Tabon Cave Man (Robert Fox) PDF
Tabon Cave Man (Robert Fox) PDF
Tabon Cave Man (Robert Fox) PDF
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ERRATA (THE TABON CAVES):
Page viii, line 23 should read:
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"Color Plate I-A: ...
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(2) Page viii, line 24 should read:
II
"Color Plate 1-B: ...
(3) Page viii, line 35 should read:
l
"Spouted effigJ vessel ... "
(4)
(5)
Page I line 8 of Footnote I shoul omit
Page
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•• •
MANUNCCUL JAR
CONTENTS
FRONTISPIECE ii
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES ....................... vi
PREFACE ix
CHAPTER
I. INTRODUCTION TO THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF
PALAWAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . l
II. TABON CAVE: AN UPPER PALAEOLITHIC
HABIT ATI ON SITE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
III. GURI CAVE: A POST-PLEISTOCENE HABITATION
SITE WITH UPPER PALAEOLITHIC FLAKE
ASSEMBLAGES AND A NEW LITHIC
TECHNOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
IV. DUYONG CAVE: A STRATIFIED SITE WITH
A SMALL FLAKE AND BLADE INDUSTRY
DEDICATION
AND NEOLITHIC ASSEMBLAGES ............... . 53
This report is dedicated to my co-workers V. THE JAR BURIAL COMPLEX OF THE TABON
in the National Museum of the Philippines. CAVES ......................................... . 67
The data presented are a product of their THE TABON POTTERY COMPLEX ...... . 75
individual efforts and of having worked to·
VI. THE CULTURAL ASSEMBLAGES OF SIX
gether towards a more detailed definition
JAR BURIAL CAVES AND CHRONOLOGICAL
of a part of the complex prehistory of the
DEVELOPMENTS 105
Filipino people.
NGIPE'T DULDUG CAVE ................... . 105
MANUNGGUL CA VE ....................... . 109
DUYONG CAVE AND UYAW CAVE ......... . 119
PAGAYONA CAVE ......................... . 145
TADYAW CAVE ........................... . 151
VII. NOTES ON THE CULTURAL CHRONOLOGY
AND RELATIONSHIPS OF THE JAR BURIAL
COMPLEX OF THE TABON CAVES AND
PALAWAN ....................................... 157
VIII. TEST EXCAVATIONS AND EXPLORATIONS
IN PALAWAN .................................. 167
APPENDIX I: DEATH, BONE WASHING, AND JAR BURIAL
AMONG THE SULOD OF CENTRAL
PANAY, PHILIPPINES .................... 181
REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
ILLUSTRATIONS 198
v
,..
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES
PAGE
15. Jar with Cover Hidden on Shelf in Guri Cave (x 1/4 natural
TEXT FIGURES PAGE size) ............................................................. . 51
1. Map of Palawan Island, showing the location of the Tabon Caves
16. Floor Plan of Duyong Cave; contour interval is 40 cm. · · ..• 55
and the major archaeological sites discussed in the text ..... 3
2. Map of Palawan Island, showing the location of Tabon Caves 17. Profile of Duyong Cave showing stratigraphic features ..... . 57
and other areas discussed in the text. The insert shows the
location of Palawan Island with reference to the Philippines 18. Small Flake and Blade Assemblage from Duyong Cave .....• 61
and Borneo and the 50 fathom line ........................... . 5
19. Artifacts associated with Neolithic Burial in Duyong Cave:
3. Gold ornament with Garuda image. . .......................... . 6 a) large Tridacna shell adze; (b) front and back view of
smaller Tridacna adze-axe; (c) shell pendant; (d) front and
4. Polished Stone Tool from Aborlan, Palawan. . ................ . 7 back view of Cone shell ear ornament; (e) large polished
stone adze; (f) lime container with Duyong Neolithic burial;
5. Map of the Quezon Area, west ccast of Palawan Island, show-
and ( g) similar Arca shell line container from Ba to Pu ti
ing Lipuun Point and the Tabon Caves, and other caves
excavated or described. . ....................................... . Cave, Lipuun Point. . ...................................... · . · . · · 63
12
6. Ploor Plan of Tabon Cave with areas excavated indicated by 20. Edge-ground tools: <a) from Pilanduk Cave; (b) from Mara'may
dark shading. . ................................................. . 23 Cave ........................................... · ... ················ 66
7. Tools from Tabon Cave: (a-m) examples of flake tools asso- 21. Tabon Impressed: Representative sherds from Duyong Cave of
ciated with Flake Assemblage III; (n-o) choppers; (p) quartz this pottery type, including bound paddle and carved paddle. 82
hammer stone. . ................................................ . 30
22. Tabon Impressed: Examples of Rim Impressions and Scal-
8. Plane view of limited area of Tabon Cave, 3 x 7 meters in loping of this pottery type from Duyong Cave .............. . 84
size and from 85 to 115 cm. in depth, showing distribution
of chert and hammer stones which form workshop and ha- 23. Two Burial Jars from Manunggul Cave (Chamber A>. ....... . 86
bitation areas. . ................................................ . 32
24. Tabon Incised and Impressed: Representative sherds of
9. Stratigraphic profiles of Tabon Cave: (A) Flake Assemblage II this pottery Types from Duyong Cave. . ...................... . 88
showing location and stratigraphic features; (B) Stratigraphic
relationships between Flake Assemblages II and III; and <C>
25. Tabon Incised and Painted: a shallow bowl with four holes
Large flake tools of Flake Assemblage II. . ................... . 34 near the rim probably for suspEnsion during rituals ....... ·. · 89
10. Schematic profile of Lateral 11.5 in Tabon Cave, showing stra-
26. Some Vessel Forms of the Tabon Pottery Complex .......... . 93
tigraphic relationship of Flake Assemblages I, III, IV, and V
( 1966). . .......................................................... . 36 27. Examples of Vessel Forms and Decorations of the Tabon Pot-
tery Complex: (a) an example of Tabon Polished with highly
11. Flake tool from Sidangan, Zamboanga del Norte, showing burnished red slip, and usually tall, restricted neck; from
highly developed unifacial secondary flaking not found in the Diwata Cave; (b) angle-bodied vessel from Diwata Cave with
Tabonian tradition. . ............................................ . 37 incised designs above the corner point ( c) Angle-bodied bowl
from Diwata Cave with incised designs above the corner
12. Fossil human bones from Tabon Cave: (a-d-e) Lateral, frontal,
point and paddle impressed designs over the lower body
and ventral view of "Tabon Man" tentatively dated to 22·24,000
and base; an example of Tabon Incised and Impressed; (d)
B.P. <b> Late Neolithic skull from Manunggul Cave, 710-890 B.C.
shallow bowl, Tabon Polished, from Diwata Cave with unusual
(c) Early Metal Age skull from Bato Puti Cave; (f-g) fossil
in-turning rim; <e > further example of a vessel belonging to
mandibles of two other individuals from Tabon Cave. . ..... 41 the pottery type Tabon Incised from Duyong Cave; (f) an
unusual cover box from Bato Puti Cave which contained the
13. Floor Plan of Guri Cave. . .................................... . 46 painted teeth of more than one individual. ................ . 95
14. Flake Tools from Guri Cave. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 28 • Design Patterns of the Tabon Pottery Complex. . ............. · 97
vi vii
PAGE PAGE
29. Bu.rial jars and trunconical jar covers from Sa-huynh, Indo-
48. Nephrite bracelet from Tadyaw Cave. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Chma [after .Janse (1959) Fig. 1; and Solheim (1959b) Figs. 1
and 2 J showmg relationships with those of the Tabon caves. 101 49. Forms of Trunconical Covers from the Tabon Caves. 154
Sasak Rock Shelter: rimsherds showing "Sloping-S" Designs. 170
30. F~oor Plan of Ngipe't Duldug Cave, a Late Neolithic Jar Burial 50.
Site .............................................................. . 51. Lungun Cave: (a) Log Coffin for secondary burial <x 1/5
106
natural size); (b and c) knives from the coffin; and (d)
31. Restored Vessels from Ngipe't Duldug Cave ................... . decorated bowl believed to be associated with coffin .......... . 172
108
32. Floor Plan of Manunggul Cave: Chamber A is Late Neolithic Kuruswanan Ledge: Boat Coffin for Primary Burial. ........ . 173
52.
and Chamber B and Area C are associated with iron im-
plements ......................................................... . 53. Magmisi Shelf: Earthenware jar associated with Chinese
110 trade pottery of the Sung Dynasty. . ............... · . · · · · · · · · · · 174
33. Funerary Vessels from Chamber A, Manunggul Cave .......... . Modern Earthenware vessel made by Pala'wan of Quezon
113 54.
showing persistence of incised and impressed designs. . .... 175
34. Details of the spirit boat on the jar cover from Manunggul
Cave ........................ . ..................................... 55. Tridacna Shell Tools: (A) From Sanga Sanga Island, near
114 Tawi Tawi, Sulu Archipelago; and (B) From Paredes Shelter,
35. Carv~d turtle from Pawikan Shelf; the material is possibly Langen Island, El Nido, Palawan ........................... · · · · · 179
old ivory ........................................................ . 115
36. Floor Plan of Uyaw Cave. ...................................... TABLES
120
37. 1. The Tabon Caves: The Cultural Assemblages and Status of
Nephrite (Jade) Ornaments of the Early Metal Age ......... . 125 9
the Excavations in 1966 ............................. · .. · · · · · · · · ·
38. Nephrite (Jade) Bracelets from the Tabon Caves ........... . 128 2. Chronology of the Cultural Assemblages from the Tabon Caves
and Caves of the Quezon Area ............................. · · · · 14
39. Bronze Adzes and Fire Clay Moulds for making Adzes from
the Tabon Caves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 The Flake Assemblages from Tabon Cave. . ............ · · · · · · 24
3.
40. Bronze Implements of the Early Metal Age and cross-section A sample Classification of Chert and their Percentages of
4.
of sherds showing cover sealed to jar...................... . Flake Assemblage III. .................... · ..... · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 35
138
41. Glass Ear-Pendant from Rito-Fabian Cave. ..................... 5. Shells in the Duyong Midden Associated with the small Flake
_..,.- 139
..Y and Blade Assemblage ......................................... . 58
Color Plate ¢-A
,.,(
: Stone and Shell Beads from Palawan ..... 141
6. Comparisons of the Stone, Metal, and Glass Artifacts from
Color Plate ff-B: Glass and Gold Beads from Palawan ..... nine Jar Burial Caves. . .......................... · · · . · · · · · · · · · 69
I 143
viii ix
F - .
PREFACE
Roces, former Secretary of Education and his brother, Mr. Alfredo
!he financial support of many institutions and persons made Races, writer and artist; former Senator Manuel P. Manahan; the
possible the extensive excavations and explorations on Palawan late Dr. Paulino Garcia, former Secretary of Health and former
!~land. From 3 July, 1962, to 30 June, 1965, the field work was Chairman of NSDB; and Dr. Juan Salcedo, present Chairman of NSDB;
financed by three. gran~s-in-~id from the National Science Develop•. Dr. Canute G. Manuel, former Commissioner of the N.ational Institute
ment Board; the first time m the history of Philippine archaeology of Science and Technology; Mr. Ramon A. D. Hermano and Mr.
that excavations have been adequately supported by government Antonio J. A. Pido of the Social Sciences and Humanities Branch
funds. of the NSDB; the late Mr. Patrick Judge of The Asia Foundation;
Secretary Manuel Elizalde, Jr.; the Honourable Telesforo Paredes,
A grant from The Asia Foundation made possible the initial former Governor of Pala.wan; and Governor Salvador Socrates; all
exploration~ in Palawan and finally the discovery of Tabon Cave helped to make the "Palawan Project" possible.
on 28 April, 1962, by the author and Mr. Manuel Ma. Santiago.
The subsequent excavations in Tabon Cave until the end of June Local officials of Palawan, friends of the author and the Na-
1962, were also supported by The Asia Foundation and most of tional Museum, have helped the field team in many ways. The
the .technical equipment used during the field ~ork had been pioneer of Quezon, the late Mr. Vicente Pagayona, Sr., and his
provided by an earlier grant-in-aid from this Foundation. sons, Messrs. Cenon Pagayona, Victor Pagayona, and Mr. Juan Pagayona
who was formerly Municipal Mayor of Quezon, Mr. Ben delas
. The latest explorations and excavations by the National Museum Alas of Tabon, Mr. and Mrs. Felix Rafols and Mr. and Mrs. Felipe
m Pal~wan from 11 September, 1965, through 1966 were supported de la Pefi.a of Puerto Princesa, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Baalan of
by a timely grant from the National Geographic Society. Mr. Galo NARRA, Panacan, Mrs. Leo Virata, Mr. Jesus Cabarrus, Jr., Mr.
B. Ocampo, f?rmer Director of the National Museum, allocated, Benito Legarda, Jr., Mr. Jaime Calero, Mr. Michael Parsons, Mr.
whenever possible, much of the very limited funds of the National Patrick Parsons, Mr. Martin Tinio, Mr. Fred Elizalde, and many
Museum to carry on the "Palawan Project." others have all in one way or another insured the success of
the excavations in the Tabon Caves .
. Th~ cur~ent excavations in Palawan being undertaken in co-
ordmat10n with Mr. Jonathan Kress of Yale University have been The officers and men of the United States Coast Guard
sup~orted in every possible way by the present Director of the LORAN Station at Tarumpitao provided many emergency services
Nat10nal Museum, Mrs. Gemma Cruz Araneta. and made our "isolated duty" more pleasant.
A~dditional assistance was provided for by many Filipino and The author wishes tc· express his deepest gratitude for the pro-
American firms and individuals who donated through the Research fessional and technical help given by Dr. Richard Shutler, Mr ..Jo-
Fou.ndation in Philippine Anthropology and Archaeology, Inc., the nathan Kress, Dr. Graham Clark, Dr. Richard Mulvaney, Dr. Wil-
eqmpment and supplies which were used daily during the field helm G. Solheim II, Dr. F. Landa Jocano, and Mr Tom Harrisson.
work. Former President of the Research Foundation, Mr. Hans former Curator of the Sarawak Museum and Government Ethno•
Kasten, and Mrs. Sixto Roxas III, the present President, were par- logist. Malaysia, whose publications have been extensively cited in
ticularly active in obtaining support for the excavations in Pa· this report. Dr. Daniel Scheans spent one month in Palawan with
lawan, as well as for the archaeological program in general of the author assisting in the analyses of the materials excavated,
the National Museum .. Further financial aid was given by Mr. and Dr. Fred Eggan of the University of Chicago has, as always,
and Mrs. Leandro Locsm, Mr. and Mrs. Louis Sheff, and Don Fer- guided the work of the author. I am also particularly grateful
nando Zobel de Ayala. to Dr. W. F. Libby, Dr. G. J. Fergusson, and Dr. R. Berger of
the Institute of Geophysics, University of California at Los Angeles,
Many persons deeply interested in the Foundations of con- who have made possible without cost the series of highly important
temporary Filipino culture have contributed immeasureably to the C-14 determinations which are presented in this report. To those
success of the Palawan excavations. The Honorable Alejandro R. many individuals and institutions, the author and the anthropology
staff of the National Museum wish to express their sincere gratitude.
x
xi
Their financial support and professional cooperation made the ex- the interpretation of the use of artifacts and of past cultural
cavations in Palawan a reality. patterns suggested by the archaeological data.
The excavations in the Tabon Caves were wholly a project The men who worked from time to time, in addition to
of the National Museum of the Philippines and the participating those noted above, were: Sipar Amli, William Apolinario, Bidtil
professional personnel were drawn entirely from this institution. Badjaw, Angcane Bantocan, Utio Bukwan, Awang Buyon, Lamin
Direction of the actual field work and technical decisions were Dalansa, Fidel Descada, Conrado Debis, Pablo Fabian, Wilfredo
made by the author and he alone is responsible for the opinions Gabuco, Tirso Gombang, Junior Imok, Ignacio Ingkad, Mendik
set forth in this report. Individuals from the Division of Anthro- Lapit, Guzman Magkuha, Vitaliano Monte, Nehemias Rita, Elmo de-
pology who participated in the Palawan excavations were Messrs. la Rosa, Villamar dela Rosa, and Timotiyo Tayao.
Alfredo Evangelista, Eric Casino, Domingo Trinidad, Manuel San-
tiago, and Macario Santos. Mr. Manuel Santiago, with the help of Many local and foreign visitors, friends of the writer from
Mr. Macario Santos and Mr. Ruperto Santiago, prepared the many Manila, and in particular members of the United States Peace
line drawings found in this report. A large series of field pho- Corps, labored in the caves during holidays and vacations; some
tographs were taken by Mr. Manuel Santiago and the author, for a period of a week and others for a month or more. Mrs.
or by Mr. Jose Sarmiento, Chief Photographer, Philippine Tourist Tanny Resmann of Sweden spent over two months working in
and Travel Association. In 1968, many additional photographs the Tabon Caves. Others included: Dr. and Mrs. David Bonnet
were taken by Mr. Joseph Schershel and Dr. Paul Zahl of the and their sons, Scott and Charles; Darrel F. Clark, Virginia
National Geographic Society. Cochran, Carlos Fernandez, Capt. Robert Fisher, Linda Henry,
Lt. (jg) Richard Johnson, Janet Karon, Robert Miller, Marcia
The field team was particularly fortunate to have had the Sawlan, Rachel Singer, John Schricker, Lonnie Spencer, William
help of Mr. Inocentes Paniza, Geologist of the National Museum, Thompson, Mrs. Myrtle Greenwalt, Mr. and Mrs. Alan White, and Mr.
who is also a field archaeologist. Mr. Paniza was with the author and Mrs. Charles Towsend. Their efforts as volunteer workers
during most of the excavations of Tabon Cave and he is preparing made possible the actual continuation of the excavations when
a report on the geology of Lipuun Point and the Quezon Area. funds were low. Their unending questions led in many instances
Mr. Godofredo Alcasid and Mr. Demetria Mendoza, Chiefs of the to re-examinations of data and interpretations. Mr. Mauro Garcia,
Divisions of Zoology and Botany respectively, made brief field Fern Landau, and Mr. E.D. Hester made many suggestions and
studies of the limestone fauna and flora of the area which will read proof on the typescript.
be included in the final site report for Tabon Cave.
xii xiii
CHAPTER I
years have been spent by the writer and his co-workers in Pa- B U R M A
...
Luzon Str•if
.....
lawan; nevertheless, the excavations in the Tabon Caves may be
described only as "preliminary," and systematic explorations of the 8 alintolff Chott11•I .,.
many extensive limestone exposures throughout the west coast
of the Island have just been started. Years will be required to
,. BOLINAO
complete the excavations of the key sites already surveyed, and THAl~AllD
number of cave sites found there. Then, selected caves and their
cultural assemblages will be discussed in their tentative chrono- .
'o
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URING·URING
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ea1 ba~
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logical position, illustrating the temporal range of the cultural 0 SAHGA SANGA
ISLAND
sequences excavated. A summary of the cultural chronology of
the archaeological materials from the Tabon Caves and other
caves in the nearby Quezon area, as based upon present evidences,
is set forth early in the text as Table II. Some. comparisons
with relevant data from neighboring regions are included in the
text, particularly with the time and cultural sequences excavated
in the Niah Caves, Borneo, by Tom and Barbara Harrisson 0957,
1959 and 1964). Brief references are also made to data from
archaeological sites found elsewhere in the Philippines; reference
notably to the studies of the late Professor H. Otley Beyer, the
Dean of Philippine Archaeology. It must be stressed, however,
that the writer did not and could not attempt any detailed com-
parison of the time and cultural sequences reccvered m the
Tabon Caves with possibly related archaeological materials found
elsewhere on the mainland of Asia and in Southeast Asia, for
the very limited library facilities available in the Philippine:s pre- A 0
cluded this work. This remains a future task. And, the sources "
available to the writer generally provided too few details for Fig. 1. Map of South China and Southeast Asia, showing the location of the ·
archaeological sites discussed in the text.
2
significant cultural-historical comparisons. The principal aim of a
PHIL.IPPINE ()
by deep chasms. The sides of these domes vary from steep slopes ared by the United States Army Map Service from aerial photo-
to sheer cliffs, the "largest and highest dome being approximately ~raphs. During actual field work, it is difficult to . use . place
690 feet above the sea level (Pl ts. I and II). The entire Point names found on maps which are not known to local mhab1tants.
is covered with luxuriant vegetation and the mouths of the caves When thought useful, the different names found on the maps
cannot be easily seen from the surrounding sea. New caves con- were placed in the text in parentheses after the local name
taining surface artifacts were still being discovered even after five [e.g., Magmisi (Devil's Peak), a major site area in the Iwahig area).
years of exploring Lipuun Point and unquestionably, there are Place names were also recorded phonemically and may not fallow
still undiscovered cave sites. The age of the Lipuun limestone the orthography found on published maps.
has been determined by oil geologists as mid-Miocene.
cave Sites in The Quezon Area.-The region surrounding Lipuun
To date, twenty-nine oaves used for habitation and/or burial
Point and the Tabon Caves-falling roughly within the new munic-
have been discovered on Lipuun Point. These caves, as noted,
contained an astonishing wealth and an extensive time-range of ipality of Quezon, Palawan-has about 30,000 hectares of scattered
cultural materials: a flake tool tradition which dates from the limestone exposures which also contain hundreds of caves and
Late Pleistocene and early post-Pleistocene periods, including fossil
human bones and the bones of a deer now extinct in Palawan; a Table 1
highly developed jar burial complex which first appeared during
the Late Neolithic and continued into the Developed Metal Age; THE TABON CAVES:
and finally, in two caves, porcelains and stonewares indicating
local trade with China during the Sung and Yiian Dynasties. The The Cultural Assemblages and Status of the Excavations in 1966
excavations have revealed more than 50,000 years of Philippine
prehistory!
