
**
49 inches
13 inches
56 inches
**16
2 inches
17 ½ inches
2 ½ inches
19 inches
2 inches
**
25 inches
25 ½ inches
24 ½ inches
**
6 cms.
4 cms.
**
7 cms.
5 ½ cms.
**
6 cms.
½ inch
Measurements of Burial Jar Covers
Burial Jar Cover
Measurements
1. Cover circumference
Ganga
65 inches
2. Width from side to side
3. Depth of cover
4. Width of handle
5. Thickness of the cover
6. Length of handles
20 inches
12 inches
3 ½ inches
½ inch
2 inches
Data
58 inches
(approx.)
23 ½ inches
18 ½ inches
1 ½ inches
**
1 ½ inches
Negansad
56 inches
Patok
***
18 ½ inches
17 inches
3 ½ inches
½ inch
1 ½ inches
15
*** Measurement of the burial jar was not possible due to refusal of the inhabitants living
beside the burial site to have the jar brought out for examination.
16
** There were no cracks on this jar to allow measurement for thickness of the body. The
two other jars were measured by inserting the tape through a crack in the body of the jars.
15
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
FOLK EXPLANATION FOR THE PRESENCE OF THE
PETROGLYPHS ON THE ROCK SURFACE
ABOVE GANGA
Folklore offers an explanation of the presence of the petroglyphs on the limestone
rock surface above Ganga, and on the old wooden coffins and burial jar in rock shelter No. 1.
It is said that a long time ago, in the days of the Alab ancestors, a group of young
men, all bachelors, went to the forest to cut firewood. On their way home they decided to
rest for a while, on a big rock overlooking a place called Kagewe-an (now surrounded by
rice terraces). Some of the young men began pecking on the wide rock surface with the
pointed end of their head-axes (pinang). They etched out triangular forms called binot-boto
(“clitoris-like”) on the surface of the rock. The other bachelors were having a contest as to
who could throw the farthest missile stick (runo reed).17They found a target at the place
called Kagewean (see Photo 8), where they believed they spotted a moving object that
appeared to be a wild pig (laman). They took turns in releasing their reed spears. As their
pointed missiles hit their mark, the object below suddenly stood up and appeared to be a
pregnant woman who was badly wounded in the abdomen. It is said that she was suddenly
transformed into the sun (ageo), and then disappeared. The bachelors suddenly felt very
drowsy after the incident, and fell asleep on the rock platform where they made the
petroglyphs and where they launched their spear-throwing contest.
When they finally woke up, they found a large lunch basket (tupil), 18filled with
glutinous rice and black beans (balatong). The young men were very hungry and began
eating all the food until it was consumed. They gathered their loads of wood and headed for
the village. That very same night all the young men who partook of the food fell very ill and
died. Before some of the young men died they were able to relate to the village elders all the
events that took place that day. The elders interpreted their death as punishment for killing
the anito (spirit) of Kagewe-an.19
Their deaths were so sudden that no coffins were prepared for them. In so short a
time wooden coffins were hurriedly made and brought to Ganga (since this was the place
where they met this misfortune). The wealthier bachelors are said to have been buried in the
linayan burial jars, while the other young men were interred in wooden pine coffins. The
young mens belongings were also buried with them, such as gongs, Jews harp, precious
beads, nose flute, shell girdle, porcelain plate and jars.
17
Runo (mischantus) reed is made into a spear by sharpening the base part and retaining the
leaves at the end of the reed to facilitate the throwing.
18
A woven lunch basket made of bamboo or rattan, for carrying cooked rice for a laboring
group of people who work in the rice fields.
19
Informant Ama Aguaking narrated that the unseen “inhabitants of Ganga” still perform
feasts. They believe that on some quiet nights some villagers hear the gongs being played, and hear
the sound of nose flutes, including rice- pounding sounds from the Ganga burial site.
16
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Photo 6 — Porcelain plate identified as probably of the Sung Period containing dried blood and cooked
millet. The plate was associated with the skeletal remains of a male in one of the Ganga rock shelter
coffins. J. Crate Larkin
Photo 7 — Binutbuto rock where petroglyphs of
triangular shapes of different sizes are found on the
weatherworn surface. J. Prill-Brett, 1969.
Photo 8 — Kagewean rice fields J. Prill-Brett, 1969.
17
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
The wooden coffins are still found in the Ganga rock shelters, and one burial jar still
remains. All the said artifacts that were supposed to have been interred were absent from the
burial site. Informants say that they were carried away by some visitors who had earlier
visited the site. It is however interesting to note that the petroglyphs pecked on the rock
(which is weatherworn and covered with lichen) may be the only remaining evidence of the
tragic event that allegedly befell the Alab bachelors.
Some villagers who had visited the Ganga rock shelter before 1942 verified the
presence of some of the artifacts mentioned above. Only one gong has been saved and it is
said to be in the possession of a certain Malecdan of Dongyuan. The story behind the latter’s
possession of the gong was narrated. It is said that a man from the village had become deaf,
and had frequent nightmares when he took home a gong from the burial site. Thus, he had to
turn the gong over to Ama Malekdan to get rid of his misfortune.20 Artifacts that were
mentioned earlier such as the Jews harp and the bamboo nose flute, but were supposed to
have been interred with the dead together with the porcelain wares, were not found during
our investigation of the site. However, some of these artifacts may still be found in the
undisturbed coffins in the innermost part of the rock shelter.
