Researchers find human remains in jar

Archaeologists working on Laos’ Plain of Jars say they have found the remains of at least 37 people inside a single giant stone vessel, one of the clearest signs yet that the region’s megalithic jars were used in mortuary rituals. The finding was reported May 18 in the journal *Antiquity* by a team led by James Cook University archaeologist Nicholas Skopal and Lao Department of Heritage representative Souilya Bounxayhip. The jar, known as Jar 1 at Site 75 in northern Laos, contained densely packed disarticulated bones and teeth from multiple individuals. Radiocarbon dating indicates the remains were deposited over roughly 270 years, from about A.D. 890 to 1160. ### Where exactly was the jar found? Site 75 lies about 70 kilometers northeast of Phonsavan in Xieng Khouang province, within the broader Plain of Jars landscape in northern Laos. The area is known for thousands of large carved stone jars scattered across uplands and ridgelines, a site archaeologists have studied for decades without settling the question of what the jars were for. (cambridge.org) Jar 1 was described by researchers as exceptionally large, measuring more than 2 meters across. Archaeology magazine and the Archaeological Institute of America said the vessel had thick walls, a broad base and a bowl-like form, making it unlike many other jars documented in Laos. (sciencenews.org) ### What did the researchers find inside it? The excavation uncovered a collective mortuary assemblage of secondary interments, according to the *Antiquity* paper. That means the remains were not complete skeletons laid out intact, but disarticulated bones and teeth placed into the vessel after an earlier stage in the funerary process. (archaeologymag.com) Nicholas Skopal said skulls were placed along the edges of the jar, while arm and leg bones were grouped together. The remains came from individuals ranging from infants to adults, suggesting the jar was used repeatedly by a community over generations rather than for a single burial event. (cambridge.org) ### Why does this matter for the Plain of Jars mystery? Archaeologists have long suspected the jars were tied to burial practices because human remains have been found in pits around some jar sites. The new excavation is more direct evidence because the remains were found inside the vessel itself. Science News reported that researchers think the giant jar was a multigenerational burial site, and the paper says the find hints at the jars’ role in a more complex funerary sequence. (archaeology.org) James Cook University said nearby smaller jars at Site 75 did not contain human remains but did produce similar associated material culture. Researchers said one possibility is that smaller jars were used earlier in the process, with bones later transferred into larger vessels such as Jar 1. That remains a hypothesis rather than a settled conclusion. (sciencenews.org) ### Did the team find anything besides bones? Researchers also reported imported glass beads from India and Mesopotamia at the site, evidence they said points to wider regional interaction and mobility during the period when the jar was in use. The *Antiquity* abstract places that mortuary activity in a period of increasing regional contact in Southeast Asia. (cambridge.org) ### What happens next? Future research will focus on a full bioanthropological study of the remains from Jar 1 and ancient DNA analysis, according to a Cambridge University blog post tied to the study. Those next steps are aimed at identifying the health, ancestry and relationships of the people whose remains were placed inside the jar. (cambridge.org 1) (cambridge.org 2)