Although excavations were made in sixteen of the twenty- Name of Cave Cultural Assemblages Estimated Per Cent of
nine Tabon Caves, only in nine caves were these completed. The Established Cave Deposits Excavated
general characteristic of the cultural assemblages of each of the
Tabon Caves and the status of the work to the end of 1966 Agung Jar Burial (surface) 0
are set forth in Table 1. It will undoubtedly be necessary to Batu Puti Neolithic Burials.
modify present statements about the cultural assemblages of the Jar Burial 75
caves where only testing or preliminary excavations have been made,
Bubulungan 1 Metal Age Jar Burial;
for even small caves and rock shelters may be stratified with a Jar Burial with Sung
wide range of time and cultural sequences. All caves have been Pottery; Palaeolithic(?) 35
given names for easy reference in addition to a permanent Museum
site number which also forms the number used in the accessioning Bubulungan II Jar Burial (surface) 0
of all artifacts. If the cave was known to the local people and had Decal an Jar Burial 100
a local name which was not too difficult orthographically, this Metal Age Jar Burial 100
Diwata
name was retained. But if the cave was not known or named by
the local inhabitants, it was given a Tagbanwa, Pala'wan, or Ta- Dugyan Jar Burial (surface) 0
galog name related to the characteristics of the cave or to the Guri
archaeology and the ethnology generally of this area. (Chamber A) Habitation with Flake
and Blade Tools 20
When these names differ, local place names encountered during
<Chamber B) Early Metal Age Jar 100
the archaeological excavations and explorations are used rather than
the place names found on the 1:50-000 series· of maps for Palawan pre- Burial
9
8
I'
Table I (cont.): cussion of the cultural sequences found in Duyong Cave, as noted,
is included in this report.
THE TABON CAVES:
The exploration and test excavations in the caves found within
The Cultural Assemblages and Status of Excavations in 1966
the Quezon area have revealed cultural materials not encountered
in the Tabon Caves. These include a small flake-and~blade in-
dustry <so-called "microliths" or "pseudo-microliths"); early to
Name of Cave Cultural Assemblages Estimated Per Cent of late Neolithic artifacts; uniquely decorated late Metal Age pottery;
Established Cave Deposits Excavated boat coffin and log coffin burials; Chinese tradewares of the
I gang Jar Burial (surface) 0 Sung and Yilan Dynasty associated with locally made artifacts;
Kabuwan Jar Burial with Sung- as well as evidences of the use of the caves in recent times
Ytian Potteries 0 by ancestors of the contemporary Pala'wan people.
Karung Jar Burial (surface) 0
Liyang Neolithic Burial and The Environmental Setting of the Cave Sites.-Three reasons
Habitation; Jar Burial at least account for the large number of archaeological sites
(surface) which were found in the Quezon area-sixty-four caves and rock
Manunggul shelters containing surface artifacts. There are undoubtedly many
(Chamber A) Neolithic Jar Burial 100
other sites including the· open habitation sites of the people who
(Chamber B > Metal Age Jar Burial 100
Mutya Jar Burial (surface) used the caves for burial purposes, but the lush tropical under-
0
Ngipe't Duldug Neolithic Jar Burial 100 growth and the relative lack of cultivated areas-Quezon is a
Nigi Jar Burial (surface) 100 pioneer settlement area with few people-greatly inhibited the
Pagayona Metal Age Jar Burial 100 search for these habitation sites. It is also very likely that the
Pawikan Ledge Jar Burial 100 early inhabitants of Quezon lived in scattered hamlets of a few
Pugay Jar Burial (surface) 0 households, as do the pagan peoples in Palawan today, another
Ranggaw Jar Burial (surface) 0 reason explaining the difficulty of finding habitation sites.
Rita-Fabian Metal Age Jar Burial 100
Sarang Jar Burial (surface) 0 The first and main reason for the large number of
Sarang sites is the distinctive topography of the Quezon area.
Fissure Jar Burial (surface) 0 Running the length of Palawan is a rugged central mountain
Tabon Palaeolithic Flake range which sharply divides the east and west coasts of the island.
Assemblages; Early Although the distances are not great, the movements of people
Metal Age Jar Burial 35 from one coast to another are difficult except in a few places,
Tadyaw Metal Age Jar Burial 30 one being between Alfonso XIII (Quezon) and Abo Abo (Fig. 2 ).
Tarungtung Jar Burial (surface) \)
Here there is a sharp break in the mountains with only low
Ukir Ukir Cave Burials 20
Uyaw Early Metal Age rolling hills separating the two coasts and allowing for easy
Jar Burial 100
movements by man from one coast to the other. The sizable
Wasay Jar Burial (surface) 0 lowlands and the gentle slopes of hills in this area provide not
only excellent settings for food-gathering and hunting but for
later agricultural activities. A number of short-course rivers which
rockshelters. Brief periods of exploration in this region have teem with aquatic life also bisect the area.
revealed thirty-five additional cave sites. And, only a very limited
portion of this area has been systematically searched! One small The Spaniards also recognized the strategic significance of the
but extremely rich cave near the mouth of the Iwahig River- topography of this area, building small coastal block houses of
Duyong Cave (Fig. 5)-was completely excavated. A detailed ·dis- coral at Abo Abo and Alfonso XIII (Quezon) on each side of
10 11
,...
the low divide in the central mountain chain. Test excavations
by the Museum team in these two "forts" indicate that they date
~ back only to the 19th century A.D.
"1
crustaceans, shellfish, turtles and turtle eggs, and the sea cow.
(Jl
}>.
Food remains from the cave sites also show that the bays and
~ reefs have been a major source of protein for people during
~ the past 7,000 years .
.,. v
1-
Finally, the numerous limestone outcroppings found on the
west coast provided ancient food-gatherers and hunters with habit·
ation sites, and later people with burial sites. In addition, small
cave bats are a primary source of food among mountain groups
today in Pala wan, as in the Balabag Cilff area of the Ransang
watershed, where contemporary people dwell from time to time
in large limestone caves to gather bats. The archaeological evid-
ence from Tabon Cave indicates that bats and probably cave swifts
were a significant source of food during the Upper Palaeolithic.
Harrisson ( 1964): 183) notes too that the Great Cave of Niah " ... was
also a big attraction to early man. . . literally teeming with pro-
tein in the form of edible birds and bats."
-t I ~i n
A Brief Cultural Chronology of the Tabon Caves and Other
-c
0 0
r-m
I =
~ ~ Caves in the Quezon Area.-Table II provides a summary of the
,. ~);!
UI
~- c cultural sequences revealed by the excavations to 1966 in the
::0
~ zG> Z(JJ
z "D
0
z Tabon Caves and other caves found in the Quezon area. The
!i
0
0(")
~~
relative and absolute dates presented are based upon either C-14
z l'T1
l>
r
CJ) determinations, studies of the characteristics of the Chinese trade
G>
IT1
0
potteries, or comparative analyses of the diagnostic assemblages
G>
:D
J>
of artifacts from key cave sites. The locations of the caves dis-
"'O
I
() ! cussed in Table II are shown in Figure 5.
13
Table II Table II (cont.)
CHRONOLOGY OF CULTURAL ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE TABON CHRONOLOGY OF CULTURAL ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE TABON
CAVES AND CAVES OF THE QUEZON AREA CAVES AND CAVES OF THE QUEZON AREA
Cultural Sequence Caves and Characteristics Date and Methods Cultural Sequence Cave and Characteristics Date and Method
of the Assemblages of Dating of the Assemblage of Dating
Proto-Historic: K uruswanan Ledge Early 14th or Metal Traditions: Tadyaw Cave c. 300 A.D. to
Age of Contacts ( Kuruswanan Area) late 13th Developed Metal ( Lipuun Point) 100 B.C. by
Primary burial in century A.D., Age Burial jars with cultural
and Trade with
the "Great boat coffin associated with trunconical covers; comparisons
Traditions'' of Chinese pottery iron and bronze;
South and East of the Yilan glass, gold, and car-
Asia, particular- Dynasty nelian beads; glass
ly South China and jade bracelets
14 15
Table II (cont.) Table II (cont.)
CHRONOLOGY OF CULTURAL ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE TABON HRONOLOGY OF CULTURAL ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE TABON
CAVES AND CAVES OF THE QUEZON AREA C CAVES AND CAVES OF THE QUEZON AREA
18
19
CHAPTER II
21
~!
22
Fig. 6. Floor plan of Tabon Cave with areas excavated indicated by dark shading.
FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE I-A
Less than thirty-five per cent of the shallower levels of Tabon
Cave have been dug (Pits. VI and VII). The major phase of
The most recent excavations have revealed what i~ pro~ably. ~he
the work in Tabon Cave still lies ahead, for the deepest levels ungest flake tool assemblage in Tabon Cave, tentatively 1dent1f1ed
with the promise of finding truly ancient remains of man have yo Flake Assemblage I-A, and its upper age estimated as dating
not been excavated. The maximum depth of the deposits in Tabon as
f m about 8500 to 9500 years ago, poss1b · 1y more recent . Th"is
Cave is not known, as noted, but it is estimated to reach at r~ensive flake assemblage was excavated in a relatively shallow
least six meters. One probe, two meters in depth, proved to :posit along the right wall and about mid-way back into the
be sterile at the deepest level, but the areas of caves which were
e . Flakes were found on the present surface . and r·were en-
cavuntered
inhabited or only temporarily occupied are often highly dispe sed. to a maximum depth of about 25 cm., m a me soft ,
Tabon Cave, for example, is extremely rich in flake industries ~~ay-brown deposit. A hard limestone fl~or, which varies con-
at some levels but sterile in other areas at the same depth. The "derably in depth, lies directly beneath this assemblage. Beneath
six flake assemblages which have been revealed by the excavations ~~is floor still another assemblage w~s disc?vered, the stratigraphic
to date in Tabon Cave are set forth in Table III. This Table lationship of which is still uncertain. This lower assemblage has
provides the C-14 determinations for the flake assemblages or their ~:en tentatively related to Flake Assemblage III although it might
estimated ages as based upon a rough "depth-and-age" equation be a distinct flake assemblage.
of the rate of deposition of the guano and human debris; the
number of the radiocarbon determination used by the institute The flakes of Assemblage I-A were found scattered around a
of Geophysics, University of California at Los Angeles; and the number of large fallen stalactites. Round limestone rocks ~n t~is
depth of the charcoal sample below the present surface of the area had clearly been used as anvils for flaking tools. This rich
cave. The relationships between the depth and the age of the habitation area has yielded the first large numbers of animal bones
C-14 determinations are highly consistent. and teeth which will allow for the identification of the more recent
animals hunted by the Tabon inhabitants. Many of the bone frag-
Table III ments are fossilized. The excavations in this area also yielded the
first association of a mineralized fresh water riverine shell, a
THE FLAKE ASSEMBLAGES FROM TABON CAVE type called suso (Family Melaniigae) which is. ~til~ being eaten .by
the people in Palawan and throughout the Phihppmes. No marme
Flake Depth Below Present Estimated Age UCLA C-14 shells were recovered. Excellent charcoal samples have been ob-
Assemblage Cave Floor or C-14 Date Number* tained for dating at least the maximum age of this assemblage.
I-A Surface to approx. 8500 to 9500 FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE I-B
-25 cm. (estimated)
I-B -20 cm. 9250!250 B.P. UCLA-284 This localized assemblage was dated by C-14 to 9250t250 B.P.,
and would appear to represent only a brief period of "frequenta-
-50 cm. to -70 cm. >21,000 B.P. UCLA:-285 tion" of Tabon Cave. The area occupied, as presently defined, was
(to + 50 cm.) (maximum age) limited to a very small section mid-way back into the cave and
III -97 cm. >22,000 B.P. UCLA-288 on the left side facing into the cave. The stratigraphic relation-
-99 to -109 cm. 23,200!1000 B.P. UCLA-699 ships between Flake Assemblage I-B, II, and III, IV, a~d V may
be seen in Figures 9 and 10. It is possible, although unlikely, that
-106 to -115 cm. >22,000 B.P. UCLA-283 this assemblage is linked through time with Flake Assemblage II,
IV -121 cm. 30,500:t1100 B.P. UCLA-958 the latter being estimated as dating from about 10,000 to 20,000
years ago. Further excavations will clarify the relationships of Flake
v -160 cm. 45,000 to 50,000 Assemblages I-B and II.
estimated)
* Sources: (Ferguson, G. J. and W. F. Libby 1963> and <Berger, Rainer
The C-14 determination for Flake Assemblage 1-B is highly
and W. F. Libby ( 1966). provocative, for in the absence of associated marine shells, it
24 25
would indicate the presence of a land shelf in this area to 9250:!:250 Flake Assemblage II was remarkably long, covering about ten thou-
years ago. The level of the sea 9000 to 10,000 years ago according and years or more. The distinctive physical features of Tabon
to Fairbridge ( 1962), would be 30 meters below the present level ~ave which provided an ideal habitation site for Ancient Man is
producing an extensive land shelf along this area on the west vividly illustrated by the great duration of some of the periods of
coast of Palawan. There is thus a close correspondence between occupation of the cave.
the C-14 date and the absence of marine shells in Tabon Cave
and Fairbridge's ( 1960 and 1962) studies of the changing sea levei Flake Assemblage II, as noted, lies directly above a thick cal·
during the Late Pleistocene. careous floor which elsewhere in the cave may be traced as an
ivory-colored layer. In general, the deposits beneath this floor are
FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE II sterile, but in one area (see Fig. 9) flakes were found directly
beneath this floor. These flakes, stratigraphically associated with
This flake assemblage and habitation area was found on the Flake Assemblage III, were reached only after the workmen had
left side of the cave near the mouth to about mid-way back into the chopped through the hard floor using crowbars and picks.
cave. Tools of this assemblage were recovered lying on the sur-
face when Tabon Cave was first discovered, for near the mouth The presence of the hard and thick stratum between Flake
of the cave the upper levels of the deposit which contained Flake Assemblages II and III may be of significance to palaeo-climatic
Assemblage II had been eroded away. The erosion is clearly re- studies, for it suggests a possible pluvial period in Palawan dur-
vealed by the flaring lips of stalactites and two chert flakes which ing the Late Pleistocene. Additional support for this view is pro-
are embedded in a stalactite 50 cm. above the present surface of vided by broad and flat stalagmites which were uncovered in
the cave. It has thus been possible to reconstruct the former the main lateral trench at exactly the same level as the hard stra-
level of the ancient floor in this area of the cave, as well as the tum. Stalagmites of this type are formed only when there is a
original thickness of the cultural strata which contained Flake heavy water perculation and drip in the cave, such as would have
Assemblage II (see Fig. 9). The maximum thickness of the re- occured during a wet period of a glacial advance. The C-14 de·
maining deposit of Flake Assemblage II varies from approximately terminations for Flake Assemblages II and III,>21,000 and 23,200!1000
50 cm. to 70 cm. years respectively, provide approxtmate dates for the upper and
lower limits of this wet period or at least a period when Tabon
The deposit containing Flake Assemblage II is highly distinc- Cave was wet and damp. The maximum of the Last Glacial,
tive, being dark brown in color, hard and granular, and pitted as noted, is believed to have occured 20,000 years ago (Fairbridge
with the nests of mud-dauber wasps (Vespa spp. and Chlorion 1960 and 1962) which is precisely the period when the hard floor
haemerhoidalis). The insects collected in Tabon Caves have been in Tabon Cave was formed as shown by the C-14 dates. It must
graciously identified by Mr. Romualdo Alagar of the National Mu- also be pointed out, however, that the presence of this floor and
seum. The deposit contained hundreds of pieces of chert repre- the broad, flat stalagmites may be due only to local conditions
senting all stages in the manufacture of flake tools, as well as and changes in the ceiling of the cave which would have allowed
many small fragments of fossil animal bones, human and animal for a greater water drip in the cave. It has been suggested too
teeth, bits of charcoal, but no marine shells. that there is no necessary correlation between glaciation in the
temperate regions with pluvials in the tropics. These are prob-
The base of this occupation level rests directly on a thick lems for the specialists.
calcareous floor laminated with layers of hard travertine. This hard
layer varies in thickness from about 20 cm. to a maximum of 50 FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE III
cm. Charcoal associated with flakes of Assemblage II was found
lying directly on top of this hard calcareous floor, 50 cm. below An extensive habitation level was encountered in the main longi-
the surface. This charcoal yielded a C-14 determination of>21,000 tudinal and lateral trench towards the middle and rear of the
B.P. and represents the maximum age of Flake Assemblage II as cave at depths which vary below the present floor from approxi-
presently distinguished. Studies of the deposit of Assemblage II mately 85 cm. to 115 cm., for the level dips down in the center
and detailed colored profiles show no apparent discontinuity, and of the cave. This habitation level is distinguished in most areas
it is presently concluded that the habitation period designated as by a dark red-brown deposit which is relatively gritty and rich
26 27
in organic materials. There is often a hard dark red pan at the . ·nary Description of Flake Assemblage 111.-Hundreds
A Pre l imi .
base of this stratum; clearly an ancient floor. d nodules of chert, cores, waste flakes, primary flakes,
·of lumps an utilized flake, were found in the stratum which has
The habitation level of Flake Assemblage III contained many as well as 1 1. d ·
d signated as Flake Assemblage III. Man not on y ive m
fragments of charcoal which were the product of scattered cook- been
ing fires (there were no true hearths in Tabon Cave); numerous Tabon ecave but spent much of his time in the cave manufac-
soft, white bones of birds, bats, and small mammals; a very few .
turing sm·table flake tools. The presence of numerous . clearly de-
fossil bones; and hundreds of pieces of chert which represent fined workshops (Fig. 8) provides thus an opportumty for a pre-
stages in the manufacture of flake implements. Basalt choppers- liminary ·des cription of the techniques . of flaking used by the Tabon
large nodules unifacially trimmed-were also excavated with Flake inhabitants (a detailed and comparative study of all of the Flake
Assemblage III, as well as quartz and basalt hammers used in Assemblages will be presented in the final site report for Tabon
knapping the chert. Charcoal directly associated with this assem- cave).
blage yielded two C-14 dates of "greater than" 22,000 years ago,
and finally a finite date of 23,200!1000 B.P. Chert, a hard crytocrystalline quartz, is common. i~ the near.by
river beds of Quezon Municipality, providing Palaeollth1c Man with
FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE IV
a handy material for implements. Chert and related stones a~e not
Flakes and many fragments of charcoal were also · encountered usually common elsewhere in the Philippines, except o.n the island
in a restricted area of the main lateral trench at 121 cm. below of Panay, a factor which should be carefully considered whe~
the present surface. The flakes and charcoal of this assemblage, comparative studies are made of the types of tools used by. Palaeoll-
as presently established, form only a restricted and narrow band. thic Man in the Philippines. Thus, core and pebble tools m Luzon
The associated charcoal sample yielded a finite date of 30,500±1100 might be the same age as flake tools in Palawan. The abundance
B.P. It will be possible to study in greater detail the extent of chert in Palawan undoubtedly accounts too for the notable scar-
and characteristic of this flake assemblage, as well as that of city in Tabon Cave of other types of stone or bone tools.
Flake Assemblage V, when the main lateral trench is enlarged.
There has been no previous attempt to study flake tools re-
The flakes., cores, and flake tools recovered indicate, nevertheless,
that the technique of flaking of this assemblage is identical with covered in archaeological sites found elsewhere in the Philippines.
that of Flake Assemblage III which is discussed in detail below. And, although flake tools are widespread in Southeast Asia, ther~
is little detailed comparative information for the Upper Palaeoll-
FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE V thic. Professor Beyer's collections include thousands of flakes re-
covered during his extensive surveys in Central Luzon. Whether
The most recent excavations in the main lateral trench (short- or not these flake artifacts, possibly entirely from surface recover-
ly before the work was stopped) revealed three flakes of chert ies can be organized into related assemblages for systematic study
160 cm. below the present surface, and 40 cm. directly below and comparison with the Tabon materials is doubtful. Without
Flake Assemblage IV which has an associated. C-14 date of 30,500:!:1100 stratigraphic data, the chronological positions of the Luzon flakes
years ago. The three chert flakes were in an absolutely undis-
turbed stratum and were scattered over a meter-square area at are uncertain.
exactly the same depth. It is now planned to destroy the profiles
of the main lateral trench, as noted, in order to extend and trace In addition, the method-of-manufacture of flake tools in the
out the stratum which contained these flakes. The estimated age Philippines during Palaeolithic times did not yield r~adily re~og
of this stratum-45,000 to 50,000 years ago-is highly conservattve nized forms of tools that might be used in typological studies,
and it may well date to over 60,000 years. As tiny bits of char- the approach which Beyer used exclusively in establishing his
coal are invariably associated with the flake assemblages, it is lithic sequences and cultural chronology for the Upper Palaeolithic
hoped that charcoal for radiocarbon determinations will be ob- in the Philippines. Beyer (1947, 1948a, 1949) has provided a few
tained when the 160 cm. level is enlarged. · illustrations of flake tools including type descriptions based upon
inferred functions such as "arrow points." These descriptions, as
28
29
~
I
the writer [Fox (1952) 273-276] has pointed out elsewhere, are
! . blY subjective. In the past, the outer hard wood of palms
.!:i bamboos were more likely used as projectile points than
.stone.