Ganga Rock Shelter No. 2
The rock shelter is located 60 degrees SE of Ganga rock shelter No. 1. This site
contains 22 wooden coffins, all made of pinewood. The coffins were made from the
hollowed-out trunks of the pine tree, similar to those found in Rock shelter No. 1. Their sizes
varied, although the technology was generally the same. Some of these coffins were also
disturbed; a few of the lids were not replaced when they were opened, exposing skeletal
remains. Coffins near the entrance have deteriorated, while those located at the farther end of
the rock shelter appear to be undisturbed.
There was only one jar found in this burial site. It was approximately 1½ feet in
height with a slightly flaring neck.21 The widest part is toward the base (see Photo 12). The jar
is also made of reddish-brown clay but has a brighter brown color, in comparison with the
burial jars. The neck measurement is 9 inches in circumference, with the absence of any
design. It has a completely different shape from the burial jars. Further observation shows no
skeletal remains in the jar.
20
Interview with Ama Malekdan in 1969, Dongyuan, Alab, Bontoc.
According to informant Far-ey, (65 years old in 1970, and a professional potter of Samoki),
this type of earthenware is identified as Sinamok i (Samoki-like/ type) or of Samoki make. It may have
been used to catch the body fluids of the corpse during the wake that lasts for days, depending on the
social rank of the dead. She claims that she has never heard from her grandmother, who was also a
potter, about burial jars having been ever manufactured for adults in the past. When asked if she
heard any stories of adults buried in jars from other villages where pottery was made, her answer was
that she had no knowledge of any such story. She, however, mentioned that up to the recent past it
was a common practice among the Bontoc Central area populations to bury infants in earthenware
pots.
21
18
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Patok Rock Shelter No. 3
This site is located below a footpath leading to Data, beside Atu Gawana, 80 degrees
NW of the Episcopal Church (see map). The Patok rock shelter is found in the geographical
area of Libdan, and is approximately 10-15 feet away from the dwelling of old man Gardiwa
Uluan. The burial jar in this rock shelter is approximately 10 feet below the ground level,
wedged between rocks. It is visible from the top, which has an opening of about 4 feet wide.
It was, however, impossible to measure the jar, unless the area around the rock shelter would
be excavated. By ocular inspection the jar appears to be of the same general shape and type,
although the mouth opening appears to be larger in comparison to the other burial jars. The
cover of the jar was missing, shattered by some heavy object (possibly a rock that crushed
into it). The inside of the jar was visible due to its large opening. With the aid of a flashlight
it was observed that fragments of pottery and skeletal remains were visible at the base of the
jar.
People living near the burial site did not want the jar to be disturbed for fear of the
anger of the anito of the dead of “long ago.” It is believed that harm would come to the
village by tampering with the remains of the dead ancestors who could send some calamity
or misfortune.
Data Rock Shelter No. 4
This burial site is located approximately 40 degrees NW of the Episcopal Church (see
Fig. 2). The site is quite difficult to find because it is covered with heavy vegetation. Below
this sloping rock shelter are large bamboo trees, which have been planted by people who
have lived around the area during the past fifty or more years (more than 70 years as of this
writing). This place is also called bak-wet meaning “an evacuation place.”22 In the 1960s,
there were very few people inhabiting the area due to the distance from the settlement proper.
Villagers still frequent this place to till their rice fields and swidden farms (uma). The shortcut trail to Sagada from the south also passes through this place.
This particular burial jar is the only one among the 4 burial jars that can be identified
by some of the elders of the village (see Photo 10). This indicates that the other burials of this
kind may be much older, and thus have been completely forgotten, or have become part of
mythology. As far as this fourth burial jar is concerned, quite a number of older informants
were able to identify it as belonging to Langba, who lived about 8 generations ago. The story
goes that during the smallpox epidemic (before the coming of the Spaniards to Bontoc),23
Langba and her two brothers were infected with the dreaded disease. Her brothers Kubkubo
(Cobcobo) and Kuyoy quarantined themselves by asking someone who had survived the
disease to take them to their respective coffins up in the mountains (above the settlement).
22
According to interviewed Atu elders, during the pre-Spanish times and up to the recent
period, it was a practice for those infected with smallpox (deng-aw) during epidemics to quarantine
themselves by retreating to the forest temporarily to avoid contaminating others. It is said that many
of them died while out in the mountains. No one was allowed to enter or leave the village and this was
strictly enforced by the several Atu. Many rituals were performed to ward off the disease, or to
prevent the epidemic from claiming more lives.
23
The Spaniards had finally established a Commandancia in 1850s.
19
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
The person24 who personally escorted the dying Cobcobo to his coffin was ordered by the
latter to cover him with the heavy coffin lid. Langba, the only sister, requested to be placed in
her own linayan or burial jar after she died.25
Langba’s skeletal remains were found inside a burial jar in one of the rock shelters.
This rock shelter had a vertical opening of about 4 feet and a horizontal opening of
approximately 8 feet (with both lateral sides walled-in with rock chinked with clay/mud).
There were four coffins beside the burial jar but these were in a poor state of preservation.
