The Power of Pyrotechnologies: Ceramic, Iron, and Bronze in the Rise of the Angkorian Khmer Empire, Cambodia (Ninth to Fourteenth Centuries CE)

Summary

This is an abstract from the "The Current State of Archaeological Research across Southeast Asia" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Crafting with fire is a central feature in the expansion of premodern states. In mainland Southeast Asia, the Angkorian Khmer (ninth to fourteenth centuries CE) possessed a unique mastery of three types of pyrotechnological production: stoneware ceramics, copper-base alloys, and iron. While the products of each craft (pots, statues, tools) were used and dispersed in markedly different contexts (capital/regional; temples/households), they each played a critical role creating the Angkorian identity. This paper examines how these pyrotechnologies were controlled by the Khmer state and, more importantly, highlights the power of mobile material culture as a driving force behind its expansions across Cambodia, Thailand, and southern Laos.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• The Current State of Archaeological Research across Southeast Asia   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 36445.0