The following preliminary description, in contrast, is based
0
..,"'*"' ........, ....
I 2 3 4 5 6cm upon the technique of manufacture of the flake tools fallowing
closely the analyses of Shawcross (1964) for New Zealand flake
industries, and Oakley ( 1950) for European materials. The studies
of Shawcross are particularly valuable, for the technique of manu-
facture of some of the New Zealand (and Australian) flake as-
semblages and those of Tabon Cave fall clearly into a similar
tradition. This preliminary analysis involves only a limited corpus
of the chert of Flake Assemblage III; nodules, cores, waste flakes,
primary flakes, and flake tools which were found at the same
cultural level in an area 7 x 3 meters in size. A detailed study
of all of the flake assemblages from Tabon Cave which involves
thousands of pieces of chert will be presented in the final site
report; nevertheless, preliminary comparisons show that a similar
technique of manufacture of flake tools was used from the earliest
period of occupation of Tabon Cave, as based upon the excavations
to date, to the last. This flake tradition, moreover, persisted into
post-Pleistocene times.
Flakes were not only struck from cores but also from any
scar of a larger flake which would have provided a striking plat-
form. In the course of the knapping of cores or the scars of
large flakes, many flakes were obtained which were unsuitable for
tools. These-the waste flakes-constitute (see Table IV) the largest
category of the pieces of chert found in Tabon Cave. Some of
the unused flakes are similar in form and size to the flake tools
but show no evidence of use. These flakes, described herein as
primary flakes, were apparently potential tools which were simply
Fig. 7. Tools from Tabon Cave: (a-m) examples of flake tools associated with Flake
Assemblage Ill. (n-o) basalt choppers; (p) quartz hammer stone.
31
not utilized. When the flakes had actually been utilized, as may
be seen by the many tiny scars along the working edge of the
flake, they are classified as flake tools or utilized flakes [Leakey
(1960)5]. Secondary retouching is present, one surface of the work-
ing edges of tools being reworked. But as elsewhere in the flake
assemblages of the Philippines, secondary retouching is rare.
Classification Percentages
( 1) Unaltered Lumps of Chert 2
(2) Cores 22
(3) waste Flakes or Materials 53
(angular lumps or flakes of chert
-o, which were a product of flaking but
too small to form either cores for
further flaking or too small and
irregularly shaped for use as tools)
( 4) Primary Flakes
(potential tools but showing no
evidence of use) 6
(5) Flake Tools 16
(6) Flake Tools with Secondary Retouching 1
100%
35
I
I
I
II in the color and grade of the chert might suggest, however, that
the successive inhabitants of the cave had specific collecting sta-
tions where the raw materials were gathered or favored particular
colors of chert for their tools.
,, No systematic study has been made as yet of the cores,
- a highly important task in view of the fact that the shapes
of flake tools are influenced by the forms of the cores. It may
be stated with confidence, nevertheless, that core preparation was
absolutely minimal and that they are irregular in form and vary
considerably in size. There are also no diagnostic core tools, the
chert artifacts being comprised wholly of flakes or flake-core tools.
Flake tools cccur which may show the cortex or skin of the original
nodule, but typically the tools show flaking on all or most surfaces.
Blade tools, as would be expected when there was no core prepara-
tion, are entirely absent; although a few flakes have blade-like
forms.
Diagrams will be presented in
the site report, following Shaw-
cross (1964), which will illus-
trate the proportions of the flake
tools, the thickness and angle
of the striking platforms, and
so forth, as well as studies of the
use of flakes as shown by bino-
cular examinations. At present, it
may be stated only that the range
in length of the flake tools (sam-
ple of 56 from Flake Assemblage
III) varies from 3.5 cm. to 11.6
cm., with 80 per cent being
more than 5 cm. in length
(length was measured perpendi-
cular to the striking platform).
The largest utilized flakes would
appear to have been used as
( chopping or hacking implements
and the others as scrapers of
various forms, cutting tools, and
Fig. 11. Flake tool surface recovery from
so forth. Sidangan, Zamboanga del Norte, show·
The Absence of Sea Shells in • ing a highly developed secondary flak·
Tabon Cave.-The excavations ing not found in the Tabonian tradition.
in Tabon Cave have been made (Courtesy ot Father Jaime Neri.)
entirely with trowels, ice picks,
and paint brushes, and the deposits have been sifted with fine wire
37
mesh. The extreme caution observed during the Tabon excavations The deer is not found on Palawan Island today, forming
may be illustrated by the recovery of hundreds of tiny chips of chert one of the major zoological mysteries of the Philippines. Now, at
(not counted in the statistical analyses) which flew off when the chert least, it is known that the deer was present. Excavations in
was being knapped. Nevertheless, not one single marine shiall has been other Palawan caves supported by C-14 determinations indicate
found in Tabon Cave in association with any of the flake tool tbat the deer survived until about 4,000 years ago. There are
assemblages. The total absen.ce of sea shells cannot be attri- no evidence as to why it disappeared. The writer suspects that
buted to disintegration accelerated by the pressure of the depo- this deer was a small form, as judged by antlers recovered, and
sits, for many small and fragile bones of bats and birds were related to the species still found on the Calamianes Islands dir-
found in the deepest cultural levels. Surface and sub-surface flake as- ectlY to the north of Palawan Island.
semblages also have no marine shells. Thousands of sea shells,
in addition, are encountered in other caves associated with ancient A number of Bornean and Western Malayan mammals are
flake assemblages which date to 7,000 years ago. also common to Palawan and the Calamian Islands but are un-
known elsewhere in the northern Philippines. Among these are: the
The only conclusion which the writer can reach regarding "Scaly Antheater" ( Paramanis javanica), the "Slow Porcupine" (The-
the total absence of marine shells in Tabon Cave is that the curus pumilus), the Mongoose (Mungos sp.), the so-called "Skunks"
cave was inhabited during periods when land shelves were ex- (Suillotaxus Marchei), and a few others. The evidence of biologic
posed in the shallow seas fronting Tabon Cave. Mr. Inocentes distribution (Dickerson 1928) would suggest that these animals,
Paniza, Geologist of the National Museum, who excavated Tabon uncommon in the Philippines, were relatively recent immigrants
Cave with the writer, is of the opinion based upon a fathometric into Palawan when a land bridge still connected Palawan and
study that the sea shore was some 30 to 35 kilometers distant Borneo, but after the land connections between Palawan, the Ca-
from Tabon Cave during most of the time that the cave was lamian Islands, Mindoro1 and Borneo had disappeared. The rela-
occupied by man (see Fig. 2). Recent studies of the changing tionships between Borneo and Palawan of plants and animals is
absolute sea level during the Late Pleistocene, to be discussed extremely close, and it is certain that future archaeological work
below, support this view. During the Late Pleistocene, the sea will show even more intimate historical ties, biological and cultural,
coast was undoubtedly too far for the Tabon Cave dwellers to between these two areas.
have gathered shellfish and brought them back to the cave to
eat, although foraging trips to the sea coast may well have It is also certain that extensive use was also made by the
been made. The maximum distance that marine shells have been ancient inhabitants of Tabon Cave of wild plant foods, for they
found in Palawan cave sites of post-Pleistocene date by the Mu- were food gatherers and hunters. But evidences of the use of
seum's field teams is in the Kalatagbak area (Fig. 5), approxi- plant foods have not survived and are not reflected in the archaeo-
mately 15 kilometers from the coast over difficult terrain and a logical record. The people in the Philippines who live at lower
six to nine hour's hike depending upon the weather and the technological thresholds, such as the Pinatubo Ayta ("Negrito") of
condition of the trails. Zambales (Fox 1952), have a phenomenal knowledge of wild food
plants-fruits, tubers, edible flowers and leaves, piths of palms,
Animal Bones from Tabon Cave.-No animal bones were found ferns, and so forth.
in the limited area, as presently defined, of Flake Assemblage
Bone Tools.-The excavations in Tabon Cave have not yielded
I-B. Many fragments of mineralized animal bones, however, were a single tool made of an animal (or human) bone. The great
recovered in the habitation levels of Flake Assemblages I·A and quantity of readily available chert may explain the absence of
II. The animal bones with Flake Assemblage III and IV, as bone tools in Tabon Cave. The Great Cave in Niah, Borneo,
noted, were largely those of s:r;nall birds, bats, and animals. There on the contrary, has yielded a sizable quantity of bone artifacts
have been surprisingly few bones of larger animals recovered in all but the deepest levels. Their presence in Borneo may be
explained in part by the difficulty of obtaining workable hard
with the flake assemblages except those of the pig and an "extinct"
stones for tools [Harrisson and Medway 0962) 360]. Bone arti-
deer (the teeth and highly fragmentary bones of other animals facts are notably scarce, in fact, in all of the Palawan cave sites
have not been identified). ~egardless of their age.
38 39
ievel are also highly pertinent. As water seeks its own level,
Tabon Man.-During the initial excavations of Tabon Cave data from studies of eustatic changes made elsewhere in the world
June and July, 1962, the scattered fossil bones of at least thre~ are valid for a general picture of the changing sea level in the
individuals were excavated, including a large fragment of a frontal Philippines during the Late Pleistocene.
bone with the brows and portions of the nasal bones. These
fossil bones were recovered towards the rear of the cave alonab
the left wall. Unfortunately, the area in which the fossil human
bones were recovered had been disturbed by Magapode birds.
It was not possible in 1962 to ·establish the association of these
bones with a specific flake assemblage, although they were pro-
visionally related to either Flake Assemblage II or III. Subse-
quent excavations in the same area now strongly suggest that the
fossil human bones were associated with Flake Assemblage III, a
for only the flakes of this assemblage have been found to date
in this area of the cave. 3 The available data would suggest that 2 3 4 a 6cm
Tabon Man may be dated from 22,000 to 24,000 years ago. But,
only further excavations in the cave and chemical analysis of
human and animal bones from disturbed and .undisturbed levels in
the cave will define the exact age of the human fossils.
The fossil bones are those of Homo sapiens (Fig. 12). These
j g
will form a separate study by a specialist which will be included in
the final site report for Tabon Cave. It is important to point out, Fig. 12. Fossil human bones from Tabon Cave: (a-d-e) Lateral, frontal, and ventral
however, because of a recent publication (Scctt 1969), that a pre- view of "Tabon Man" tentatively dated to 22-24,000 B.P. (b) Late Neolithic
skull from Manunggul Cave, 710-890 B.C. (c) Early Metal Age skull from
liminary study of the fossil bones of Tabon Man shows that Bato Puti Cave; (f.g) fossil mandibles of two individuals from Tabon Cave.
it is above average in skull dimensions when compared to the
modern Filipino. There is no evidence that Tabon Man was " ... a The lowering of the sea level during the Pleistocene, as a
less brainy individual. .. " [Scott (1969) 36]. Moreover, Scott's study result of great quantities of the water of the world being en-
includes many mistatements about the Tabon Caves, always the veloped in the building up and advances of the ice sheets and
problem when writers work from "conversations." glaciers, exposed continental shelves and formed land bridges
by which man, as well as animals and plants, drifted from the
Some Geologic Events of the Late Pleistocene and the Upper mainland of Asia [see Movius (1948) Map 2] into the Island
Palaeolithic.-There have been no detailed geological or palaeocli- World of Southeast Asia and the Philippines. Flint (1953: 437)
matic studies of the Late Pleistocene (or of the Pleistocene Epoch) estimates the lowering of the sea level during the Last Glacial-
in the Philippines. It is necessary to turn to other regions for the period of the Pleistocene under consideration herein-as be-
relevant geological data, specifically to Europe and Africa where in tween 70 and 102 meters " ... less an uncalculated amount attribut-
recent years there have been extensive studies made of the geo- able to isostatic adjustment." Fairbridge 0962:113) with newer
chronology of the Late Pleistocene which are supported by many data points out: "The last glacial maximum was about 20,000
C-14 dates [Movius (1960); De Heinzelin (1963]. Lin's ~1963) years ago and [the] sea level was about 100 meters below the
recent data for Taiwan and Fairbridge's 0960 and 1962) general present. Rapid melting began about 16,000 B.P. and by 6,000 B.P.
descriptions of the Late Pleistocene and changes in absolute sea the present level was reached." A drop of 100 meters would
have allowed Late Pleistocene man to move into Palawan by the
3 It is necessary to point out for those engaging in work in limestone use of crude rafts, as well as into the rest of the central
caves i~ the . Philippines that fossilization is not necessarily a criteria of great and northern Philippines (see Fig. 2 which shows the 50 fathom
age. Mmerahzed human bones have been found on the surface of Manunggul shelf surrounding Palawan). The channels which separated the
Cave. Chamber A, with a jar burial assemblage which is dated by radio- many islands in Palawan during the Late Pleistocene were very
carbon to only 710-890 B.C.
narrow (e.g., only 8 to 9 klms. between Borneo and Balabac).
40 41
111
I I
f a
I
I
I
:
The Glacial advances may have been correlated too, as noted, ].\Aoreover, I strongly suspect that Palaeolithic . flake technologi~s
·n also be found in Borneo and elsewhere m Southeast Asia
with climatic changes in the low latitudes, such as in the Phil-
~ post-Pleistocene sites. As Heine Geldern 0945: 130) notes:
1
ippines. A dramatic rise in the sea level above the present level
also occurred at the time of the final regression of the Last ~;he Mesolithic cultures of Indonesia are really late Palaeolithic
Glacial. Thus, about 6,000 years ago, the sea rose to 3 or 4 cultures which flourished during the first millenia of the present
meters above the present level flooding extensive lowland areas geological period."
(Fairbridge 1962). The history of Ancient Man in the Philip-
pines is therefore intimately linked with the geological develop- There have been no systematic excavations elsewhere in the
ments of the Date Pleistocene, and further studies of the Phil- Philippines of an Upper Palaeolithic site. Beyer (1948a; 80), basing
ippine Pleistocene are critically needed before movements of man his conclusions upon extensive archaeological surveys in :Bulacan,
into the Islands are thoroughly understood. Rizal, and Batangas Provinces, recognized some "Late-Pleistocene
(about 50,000 to 20,000 years ago) artifacts," described as. palaeo-
The flake assemblages of Tabon Cave represent, as noted, one liths, which were " ... chiefly of flint, chert, and quartzite, but
Palaeolithic flake tradition which also persisted into the post- with a few thickly patinated or corroded medium large implements
Pleistocene; in fact, to 4,000 years ago as shown by a C-14 date of obsidian. Mostly [entirely?] surface finds and no positive im·
from Guri Cave (see below). Movius (1958: xiii) states: "Ten- plement bearing strata identified as yet." Beyer has also illustrated
tative conclusions, mainly based on the results of C-14 measure- some "Late Pleistocene Palaeoliths" ( 1947: Flg. 3) and "Late-Pa-
ments, suggest that the upper limit of the Palaeolithic in Borneo laeolithic or Mesolithic" implements (1948a: Fig. 5) from Luzon
should be placed at approximately 17,625 B.C." Harrisson 0964: which may well be chronologically and typologically related to the
183), in a more recent summary, has provided the following ten- Tabonian tradition. However, there are no valid means by which
tative cultural chronology for Niah: ( 1) "tiny flakes" of the the Luzon and Palawan flake tools can be compared, as earlier
Middle Palaeolithic, 45,000 B.C. (plus); (2) "mid-Sohan" flakes of noted, for the Luzon recoveries are surface finds. There are, in
the Middle Palaeolithic, 35-45,000 B.C.; ( 3) "chopping tools and fact, no stratigraphic evidences to establish even a relative time
large flakes" of the Upper Palaeolithic, circa 30,000 B.C.; ( 4) sequence for the Luzon flake implements.
"small flakes of the Upper Palaeolithic," 25-30,000 B.C.; and "ad-
vanced flakes of the Palaeo-Mesolithic (?) ," about 10,000 B.C. Beyer's typological distinction between "Palaeoliths" and "Meso-
liths" was apparently based upon a preconception that larger
Harrisson's "chopping tools and large flakes" would appear stone tools which he describes as handaxes," "choppers," "cleavers,"
to be equivalent with the Tabonian flake tradition, and possibly or simply "palaeoliths," were Palaeolithic; while the smaller flake
his "small flakes" of the Upper Palaeolithic, 25,000 to 30,000 B.C., tools, such as those which have been excavated in Tabon Cave,
could also be linked with the Tabonian tradition. At Tabon there were "Mesolithic." It is widely recognized (Movius: 1948), on
is possibly a trend towards smaller flake tools in the upper the contrary, that flake tools farmed a significant element of the
levels (no statistical studies have been completed however), and chopper-chopping tool tradition in even the Lower and Middle
apparently more frequent s~condary retouching of flake tools in Palaeolithic of South and East Asia.
the late Upper Pleistocene and early post-Pleistocene times. There
are, nevertheless, flake tools with fine secondary retouching in It is also apparent from the excavations in Palawan that flake
the deepest levels of Tabon Cave and tools range from large industries comprise the major lithic tradition during the Upper
to small at all levels. Palaeolithic of this area. The writer is convinced too that further
systematic excavations in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in
The Palaeolithic industries of Palawan may have survived to general, notably in those regions where cryptocrystalline quartz~s
a more recent date than in Borneo, reflecting in part the greater are available, will reveal other widespread flake tool industries of
marginality of Palawan and the Philippines in general. There is the Upper Palaeolithic; and already flake implements like those of
no evidence from Palawan or elsewhere in the Philippines, as the Tabonian tradition have been Teported from Laguna Province
yet, of distinctive "Mesolithic'' or "Palaeo-Mesolithic" tool tradi- in Luzon, and from Panay and Bohol Islands, as well as later,
tions which would justify the designation of a "Mesolithic" period. secondary flaked implements from Zamboanga (Fig. 11).
42 4:3
Homo sapiens is unquestionably of great antiquity in Asia.
CHAPTER III
The Niah skull is securely dated to about 38,000 B.C., being
" ... much the earliest Homo sapiens ('modern man') found so far
GURI CAVE:
East" [Harrisson 0964) 179]. Tabon Man may be tentatively
dated to about 22,000 to 24,000 years ago. The controversial Keilor A Post-Pleistocene Habitation Site with Upper
cranium found near Melbourne, Australia is claimed to date to Palaeolithic Flake Assemblages and a New Lithic Technology
about 16,000 B.C. [Shutler (1965) 2; McCarthy 0961) 147]. The
writer believes that the first major movement of Homo sapiens
Description of Guri Cave and the Excavatio~s.-au:i Cave is per-
into tl:ie Philippines occurred with the exposure of the . Sunda
a 5 the most attractive cave on Lipuun Pomt, bemg. composed
Shelf during the Last Glacial beginning, according to various
estimates, some 45,000 to 55,000 years ago. The land bridge of 0 p umerous chambers and winding passageways at various levels
hf
. n 13 ) which are rich with grotesque limestone growths-fluted
::·fan-like stalactities, stalagmites, and travertine terr~ces. Th~
the previous Riss Glacial, estimated as terminating between 100,000
to 130,000 years ago, would appear to be too early for any signifi-
cant movements of Modern Man into the Islands at that time. rnouth of the main entrance chamber faces i:ic:>rth east and is approx1-
tely 75 feet above the sea level. The slope in front of t~e
rna to the edge of the bay is gradual. In addition to the mam
Further excavations in Tabon Cave and other areas of Pa-
lawan during 1969-70, the receipt of additional 0-14 dates, and :~:ance chamber which was occupied during the early post-
more detailed geochronological studies of the Quezon area and the Pleistocene period by people using flake and later flake and
rest of Palawan will greatly help to clarify the geologic events blade tools, there are three other entrances into the cave . at
of the Late Pleistocene in Palawan and their relationship to the higher elevations. Pottery and artifacts of more th~n one Jar
Upper Palaeolithic cultures. Mr. Inocentes Paniza of the National burial assemblage were found on the surface and m th.e sub-
Museum, in fact, is planning future geological research in Pa- surface levels of all of the four entranceways, as well as m two
lawan in 1969-70 with Mr. Jonathan Kress of Yale University dark interior chambers.
who will also renew excavations of key cave sites and of Tabon
Cave itself. Plans are also being made to begin palaeoclimatic Chamber B, shelf-like in appearance, contained an early jar
studies of the deposits in Tabon Cave and other sites through the burial assemblage related to the Tabon jar burial complex, .and
cooperation of Dr. Richard Shutler and others. was completely excavated and screened. Preliminary excavat10ns
were also made in the main entr&nceway of Chamber A (see
Jar Burial in Tabon Cave.-When first discovered, this cave Fi 13) where flake and flake and blade assemblages were en-
provided a breath-taking sight with large fragments of at least 200 g. tered in a midden composed of thousands of marine shells~
jars, jar covers, and smaller vessel scattered on the surface and ~~':vations of Chamber A which are of great importance to t~e
in the holes of tabon birds, particularly along the left wall and cultural chronology of the Tabon Caves. will ~e . completed m
towards the center and rear of the cave. Excavations in the 1970-71. All statements at this time concernmg the hth1c assemblages
sub-surface levels of Tabon Cave also yielded jade and stone are thus highly tentative.
beads, bracelets, earrings, a few glass beads, and bronze, but uo
iron. Thus, Tabon was a great burial cave during the Early Time and Cultural Sequences in Guri Cave.-The exploratory ex-
Metal Age, approximately 200 B.C. to 500 B.C. The pottery and cavations in Guri Cave have revealed two major periods during
associated artifacts from Tabon Cave will be discussed below in which the cave was utilized by man:
relationship to the jar burial assemblages found in many other
Palawan jar burial sites. (1) Occupation of the main entranceway during the early post-
Pleistocene period, after the sea had assume~ ~ore ?r less
its present level. The midden was formed, it is estimated,
during the period from about 5000 B.C. to about 2?00 B.C.