This burial site had been badly disturbed. Bones from the wooden coffins were scattered on
the ground and were disintegrating.
Some of the wooden coffin lids were well decorated with the lizard design (see Photo
11). One particular incised lizard design carved on the coffin lid measured about 35 inches in
length, and 5 ½inches wide on the widest portion of the incised lizard back. The sides of the
lid showed advanced signs of rotting.
Photo 9 — Burial jar cover showing the handle at
the apex. J. Prill-Brett
24
Photo 10 — Langba’s burial jar at Data rock
shelter. J. Prill-Brett
This was Bab-dook, a man from Alab, about 8 generations ago who related the manner by
which he disposed of the corpse of the brothers during the smallpox epidemic. Some of the villagers,
to whom he related the incident, were the grandparents of Aguaking (who is approximately 86 years
old at present -1999).
25
It is a Bontok custom to bury an individual who is childless in the most luxurious manner, if
she/he were wealthy. All her valuable belongings were buried with her. In the case of Langba, she
was the only female among the siblings and also the wealthiest. However, she had no offspring. It is
said that before she died she collected her heirloom of precious beads and gold earrings and placed
them in a gosi or porcelain jar and hid them.
20
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Photo 11 — Coffin lid showing lizard design.
Photo 12 — Sinamoki local pottery associated with
the burial jar. This earthenware pot was used to
catch the body fluids from the corpse (sitting on a
death chair) during the wake.
Description of the burial jar
1. The jar is exactly the same shape and type of burial jar as those found at Ganga and
Patok, except for the location of the lid handle. It had a barrel-shaped body, and a conical
shape cover with a very short neck. Similar to the other burial jars, this jar was also
found on the surface floor of the rock shelter, in a vertical position.
2. The conical shape cover had only one handle, which was a vertical loop centrally located
at the apex of the cover (see Photo 10}.
3. The jar is made of reddish-brown clay, and appears to have been glazed with some kind
of faded resin; traces of caked glaze are still visible.
4. The jar had a huge crack on the upper portion of the body near the shoulder, just below
the rim.
5. On the outer rim are four circular holes bored about 8 inches apart. This is for the rattan
strips to pass through in securing the cover, similar to the technique used in the Ganga
burial jar.
6. Skeletal remains of one adult was found at the bottom of the jar. It was identified as
female as evidenced by the pelvic bones, which were compared to the other pelvic bones
of the occupants of the coffins beside the burial jar. This appears to validate the story that
the occupant is Langba. By genealogical reckoning, this jar burial would have occurred
about 8 generations, or approximately 200 years, ago (late 1700s).
21
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
Negansad Rock Shelter No. 5
Just above rock shelter No. 4, about 60 degrees NW, is a weathered limestone rock
facing the settlement of Data. The rock shelter has a vertical opening of approximately 73
inches and a horizontal width of approximately 78 inches; the sides are walled-in with rock
and clay chinked together. The inside wall of the rock shelter is lined with rock, especially
the walls around the burial jar. The space inside can accommodate only four coffins, which
were piled one on top of the other in two rows. The burial jar was in a vertical position
situated on the right corner of the rock shelter.
The wooden coffins beside the burial jar were generally the same type and shape
found in the other rock shelters that were described earlier in this paper. Just beside the burial
jar was a smaller earthenware pot of a different shape and make.
Description of the Burial Jar
1. The jar is generally of the same type as the burial jars that have been described, most
especially with the Data burial jar. It had the same color of clay; short neck; conical
shape cover; barrel-shaped body; no designs but giving the appearance of a slight glaze
(not a true glaze).
2. The cover was chipped on some of the sides but still intact. The lid handle was located at
the apex of the conical shape cover, which differs from the Ganga burial jar lid – the
latter had 2 lid handles located on both sides of the lid base.
3. The body of the jar had a crack and was partly broken on the lower middle half of the jar
body. There was an approximately 7-8-inch crack, which may have been caused by a
rock crashing into it.
4. The base of the jar was buried about 7 ½inches in the ground.
5. There were four holes (circular) bored on the outermost rim, about 13 inches apart.
6. The mouth of the jar had two circular grooves of which the cover rests on the inner
groove.
7. Evidence of charred26 adult skeletal remains in the jar was still distinguished as skull,
femur, tibia, some tarsal bones, metatarsals, the jawbone, and part of the humerus bone.
Some charred bones were strewn on the ground beside the burial jar.
8. The inner sides of the jar showed evidence of burning done inside the jar; however, the
cover did not exhibit the same soot as that found on the walls of the jar body.
26
It is not certain whether the corpse was burned in the jar when it was interred (as cremation
was never a practice, according to informants in the culture area). It is most likely that burning was
done in recent times by some persons searching for porcelain and gold ornaments believed to have
been interred with the dead. The danger of snakes building their nests in the dark dry jar may have
prompted the “treasure hunters” to burn the jar first, before investigating its contents. One informant
said that caves are usually burned before entering to smoke out snakes that have made their nest in
these dry places.
