Scientific excavation by the Penn Museum and the Thai Fine Arts Department took place at the site of Ban Chiang in northeast Thailand in 1974 and 1975. These excavations uncovered a thriving and hitherto unknown prehistoric culture dating from 5000 years ago and led to the rewriting of Southeast Asian prehistory. UNESCO inscribed Ban Chiang as a World Heritage Site in 1992. Currently the Museum’s Ban Chiang Project is dedicated to publishing its scientific research on this fascinating ancient culture.

Where
The Metal Age village and mortuary site of Ban Chiang is in the province of Udon Thani in northeastern Thailand.

When
The Ban Chiang Project's studies cover the Inital Period of occupation (? - 2100 BCE) to the Late Period (300 BCE - 200 CE)

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The Mekong River is one of the world’s great rivers, but very little is known about its prehistoric human settlement. The Middle Mekong Archaeological Project (MMAP), conceived in 2001, seeks to investigate human settlement of the Mekong Valley with a research program beginning in Luang Prabang in northern Laos. Since 2005, MMAP has conducted a groundbreaking collaborative research program of international researchers in this area, including surveys that have identified 69 archaeological sites and excavations at three cave sites. This archaeological fieldwork has yielded thousands of stone and ceramic artifacts, human skeletal remains, and other evidence from over 11,000 years of human habitation in the area. MMAP seeks to resolve long standing archaeological debates on when and how metallurgy and agriculture came to Southeast Asia. This joint project of The Penn Museum and the Department of Heritage, Laos is also helping budding Lao archaeologists and museologists to build capabilities for Lao cultural heritage preservation, by offering training in archaeological disciplines concurrent with research activities.

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Chemical analyses recently confirmed that the earliest alcoholic beverage in the world was a mixed fermented drink of rice, honey, and hawthorn fruit and/or grape. The residues of the beverage, dated ca. 7000–6600 BCE, were recovered from early pottery from Jiahu, a Neolithic village in the Yellow River Valley. This beverage currently predates the earliest evidence of grape wine from the Middle East by more than 500 years.

Where
China

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TAP excavated Southeast Asian’s only currently known prehistoric copper mine at Phu Lon on the Mekong River in northeast Thailand. Additionally, TAP excavated and continues to conduct active research on Southeast Asia’s only known major regional prehistoric copper production center in the Khao Wong Prachan Valley of central Thailand. The sites of Non Pa Wai, Nil Kham Haeng and Non Mak La were the focus on TAP research in the Valley.

Where
Phu Lon is located on the Thai side (southern bank) of the Mekong River just west of Vientiane, the capital city of Laos (northern bank). The Khao Wong Prachan Valley is located just north of the city of Lopburi in central Thailand.

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This project surveys seventh-to-tenth-century Hindu temples preserved along the Indus River and in the Salt Range, Pakistan. A two-phase chronology has been worked out, in part confirmed by archaeological discoveries and excavations carried out at one site, Kafirkot North. A series of publications have reported on aspects of the work in progress.

Where
A number of sites are located along the Indus River and on the Salt Range plateau in the North West Frontier and Punjab provinces in Pakistan, south of Peshawar and southwest of Islamabad.

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Vijayanagara (“City of Victory”) was founded by a local Hindu dynasty during a period of great political instability in southern India. Their capital grew in size and magnificence as their kingdom extended its authority over much of the sub-continent. At its height in the 16th century, the city’s wealth and size amazed foreign visitors and local people alike. It fortifications, encompassing 650 sq. km. (250 sq. miles), protected palace and temple complexes, hydraulic systems, and religiously and linguistically diverse communities. After the city was sacked the structures gradually decayed; they were “rediscovered” in the mid 19th century. National and state archaeological services intensified the clearing and restoration of ruined structures from the 1970s; in 1986 it became a UNESCO World Heritage site in mid 1986.

Where
The site of the Vijayanagara capital, locally known as Hampi, is located in the valley of the Tungabhadra River, Karnataka, southern India.

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