[one C-14 date of 4070±80 B.P. (UCLA 698) was received for
marine shell 60 cm. below the present surface]; and
44 45
( ) A jar burial assemblages which, as based upon the present
2 data, began during the Early Metal Age, about 300 to 500
B.C., plus others of a later date.
47
I
tools. Anthropoligical studies clearly shown that local historical
I
developments have not been by orderly stages; that new tools
appeared and old tools persisted; that people at one time and
in one area may live at dramatically different technological levels.
And, there are new data from Palawan that flake industries sur·
vived until even the Metal Age.
Large blade tools also appear in Guri Cave for the first time,
.,
but only in the shallow levels as shown by study-profiles in which
all of the blade and flake tools recovered were plotted. Further
excavations, however, may show that blade tools are found at all
,.A'&
levels. Blade tools, as discussed above, were not found in Tabon
Cave, and the presence of blade tools in Guri Cave is of con-
siderable importance to an understanding of lithic developments in
Palawan and the Philippines. First, eecause the appearance of blade
tools in Guri Cave requires a new flaking technique-preparation of
cores. The Tabon inhabitants, as discussed at length above, did
not prepare cores for flaking and consequently the primary and
utilized flakes which are not retouched do not have recurring forms.
Core preparation was practiced by the people who lived in Duyong
Cave some 7000 years ago (see below) in knapping small blades, but
this tool tradition is entirely distinct from the Tabonian flake indus-
try. Following Mulvaney's (1966) analyses of Australian flake indus-
tries, the Tabonian tradition is a nonhafted technology; the Duyong
small flake and blade assemblage, a hafted technology. Thus, the
Tabonian flake tools were held in the hand, as were the core
and pebble tools which have also been found in the Philippines o 2 3 4 5 6cm
(van Koenigswald 1958), but the small flake and blade tools of ·---=--111t:==::i1111..t==~'--•
50 51
flow of l~mestone ( Plt. I~>; and sitting on a nearby ledge, ·a CHAPTER IV
complete Jar and cover (Fig. 15). In still another chamber larg
fra~ments of jars and other vessels were recovered on a' ledg: DUYONG CAVE:
behmd a nest of rocks. Some of these materials undoubtedly date
from. a more re.cent usage of Guri Cave for jar burial. The ex- A Stratified Site with a Small Flake and Blade
cavat10n of Gun Cave remains a major task. Industry and Neolithic Assemblages
53
52
pta
11 The entire surface of Duyong Cave was covered by large sherds
and other artifacts of a Metal Age jar burial assemblage (this
assemblage will be discussed in detail below). Over 5,000 bones
of the Sirenia or "sea cow" were also scattered on the surface
and excavated in the sub-surface levels, suggesting the name of
this cave-Duyong. The location of the bones of the_ sea cow
in the cave shows that they had been ritual offerings made dur-
ing the jar burial period. No other cave has been discovered
in Palawan containing such a large quantity of sea cow remains,
although a few bones of the duyong are invariably found in the
jar burial cave sites.
The small flake and blade tools. possibly related to the so-
called "microliths" and "pseudo-microliths" of Luzon [Beyer ( 1948a)
14-16], also provide an initial date for this diagnostic and wide-
spread tool tradition of the early post-Pleistocene period.
The major source of protein for the people who used the
small flake tools and blade tools were marine and brackish water
shellfish. Land snails, Helicostyla spp., were also recovered. The
same land snails still form a famine food today among the
Tagbanwa and Pala'wan. A study of 2,543 shells from the prin-
cipal midden area-the shells were identified by Mr. Fernando
Dayrit, former conchologist of the National Museum-shows that
they were all easily procured species; shallow water forms ex-
posed in the sand or in muddy mangrove areas, or on reefs
and rocky shores when the tide is low. Land snails are com-
mon in the forests during the rainy periods of the year. All of
~ JAR-BURIAL ASSEMBLAGE
the shells found in the midden are eaten by the people today • NEOLITHIC STRATA WITH
in Palawan. Table V provides a list of the more frequent species m NEOLITHIC BURIAL
which were excavated in the midden in the order of their abund- SMALL FLAKE- AND-BLADE
~ ASSEMBLAGE AND SHELL MIDDEN
ance. i$J SMALL FLAKE- AND- BLADE
ASSEMBLAGE WITH LIMESTONE
RUBBLE
Surprisingly few fragments of animal and bird bones and
teeth were recovered in the midden. The animal bones have not
been identified, but the bones of the wild pig and one large hawk
were readily recognized. Pinchers of ten large shallow water crabs
were also recovered in the midden as well as a barb from the Fig. 17. Profile of Duyong Cave showing Stratigraphic Features.
tail of a sting ray. No deer bones were found.
5()
.,
I
,
Table V The paucity of animal bones is striking. It is apparent that shell-
fish, as noted, were the major source of protein for these early
SHELLS IN THE DUYONG MIDDEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE post-Pleistocene food gatherers, probably attracting them to live
SMALL FLAKE AND BLADE ASSEMBLAGE on the coastal and near-coastal riverine areas of Palawan.
Near the feet were six whole Arca shells. One of these had
a round hole on one side and the shell was filled with lime
(Fig. 19-0. An identical Arca bivalve with a hole was found in
Batu Puti Cave which also yielded a badly disturbed assemblage
of Neolithic stone and Tridacna adzes-axes. The lime in the Batu
Puti specimen was partly gouged out beneath the hole in the O I 2 3 4 5 6cm
shell. These are believed to be lime containers and probably
associated with betel nut chewing (see below).
Duyong Cave would have been an excellent shelter for hunting, Fig. 19. Artifacts associated with Neolithic Burial found in Duyong Cave: (a) large
Tridacna shell adze: (b) front and back view of smaller Tridacna adze-axe;
fishing, and food gathering activities, but would hardly have been (c) shell pendant; (d) front and back view of Cone shell ear ornament;
(e) large polished stone adze: (f) lime container with Duyong Neolithic
62 burial; and (g) similar Arca shell lime container from Bato Puti Cave, Lipuun
Point.
--
by Beyer (1947: Plt. 5) as "protoneoliths," and may well be CHAPTER V
representative of an Early Neolithic type. Beyer ( 1948a: 81) dates
the "protoneoliths" as appear- THE JAR BURIAL COMPLEX OF THE TABON CAVES
ing " ... about 6000 to 4000 B.C.
or later." Harrisson ( 1959: 1)
has recovered edge-ground tools The caves on Lipuun Point for which definitive data from ex-
at Niah, Borneo, in a stratigra- cavations are available, twelve in all, as well as Duyong Cave in
phic context and dates them as the Iwaig area, have clearly revealed one historically related jar
first appearing about 7000 B.C. burial tradition and pottery complex; and surface collections from
many other caves within the Quezon area show a collateral tradi-
Pilanduk Cave is relatively
tion. This jar burial and pottery complex first appeared in the
large and in elevation well
Tabon Caves during the Late Neolithic and persisted, as probably
above disturbance by past eusta-
the major type of burial in this area, until the Developed Metal
ic changes. An excellent habita-
Age; a time span from about 1500 B.C. to 500 A.D., ·and possibly
tion site and apparently rich in
cultural sequences, this cave will later.
be excavated by Mr. Jonathan The tradition of burying bones in jars and hiding the jars
Kress in 1969-70, and it is hoped in caves continued in western Palawan until well after the
that definite data as to the dat- beginning of Chinese trade. Burial jars have been found in caves
ing and cultural associations of in association with Chinese trade pottery of the Sung Dynasty
the edge-ground tools will be (960 to 1279 A.D.) and the Yiian Dynasty ( 1280 to 1368 A.DJ. But
obtained. new types of earthenware potteries are associated with the later
In the Kalatagbak area (Fig. burials in stoneware jars of Chinese origin. Jar burials in caves during
5) on the surface of a cave called the proto-historic period are rare, however, and accidental finds and
Mara'may by the local Pala'wan, 0 I 2
h+++zl
5 4
....
5
-
6cm
surveys on the east coast of Palawan show that the people
Mr. Angel Espeleta working at this time were burying their dead in open sites rather than
with the National Museum Field placing them in caves. Secondary burial in Chinese stoneware
Team recovered a second edge- jars, though not usual, was reported [Fox (1954) 57] among the
ground implement (Fig. 20) neighboring Tagbanwa of Central Palawan as late as the early
made from a pebble. No exca- twentieth century. The jars with human bones were also in-
vations have been made in this terred by the Tagbanwa. Elsewhere in the Philippines (see Ap-
cave. pendix I) jar burial is still practiced.
Stone adzes, locally called
'thunder teeth" and used as Burial in jars may be either primary, the entire body being
charms, have been obtained from Fig. 20. Edge-ground tools: place in a jar; or secondary, only bones being placed in the jar.
(a) from Pilanduk cave; Multiple burials of more than one body or the bones of a number of
the Pala'wan inhabitants of vil- (b) from Mara'may cave.
lages just north of Pilanduk individuals are also encountered, as well as the combination of
Cave and in the Iwaig-Isugud area. This entire reg10n has numerous a primary and secondary burial. Thus, at Calatagan, Batangas,
limestone outcroppings, not yet explored, and almost certainly has an infant had been placed in a stoneware jar with seven skulls.
Neolithic cave or open sites, particularly in view of the possession Burial in jars was a common practice throughout the Philip-
of polished stone artifacts by the local Pala'wan inhabitants. pines during the late prehistoric and proto.-historic periods; and,
as will be discussed at length below, the idea of jar burial
and its varied practice in the Philippines can not now be attri-
buted to the single migration of a "Jar Burial People" from the
north during the "Iron Age" (Beyer 1948b).
66 67
The Chronology of the Jar Burial Cave Sites.-Six burial caves-
Ngipe't Duldug, Manunggul, Uyaw, Duyong, Pagayona, and Tadyaw Table VI
-will be discussed in detail below to illustrate the historical
COMPARISONS OF THE STONE, METAL, AND GLASS
development and the varying cultural patterns associated with jar
ARTIFACTS FROM NINE JAR BURIAL CAVES
burial in Palawan. Pertinent data from seven other caves or cham-
bers of these caves which have been completely of partly ex-
cavated-Tabon, Uyaw, Guri (Chamber B), Pawikan Ledge, Diwata,
Rita-Fabian, and Batu Puti-will also be considered. cave and the Stone Bronze Iron Glass Beads
cultural Sequences Adzes Fragments Fragments and Other
Three C-14 determinations from two chambers of Manunggul Ornaments
Cave have provided absolute dates for the Late Neolithic and
Developed Metal Age phases of the Tabon jar burial tradition: Late Neolithic
Ngipe't Duldug 1 0 0 0
(1) Manunggul Cave (Chamber A), a Late Neolithic assem·
blage dating from 890 B.C. <UCLA-992A) to 710 B.C. (UCLA· Manunggul 0 0 0 0
(Chamber A)
992B>; and
( 2) Manunggul Cave <Chamber B), a Developed Metal Age as- Early Metal Age
semblage dating 190 B.C. (UCLA-992C).
Duyong 3 27 1 (?) 0
The relative chronological positions of the other jar burial Uyaw 1 36 1 (?) 8 beads
assemblages of the above mentioned Tabon Caves have been es-
1 bracelet
tablished on the basis of a comparison of the key types of
artifact~ (see Table IV>, such as the presence, absence, or asso- Tabona 0 1 0 3 beads
ciation of stone tools with bronze objects and/or iron implements,
1 bracelet
and their relative quantities. Specific attention has been paid to
the presence or absence of jade ornaments and diagnostic types 1 ornament <? J
of stone and glass beads. A comparative study of key pottery Guri 0 2 0 3 beads
attributes, such as the presence or absence (and quantity) of
bound; or carved paddle decoration, was also utilized in the Developed Metal Age
evaluation of the relative time sequence of the jar burial caves.
Historical changes in the principal pottery types will be discussed Rita-Fabian O 1 1 13 beads
in detail below. 1 bracelet
In general, the deposits encountered in the jar burial caves 1 ear-pendant
were very shallow, usually 10 to 20 cm., and unfortunately no Pagayona 0 5 1 5 beads
stratified sequences of jar burial assemblages were encountered
and/or identified. Nevertheless, the caves or chambers of caves Manunggul 0 0 30 58 beads
included in Table VI have diagnostic and remarkably consistent (Chamber B) 1 bracelet
assemblages of artifacts, as noted, and these cave sites were util-
ized for burial for only a relatively short period (except Tadyaw). Tadyawa 0 6 20 200 beads
In addition, comparative studies of the total corpus of artifacts 2 bracelets
from these key jar burial caves, as will become apparent below,
show very distinct assemblages of artifacts. Other caves, on the
•Excavation of this cave is not yet completed but it is not believed
contrary, were obviously used over and again for jar burial that further excavations will change its temporal position.
68 69
and artifacts from the Neolithic to the Metal Age are mixed:' No and prominent malar bones, deep nasion, guttered lower nasal
'
attempt was made to arrange the cultural materials from these apertures, shovel-shaped incisors, and so forth-showing relation-
latter caves in chronological sequence or to include them in the ships generally to the physical types of indigenous peoples who
descriptive tables, such as Table VI, X, and XIII. live in Palawan today and elsewhere in the Philippines.
General Cultural Patterns of the Tabon Jar Burial Complex.- Phalanges of the hand and foot were frequently recovered
A number of persisting cultural patterns may be seen from a in screening the deposits around the collapsed jars. The exca-
comparative study of the jar burial practices in the Tabon Caves vation of these many small bones would indicate a type of
which points to a historically related complex. All adult burials maceration which would allow for the recovery of complete skele-
were secondary; not a single jar has been found of a size which would tons for subsequent burial in jars. A single reference in a· Tagbanwa
have allowed for the primary burial of an adult [see Fox ( 1959a; myth to the exposure on platforms of human remains [Fox 0954) 219·
Pit. 4 > for an illustration of a primary burial jar from the Bato 220] provides one local ethnographic clue to past practices in Pa-
Caves]. Insofar as it was possible to tell, however, one jar in lawan (see Appendix I).
Tabon Cave was used for the primary burial of an infant. To
date, no absolutely undisturbed jar burial has been found, and In one of the smallest caves, Ukir Ukir, on Lipuun Point,
it is not known whether or not multiple secondary burial was which is composed of a single small chamber reached by squeez-
practiced, although it is suspected. Comparisons of the vessel count ing through a tunnel-like opening, the remains of at leust two
of jars in each cave with the number of individual human re- individuals were found scattered on the surface (this cave has
mains found in each cave would indicate, nevertheless, that it not been completely excavated). One plain earthenware vessel was
was the general practice to place the bones of only one person found with the remains, and in front of the mouth of the cave
in one jar. there was a second vessel with incised designs characteristic of
the Tabon Pottery Complex. It is possible that this small cave
The data also suggest that only skulls were sometimes placed was used as a crypt to allow for maceration, as practiced by the
in smaller vessels, skull burial being a widespread practice in Ifugao of northern Luzon today. Howev~r, this was the only
the Philippines during late prehistoric times. A small pottery box cave on Lipuun Point yielding this burial pattern. If small grottos
with cover (Fig. 27-f) was excavated in Bato Puti Cave which con- and caves were being used for the maceration of bodies, than
tained only the teeth of more than one individual. more than one grotto for this purpose would ·have been dis-
covered in view of the hundreds of burials in the Tabon Caves.
The bones of children, juveniles, and adults of both sexes It is presently believed that Ukir Ukir Cave provides an example
were placed in jars; rarely infants. The paucity of infant bones of another type of burial practice contemporaneous with jar
may reflect a past cultural pattern. Today, many indigenous Filipino burial; bodies merely being wrapped in mats and placed on the
groups do not ascribe socio-religious status to newly born infants. surface of small coffin-like caves.
It could also be due to a more rapid disintegration of infant
bones. During the Neolithic and early Metal Age, the bones were
painted with a red hematite before being placed in the jars (the
Physically, the people who buried their dead in the Tabon ethnographic data from Southeast Asia would suggest that the
Caves were the variable "Southern Mongoloid"-skulls have broad painting was done after ritual bone washing). Whether or not
this was always the practice is not certain, for unpainted bones
"It is not unusual to find caves, for example, which have 14th, 15th, and are also found with painted bones in the caves. However, hema-
16th century trade pottery from China, Thailand, and Annam mixed up with tite painting fades quickly, particularly when bones are exposed
19th and early 20th century Chinese pottery. Mr. Avelino Legaspi of the on the surface of caves which are bathed constantly with sun-
National Museum with Mr. Jesus Cabarrus, Jr., and Mr. Jerry Lobregat
light. The data from the Tabon Caves would indicate that the
excavated such a cave in Samar, and point out that the modern people
still make ritual offerings for· . spirits in the cave using recent porcelains, custom of bone painting was gradually abandoned · during the
probably in part stimulated by the presence of the prehistoric materials in- late phase of the Metal Age and had disappeared entirely in
cluding human bones. Palawan by Chinese contact, about the 11th or 12th century A.D.
70 71
A study of the interior of many skulls shows that the bones The "grave furniture" was composed largely of personal orna-
were not only "painted" in the conventional usage of this term 1 ments-beads, earrings and ear-pendants, and bracelets. Tools and
but either "dipped" into a solution of hematite, the painting flow- weapons, as well as household utensils such as spoons and scoops
ing into depressions as in the interior of the cranium which could made of shell, were relatively infrequent. Ethnographic data would
not possibly have been reached by a brush, or a solution poured suggest that many ornaments and other items were made of wood
over the bones. Numerous fragments of hematite have been found and plant fibers which have disintegrated.
in the burial caves, and a paint pot made from the half of a small
Tridacna was excavated in Bato Puti Cave. The evidences would The burial jars were usually, possibly always, provided with
suggest too that the bones were sometimes painted in the burial co"Vers. These ranged from simple, inverted, bowl-like lids; the
cave or that the painting was renewed there. diagnostic trunconical covers of many shapes, and beautiful figurine
covers (Color Frontispiece and Fig. 49). A round wooden object
In Leta Leta Cave at El Nido, a scoop made from the "Baler believed to be a cover was excavated in an extremely dry area
Shell" (Melo diadema> and filled with pounded hematite was re- of Tabon Cave, and it is likely that wooden covers were used.
covered. Secondary burials of painted bones probably bundled The pottery covers, as noted, were frequently sealed to the jars
and placed on small shelves in this cave (or interred) were also with lime or a compound of lime and resin (Fig. 40-g). The
excavated. These are dated from the Late Neolithic. One primary ume used to seal the covers to the jars was sometimes con-
flexed burial was excavated in this cave in which all of the tinued as a heavy applique forming vertical lines of decoration
bones and ornaments were deeply stained with hematite. These on the covers. A few covers had small "windows" which would
remains had been buried in literally a mound of hematite; and have allowed for placing ritual offerings in the jars after the
the bones, after natural maceration, had become stained by the jars and covers had been sealed together.
surrounding hematite. This latter burial probably dates from a late
phase of the Early Neolithic. Selection of the caves and chambers of the caves for placing
the burial jars followed specific patterns. With the exception of
In the Tabon Caves, bones of the sea cow, shell beads, and Tadyaw Cave, the mouths of all of the burial caves discovered
shellfish placed in the caves as food offerings, and even jars to date on Lipuun Point faced the sea. The choice of the burial
and jar covers were painted with hematite. It is evident that cave, by any standard, pro,vided an attractive resting place for
painting with hematite had a deep ritual meaning closely asso- the dead. The dozens of caves found in the cliffs within the
ciated with death and funerary practices. Red is still an important dark interior valleys of Lipuun Point were not used for burial.
ritual color among many minority peoples in the Philippines. A A similar pattern was encountered in the Albay Gulf area of
red color may also be obtained from local plants, such as from southern Luzon where the Late Neolithic jar burials were all
the 'sappanwood" (Caesalpinia sappen), but hematitite was undoub- found in caves facing the sea [Fox and Evangelista (1957b) 58-59].
tedly the primary material used in bone painting. And, at El Nido in northern Palawan the burial caves also over-
looked the sea.