22
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Description of the Earthenware Associated with the Coffins and Burial Jar
1. The pot is generally the same type as the sinamoki jar described earlier, with a reddishbrown color. It had a neck which was slightly flared outward;
2. There were missing fragments on the rim and exhibited some cracks on the lower half of
the jar;
3. The jar had no cover (Sinamoki jars rarely have covers);
4. At the bottom of the jar is a circular hole punctured about 3-4 cms.
5. Measurements were:
•
Height………………………………………..13 inches
•
Circumference of the base………….………..42 inches
•
Width of the rim: from neck to outer flare….. 3 ½inches
•
Rim width……………………………………11 ½inches
•
Neck circumference………………………….25 inches
•
Thickness of the rim………………………… .3/4 inch
•
Thickness of the body…………………………3 cms.
I N T E R V I E W S W I T H I N F O R M A N T S O N A L A B , B O N TOK ORAL
TRADITIONS RELATING TO THE BURIAL JARS
Elders from Atu Buyayeng, Atu Batbatugan, and Atu Langaya were interviewed
regarding oral tradition in connection with the linayan (adult jar burial) practice in the past,
and the possible origin of the burial jars. Ama Aguaking and Kalngan, both from Atu
Langaya, were the ones who furnished most of the information regarding these burial jars
and the stories related to them by their parents who, in turn, learned about these oral histories
from their grandparents.
Origin of the burial jars
The above informants believe that the jars came from Candon, Ilocos Sur. They
related the fact that huge iron vats27 were carried all the way from Candon to Alab, passing
through Cervantes and Data, in western Mountain Province, and into the central Bontok
culture area. Informants say that this was one of the primary reasons for inter-village
warfare, which was triggered off by the killing of a trader passing through unfriendly
territory. In retaliation, the victim’s village would mobilize an expedition of warriors that
would enter the enemy village to take their revenge. However, this situation, according to
informants, did not discourage trade between the lowlands and the highlands. They narrated
cases where trade was carried out by certain persons in the village such as Batani (the
grandfather of a man, now 50 years old [1968] and who was one of the Alab men who traded
in Candon and carried home the payuk (iron vat). This vat is now in the possession of the
Batani family of Alab.
27
The practice of burial in iron vats (double vats) was a practice in the past, among the
wealthy Tukukan Bontoks. The last reported burial took place during the early 1940s. These iron vats
are said to have been imported from China, traded from the lowlands and carried into the central
Cordillera by long-distance traders.
23
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
Pottery Manufacturing Centers in Mountain Province
Interviews were carried out among the potters of the Mountain Province to cross
check the possible local manufacturing of these burial jars.
There are three sources of clay pots in the Mountain Province namely: Samoki
(Central Bontoc), Bila (western Mountain Province), and Betwagan (Sadanga area to the
north). Alab informants claim that these were the places where pottery was traditionally
manufactured and traded with the villages around these pottery centers.28 However,
informants claim that the linayan burial jars did not come from any of these local sources.
Interviews with the potters of the three centers produced the same response to questions
regarding the burial jar origins. They all claim that the manufacture of huge jars for adult
burial was never heard of. The idea was totally alien to them, according to the traditional
potter Cham-la of Kefa, Samoki (86 years old in 1969).29 The above informant denied any
knowledge of adult jar burial in her village, or in the neighboring villages. She claimed that if
her grandmother manufactured any unusually huge jars for adult burial she would have some
knowledge of it. She could describe all the types of pots manufactured during her
grandmother’s time up to the present (1969).
The adult burial jars appear not to be of local manufacture as evidenced by
ethnographic data. If it is not of Central Cordillera manufacture, we then have to assume that
it must have come from the lowlands (Candon) as the possible source as expressed by our
knowledgeable informants. It is unfortunate that no description of this type of jar has so far
been found in the Ilocos provinces. If it was manufactured in the past, it could have been
neglected and ceased to be manufactured if it was not in demand after a certain period of
time. It is evident that the practice was discontinued before the Spaniards entered the Bontok
area (before 1850s).
UNIQUENESS OF THE ALAB BURIAL JAR
The Alab burial jar is unique, compared with other Philippine burial jars found in
archaeological sites (Beyer 1947; Fox 1970; Fox and Evangelista 1957; Solheim 1951, 1954,
1959,1960; Ronquillo et al. 1992). Its uniqueness lies in the fact that it is probably the only
type with a conical shape cover (like a Chinese coolie hat, or a salakut), which apparently
was made especially to fit the orifice of the jar. Philippine burial jars that have been reported
have covers made of either a block of limestone, or another smaller earthenware pot or
stoneware to fit the orifice of the burial jar. It appears that so far there has been no report in
Philippine burial sites of a burial jar with a fitted conical cover like the one found in Alab.
28
Locally produced pots—banga—differ in sizes: the largest, produced for cooking rice
during feasts, water- containers panannum, and the large pots for cooking pig food ug-an. Local pots
do not have special covers. There are also large jars made for storing sugarcane wine called la-ot.
29
Chamla has been a potter for the past 70 years. Her mother and grandmother were also
potters.
24
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Primary Adult Interment
The type of interment of the corpse in the Alab jar burials is characterized by primary
burial. The jar has a very huge orifice, large enough to accommodate a whole adult corpse in
a doubled-up position. According to informants, the Alab people have never practiced
secondary or multiple burial of the dead. This is also true for other Bontok villages.
The traditional method of interment, according to informants Aguaking, Banakan,
and Langsa, is for the corpse to be interred in the fetal (doubled-up) position, with knees
drawn up to the chest and with the hands resting on the knees. The corpse is then placed in
the burial jar with the face oriented eastward. The conical shape jar cover is placed over the
head of the corpse, like a hat. A ribbon of oklin (white clay) mixed with lifo resin and
beeswax, was used to seal the lid. This was followed by the tying of rattan strips that were
passed through the loops on the neck of the jar, to secure the cover.
Child/Infant Burial Practice
Banakan (65 years old in 1972) related a case of a child jar burial she witnessed in
1942. The child was approximately 10 years old, known to the informant as anak Kudod
(“child of Kudod”). The child was buried at Galingan, Demang, Alab. A large clay pot called
angan (large clay pot for cooking pig food) was used as the child’s coffin30 . The grave was
prepared under the overhanging eaves of the house; the base was paved with flattish river
rock, including the surrounding earthen walls. The child’s corpse was covered with a death
blanket and lowered into the pot in a sitting position.31 The head was upright facing forward
and eastward.32 Another smaller pot was used as the cover, chipped at the neck to allow it to
fit the neck of the burial pot.33 A chick was butchered, cooked, and placed in a locally made
earthenware container as sacrifice, which was also buried in another grave (not with the
corpse). It is said that he needed this for his long journey to the dwelling place of his
ancestors.
Informants Chamla and Far-ey of Samoki, and Kuyaw of Tukukan (and information
from other Bontok villages) claim that infant jar burial was an almost universal practice in
the past among the central Cordillera communities. Babies were rarely buried in wooden
coffins or in caves/rock shelters, but carefully wrapped and interred in earthenware pots and
buried very close to the dwelling. In Tukukan, the baby boy is buried on the right side of the
doorway entrance, and the baby girl on the left side. The burial jars are usually the large clay
cooking pots, especially produced for cooking the pig food called angan (from the term ange
30
Clay pots used for cooking pig food, when cracked, are never discarded, according to
informants, but kept by their owners for future use as infant burial coffins.
31
According to Mabuchi (1956:320) the oral tradition of the Sangenya villagers of Formosa
describes a custom where the dead was buried in a pot called palog, in a sitting position. The pot
bottom was perforated, and the mouth was covered with matting. The corpse faced toward the north.
32
Informants mentioned that the orientation of the head may be in any direction except the
downstream region, which would “cause negative effects on the living relatives.”
33
Beauclair (1969:35) reports that infant interment in large earthenware cooking vessels
called beling has been an almost universal custom on the islands of Yap.
25
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
referring to “camote leaves”). These pots are all of local manufacture, particularly from
Samoki, Bontoc.
In the northern Kankanaey villages, prominent persons of the community were known
to be buried in especially made stone coffins. Some of these stone coffins are still found in
Pingad Barangay, municipality of Sabangan, along the national road toward Bontoc. Among
the wealthy Tukukan Bontoks, double vat burial was the traditional practice.
26
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
SUMMARY AND INTERPRETATIONS
Four out of the five burial sites investigated around Alab were found to contain burial
jars called linayan, characterized by the large orifice of the jars, a barrel-shape body and a
conical hat shape cover. The first known outsider to visit the site was Dr. Larkin who earlier
investigated one burial site called Ganga in the early 1950s. He was interested in studying the
occupant of the burial jar and some of the coffins which he examined. He was able to get
some bone marrow samples to check on the blood found on the porcelain plate (identified as
Sung) and a locally manufactured bowl from one of the coffins’ occupants. In 1969, I made a
preliminary investigation of the adult jar burial practiced by the ancient Alab people, and
submitted it as a term paper for a course in Archaeology at the U.P. Department of
Anthropology. That paper is a distant ancestor of this present paper. Five sites were
examined, measurements and descriptions of the burial jars were recorded, and interviews
with potters, weavers and Atu elders were carried out to help shed light on this burial
practice.
Interviews show that the burial jars were not locally manufactured, and thus, very
possibly traded from the lowlands. Furthermore, those buried in these jars most likely came
from the upper stratum of Bontok society. This adult jar-burial practice appears to have been
discontinued before the presence of the Spaniards in the Central Bontok area.
The Alab burial jar is unique (i.e., in shape and kind), since it is so far the only burial
jar reported to have a special cover made to fit like a hat over the head of the corpse. All the
burials of this kind are primary. Furthermore, burials appear to be singular: only the skeletal
remains of a single individual had been interred in each burial jar, unlike most of the jar
burials reported (for Philippine sites) where secondary and multiple burials have been largely
recorded.
Association with the Ganga burials, such as the Sung porcelain plate with evidence of
blood from body fluids and the presence of millet, seems to indicate that some of the burials
occurred before the appearance of rice. The archaeological report of Warren Peterson in 1974
in north eastern Luzon (Peterson 1974) shows that millet was utilized by the early inhabitants
before the presence of rice. The Ganga site also shows the association of burial clothes made
from the bark of trees that were processed and dyed with local vegetable dyes and woven on
a back-strap-loom. This indicates that weaving was already present and bamboo needles were
used to sew clothes. Bodner’s findings in the Fekes archaeological (Bodner 1987) site reports
that by 570-680 A.D., stone spindle whorls were present, indicating that weaving was already
a practice in the Bontok area.