The cultural materials which have survived with the burial
jars, other than beads, are surprisingly scarce, a condition which The jars were invariably placed in the entrance chambers of
may be due to grave robbing. Many perfect jars have been found the caves; dry areas which were reached or flooded by sunlight.
with covers removed (in some instances the covers had been This was the usual practice and in only a few cases were the
sealed to the jars with lime) and with no artifacts in the jars. jars hidden in dark interior grottos or chambers, as in Guri
There is no evidences of disturbance of the caves in modern times. Cave and Tadyaw Cave. A number of caves were found on the
The locations of almost all of the caves were not even known to sheer face of the towering limestone cliff on the northwestern
the present residents of Quezon. When the Museum team arrived, side of Lipuun Point; settings, as noted, which were unquestionably
the local people were generally afraid of the caves believing them consciously chosen for their beauty. A few of the caves could only
to be inhabited by potentially malign spirits and many folk tales have been reached with ladders and placing the jars in these
about the caves were heard (Casino 1965). The grave robbing ap- caves would have been an extremely difficult task, as their removal
pears to have taken place during ancient times. from the caves by the Field Team demonstrated.
72 73
·Jn a small grotto in Batu Puti, the remains o~ seven individu~ls
The jars were merely placed on the surface of the cav
and most fr~quently near and along the walls of the cave. The~
f,
.: dults 1 juvenile, and 1 child) were found m an orderly pile
<5 a e they had been bundled together. The number of individ·
were sometimes enclosed within a nest of rock,. possibly to
wher was determined by a study of the long bones, for fragments
protect ~hem froi:n disturbance by wild pigs, porcupines, and 11815 y one skull and three mandibles were present. Two whole
other arumals which often nest in the caves. Rocks were als 0~tterY
001
used. to supp~rt the jars which had round bottoms. Smalle~ vessels, shell and jade bracelets, a scoop made of Melo
~;adema, and fragments of bronze were recovered with the bones.
ves~els ~~re s1m~l~ sca~tered around the jars, reconstruction of
their original positions m the burial caves showing no patter
No architectural structures have been found in the caves. n. Three primary burials, the skeletons in an extended and supine
sition, were excavated in the entrance chamber of Batu Puti
The discovery of a burial cave on Lipuun Point was always ~ve. These skeletons were associated with sherds of the Ta?on
a dramatic sight; the many jars and other vessels, sometimes pottery complex, shell spoons made of the Chambered Nautilus,
whole but usually collapsed in place, resting on the floor of and beads made of shell and teeth.
the cave where they had been placed hundreds of years ago.
It was only the inaccessibility of the caves, the isolation of the A single human skull was found hidden in a small grotto near
Quezon area generally, and the fear which the modern people Batu Puti Cave, and nearby the complete skull and mandible
had of the caves that protected the jars from destruction. (no postcranial remainds) of a monkey. A_s there w~re no asso-
ciated cultural materials which could provide a rela~1ve date for
The excavations indicate that the burial caves were revisited the skull, its association. is not certain. But there. is. no re~on
~nd re-used many times after the jars had originally been placed t assume that this human skull does not fall w1thm the time
m th.e caves. Numerous fragments of charcoal and "hearths" which a~d cultural sequences of the jar burial assemblage found in the
provided C-14 samples were found in the burial caves near the Tabon Caves. Further excavations may reveal other types of
jars .. Small earthenware vessels also show evidence of use, i.e., burial but the pattern-secondary burial of human bones painted
soot on the outer surfaces. The pre~ence of the "hearths" and with hematite and placed in jars which had covers-is remarkably
~sed ~essels is interpreted as resulting from food preparation dur-
uniform.
~ng rituals or simply visits to the caves. In some caves, broken
Jars had been . placed on ledges or along the side of the cave to The Tabon Pottery Complex. - The excavations in the Tabon
provide more space, it would appear, for new jars and ritual caves and Duyong Cave have yielded at least 1500 whole or
activities. reconstructable earthenware vessels and tens-of-thousands of she.rds
which show a wide but related range of farms and dec~ratio~.
A highly developed cult-of-the-dead has been a principal feature A thorough study of this pottery would be a majo~ proJe~t. m
of the indigenous religions in the Philippines and Palawan the itself, worthy of the attention of one or more ce~a~1c spec1ah~t.
living maintaining intimate ties with their soul-relatives which in- At this time the writer will attempt only a prehmmary descrip-
volved frequent visits for divination purposes to burial places <Fox: tion of the' general features of this pottery and its possible
1954 and 1965a). The jar burial assemblage, as described herein historical relationships with pottery complexes found elsewhere.
is in fact only a part of an ancient cult-of-the-dead encountered
throughout the Philippines and Southeast Asia. in the Philippines and Southeast Asia.
The brief comparative study of this pottery indicates that it·
Other Types of Burial.-A number of other types of burial were
forms a single probably homogenetic complex, and is described here·
found in association with the jar burial assemblage, including simple
in as the Tabon Pottery Complex. Examples of unique, intrusive
interment in a supine position, "bundle" burials, remains placed
wares occur, and there are evidences of recurring external in-
on the surface of a small cave and probably wrapped in a
fluences as well as local ceramic developments. New forms and
mat, and "skull burial." In contrast to the data from nearby Borneo
designs appear; others disappear or lose favor. Nevertheless, .the
[Harrisson (1962) 7-9], however, the range of the types of burials
pottery has distinct and unique features which persist from one time
in the Tabon Caves is not great; rather strikingly uniform.
75
74
.,
period to another and justify its description at this time as a ·rnpression had been made in the plastic clay and distinction
separate pottery complex. The Tabon pottery does show similar- 1between cord marking with a bound paddle and groovmg . w1'th a
ities with the potteries which have been described by Solheim carved padd1e were obliterated and thus difficult to detect. A red
(1959b and 1959c; 1964b) as Kalanay and Sa-huynh, .as well as paint, probably hematite mixed with an organic medium, ~as app~ied
with the Niah pottery [Solheim (1959c) 167-176]. But, until more after firing or re-fired at a low temperature. These unfired pamts
detailed data are available from the Philippines and elsewhere fade and decay on exposed sherds, and sherds which may have
based upon systematic excavations that will allow for an "historical been incised and then painted would appear in the analysis only as
typology," tracing cultural and pottery developments through the time incised.
as well as space [Suggs (1961 18], the distinction of the Tabon Pot-
tery Complex will be useful. Despite problems such as these which were encountered in
the brief field analysis, the pottery of the Tabon Caves may
Method of Study.-In this preliminary analysis, the pottery types be grouped for a preliminary description into nine provisional
have been tentatively established for descriptive purposes on the basis of types. These are: (1) Tabon Plain; ( 2) Tabon Polished; ( 3) Tabon
(a) surface treatment, including decoration, and (b) form. The ap- Impressed; (4) Tabon Incised; (5) Tabon Painted; (6) Tabon Organic
proach follows closely the extensive and relevant researches of Glazed; and combinations of these (7) Tabon Incised and Impres~ed;
Wilhelm G. Solheim II on Philippine and Southeast Asian pot- (8) Tabon Incised and Impressed: Painted; and (9) Tabon Incised
teries (see Bibliography), and the technical study of Anna 0. and Painted. By using these nine tentative pottery types, it is possible
Shepard ( 1957). Brief remarks are also included concerning the to ·provide an overall description of the basic characteristics of
method-of-manufacture of the Tabon pottery. the Tabon Pottery Complex, although in the final analysis it may
be necessary to modify these preliminary types.
The percentage of each pottery type by cave or by the cham-
ber of a cave was based, in most instances, upon exact vessel Brief Notes on the Method-o/-Manufacture.-The pottery was
count; in other instances, upon only an enumeration of rim sherds. formed by freehand modeling being worked initially by hand and
Not only was an exact vessel count easily obtained in small then with a paddle-and-anvil. There is no clear evidence of the
caves, such as Pagayona, but the original position of the vessels use of a slow wheel or tournette despite the fact that many
in the caves could be mapped (Fig. 44). Vessels from these rela- vessels are almost perfectly symmetrical. The interior of vessels
tively undisturbed caves which were either whole or had merely frequently show the impression of an anvil, as well as marks made
collapsed in place have been restored and are being returned to by the knuckles and the palm of the hand (Bernardo and
their original settings in the caves (it is planned to establish Viola 1965). Paddle marks may also be seen on the exterior
the Tabon Caves as a National Park). The quantitative data for surfaces of larger vessels, such as jars. As the impressions found
other caves where the vessels were badly broken and scattered in the interior of vessels are commonly round, it is likely that
are less exact. Excavations in the large caves which contain hun- the large opercula of the "Green Snail," Turbo marmoratus, were
dreds of vessels have not been completed, including Tadyaw which used as anvil as well as for polishing. These opercula were fre-
is discussed below, and no statistics are available. quently excavated in the caves. Polishing tools were also made
of round, water smoothed stones. Some very small pots were
Analytical problems were also encountered in this preliminary formed only with the fingers. Rims and foot-rims ("ring feet")
field analysis which influenced the quantification of the pottery were characteristically shaped separately during the process of
types. Thus, without the availability of microscopic examination, manufacture and then welded to the body of the vessel, as were
it was difficult to distinguish with certainty the use of slips, appendages such as handles, lugs, spouts, and decorated fillet.
except when marked contrast existed between the color of the Vessels were scraped and smoothed after shaping.
slip and the paste as in the case of red slipped wares. Care-
fully smoothed and unslipped plain wares are not easily distin- The basic tempering material was sand. The sand temper of
guished from lightly polished unslipped pieces which have a matte smaller and thiner walled vessels is fine, suggesting that the sand
finish. Paddle impressions were often smoothed over after the was upounded and winnowed before being mixed with the clay.
76 77
A similar practice is followed today by the Tagbanwa and Pala' Table VII
wan. In larger vessels, the sand and other non-plastics· tend to PERCENTAGES OF POTTERY TYPES
be coarse. APPROXIMATE TABON CAVES
FROM SELECTED
Despite the estimable quality ,of the finished products, it
c A v E s
.is apparent that the pottery was fired at a low temperature- Manunggul
hence an "earthenware"-with little control over the firing atmo- Manunggul Duyong (Chamber B) Diwata* Pagayona
sphere. The ethnographic record from Palawan and from else- vessel count (Chamber A) Early Metal Developed Developed Developed
and Late Neolithic Age Metal Age Metal Age Metal Age
where in the Philippines again suggests that the pottery, after pottery Types
drying, was merely fired on top of the ground with fuel stacked 200 37 128 40
Ve"ssel count 78
and heaped around the vessels. The cross-sections of sherds, par-
ticularly from larger vessels, show unoxidized carbonaceous matter,
and the interiors tend to have dark or black zones. Unslipped
-
Plain 42 25 60 20 48
The f Ollowing descriptions of the provisional pottery types are Incised and
brief and general, stressing the distinctive features of the pottery Impressed:
Painted 2 1
for comparative purposes. Detailed descriptions will be presented
in subsequent site reports or in special studies by other stu-
dents. Incised and 1
Painted 2 3
TABON PLAIN
• Data from Bernardo and Viola ( 1965) .
Plain vessels, as defined, were simply scraped, smoothed, and • • Cord marked or carried paddle impressions are absent or. rar~ ~ss~~~
unslipped (slipped but unpolished pieces which are difficult to veloped Metal Age pottery,. alt~oulgh d~sij°s f~~sse~a~~n th;ot:~~Y o Complex.
are common during all h1stonca per10 s o e . . h the tt
distinguish may in some instances be included in this category J. Some sherds with body impressions are clearly associate? wit d d ps~e;~~
The surfaces of jars with thick walls are often uneven, and sand f the jar burial assemblage of Diwata Cave. Other highly ero e earlier
tempering and other non-plastic materials protrude into the sur- :ith cord marking and paddle impressions are apparently from an
face areas. period of use of this cave.
79
78
'I
i1\
Although many forms and sizes of this generally undistin- 1'hiS pottery type, as presently established, includes designs (and
guished ware occur, it is usually found in larger vessels such tilitarian) impressions made with both a c;arved and bound paddle
as jars and covers for jars. The bodies of jars are commonly ~or stick) or with a simple tool.
cylindrical or ellipsoidal in shape with rounded bottoms and
restricted necks, but jars with spher9idal bodies and flat bottoms carved Paddle lmpressions.-Carved paddle decoration, as Sol-
are also encountered. The latter are possibly more frequent in heim (1964a) describes, is achieved by carving a negative design
the earlier pottery, and jars of the early phase of the Late
0 nto the surface of a paddle. Ethnographic examples of carved
Neolithic are relatively small. Characteristically, the ja.rs have addles are found in the collection of the National Museum which
flaring lips which may be either concave or convex on the upper ~ere obtained among the Subanum of Mindanao [Solheim ( 1952)
surface to accommodate lids. In all caves, Tabon Plain forms a asJ, and carved paddles (each side of the paddle had a different
major type numerically, being exceeded in a few caves by only design) were used prior to World War II by the local Pala'wan
Tabon Polished and1'or Tabon Impressed. (see Table VII). population.
TABON POLISHED The common designs which were impressed, evenly or irre-
gularly, upon the bodies of vessels excavated in the Tabo~ Caves
Polished vessels are common and form another major pottery include: (a) squares of various sizes, rec.tangles, and diamonds
type. The polished wares are usually slipped and have an easily (the so-called "checker" or "rhombus" patterns); (b) ribbed (or
detected lustre, but lightly polished vessels ( unslipped?) with a "grooved") and cross-ribbed impressions; and (c), though rarely,
matte finish are encountered. Polishing marks are not prominent, combination of ribbed patterns with other impressed designs (Figs.
as in the Calatagan earthenwares (Fox 1959b), except when com- 21 and 22). Frequently, impressed designs were wiped or smoothed
bined with paddle impressions where they form vertical marks before firing which obliterated much of the design.
on the upper body. These polishing marks were probably decora-
tive in intent. The author has been puzzled as to why the paddle impressions
were deliberately obliterated to partially remove the surface design.
Red, yellow-brown, and orange-brown slipping occurs and may Mr. J. R. Specht, a visitor to Manila, has suggested that it might
be found on the exterior of vessels, as in the case of covers and have been done to achieve symmetry of irregular contours. At
independently restricted vessels with high necks; on only the in- least, the casualness with which impressions were treated is further
terior of bowls; or on both the exterior and interior surfaces evidence that impressions were made in part for utilitarian pur-
which is common in the angle-bodied wares. Vessels with a poses and not wholly for decoration.
colored slip are highly polished having a mirror-like gloss. Red-
slipped vessels appear to be characteristic of all periods from the Vessels with designs on the rims, corner points [Shepard
Late Neolithic to the Developed Metal Age and in general are a (1957) 226], and flanges which had been impressed with a simple
better made pottery with thinner walls. tool are typical of all periods, Late Neolithic to Developed Metal
Age. The portion of the rim impressed with a design is related
TABON IMPRESSED to the form of the rim (Fig. 23); on vessels which have flaring
rim, the design is impressed on either the inner or upper edge;
Designs impressed upon the plastic surface of the vessel with on those with a straight neck, on the outer edge (Fig. 22).
a carved paddle or bound paddle, as well as designs •impressed with Scalloping of rims, although uncommon, also occurs.
a simple tool upon lips, shoulders, or flanges (fillet) of vessels,
form a third major pottery type. Tabon Impressed may equal and Basket impressions have not as yet been encountered in the
exceed in number Tabon Plain and Tabon Polished, distinguishing pottery of the Tabon Caves, but the presence of basket-marking
the Tabon Pottery Complex from other prehistoric potteries found in the Niah Pottery Complex of nearby Borneo would suggest
in the Philippines. And, Tabon Impressed usually exceeds incised that it will likely be found in Palawan. One pottery coffin from
potteries in number wholly unlike the Kalanay Pottery Complex. Manunggul Cave (Chamber A) had a mat impression.
80 81
cord Marking.-Cord impressions made with a bound paddle (or
stick) are also common. These are achieved (Solheim 1964), i.t
would appear, by wrapping a paddle with twine of various sizes
and spacings. The cord design was then transferred to the plastic
surface of the vessel by paddling which produces negative impres-
sions. It has been suggested that cord marking could also be
produced by rolling a bound stick across the surface, but no
ethnographic examples of this technique from the Philippines are
known to the writer. Two common variations of cord making
are encountered: ( 1 ) vertical, evenly spaced impressions on the
body of the vessel; and ( 2) impressions which tend to .be irregular-
ly spaced and made at an angle to the body (Fig. 21-a and 21-c).
Crossed cord marking is also seen but is rare.
TABON INCISED
83
11I
!
f
. Impressed (sometimes, as will be seen, with painting in hematite
4' . between lineal bands), but this pottery type is uncommon (see
Table VII); never constituting more than 10 per cent, usually
much less, of the vessels in any cave.
TABON PAINTED
J .
J .
Fig. 22. Tabon Impressed: Examples of Rim Impressions and Scalloping of this pottery
type from Duyong Cave.
The inclusion of this type. is perhaps unju~tified, for it has
been found with certainty only in Manunggul Cave, Chamber A,
where pottery surfaces were relatively protected from fading and
decay. At. least nine vessels-jars, covers, and the pottery ·coffin
85
Tl
11
!
-------------
-in this cave were completely painted with hematite after firing.
-- - -- -------- - - ::>\, other caves have also yielded large sherds which were painted with
ume (?) after firing. Unfired painting with hematite and lime (?)
maY actually have been more common, but disappearing as the
result of fading and decay where vessels and sherds have been
exposed. Painting with hematite after firing was usually combined
with incised or incised and impressed designs.
Vessels of these two pottery types are rare (Table VII) and
were apparently highly prized, for sometimes only sherds of
these pottery types were placed in the burial cave. The hematite
was usually painted between incised lines or within incised design
elements <see Frontispiece and Figs. 25 and 33). A few sherds
were recovered with painting separating incised bands, notably
when incised or impressed design elements (e.g., dashes) had been
drawn within the bands.
Fig. 23. Two Burial .lars from Manungqul Cave (Chamber A).
87
11'
II II
I;
1
( 1) Jars:
90 91
r
1 I
! I
The simple bowls are usually plain; a relatively few polished.
The angle wares, on the contrary, are polished and frequently have
incised designs on the upper body (i.e., above the corner point)
and/ or impressed designs on the lower body and base (Fig. 27).
Carinated forms are normally Tabon Polished. The vessels with in-
turning upper bodies or rims are usually polished or have incised
designs on the upper body.
b.
Ovaloid or spheroidal shapes with composite contours,
short necks, and everted lips (Fig. 26-z).
Spheroidal vessels with composite contours, relatively
W)I\~
~
short necks, and plain lips <Fig. 26 z-1).
c. Spheroidal vessels with inflected contours, short neck,
everted lips, and round or flat bottoms; sometimes a
( :)
moulded ridge occurs just above the point of vertical
tangency <Fig. 26 z-2).
d. Spheroidal vessels with complex contours, high corner
points <sharp or rounded), short necks, exerted or plain
lips, and round or flat bottoms (Fig. 26 z-3).
r1d ..(8)
e. Others.
( 7 > Miscellaneous:
a. Spouted vessels (Fig. 45).
b. Coffin with square body and rounded cover.
c. Others.
fTQ. 26. Some Vessel Forms of the Tabon Pottery Complex.
92
TT I
This pottery tradition would also appear to have been distributed Fig. 27. Examples of Vessel Forms and Decorations of .the Tabon P~ttery Complex: (a) an
by the actual movements of people, as Solhei~ ( 1959b: 186-187) example of Tabon Polished with highly burnished. red shp, an~ unusually tall,
restricted neck; from Diwata Cave; (b) angle-bodied !abon Incised ves~el from
early argued, a view which is strongly supported by the excavations Diwata Cave with incised designs above the corner pomt; (c) An.gle-hod1ed bowl
in the Tabon Caves. The writer would like to add that the Palawan from Diwata Cave with incised designs above the corner pomt and paddle
data indicate numerous movements of the people into this area who, impressed designs over the lower body and ba.se; .rd) ~n example of
Tabon Polished, _from Diwata Cave with _ unusual mturmng nm; (~) - further
94 example of a vessel belonging to the pottery type Tabon Incised from
Duyong Cave; (f) an unusual cover box . from . B~t? Puti Cave which_ con-
tained the painted teeth of more than one mdiv1dual.
ir
I
i
I
although making pottery. broadly related to this tradition, brought
with them distinctive assemblages of tool and ornaments which vary
from one time period to another. It is, in fact, the larger objective
of this study of the jar burial assemblages excavated in the Tabon
Caves to .discuss the total corpus of artifacts, not simply the pottery,
which accompanied the successive movements of people into Palawan.
The comparative data, as both Solheim < 1959: 186) and Wall
( 1962: 427) have stressed, would not indicate that the dispersal of
this pottery tradition was through recurring trade, the result of "waves
of migrations," or that the various pottery complexes which are related
to this tradition "depended". I Wall < 1962) 427 I upon each other for
their development. Rather, the related pottery complexes appeared
to have developed by and large independently from one another,
showing many local specializations and elaborations in form and
designs. Thus, the pottery of the Tabon Pottery Complex displays
unique features and lacks as well some of the characteristics of
probably related pottery found in neighboring areas.