Recovered from one of the coffins close to the rock shelter entrance was a bowl,
identified as local pottery manufacture. In this bowl were traces of human blood (belonging
to the coffin- occupant) and dried rice. This burial appears to be of a later date than that of
the coffins found in the inner part of the rock shelter where the ritual offering appears to be
millet rather than rice. Associated with the burials (probably associated with later burials
located close to the rock shelter entrance) were brass gongs. Artifacts such as porcelain
(Sung) plates and Chinese manufactured brass gongs show evidence of early trading with the
lowlands (Ilocos). Furthermore, evidence of trade between the Chinese and coastal Filipinos
is shown by the presence of these Chinese porcelain and brass gongs.
27
CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
The dating of some of the burials in the Ganga site could not be any earlier, but rather
later than the Sung period. The presence of millet rather than rice indicates that some of the
Ganga burials took place before the introduction of rice. However, the outer coffin inspected
by Dr. Larkin, which contained the locally manufactured bowl, was found to have contained
rice. This could indicate a date when rice replaced millet as the sacrificial food. The dating
of the archaeological site in Tukukan, Bontoc, by Bodner indicating 570-680 A.D., shows the
absence of rice and sweet potato. The burial site of Ganga in Alab seems to show two
periods: one where there was an absence of rice or pre-rice, with millet as the sacrificial food
offering, and a period when rice was already the ritual food offering.
The Data and the Negansad jar burials show a later date of interment which is in the
proto-historic period. There have also been slight variations in measurements, and especially
the location of the lid handle; the shift from two handles at the lower part of the jar cover to
only one handle located at the apex (see photos 3 and 9) seems to show that there was a
change in the style of the jar coffin cover.
Similarity with Fujian Chinese Porcelain Jar
Interesting is the striking similarity of the Chinese jar
with the Ganga Alab burial jars (see photo no. 3). This 12th to
14th centuries Fujian jar has the same general shape cover and
center handle with the ears on the side, short neck, and barrel
shape body. However, the Alab burial jars appear to be the
local version of the Chinese lead glazed jar.
Described as “Lead glazed jar with
cover, in amber with streaks of green;
five vertical lug handles—height is 36
cm., diameter is 37 cm., of Fujian
Quanzhon/Kilns 12th to 14th centuries.
(Valdez Cynthia, et al., 1992)
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An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Jar burial practice outside the Philippines and
their relationships to Philippine Jar burials
Jar burial practice outside the Philippines shows alternative possibilities of the
movements of this practice, as evidenced by variations in jar burial practices that have been
documented.
Formosa Jar Burial
In 1935, Dr. T. Kano (p. 314) excavated a jar-burial at Imourod on Botel Tobago
Island. Based on this and other jar-burials in the Batanes and Babuyanes, Kano concluded
that the relationship of his findings with those of Botel Tobago is another proof of the
connection between the two islands. He further states that the custom of jar-burial originated
in the Philippine Islands and reached Botel Tobago via the Babuyan Islands and Batanes, and
extended farther north to Kashoto and the northeastern part of the Formosa mainland.
However, Solheim (1960:140) rejects this theory due to scant data.
According to Formosan oral tradition of San-gen-ya village (Mabuchi 1956:320), it
was a custom that the dead was buried in a pot called palog, in a sitting position. The pot
bottom was perforated, and matting covered the orifice. The corpse faced toward the north.
According to Kokubo’s (1956:314) report, the Formosans generally inter the jar under the
ground.
Babuyan Jar-Burial
Babuyan Jar-burial, reported by Inocencio Meddela in 1953 described the cunucun
(ancient graves) in Calayan, Camiquin, Daluperi, and Fuga, Claro Babuyan.
It was suggested that the graves were of Tirong, Moro pirates—the kinsman of
Jololano pirates. However, Dr. Beyer did not think so because excavations did not indicate
any Mohammedan trace—“neither the cairns nor the urns are of Chinese origin,” as assumed
by A.E. Lilius. “They probably belonged to a strange people who migrated from South
China or Indo China more than a thousand years ago, and from there passed to the Carolines
and Marianas, where similar jar burials have been found.”
The ancient people of the Babuyanes as noted by Lilius, severed the corpse of their
dead at the major joints of the body so that it will be contained in an earthenware jar. The
corpse thus dissected and drained of blood (and with the internal organs of the body and even
the brain removed and possibly thrown into the sea, and then dried) was placed in earthen
jars, locally called ranga, and covered with a thick layer of ashes and charcoal.
The ranga is made of red clay evidently from the clay deposit at Banga-an (sitio in
South Calayan). Ranga is like any ordinary earthen jar, except that it is a little taller and
devoid of a neck.
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CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
Rangas for adults measure 2 feet across the mouth, and are 2½feet deep walls are ½
inch thick. Incised designs surround the rim of the jar. Ranga is partly buried vertically in
the sand and another ranga of the same size, mouth down, placed over it. There is always a
smaller jar which perhaps contained food.