!I
;:
of the interrelationships of the various related pottery complexes are sent" in Borneo and variations of the carved paddle are "common"
hazy, in particular their temporal relationships. This is due for LWall (1962) 425-426], and, as would be expected, surface treated
the most part to an inadequate archaeological record. The following re- bY bound paddle and carved paddle has been reported from
marks concerning the broad relationships of the Tabon Pottery Corn. North Borneo [Williams 0962) 230-231]. Finally, as discussed above,
plex are thus only highly general. cord and paddle impressions form a major category of surface
treatment in the Tabon Pottery Complex, particularly in the pottery
A brief comparative study would suggest that the primary ties of the Late Neolithic and the Early Metal Age. This method of
of the Tabon Complex are with Niah in Borneo and Sa-huynh in surface treatment-bound or carved paddle impressions-fades out
Indo-China, less so with Malaya, Thailand, and South China; and only in the fully Developed Metal Age sites when iron is present in sig-
secondarily with the central and northern Philippines, at least as the nificant quantities; and, as will be seen, impressed designs were
Kalanay Pottery Complex of the Philippines is presently described by apparently not common in the earliest Late Neolithic potteries.
Solheim (1959a and 1964b). The primacy of the relationships of the This method of surface treatment is, at any rate, the striking fea-
Tabon Pottery Complex are clearly shown by the known distribution ture of Tabon pottery and rare or absent in the pottery of the
of cord marking and carved paddle decoration in Southeast Asia; northern and central Philippines.
specifically areas where these techniques have formed a significant
element of the surface treatment. Cord marked and paddle impressed surface treatment will pro-
bably be found in Luzon and the central Philippines, and certainly
In the Kalanay Pottery Complex of the central Philippines, carved elsewhere in the southern Philippines. Mrs. Dorothy Main, volun-
paddle designs are " ... not definitely present" and " ... cord marking teer associate in the National Museum for many years, has recently
has not been found" LSolheim ( 1959a) 180 J. Beyer ( 1948a: 75-79) isolated a single sherd with rib impressions from a deep midden
early recognized the rarity. of paddle marked, cord marked, and mat excavated by the writer, Messrs. Manuel Santiago and Leo Anthony
marked pottery in the central and northern Philippines. In knowing· Bennett at Dulangan, San Luis, Batangas, Comparisons of this
that these methods of surface treatment were associated with the sherd with pottery excavated in a nearby burial site at Butong,
Late Neolithic elsewhere in Sduth and East Asia, Beyer consistently Batangas-the site had iron tools in the graves but no trade por-
rejected a Philippine Neolithic pottery. celains-indicates that the sherd dates from the Developed Metal
Age. Cord marking and carved paddle designs were also found
In Malaya and Thailand, cord marking achieved with a bound by Mr. Edward B. Kurjack, in association with the limestone urn
paddle (or by other means) forms probably the most common del burials found in caves in the Salangsang area, Cotabato Province,
coration in the early potteries, although carved paddle impressions Mindanao (Fig. 1 ) , and these designs have been reported from other
are much less common LPeacock (1959)) 140 I. Cord marking and areas of Mindanao both archaeologically and ethnologically.
carved paddling are also widely encountered in South China
I Finn ( 1958) 34-42; Maglioni 1952 I and occur in Indo China I Solheim Although the archaeological record from the central and north-
( 1959b) 103 J. Designs impressed with a bound paddle are "pre- ern Philippines is still extremely spotty, there are sufficient evi-
teries in Southeast Asia. If the Kalanay Pottery Complex is an early pot- construct of the Kalanay Pottery is most useful to the archaeologist in the
tery complex-this would appear to be demonstrated by the C-14 date of Philippines as describing a highly sophisticated "Iron Age" pottery which is
754+ 100 B.P. for Cave Number 2 at Batungan, Masbate-or the earliest characteristically without the elements Of cord marking and carved paddle
pottery to reach the Philippines, than both bound paddle and carved paddle impressions.
impressions would be expected in association with this pottery complex. If, ~. The excavations in the Tabon Caves have clearly shown another early pot-
on the other hand, as Solheim's many publications concerning the Kalanay ~'. tery complex-the Tabon Pottery Complex describe herein-which is distinct
Pottery Complex and as the type site itself show, this pottery complex is ~t;from the Kalanay Pottery Complex precisely because it has cord marking
characteristically associated with iron and mvolves considerable local pottery . and carved paddle impressions as major pottery types (see Table VII), ex-
development and specializations, then there must be <a) either early Kalanay ' ceeding in number in one cave all of the other pottery types. Under these
sites which have pottery which is cord marked and/or carved paddle marked, ''circumstances there is little need to force the categories of bound paddle
or (b) other earlier sites with distinct pottery complexes which, however, ' and carved paddle surface treatment into the inventory of the Kalanay Pot-
would still be related to the larger pottery tradition to which Kalanay pot· "tiery Complex; particularly, as in the areas of the central Philippines, as well
tery also shows relationships. The writer's own bias, as stated, is that the ·ftt ,: as in the time period when the Kalanay pottery forms a diagnostic complex,
98 99
if I i,
I
I
these methods are either not present or strikingly rare. And, if there is a
Kalanay pottery site which includes these types of surface treatment as a
typical feature (such an. association is possible), than it would appear rea-
sonable to the writer for Solheim to present detailed archaeological evidences,
particularly as he has made a "major correction" of an established pottery
complex. Any other approach would appe::ir as data juggling to accommodate
a preconception which was certainly not Solheim's intent. The writer also
feels that there has been far to much concern with pottery relationships
and not enough concern with dirt archaeology, ~t least in the Philippines,
which would establish time as well as space relationships of the pottery and
their associated art;ifacts. An ··early and widespread pottery tradition in
1 I
.I Southeast Asia to which Kalanay and Tabon pottery is related has been I
brilliantly established by Solheim, but what is now needed is a "historical
typology" of these relationships which can be achieved only through syste- I
matic excavations.
The site which formed the basis of Solheim's "major correction" of the
characteristics of the Kalanay Pottery Complex · is located at El ·Nido <Bac-
quit), Palawan, and was visited by Dr. Carl Guthe over forty years ago.
Dr. Guthe recovered a small surface collection from this cave-designated site t.•
C67-which include shell beads and bracelets and a few sherds, including
sherds with paddle impressed surface treatment. Originally, Solheim 0964b;
147-150) was in doubt as to the relationships of this pottery which showed
both Kalanay and Bau characteristics but he classified the ware and site
as "Early" Bau. Upon re-examination of photograph_s of these materials,
he has now classified the site as having Kalanay pottery and being an early '~:
Kalanay site.
1'9~ 29. Burial jars and trunconical jar covers from Sa-huynh, lndo-China (after Janse
(1959) Fig. 1; and Solheim (1959b) Figs. 1 and 2) showing relationships with
100 those of the Tabon Caves.
~l
Ii
I I
Facets cut on corner points, flanges, and rims form a furthe Forms too show closer relationships with the pottery of Bor-
distin~tive decoration in the Kalanay Pottery Complex, but agai~ neo, Inda-China, and Malaya, than with the Kalanay Pottery Com-
a.re either absent or rare in the Tabon Pottery Complex. Perfora. plex and the other Metal Age potteries of Luzon and the central
tion or carved designs in footed vessels occur in the Tabon Caves Philippines. The similarities between the jar forms and trunconical
but in only three examples of hundreds of vessels. Vessels With covers of the Tabon Pottery Complex and Sa-huynh are particularly
carved stands, in contrast, are typical not only of the pottery of striking [Janse (1959 > Fig. 1 and Plt. 1-a; and Figs. 29 and 49 herein].
Kalanay but of the Calamian Islands and Central Luzon at No. Neolithic farms of pottery found in Malaya are identical to those
valiches l see Beyer ( 1947) Plt. 14 ]. Designs which were impressed of Tabon, including carinated bowls, simple bowls with flat bottoms,
(or incised) with a simple tool on rims are common to both Ka. footed goblets, and others (see Peacock 1959). Angle-bodied vessels
lanay and Tabon pottery, but these are also common features of which have cord marking below the corner point and over the
all time periods of the pottery described by Solheim as forming a entire base are found in Malaya, Borneo, and in the Tabon Caves.
single pottery tradition in Southeast Asia.
The more massive footed vessels of Kalanay, as well as tripod
Generally, the design elements and patterns encountered at Niah and tetrapod forms, are entirely absent in Palawan. These are also
Borneo, show the closest relationships to those of the Tabon Pot'. widespread in the early potteries of the Mainland of Asia and would
tery Complex. An org2 ..-, i r: glaze of Almaciga was used both in be expected in the Tabon Pottery Complex. This again emphasizes
Palawan and BorneG i Harrisson ( 1957) 2111, but this may only the local developments and elaborations of forms and designs which
characterized the various local pottery complexes.
reflect a local specialization for the resins are common and today
commercially exploited in both of these areas.
The implications to the culture history of Palawan and the
---0---
Philippines generally, as suggested by these brief remarks on the
pottery, will be considered again when the characteristics of jar
In October and November, 1965, the writer independently excavated this burial and the Tabon Pottery Complex are discussed through time.
site <Guthe's C67; National Museum, 1965-L > while exploring the El Nido But it should be noted here that the Kalanay Pottery Complex is
area. The site is briefly described in a following section of this report en- typically Developed Metal Age, after iron was established; the Tabon
titled "Explorations" and a detailed site report is in preparation. It is a Pottery Complex, Neolithic and Early Metal Age.
classic Late Neolithic site with pottery. At this time only the pottery will
be briefly described relative to Solheim's "major correction" of the Bau
and Kalanay Pottery Complexes. First, both cord marked and carved paddle
surface treatment is present but cord marking rare. Secondly, only one
vessel of more than fifty (the exact vessel count has not been completed)
has incised designs on the body; hardly a Kalanay trait which has inc1smg
as a characteristic feature. Impressions made with a simple tool on the
rims are common. Polished surfaces are encountered. The most striking
characteristic of the pottery, in contrast to Kalanay is that it is overwhelm
ingly plain or paddle impressed.
The forms too /are highly distinct and include many vessels which were
unquestionably used in ritual drinking. Small, flat bottomed, shallow bowls
also stand out. Large vessels are rare and only a few are actually of jar
size. It is not a jar burial site although jar burial is possibly present. Footed
vessels occur, one having cutout (carved> designs on their ringfoot. Angle
bodied wares are present. <see Plt. XVI).
The pottery shows closer relationships, as would be expected in terms or
the geographical location of this site, to the Tabon Pottery Complex than to
the Kalanay Pottery Compl~x. particularly in relationship to the presence of
cord marking and carved paddle impressions. There is no justification at
least for relating the pottery of Guthe's cave to the Kalanay Pottery Complex.
102 103
TW
,
J
I' i
I: CHAPTER VJ
105
1T
l
1
;
' tterY vessels as well as an assemblage of stone tools, shell
l
· ~lets, and stone and shell beads <Table VIII) which are similar
I
11
those of Ngipe't Duldug Cave. The excavations of Leta Leta
e provide relevant data as to the probable characteristics of the
:iiest pottery of the Tabon Pottery Complex. These data will be
~ussed again below with a summary treatment of jar burial in
pa1awan.
Found with the pottery was one stepped adze, a type which
Jjeyer ( 1948a; 82) recognized as Late Neolithic; one scoop made
Jrorn the "Baler Shell" (Melo diadema) which are asosciated with
sites in Pala wan (and elsewhere> that range in date from the
Late Neolithic to the Developed Metal Age; one bracelet, oval in
cross-section, made from the top cf a Cone shell, probably Conus
litteratus; and beads of shell and stone including jade (Table VIII).
No metals, glass, or carnelian beads were found in this cave. The
shell and stone beads found in Ngipe't Duldug Cave are identical
to the types of beads recovered in Leta Leta Cave at El Nido and
are certainly representative of the beads of the Late Neolithic in
palawan (see Table VIII).
Table VIII
NUMBER
DESCRIPTION
Ngipe't Duldug Leta Leta•
SHELL:
Cypraea annulus and C. moneta with '<".
12
dosal surface removed (Color Plate I-A:jD; 11
I Nassarius spp., with dorsal surface
\
2,425
I
I ' removed (Color Plate I-A:s); 27
/~
,.~'If'
Small, thin, flat shell disks
(Color Plate I-A:t); 210
3,041
/~ o eo
20 40 60 100 cm.
ftS
I
SCALE STONE
\
I Green shale (?); round, flat, and 29
J
relatively thin (Color Plate I-A:i); 9
- - "" 4 1
Jade 5,508
Tot a 1 s .................... 261
* This enumeration includes 94% of the stone and shell beads from Leta
Leta Cave but not all types; and all of the beads from Ngipe't Duldug Cave.
107
Fig. 30. Floor Plan of Ngipe't Duldug Cave, a Late Neolithic Jar Burial Site.
im!1
11
!' 1ci ~ Analyses of the badly fragmentary and scattered skeletal remains
Nft:.
· t \sJloW the presence of two juveniles and two or possibly three adults.
'fbe teeth were heavily stained probably from betel chewing. Paint-
. Jng with hematite is present which indicates secondary burial.
MANUNGGUL CAVE
(,.)
·the
two chambers which were sent with the C-14 sample were later
~ revised, however, for it was originally thought that the plain pot-
Cl.>
::::J
...,..,
-
tery in Chamber B was the earliest. The final C-14 determinations
c..O
~ tshOW, on the contrary, that the assemblage of Chamber A was
~"'C the earliest. The C-14 dates as published [Berger and Libby ( 1966)
ct> Q)
Cl.>
::::J . ft79] for Manunggul Cave, Chambers A and B, are thus reversed.
CJS.. The completed excavations of these two chambers also revealed highly
~
ct>
s: distinct assemblages (see Table IX)-Chamber A being late Neolithic
Cl.>
::::J
c::: and Chamber B, Developed Metal Age with iron.
Cl.> ::::J
C/) l.C
C/) l.C
c:::
0
n_
c:;· Table IX
co CJ
c..c.>
<
ct>
COMPARISON OF TYPES OF ARTIFACTS FROM
:'!:
;:::;:CJ CHAMBER A AND CHAMBER B OF MANUNGGUL CA VE
=-=- Cl.>
3
..... C'"
0
ct>
::::J ..... Chamber A Chamber B
3· l>
'J'Ypes of Artifacts Late Neolithic Developed Metal Age
"'C
ro-u;· ( 710-890 B.C.)
3
090 B.C.)
ct> r-
~
~ ct>
C/)
itron Fragments 0 30
:z ~~"
ct>
!:.. .Glass Beads 0 13
;::;: ;'
=-
c;· 0 'tGlass Bracelets 0 3
Cl.>
::::J
Cl.. -;Jade Beads 83 50 (?)
~arnelian Beads 0 21
'Miscl. Stone Beads 48 19
Shell Beads (17)'" (17)*
Jaade Bracelets 4 1
\
lfc gate Bracelets 3 0
Mbell Braclets 2 0
fo. * Beads from the two chambers of this cave were accidentally mixed
l ring analysis.
111
The C-14 date from Chamber B, Manunggul Cave, is the fir t
absolute date for the presence of iron in the Philippines and agre:
with Beyer's ( 1947: 208) estimate for the beginning of the "Iro~
Age" in the Philippines; " ... about 250-200 B.C." It must be stressed
however, that the island of Palawan was probably one of the firsi
areas to be reached by iron (if not the first) and although iron
and its manufacture unquestionably diffused with great rapidity, there
were undoubtedly many coastal and lowland areas of the Philippines
which continued to use stone tools until well into the Christian era.
One of the Bato Caves in Sorsogon Province, southern Luzon, yield-
ing a Late Neolithic assemblage of primary burial jars, polished
tools, blades of chert, and stone and shell beads had a C-14 deter-
mination of 179 A.D. (Fox and Evangelista 1957a). Too, although
"drift" iron implements may have diffused rapidly, the actual pro-
duction of iron in the Philippines probably occurred at a much
later date. The two radiocarbon dates for Chamber A of Manung.
gul Cave, 710-890 B.C., are also consistent wlth the C-14 date from
Batungan Cave, Number 8, Masbate, of 754+ 100 B.C. for a Late
Neolithic assemblage of stone tools and pottery I Solheim 0959a)
162 and 165 J.
~J
the crown of the head and un- Surfaces of one large jar and its cover, as well· asdother
out e rbeen
vessels,
der the jaw; a pattern still en- bad painted with hematite. These were pamte a ft er f'irmg ·
countered in burial practices and possibly painted in the cave.
among the indigenous peoples in
the southern Philippines. The Another unusual ritual vessel
manner in which the hands of from Manunggul Cave is a red
the front figure are folded across slipped bowl with a foot-ring and
the chest is also a widespread roof-like construction which was
practice in the Islands when intricately incised and painted.
arranging the corpse. The stirrup design featured on
the "roof" of this vessel (Fig.
The carved prow and eye mo- 33f) is unique. One pottery cof-
tif of the spirit boat is still found fin for secondary burial, 73 cm.
on the traditional watercraft of in length and 34 cm. in width,
the Sulu Archipelago, Borneo, was excavated. This coffin has
and Malaysia. Similarities in a mat impression on the base.
the execution of the ears, eyes, This is the first coffin made of
nose, and mouth of the figures pottery, insofar as the writer
0 I 2 3 -4 5 & cm
may be seen today in the wood- knows, found in the Philippines,
carving of Taiwan, the Philip- although highly decorated pat-
Fig. 34. Details of the spirit boat on the . 35 Carved turtle from Pawikan Shelf;
pines, and elsewhere in South- jar cover from Manunggul Cave. tery and wooden skull-boxes h ave F19. · the• medium is possible ol d ivory.
east Asia (Chen 1962 >. been reccvered I Solheim < 1959a > ,.
164 and Plt. 5 < b); Evangelista
Among the Tagbanwa of Palawan, the souls of people who 0963) 53). In the Philippines, wooden coffins are of Metal
have died from epidemic sickness are believed to be carried to a sky Age or proto-historic in date; but at Niah, Harrisson recovered a
world in a similar ship-of-the-dead. Informants speak of seeing these tree trunk coffin with a C-14 determination of 2,460 ± 70 years
boats in their dreams filled with the departing souls of their ago which is well into the Neolithic I Solheim, Harrisson, and Wall
loved ones I Fox ( 1954) 217 I. Durirlg rice wine rituals a ( 1961) 238]. It is highly likely that wooden coffins of the I:.ate
wooden turtle is floated in the mouth of wine jars to provide a Neolithic will also be found in Palawan, for the pottery coffin from
vehicle for the "sailors," a class of deities that combat the evil deities Manunggul Cave has the form of a tree trunk.
of epidemic sickness. On Pawikan Ledge, below Tabon Cave, a small
Curvilinear scrolls designs on the upper body of the vessels,
turtle carved from old ivory <?) was excavated <Fig. 35 >. This arti-
including large jars, from Chamber A, Manunggul Cave are common
fact may well have had a similar ritual meaning although not use.
(Figs 23 and 33~c and 33-d); either <a> patterns formed by incised
This jar and figurine cover is closely linked with a cult-of-the-dead;
lines or incised and impressed design elements made within the
a cult, as noted, which is still a principal element of religious
lines, ( b > incising and painting, or < c) incised patterns made with
beliefs and practices among the minority peoples of Palawan and
a multiple pointed comb-like instrument <Figs. 23 and 33 >. These
throughout the Philippines.
designs show close affinity with the Kalanay and Sa-huynh Pottery
Two other jar covers from Chamber A are noteworthy: one has Complexes.
three animal or bird heads surrounding an opening; the other, a unique
tripod construction <Fig. 33 >. Smaller vessels containing ritual of- The beads associated with the pottery in Chamber A include
ferings could have been supported by the tripod arrangements on a few shell beads of two types, principally the thin, flat shell disks
these covers. There are fewer covers than jars in Manunggul Cave which occur in other Neolithic sites <Colored Plate 1-A:t >; possibly bar-
suggesting, as noted, that wooden covers may have been used. All rel shaped beads of a black-and-white banded onyx <Colored Plate 1-A:
114 115
a); and 83 jade beads of three basic types. The three types of jade was recovered, and a superb thin and translucent, ellipsoid-shaped
beads recovered were l 1 ) roughly polyhedral in cross section, long or pendant of a red colored chalcedony <? >. No metals-bronze, cop-
short; ( 2) roughly rectangular in cross section, long or short (Color per, iron-glass beads or bracelets, or other artifacts characteristic
Plate 1-A:e), and (3) disk shaped, fairly thin, with rounded edges <Co- of the Metal Age were found in Chamber A of Manunggul Cave;
lor Plate I-A-c). Beyer ( 1948a; 63-64) records similar types of jade and the two C-14 dates for this assemblage of 710 B.C. <UCLA-
beads from the Late Neolithic of Batangas. gg2B> and 890 B.C. <UCLA-992A) fall into the Late Neolithic of
palawan and the Philippines.