Japanese Jar –Burial
Japanese jar-burials, generally referred to as the Yayoi Culture (Mori 1956:225) were
characterized by burying underground a coffin made of two large earthenware jars joined
together “mouth-to-mouth” and sealed by a clay ribbon. It is furthermore reported that during
the middle epoch of the sequence stages of the culture, the Yayoi were characterized by the
building of megalithic monuments, with its Dolmen, Menhir, and Stone Circle. As to the
origin of this practice of jar-burial, Mori considers, firstly, the theory that the double-jar
burial of the Yayoi people originated in the single-jar burial of the children’s remains of the
preceding Neolithic people, and grew gradually into the habit of using double-jars to hold
adult corpses as the art of pottery enabled the supply of larger jars.
Indonesian Jar-Burial
Indonesian Jar-Burial sites are fairly well distributed (Nori 1956:315) and are
characterized by large urns in which skeletons were interred singly in the squatting position
or secondary burial. They are described as:
1) That of placing the dead body in the jar. This type requires a jar of large size, which is
generally used and buried under the ground.
2) That of placing the bones only in the vessel (secondary burial) after the flesh has either
been removed or allowed to decay. A pot of medium size is generally used and buried
under the ground, or deposited in a cave or under the roots of a tree.
3) That of gathering the remains of the bones and ashes after cremation.
Indian Jar-Burial
The custom of burying the dead, and especially children, in an embryonic position
within the belly-shaped urns is reported in some sites as Harappa cemetery II area. Pandu
Rajar Dhibi, Nagarjuna-Konda, Tekwada, etc. (Chakravarty 1971:43) “[were] perhaps
practiced for facilitating the rebirth of the child and symbolically affording the reentry into
the maternal womb.” The idea, according to Chakravarty, possibly germinated during
Neolithic times and was associated with the fertilizing aspect of mother earth. He further
states that outside of India (p. 44) the burial of the dead in a jar originated from pre-Hellenic
times and examples of it have been noticed in the Aegean cults of the Bronze Age.
Chakravarty further puts forward the possibility that this practice came from Asia Minor
where Dr. Winckler and Dr. Bittel have exposed the Yazilikaya Hittite burials of the second
Millenium B.C. Here a number of large pots (pithoi) were laid in pairs mouth-to-mouth and
within these several smaller vessels containing cremation-ashes (same as the Indonesian
practice) have been unearthed by Dr. Winckle.
30
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
Yap Infant Jar-Burial
Beauclair (1969:35) reports that infant interment in large earthenware cooking vessels
(called beling meaning “deaf”) has been an almost universal custom on the island. The pot
was a flat-bottomed bowl, with a diameter of about 40 cms., and an incurved rim. For
burial—two of these bowls were used, one forming the lid. In the ground they were covered
by flat stones, then earth and a layer of pebbles were spread on the surface. Beauclair does
not give any possible origin for this practice.
Other reports of infant jar burials are from southern Formosa (Kokubo 1956:314) and
Bontoc, Central Cordillera (Jenks 1905; Solheim 1959). The latter group practiced infant jarburial until recently, as presented in this report.
Theories on the Origins of Jar Burials
in the Philippines
It is clear that based on archaeological evidence the jar-burial culture is widespread in
eastern and Southeast Asia as reported by a number of archaeologists. However, there are
opposing theories as to the origins and movement of the jar-burial culture. Beyer (1948)
believed that the people of the Golden Urn Burial migrations first reached the Batanes and
Babuyan Islands where they passed down the coast of Luzon, Samar and Mindanao, crossing
into Celebes. An off-shoot of this migration crossed southern Luzon, in the area of the
Bondoc Peninsula, crossing into Marinduque Islands and from there to Mindoro, the
Calamian Islands, Palawan, and finally into Borneo where it died out according to Beyer
(1948). Beyer further states that
…burial in jars was a solemn ritual introduced in the Philippines by
the “jar-burial folk” descended from the Hakka tribes of Fukien
province, who carried their ancestors’ bones to new homes. In the
north, the jars were usually covered by a cairn; but as the migration
proceeded forward the custom changed, and the cairns were first
superceded by an earthen mound, and later by direct burial of the jars
themselves in the ground.
It is probable that this ancient burial migration added an interesting
element to the population of the eastern and central Philippines during
the first third of the Christian era….But their culture seems to have
died out prior to the eighth Century A.D., or perhaps they were merely
blended with the later peoples of the proto-historic origin (1948:15).
I argue in this paper that these opposing theories, one which favors the northern
migration route and the other that proposes a southern origin as suggested by the different
archaeologists, need not be contradictory. However, the claim that there has been only one
route is not supported by evidence from reports of Philippine jar burial sites, nor the finding
that the Philippines is the origin for the Formosa and Botel Tobago jar burial practice. It
appears that the jar-burials found in northern Philippines have closer relationships to those
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CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
found in Botel Tobago, Batanes, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Japan. While, on the other
hand those found in the central Philippines have closer relationships to jar-burials found in
Borneo, Indonesia, Indo-China, Malaysia and surrounding areas. Some of the jar-burial
practices like cremating the corpse and interring the ashes in an urn are practiced not only in
Indonesia, but can also be found in India (Chakravarty 1971:45).