Although it is recognized that beads of stone, shell, and glass
are almost useless for dating purposes, surviving for hundreds of Chamber B.-This chamber yielded a Developed Metal Age as-
years after their initial appearances-e.g., the Ifugao, Kalinga, and semblage of artifacts <see Table1X> and a C-14 determination con-
other groups in Northern Luzon still wear and prize stone beads sistent with past estimations for the date of the first appearance
which date largely from the Metal Age or later-a comparatiave study of iron in the Philippines-190 B.C. The open ledge in front of
of the types of beads from the Tabon Caves for which there are reliable Manunggul Cave, designated as Area C <Fig. 32 ), as well as Chamber
absolute or relative dates shows that great differences exist between B. was also used by the people having iron.
the beads of the Late Neolithic and those of the Metal Age, as well
as differences between the beads of the early phase of the Metal The pottery of Chamber B <and Area C) is distinct from the
Age and these of the later Developed Metal Age when iron was highly decorated funerary pottery of Chamber A, notably in the
present. hmited range of pottery types. The pottery of Chamber B, how-
ever, still displays the basic and diagnostic features of the Tabon
Stimulated by these initial comparisons, a thorouogh chronolo- pottery Complex - method-of-manufacture, sand tempering, surface
gical study, including method-of-manufacture, of the Palawan bead rolors, forms of burial jars, trunconical jar covers, smaller vessels
types is being completed by the writer, Messrs. Ruperto Santiago with notches on the rims made with a simple tool, angle-bodied
and Manuel Santiago of the National Museum, and others. This re- wares, slipping, and so forth. Three pottery types are certain:
port will be published in the near future with descriptions ( che- Tabon Plain, Tabon Polished. and Tabon Impressed.
mical analyses of glass) and color illustrations of all bead types.
Only two observations for comparative p-lrposes on the jade beads The Tabon Impressed, however, consists solely of vessels with
from Manunggul Cave are included at this time: ( 1) they were gen- designs impressed on the rims or on flanges at the throats of the
erally drilled from both ends in long sections of jade which could jars. There is no cord marking or carved paddle impressions on
form two or more beads, and then ( 2) "broken" into individual the bodies of vessels. The absence of paddle decorations on the
beads. This was done by drilling one or two tiny holes at right- pottery of Chamber B, Manunggul Cave, is highly significant, for
angles to the axis of the beads <Color Plate: 1-A:e). The ends it is also absent or rare in the late phases of other Developed
of the beads were then smoothed leaving only faint grooves made Metal Age cave sites in Palawan. In short, paddle decorated in Pa-
by the drilling. The ability of the stone-age people to work and lawan is characteristically Late Neolithic and Early Metal Age; not
cirill extremely small holes in the jade beads is phenomenal, for jade Developed Metal Age. It is likely that this temporal trend-the fad-
is a hard stone which cannot be scratched with an ordinary metal ing out of paddle. decoration during the Developed Metal Age-
knife. An analysis made under the direction of Mr. Cecilio R. Si- continued into the central and northern Philippines, explaining its
son, Chief, Metallurgical and Laboratory Services Division, Bureau rarity or absence in these latter areas.
of Mines, of ten fragments of beads, bracelets, and earrings from
the Tabon Caves of the rock described herein as "jade" shows that One sherd of Tabon Incised was found in Chamber B, but it
it is specifically nephrite, one of the types of "true jade" rZim and is likely that it came from Chamber A. One, possibly, two, vessels
Shaffer ( 1957) 88 ] . had perforations farming designs on the ring feet <a study of the
perforations show that they had been made with a round instrument
Fragments of eight distinct bracelets were also found in Cham- after the pottery had been thoroughly dried >. Another simple bowl
ber A of Manunggul Cave: four of jade, three of an agate, and two had perforations below the rim and one trunconical cover had per-
made from large Limpet shells. One perfect jasper ear-pendant forations at the corner point ot the in-turning rim. Perforations
116 117
forming design patterns on ring feet are rare in the Tabon Pottery Other recoveries in Chamber B included two round pebbles which
Complex. re undoubtedly used as polishing tools in pottery-making, for each
"'es a brilliant sheen on both sides; as well as two ellipsoid-shaped
The artifacts associated with Chamber B and Area C are typical ::bble hammers showing marked abrasion on the ends.
of Metal Age sites throughout the Philippines which are associated
with iron. Iron fragments were common <Table IX) and included Thus, although there is continuity in the types of artifacts from
one piece with a mat impression in the rust-oxidized crust. Four Chamber A and Chamber B of Manunggul Cave, notably in the pat-
types of glass beads were found during screening: ( 1) round, red. ten' and beads, the basic technology and the total assemblage of
brown, opaque glass beads which are found everywhere in the Is- artifacts from each cave are highly distinct; that of Chamber A
lands in sites with iron (Color Plate I-B:t>; <2 > small, round, light. being Late Stone Age with two C-14 dates of 890 B.C. and 710 B.C.,
blue glass beads (Color Plate I-B:g >; <3) round, slightly opaque, and Chamber B, Metal Age, with a C-14 determination of 190 B.C.
and larger green glass beads (Color Plate I-B:r.>; and (4) round,
small, translucent, and dark ultramarine glass beads (Color Plate DUYONG CAVE AND UYAW CAVE
I-B:h >. Jade beads, a long and short cylindrical form, were com.
mon; as well as, barrel-shaped carnelian beads <see the discussion The surface and sub-surface levels of Duyong Cave at Iwaig (see
below of carnelian hr .ds under the description of Duyong and Uyaw above) and Uyaw Cave on Lipuun Point yielded an almost identical
Caves). Two sizes of barrel-shaped onyx beads were also recovered assemblage of artifacts and date from the same period-a cultural
(these could have come from Chamber A), and the Neolithic type sequence following the Neolithic which is described herein as the_
of green, disk~shaped shale (?) beads. Three types of shell beads were Early Metal Age, circa 500 B.C. (?) to 200 B.C. The physical fea;t
sifted: ( 1 > large ring-like beads which were also found in Batu Puti tures of Duyong Cave were discussed above.
Cave (Color Plate I-A:u>, <2> tiny disk beads which first appear
during the Neolithic in great numbers, and ( 3 > the typical small Cowry Uyaw Cave is located on the north side of Lipuun Point, along
beads ( Cypraea annulus> with the dorsal surface removed. the steep trail between Guri Cave and Pagayona Cave (Fig. 5). The
one small chamber is almost square measuring about 51/2 meters at
Five faceted black-and-white stone beads which were found are its greatest width . and length (Fig. 36). The surface of the cave
possibly unique to Island Southeast Asia, according to Dr. Alstair is flat and the opening large. The cave is light and dry throughout.
Lamb, but are known from the Mainland of South Asia. The white When discovered, the floor of the cave was covered with disturbed
bands bordering the facets were made by etching with acid (see sherds of jars and smaller earthenware vessels, indicating that it had
Color Plate I-A :j). Fragments of three clear, green glass bracelets, been frequently used as a nesting place by porcupines and probably
triangular in cross section, were excavated in Area C. These are wild pigs.
encountered in Metal Age and proto-Historic sites throughout the
Archipelago. The major portion of Uyaw Cave was excavated in March, 1965.
The excavations did not reveal any stratigraphy although a few pieces
Shell spoons made from the Chambered Nautilus (Fig. 42) were of chert and some flake tools were found on the surface and in the
found in Chamber B and in Batu Puti Cave. The striking simila- sub-surface level mixed with the jar burial assemblage. There was
rities of the glass and shell beads, glass bracelets, the shell spoons, no midden area within the cave and, in fact, little accumulation
as well as pottery between Chamber B of Manunggul Cave and one of deposits since the cave was first used. It is probable that more
assemblage of artifacts from Batu Puti Cave clearly indicate that or less the present disturbed floor was frequented by the flake tool
these two sites were used for jar burial at approximately the same people of nearby Guri Cave and then used again, thousands of years
time. Spoons made from the Chambered Nautilus, however, have a later, for jar burial.
long history in the Philippines. They first appeared in the Late
Neolithic, possibly earlier, and are still being made and used by Both Duyong Cave and Uyaw Cave yielded a remarkable wealth
indigenous peoples in the Philippines. In 1948, the writer collected of identical jade ornaments - the "lingling-o" type of ear-pendant
a number of these spoons among the Agta <"Negritos") of Polillo [Beyer (1948a) 68-69 ];bracelets; beads; and stud-like objects, either
Island, Luzon, and they are made even by the Ifugao. saddle or cone shaped, which were probably set in wooden orna-
ll8 119
, ents such as ear plugs. These beautifully carved ornaments <Fig.
S'I) of an extremely hard, green nephrite form a key trait, as will
be seen, of the Early Metal Age. Small, polished stone tools and
bronze were found in both cave and iron <? > in Duyong Cave.
~!
as well as others, have yielded a unique assemblage of cultural
materials which include the early metals-bronze, copper, gold-in
I limited quantities in association with many ornaments of jade and
•:~
distinctive jade ear-pendants, ancient glass beads, and a developed
pottery complex associated with jar burial. This cultural assemblage
1z may also be found with either small Late Neolithic stone adzes
,~ or with iron implements and sometimes both.
la=
111..1 The writer (Fox 1967) toyed with the use of the term "Chal-
l1- colithic" to describe this period, for it was brief and transitional.
1z
111..1
But, it would not appear logical to introduce a special terms for
1u a transitory period of prehistory, at least in the Philippines, when
I the basic change was from the use of stone tools to metal tools,
I particularly to the use of iron and eventually the knowledge of iron
I making I see Child ( 1953 > 195ff I. The jar burial caves of this period
I all contained metals and even though there might have been a brief
I
I period when bronze and copper predated iron <see below), the sites
0 DATUM
having a metal assemblage are by definition "Metal Age" or some
I such terminology which distinguishes the Stone Age from the fol-
lowing cultural sequence when metals were used. The term "Chalco-
lithic" is thus unnecessary.
Likewise, as the writer has pointed out elsewhere LFox ( 1959a) 21 J,
SCALE
the archaeological evidences from the Philippines and now Pala wan
0 2 5 M do not justify the recognition of a "Bronze Age" or a "Copper-
Bronze Age" in the Islands. The usage of these descriptions by
Beyer, even though he notes that the "Bronze A~e" was limited
Fig.36. Floor Plan of Uyaw cave. and probably only a phase of the Late Neolithic having relationships
with the Yangshao of China [Beyer ( 1948a) 91-96], has been uncri-
tically elaborated upon by many historians <e.g., Zaide, 1949). With-
out archaeological evidences, a "Bronze Age" has been improperly
121
established as one of the major periods of Philippine culture history assemblage of the Early Metal Age. The jade (nephrite) ornaments
(see Tangco 1951 ). associated with the Late Neolithic sites in Palawan are confined wholl
to beads and bracelets. A few small, quadrangular nephite adzt
The brief period when bronze and copper first appeared (and have also been excavated in the jar burial sites in Palawan in bot.
"drift" iron may have appeared together with these metals) did not Late Neolithic and Early Metal Age sites.
n~present a major phas~ of technological development in the Philip-
pines, although the period was accompanied by new and extensive Rita-Fabian Cave has recently produced striking varieties of tr
movements of people into Palawan and the Philippines. Objects of "Jingling-a" ear-pendants made of jade, shell, and a beautiful gree.
prehistoric bronze and copper are extremely rare in Philippine sites. glass (Fig. 41). The site is relatively early Developed Metal Age in
As Beyer ( 1948a: 54) noted, his extensive survey of southwestern date and significantly includes iron. Beyer ( 1948a: 69) writes that
Luzon yielded only " ... four whole celts, five fragments of celt, two a copper-blue glass ear-pendant of this type was found in an "Early
fragments of spearheads, and several ornamental objects ... " The Iron Age" site in Rizal Province. The assemblage of the Early Metal
excavations in Palawan have greatly increased this inventory but even Age-bronze, copper, ancient glass and the distinct jade ornaments
in the Tabon Caves bronze and copper objects are limited in num- -persisted into the Developed Metal Age when iron was present,
bers. but these artifacts do not occur in the Late Neolithic sites of Pala-
wan and it is questionable, regardless of Beyer's statements, that they
Tin, moreover, which is a basic constituent of bronze, has not ever occurred in the Late Neolithic of Batangas.
been mined in the Philippines. Bronze (or copper) adzes were cast
in Palawan by the jar burial people as shown by the recovery of The excavations in the Tabon Caves have still not demonstrated
fire clay moulds, but the bronze used was probably obtained from with certainty when the Metal Age in Palawan began. Manunggul
either imported metals or from old tools which were reworked. There Cave, Chamber B, has provided a finite C-14 date for the appearance
is no justification, based upon present archaeological data, of speak- of iron in Palawan-190 B.C. The same cave but in Chamber A
ing of a prehistoric bronze industry in the Islands; although copper yielded C-14 dates for a Late Neolithic assemblage of 890 B.C. to
and gold were recovered and worked by the mountain peoples of '110 B.C. This would provide a maximum time-span for the period
northern Luzon possibly, it would appear, in pre-Spanish times. of the Early Metal Age of from about 700 B.C. to 200 B.C. These
dates agree closely with Beyer's estimate " ... for the Batangas bronzes
Finally, the early appearance and rapid diffusion of iron and as coming between 1000 and 500 B.C. (and most probably near to
iron-making precluded the development in the Philippines of a true 800 B.C.) ," and of the "lingling-o" type of jade ear-pendants as dat-
"Bronze Age." For Borneo, Harr.isson ( 1959: 7) has expressed a ing " ... sometime between about 500 B.C. and the beginning of the
similar view: " ... the rapid advance of iron helped shorten and sub- Christian Era" LBeyer ( 1948a) 55 and 69 J. The sites in Inda-China
merge the 'bronze age' which even Niah has not been able to show and South China which contain a similar assemblage of early metals
as a major technological phase in Borneo." and iron, ancient glass, and the same jade ear-pendants are also
dated as falling between 400 B.C. and 100 B.C.
Professor Beyer, apparently confused by the uncertainty of the
association of artifacts from surface collections variously ascribed The C-14 determination for Chamber B of Manunggul Cave
the appearance of the early metals to a phase of the Late Neolithic, appears to represent one of the earliest appearances of iron,
as noted, or to a "Bronze Age" [Beyer < 1948a) 54-56 and 91-96 I. for its usage was certainly not widespread in the Philippines
The artifacts which Beyer (1948a: 65 > associated with the ": .... much before 190 B.C., and probably later. It is likely, moreover,
third and fourth phases of the Late Neolithic horizon ... " in Ba- that the Late Neolithic in Palawan persisted to after 700 B.C., short-
tangas Province were socketed bronze adzes and spears, beads of ening the length of the period of the Early Metal Age. Elsewhere
ancient glass, and ornaments of a developed "jade cult,'' including in the Philippines the Late Neolithic persisted into the Christian
the unique "lingling-o" type of jade ear-pendant (see Fig. 37). In Era, as noted, followed directly by the appearance of iron, the early
contrast, not a single bronze object, glass bead, or the unique ear- metals of bronze and copper having little impact upon many of the
pendants of jade has been found in Palawan in a Late Neolithic site peoples in the Islands (Fox and Evangelista 1957a and 1957b). It
(see Tables VII and X), and in fact these artifacts form a diagnostic is the writer's opinion that further excavations in Palawan will con-
122 123
tinue to reduce the duration of the period of the Early Metal Age;
at least to shorten the period which had the distinct assemblage of
bronze tools and weapons, ornaments of jade, and ancient glass,
although stray bronze objects may have appeared at an earlier date.
It is even possible, as suggested by comparative data from Indo-
China, that rare iron implements-"drift-iron" but not the knowl-
edge of iron-making-accompanied the first appearance in the Philip-
pines of bronze and copper. Iron is found in the key Indo-China
sites such as Sa-huynh which show close relationships with the Pala-
wan jar burial sites.
124 Fig. 37. Nephrite [Jade) Ornaments of the Early Metal Age.
Rito-Fabian cave had bronze and copper fragments, ear-pendants Table X
of jade, shell and glass, glass and carnelian beads, and a positive
association of iron. This cave would appear to be an early repre-
sentative of the Developed Metal Age with iron. It is noteworthy CHRONOLOGY OF THE "LINGLING-0" TYPE OF JADE
that beads of carnelian are typically Developed Iron Age. although EAR-PENDANTS FROM THE TABON CAVES
they first appear in the Early Metal Age sites. Later burial caves,
such as Pagayona and Tadyaw, are fully Developed Metal Age with
iron, and the distinctive types of jade ear-pendants and other or- "Ling ling-o" Ear-Pendants Socketed
naments are no longer present. In addition, the glass and stone caves and Other Bronze
beads found in Pagayona Cave and Tadyaw Cave are of the types Chronology Jade Stones Shell Adzes
that are found throughout the Philippines in "Iron Age" sites.
These quantitative data on the associations of stone tools, bronze .Late Neolithic
objects, iron implements, the distinctive jade ear-pendants and or- Leta Leta 0 0 0 absent
naments, glass beads and bracelets, and beads of carnelian and <El Nido)
jade form the basis for this chronological arrangement of the jar Ngipe't Duldug 0 0 0 absent
burial caves summarized in Tables VI, X, and XII. Manunggul
(Chamber A) 0 0 0 absent
Jade.-The two small caves, Duyong and Uyaw, yielded an as-
tonishing quantity and quality of green nephrite ornaments, in par- Early Metal Age
ticular types of ear-pendants which heretofore have been rarely col- Duyong 18 1 6 pottery mould
lected in Philippine sites and not outside of the central Philip- for making
pines, particularly Luzon [Beyer ( 1948a) 68-69 ]. This type of ear- bronze adzes
pendant <Fig. 35-c to h), described herein as "lingling-o" following present
Beyer, are related to ear-pendants made of metal and still worn by Uyaw 14 0 6 present
the Ifugao of northern Luzon. The "lingling-o" is the diagnostic Tabon (jar burial
ornament of the Early Metal Age in the Tabon Caves. Beads, ear- assemblage) 0 2 0 absent
rings, bracelets, and stud-like objects were also made of jade. (excavations
not completed)
Beyer ( 1948a) has clearly demonstrated that nephrite was known Guri (jar burial
and worked in the Philippines during the Late Neolithic; he collected assemlage> 6 0 2 absent
thousands of nephrite adzes-axes as surface recoveries during his
Batu Puti 0 0 1 pottery mould
surveys of Batangas, Rizal, and Laguna Provinces. A few "lingling-o"
for making
jade earrings were also recovered in Batangas during surveys that
bronze adzes
Beyer associates with the "third phase" of the Late Neolithic which
present
also includes stray finds of a few bronze celts and spear points
[Beyer (1948a) 94-95]. Developed Metal Age
Pagayona 0 0 0 absent
The archaeological data from the Tabon Caves are more precise Tadyaw 0 0 0 absent
as to the association of the "lingling-o" type of ear-pendants. Ngipe't
Duldug, a Late Neolithic site, yielded no jade ornaments but jade
beads; Manunggul Cave, also Stone Age, four fragments of jade 6 Batu Puti Cave contained cultural sequences extending from the late
bracelets and 83 jade beads. Leta Leta Cave, El Nido, which is be- phase of the Early Neolithic to the Metal Age in shallow and generally ba<;ilY
lieved to be a still earlier Late Neolithic site, had only one jade disturbed deposits. The areas and levels of the different assamblages could
bead and one jade pendant made by drilling a hole in a fragment not be distinguished with certainty except for one interior grotto.
126 127
of a broken jade bracelet. Thus, as shewn in Table X, the diag-
nostic "lingling-o" ear-pendants are not found in Late Neolithic sites
but in sites with bronze objects, including socketed bronze adzes,
9.Ild ancient glass of the Early Metal Age.