It is possible that there may have been two or more directions of entry regarding the
jar-burial culture in the Philippines. Beyer's’ Northern Philippines entrance, possibly from
southern China and southern Japan, Solheim’s suggestion of Southern China or Indochina,
and Fox’s suggestion of a southern entry of the jar burial practice for the southern
Philippines, need not contradict one another. Furthermore, jar-burial practice in the central
Cordillera may not have been introduced directly by a jar-burial culture people who migrated
from elsewhere into the central Cordillera, but rather by a local diffusion of the jar burial
practice from the coastal areas of northern Luzon into the interior. The discovery of more
undisturbed jar-burial sites in northern Philippines may shed further light on the problem
concerning the origins and movement of this practice in the central Cordillera and other
Philippine jar burial sites.
Key Informants
1. Malekdan Pasong
Approximately 75 years old (in 1969). He claims to have been approximately 10
years old when the Insurrectus came to Bontoc town. He is currently a member of atu Datil,
after he transferred from atu Buyayeng, the atu of his brothers, father, grandfather and those
before them. He transferred from his paternal atu due to personal reasons.
Malekdan was one of the oldest men in Alab (1969) during the research. He officiated
in some of the village ceremonies. He related stories of Alab traders who traveled to the
lowlands (Candon), and intervillage warfare that resulted when these traders were killed by
enemies on their way back from the lowlands.
2. Aguaking
Approximately 57 years old (1969). He is a member of Atu Langaya. This informant
is one of the most respected men in the village of Alab. Although he is well versed with the
different ritual myths, he always gives the honor of reciting and officiating during rituals to
the older men of the other Atu. However, he is called upon to perform the required rituals
whenever the elder men are not available. Aguaking is a reliable informant—his information
has always been collaborated by many informants when cross-checked. He is very
knowledgeable about the ethnohistory of Alab which some of the older men are not quite
familiar with, especially on the details of events. This is because Aguaking’s father was a
village priest and he related many stories and traditions that were orally handed down to him.
He furnished information regarding the Ganga burial jar and the Data burial jar oral histories.
He also furnished information on the smallpox (dengaw) and cholera (peste) epidemics that
32
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
took a toll on the population of the central Cordillera during those times (genealogical
reckoning of events). His mother Banka (who originally came from Bontoc and intermarried
in Alab) related the story of Langba, who was interred in the Data burial jar. She heard it
from Awayen (her mother-in-law), who also heard it from Bab’do’ok who was the person
entrusted by Cobcobo to place him in his coffin and cover him with the lid.
3. Kalngan
Approximately 57 years old (1969). A contemporary of Aguaking, also a member of
Atu Langaya. He related the tragic story regarding the bachelors who were buried in the
Ganga rock shelter burial site. This information is part of Alab oral tradition. Kalngan heard
the stories, events and folktales from his grandfather in the Atu when he was still a boy. He
also related the story of Langba who was buried in the burial jar at Data rock shelter.
4. Malekdan
Approximately 60 years old (1969). He is a member of Atu Buyayeng. He is one of
the elders of this atu who gave added information on the Data jar burial story.
5. Lagang
Age 62 (1969), of Atu Batbatugan. He helped in cross-checking the stories that were
related by the Dongyuan, Alab informants. Batbatugan is another geographic area, located
across the river from the oldest settlement of Dongyuan.
6. Langsa
40 years old (1969), female. She related stories of infant jar burials, which seem to
have persisted up to the very recent times.
7. Ayan
45 years old (1969), Atu Batbatugan. He is the husband of Langsa who confirmed
some stories related to burial positions and orientations.
8. Far-ey
65 years old (1970). She comes from Tuchey in Samoki village. She is one of the
traditional potters. She furnished information on the different pots manufactured by Samoki.
She also added information on the practice of infant jar burial in the Bontok area.
9. Cham-la
Approximately 86 years old in 1969. She is one of the traditional potters of Kefa,
Samoki. She has been a potter for the past 70 years, and learned her trade from a line of
female ascendants. She furnished information on the different kinds of pottery produced by
the potters and strongly rejects the possibility that the adult burial jars were of Cordillera
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CSC Working Paper Series no. 30
manufacture. Since the technology used is the paddle-and-anvil type of manufacture, she
claims that it was not possible for them to manufacture pots as huge as the ones found in the
Alab burial sites using this method. Furthermore, she called attention to the type of jar which
has a specially manufactured cover with a conical hat shape –which she claims is unknown
by any potter around the central Cordillera communities.
10.
Banakan
Approximately 65-68 years old (1969) of Demang, Alab. She related the case of a ten
year old child, buried in an earthenware jar that she witnessed in 1942. She also furnished
information on the burial position and orientation regarding pot or jar burial.
11.
Antonia Kiwang
Approximately 55 years old (1969), female weaver of Alab. This informant gave
valuable information in the identification of the death clothes found inside the Ganga burial
jar. Her wide knowledge of indigenous vegetable dyes used in dyeing of “wild cotton” or
fiber, enabled her to identify the remains (of fabric) found in the burial jar.
12.
Ubey
Approximately 55 years old (1969), female resident of Alab, who is also a weaver.
She helped in identifying the colors, terms, local dyes, technology used in making the death
clothes in the Ganga burial jar. She and Antonia are local weavers who are also descendants
of weavers.
34
An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
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An Ethnoarchaeological Report on Adult Jar Burial…
_____________ 1954. The Makabog burial-jar site. P.J.S., vol. 83, no.1 (March) 57-68.
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PERIODICALS
_____________ 1972. Jar burial culture age, (June 11, 1972) Baguio Midland Courier.
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Post.
37