Bracelets of jade appear for the first time in Late Neolithic sites,
as in Manunggul Cave (Chamber A), and continue to be found in
jar burial caves until the Developed Metal Age. The jade bracelets
are most common, however, in the Early Metal Age sites and
bracelets with distinctive projections occur only during this transi-
tional period (Fig. 38a- and 38-b). A sample of 12 jade bracelets
from Duyong Cave indicate that they could have been worn by all
129
Fig. 38. Nephrite (Jade) bracelets from the Tabon Caves.
age groups; the largest being 9 cm. in maximum diameter, the small- and Uyaw Cave. These are: ( 1) large with a diamond profile, regular
est 5 cm., and the remaining 10 average 6 cm. in diameter. Still polygonal cross section, and blunt ends (Color Plate 1-A:g); (2) cy-
smaller jade rings with .slots, as noted, were unquestionably ear- lindrical with squarish cross section; ( 3) cylindrical with cross sec-
pendants or earrings. tion of irregular polygon and more or less rounded corners; ( 4)
short cylindrical with cross section of irregular polygon, also with
Two basic forms of the jade and chrysoprase bracelets were re- more or less rounded corners; and ( 5) round with large holes (see
covered in Duyong Cave and the other Early Metal Age cave sites, Color Plate I-A;b through h).
in addition to the types of bracelets v:hich have projections. The
first is rectangular in cross-section and relatively thin and wide Strangely, few beads of jade were encountered in Duyong Cave
(Fig. 38-d, g and h). A few of these have widely spaced corner- which had many beautiful jade ornaments and ear-pendants, but
points or facets on the outer surface and some are decorated with similar types of beads made of chrysoprase or talc were encountered
grooves (an X-design is also common but not illustrated) made by in this cave. With one or two exceptions, there would appear to
sawing (Fig. 38-c ). The second form of the bracelet is narrower be little chronological distinction in the types of jade beads, unlike
and thicker witn convex sides made by grinding and polishing the the other beads and · ornaments of stone. The jade beads which
edges. The forms and cross-sections of the bracelets are shown in were first introduced during the Late Neolithic survived into later
Figure 38 and a beautifully decorated example from Tadyaw Cave periods, or the more recently introduced types were similar to the
in Figure 48. Readily recognized marks on the inner edges of the earlier types. Jade beads of the Palawan types were also recovered
bracelets, notably in the first basic form where the marks have by Beyer ( 1948a: 64 and Fig. 27) in Batangas Province.
not been removed by grinding, ~how that the bracelets were made
by cutting out a plug with a tubular drill. The central opening Ancient beads of stone and glass are a common heirlom item
was made by drilling from both sides of a sheet of nephrite [see among many indigenous groups in the F'hilippines and Borneo, but
Beyer (1948a) 83-97 and Finn (1958) 140-163 for comparative notes a collection of contemporary beads made by the writer among the
on the sawing and drilling of nephrites and other hard stones]. local Tagbariwa and Pala'wan have revealed no ancient jade or
stone beads, due probably to the practice even today among both
Two types of stud-like objects of jade were also excavated groups of including beads, porcelains, jars and other effects as
in Duyong and Uyaw Cave, possibly being used to inlay wooden talang or "grave furniture."
ornaments such as ear plugs. Wooden ear plugs with inlayed de-
~igns in mother of pearl were formerly worn by the Tagbanwa Although there is no question that nephrite was worked ex-
and may still be seen among the isolated Pala'wan groups. One tensively elsewhere in the Philippines, notably in Batangas Province
type of stud is disk-shaped and pointed with concave sides (Fig. where the writer believes a local but still undiscovered source of
35-j). The other is oblong with a saddle-shaped crown which may nephrite was known and worked, the ornaments of jade found in
be either plain or have parallel grooves cut with a saw in the con- Palawan appear to have been introduced at different periods. Thus,
cave crown. The stud, Figure 37-i, appears to be a reworked por- jade beads and bracelets, as well as small quadrangular adzes of neph-
tion of a "lingling-o" ear-pendant. rite, first appeared in Palawan during the late Neolithic. The dis-
tinctive "lingling-o" ear-pendants, however, have not been found in
Jade beads have been found in all of the Tabon jar burial sites Late Neolithic sites, appearing for the first time in association with
except Pagayona Cave (this cave was undoubtedly looted in pre- bronze tools and weapons and ancient glass beads of the Early Metal
historic times). Beads of jade are common, however, only in burial Age. Beyer ( 1948a: 68-69) associates the "lingling-o'' ear-pendants
caves representing the latest phase of the Late Neolithic and in sites with '' ... mixed Late Neolithic-Bronze Age sites," but it is not clear
of the Early Metal Age which contain bronze and copper objects from his publications whether or not these ornaments appeared in
and ancient glass ornaments (see Table XII). Ten types of jade Batangas before or with bronze. The data from Palawan, as noted,
beads have been tentatively established which will be described in shows clearly that they were not brought into this area until the
detail in a separate study of all of the beads encountered in the Early Metal Age and were probably made elsewhere. The sites in
Palawan excavations. At present, reference will be made only to lndo-China which have yielded identical types of these ear-pendants
the five common types of jade beads appearing in Duyong are Metal Age and apparently usually associated with iron.
130 131
Bronze and Copper.-The Early Metal Age burial caves such as
Duyong and Uyaw have yielded a few implements of bronze, frag-
ments of copper, and Late Neolithic stone tools. Iron is absent or
very rare (Table VI) in the Early Metal Age sites. Unfortunately,
most of the pieces of bronze or copper were fragmentary, disinte-
grated, and unidentifiable as to their original fe:rms. The inventory
of bronze objects from all of the Tabon Caves excavated to date,
including sites with iron is as follows:
A small bronze adze <Fig. 39-c > was a~so recovered from a
Pala'wan living in the village of Tagbai, near Quezon, who knew
only that it was found by her grandparent. It is certainly from
one of the archaeological sites in the Tabon area. Another even
smaller bronze adze was excavated in Paredes Rock Shelter, Langen
Island, during the National Museum explorations in the El Nido
area. This adze was associated with a jar burial assemblage which
132
Fig. 39. Bronze Adzes and Fire-Glay Moulds for making Adzes from the Tabon Gaves.
Table XI
included a large barrel-shaped and faceted jade bead identical to
a type found in Uyaw Cave. The socketed bronze celts or adzes ANALYSES FOR COPPER, TIN, AND ZINC
forms a diagnostic trait of the Early Metal Age in Palawan and pro- OF TWO SOCKETED ADZES FROM QUEZON, PALAWAN
bably throughout the Philippines.
An analysis in the Bureau of Mines by Telesforo A. Ejercito Specimen Analyses and Percentages
and Mrs. Maria Luz M. Bihis made under the direction of Mr. Cecilio Copper Tin Zinc
R. Sison, Chief, Metallurgical and Laboratory Services Division, of
11 fragments of patinated metals selected at random from eight Tagbai Collection 75.65 6.48 0.38
of the Tabon Caves show that 9 are bronze and 2 copper. Two Uyaw Cave 78.75 11.07 0.09
socketed adzes were also analyzed by them <Table XI) and proved
to be bronze. . Carnelian_ Beads.-In past excavations on Luzon of Late Neolithic
sites, the writer and Mr. Alfredo Evangelista had both been puzzled
These preliminary analyses <a more thorough study is planned> by the total absenc~ of. carnelian beads. Carnelian is a relatively
suggest that bronze, and not copper which could be obtained locally clear chalcedony which is red or reddish-brown in color. Carnelian
and worked, was the typical metal of the brief Early Metal Age in beads, howe~er, ar~ co~mon in Philippine sites of the Metal Age,
Palawan. As bronze con tams tin (Table XI) and as tin has not as. well as m ~urial sites of the protohistoric period which con-
been mined in the Philippines, it is evident that the original bronze tain trade potteries from China, Siam, and Annam [Fox (1959b) c 0 1
was brought into Palawan; further evidence for the extraneous Plate B ]. or
character of the Early Metal Age culture and new movements of
people into Palawan and the Philippines at that time. The recovery Table XII
of two pottery moulds in Duyong and Batu Puti Cave for casting
socketed bronze adzes (Fig. 39-a-d) indicates, nevertheless, that the CARNELIAN AND JADE BEADS IN RELATIONSHIP
people of the Early Metal Age shaped bronze adzes in Palawan, TO THE CULTURAL CHRONOLOGY OF THE TABON CAVES
probably re-using the bronze obtained from damaged or destroyed
implements. One fragment of bronze slag was recovered in Duyong Number of Number of
Cave and
Cave. As copper is relatively rare in the Tabon Caves, it would Cultural Period Carnelian Beads Jade Beads
also suggest that the copper implements excavated were also intro-
duced, although there are local sources of copper in the Philippines Late Neolithic
(and Palawan?). Ngipet's Duldug 0 0
Manunggul (Chamber A) 0 83
The shape of the mould for a socketed adze found in Batu Early Metal Age
Puti Cave (Fig. 39-d) is closely re.lated in form and design pattern Duyong 8(?) 3
Uyaw 11( ?) 27
to the adze recovered in Uyaw Cave. The two pieces of a pottery
Tabon• 4(?) 42 (in one
mould excavated in Duyong Cave show a unique design pattern
infant jar
°" but have generally the same form. Fire clay moulds and
(Fig. 39-f)
burial)
bronze adzes from the Hongkong area of South China are illus- Guri (Chamber B) 0 6
trated by Finn ( 1958: Plts. 36-37 and Fig. 12). These show a similar Developed Metal Age
method of manufacture but rather different shapes. It is more likely Pagayona 19 0
that the prototypes of the Palawan bronze adzves will be found to be Manunggul (Chamber B) 2'1 58
in Inda-China (unfortunately, the writer has not been able to obtain Tadyaw• 93 28
for comparative purposes the early publications of Goloubew, Co-
lani, Mansuy, and others of the "Bronze Age" sites in Inda-China).
135
134
Tabon Caves, they did not appear in Palawan until the Metal Age
Thus, it was not a surprise in Palawan when no carnelian beads and are most frequently associated with sites containing iron and
were found in burial caves which dated from the Late Neolithic (see after formal trade had .developed between the Philippines and the
Table XII.) Carnelian beads appear in the Tabon Caves for the Asian mainland.
first time in the Early Metal Age sites, but are most numerous
in the later jar burial caves of the Developed Metal Age which Ancient Glass.-Glass beads and bracelets although very rare
contain significant quantities of iron and are a diagnostic bead of this (see Table VI) from another diagnostic trait of the Early Metal
latter period. Age. No glass artifacts were recovered in Duyong Cave. Three
Equally significant is the evidence from the excavation of Leta unusual glass beads and two fragments of a glass bracelet were
Leta Cave at El Nido, a rich Late Neolithic site. In all, 5,836 beads screened in Uyaw Cave. An opaque red glass bead from Uyaw is
were recovered in this cave, but only one jade bead and not a single incredibly small, about 1 mm. in size. The red opaque glass beads
carnelian bead. The archaeological record from Palawan, as well are typical of Philippine Metal Age sites having iron, but it is now
as that from Luzon which is based upon controlled excavations, apparent that the smaller types also appeared in very limited quan-
shows that carnelian and other colorful cryptocrystalline quartz tities during the Early Metal Age.
beads appeared during the Early Metal Age in association with bronze
and copper, specific types of jade ornaments, and ancient glass; The other two glass beads from Uyaw Cave are the largest which
not during the earlier Stone Age. And, in fact, Carnelian beads are the writer has excavated in the Philippines, and are rare and un-
common only during the Developed Metal Age and later. usual types which should be relatively easy to trace to their points
of origin. The sides of one of these large beads, a transparent light
Eleven basic types of carnelian beads. as based upon a preli- green glass, are formed like the wings of the cicada and are iden-
minary study, have been recovered in the Tabon Caves. These beads tical to the designs of the jade ear-pendants (Color Plate I-B: d).
are uniformly red in color and translucent (other less common
'I'he other is a darker green glass, also transparent, and polyhedral
stone beads with mixtures of opaque colors, such as red and cream,
are probably jasper). The similarities in the basic forms of these in cross-section (Color Plate I-B:e). The glass of both of these
beads with other earlier types of stone beads, as well as the fact that beads is impure with many minute bubbles. The two fragments of
carnelian is not known in the Philippines in these colors, suggest that a bracelet from Uyaw cave are almost colorless. This bracelet,
the carnelian beads were also introduced and possibly had a com- badly eroded and crazed, appears almost round in cross-section al-
mon origin. The typical and most numerous types are: ( 1) round though slightly flattened on the inner surface. A handle-like object
beads of various sizes some being unbelievably tiny, less than 2 (ornament ?) found in Tabon Cave, also an Early Metal Age jar burial
mm. ( ! ) , and it is amazing how they were made and drilled from this site, is identical in color and appearance and possibly composition
hard stone; ( 2) barrel-shaped; ( 3) bi· conical; ( 4) cylindrical and long to the bracelet from Uyaw Cave. The quantitative study of more
but sloping slightly towards the ends; and ( 5) fl.at with a triangular than 160 ancient glass beads from pre-Spanish sites dated by C-14
profile (see Colored Plate I-A:l through p). These and the less determinations or associated trade pottery is now in preparation
common types of carnelian and stone beads will be published in and will include determinations of the composion of all of the bead
color in a future study, as noted, of all of the types of beads re· types by specific gravity tests, neutron activation analyses, and many
covered in Palawan as well as elsewhere in the Philippines. chemical analyses; providing data on the origins of the bead types,
1:
1 and other glass objects.
The carnelian and jasper beads from the Tabon Cave are very
1: similar to those found near Sa-huynh in Indo-China [cf. Janse (1959) Brief remarks concerning prehistoric glass beads and bracelets
• I
i .i Plt. VIJ, further evidences of the close relationships between these found in the Philippines are apropos at this time. Beyer ( 1947:
two areas. The principle source of carnelian is in the south main- 234; 1949: 6 and Fig. 12) has argued that glass was made in the
land of Asia [Wheatly (1959) 93-93], and carnelian beads are still Philippines during the "Iron Age," at least in Central Luzon, but
being made commercially in India. The carnelian beads are drilled he has not presented data to support this view. He notes that
in Neolithic fashion and they may date from the Late Neolithic in Site A in Rizal Province, a major "Iron Age" site, " ... dates pro-
their places of origin; but, as based upon the excavations in the
137
136
r
t>ably between 100 B.C. and 100 A.D." where translucent green and
blue glass beads and bracelets " ... were locally made ... '' [Beyer
(1949) 6]. In conversations with the writer, Beyer indicated that
the evidence for a local manufacture of glass was the recovery of
slag and repaired bracelets. He also pointed out that the cobalt-
blue beads and bracelets were not made locally, as cobalt has not
been mined in the Philippines.
!:
[ ... ·
140
COLOR PLATE 2-A:
I. Shale (?) Bead from Leta Leta and Ngipe't Duldug Caves (Late
Neolithic) .
J.
A Acid Etched Carnelian Bead from Guri Cave (Metal Age: Early
Period) .
L-P: Types of Carnelian Beads from the Tabon Caves (Metal Age:
Developed Period) .
, I
Q-U. Characteristic Types of Late Neolithic Shell Beads from Palawan.
'!
142
COLOR PLATE t-B:
glass and other four red opaque Fig. 43. Clay Pendants: (a) type of Ear-pendant
glass. from Pagayona and Duyong Cave: (bl
Ear-pendant from Batu Puti; (cJ
Duyong Cave.
Although it is highly doubtful that Pagayona Cave had been
disturbed in modern times, the scarcity of artifacts in the un-
broken jars and on the surface of the cave surrounding the jars
would suggest that the contents of the jars-ornaments, beads,
weapons and tools-were removed or looted at an early date. Human
bones scattered around the jars were plentiful indicating that the skele-
i
I I tal remains had not been transferred to another cave. Covers which
had been sealed with lime or a compound of lime and resin to
the jars had also been removed, providing further evidence of an-
cient "grave robbing."
~ ~:
-- was cut by incised bands, and
::!!
0
an incised scroll design on the
0
......
ll shoulder. One pouring vessel
""O
c;;-
:::::i
-- JI
0 with a tall neck has a spout in V-~:J..;_J
n
en the farm of the head of an ani- Fig. 45. Spouted effigy /\from Pagayona Cave
:::r
0 "
Cl
3
Cl)
Trunconical covers occur and one cover has a unique knob (Fig.
44). Small angle-bodied vessels are common. The vessels used as
covers were in most instances simply large bowls inverted over
::::0
ct>
the jars. The bowls with restricted orifices were chipped around
~
0
the edge of the opening (or the entire neck removed) to facilitate
co
Cl..
their use as covers.
<
ct>
Cl)
Cl)
ct> \ Although the vessels in Pagayona Cave have noteworthy forms,
c;;-
the decoration is unimpressive. Designs made with a paddle are
rare and cord marking is confined to only two vessels. The infre-
-
:::r
~.
......
quency of incised design patterns, such as the curvilinear scroll is
striking. Although the pottery of Pagayona Cave is related in basic
""O
0
forms and decorations to the Tabon Pottery Complex and typolo-
Cl)
-R." gically may still be identified with this pottery complex, changes
c;·
:::I
Cl)
in decorative style are apparent. Notable is the simplicity of the
5·
decoration, the rarity of paddle and incised designs, and the absence
of painting. This trend towards simplicity of decoration may also
.....
::::r be seen in the pottery of Tadyaw Cave which contains a related
ct>
assemblage of artifacts.
149
yona Cave is 200 B.C. to 200 A.D. If this dating is correct, then
over one thousand years had passed since pottery first reached the
Tabon Caves during the Late Neolithic, and changes in the styles of
decoration and form would be expected.
1111~
being found in the front and rear entrance chambers. The pattern
in Tadyaw of placing burial jars in interior chamber is unusual.
Whole jars, covers, and smaller pots were recovered, but most of
the vessels had been broken and scattered by wild pigs and porcu-
pines nesting in the cave (Plate XI). Jars broken while the cave
was still being used for burial had been piled by the jar burial
: I
people on shelves along the edges of the chambers and the sherds
weighed down with small rocks.
i
Fig. 46. Floor Plan of Tadyaw Cave 151
cave, Chamber B and Area C, the latter having an associated C-14
11JJr date of 190 B.C. Four types of Metal Age beads were common:
(1) large, light blue glass beads; (2) dark (cobalt ?) blue glass
beads; ( 3) small opaque red glass beads; and ( 4) large opaque red
glass beads. The opaque red glass beads were first encountered in
the Early Metal Age sites but are now a very numerous type, as
noted, which are recovered in "Iron Age" sites throughout the Phil-
ippines.
Fig. 47. Forms of Iron Spears and Knives from Tadyaw Cave. 153
ll
plex, being more characteristic of the "Iron Age" pottery of the
Central Philippines. Chamber C of Tadyaw Cave yielded a few sherds
with cross-ribbed impressions made with a carved paddle. A unique
vessel, almost perfect, was found on the surface of this same cham-
ber. This small spheroid-shaped bowl with a restricted orifice has
criss-crossed incised lines on the everted lip and the entire body is
G;overed with an impressed "herring-bone" design. Chambers B and
C yielded a few examples of notched rims.
155
Fig. 49. Forms of Trunconical Covers from the Tabon Caves.
for burial. Certainly, there must have been new movements of peo- CHAPTER VII
ple into Palawan and the Philippines during the Developed Metal
Age, increasing external contacts, and possibly the beginnings of NOTES ON THE CULTURAL CHRONOLOGY AND RELATION·
actual external trade as Beyer has stressed. But these are strangely SHIPS OF THE JAR BURIAL COMPLEX OF THE
not reflected in the artifactual assemblages of Tadyaw Cave and TABON CAVES AND PALAWAN
other caves of the same period. More extensive movements of peo-
ple into Palawan, as indicated by changes in the types of artifacts, Burial in jars-primary and secondary, multiple and partial -
seemed to have taken place during the Late Neolithic and the Early has been encountered throughout the Philippine Archipelago in pre-
Metal Age. historic sites which range in date from the Late Neolithic, begtnning
by at least 1000 B.C. (probably earlier), to the 16th century A.D.
One limestone pillar in Chamber C, Tadyaw Cave, provides the shortly before Spanish contact. Jar burial, in fact, is still practiced
only example discovered of "wall decoration." Incised, parallel lines by some indigenous groups in the Philippines and Borneo [see Ap-
on this stalactite begin near the top and run down and circle around pendix I and Harrisson ( 1962) 1O].
the pillar. The absence of wall paintings in the Tabon Caves has
I: proved puzzling and disappointing, particularly in view of their pre- Jar burial ("urn burial," "bone jars,'' etc.) has been reported
,1 sence in the "Painted Cave" of nearby Borneo ( Harrisson 1959). from throughout the Far East-Japan (Mori 1956), the Ryukyu's
(Kokubu and Kaneko 1962), Taiwan (Kokubu 1956; Mabuchi 1956),
China, Inda-China, Borneo (Harrisson 1962), and Indonesia (Heekeren
1956) and from South Asia and India. Beyer early recognized the
presence of a widespread jar burial complex in the Philippines and
identified a "Jar Burial Culture" with the migration of people from
South China into the northern Philippines during the "Early Iron
Age" [Beyer (1948b) x-xiJ. Both Fox (1959a: 22-23) and Solheim
(1960: 144-145) have introduced notes of caution concerning Beyer's
interpretation of the origin and dispersal of jar burial; and, since
1956, much new archaeological data from Philippine sites have be-
come available. Furthermore, the present data from the many jar
burial caves in Palawan is not compatible with Beyer's earlier views. It
is necessary at this time to review briefly the general subject of
jar burial in the Philippines and the possible time and space rela-
tionships of the jar burial complex recovered in the Tabon Caves
and Palawan with other regions.
156 157
Primary jar burial found in open sites was apparently consid- contrary, that the jar burials there appear to be relatively late; the
ered by Beyer as the "early type" and the "true jar burial" [Beyer burials that he found being associated with either iron implements
(1947) 268 and 350 ]. The "true jar burial," according to Beyer, was and glass and carnelian beads or associated with trade potteries from
best represented by the recoveries in burial sites found near the South China which are probably Sung (Early ?) in date. Manuel
town of San Narciso on the Bondok Peninsula, Quezon Province, (1953) has also shown that jar burial in the Batanes Islands was
Luzon; at Filar, Sorsogon, and near Catbalogan, SaMar. The San practiced as late as the 18th century A.D.
Narciso area of Quezon, Luzon, was first excavated by Mr. Ricardo
Galang of the National Museum in 1938, but no site report was pub- The Babuyan-Batanes islands, as shown by the previous work,
lished. Fortunately, in 1950, the excavations at San Narciso were are extremely rich in jar burials, and the large number would in-
renewed by Dr. Wilhelm G. Solheim II and Dr. E. Arsenio Manuel of dicate that the practice was followed for a considerable span of
the University of the Philippines. Preliminary statements on these time [Solheim 1960 127]. It is possible that further systematic
excavations have been published by Solheim <1951; 1960). excavations in this area might reveal an even older Late Neolithic
jar burial assemblage, but based upon the present evidence the Ba-
Solheim's reports ( 1951; 1960) on the Recudo and Tumagudtud buyan-Batanes jar burial assemblages are Metal Age in date and
jar burial sites at San Narciso actually show at least two jar burial proto-historic.
practices: ( 1) primary burial in large jars which have cylindrical
forms, round bottoms, and high straight necks (it is probable that Utilizing the data from pre-war recoveries, Beyer reached the
there was also multiple primary burial); and ( 2) secondary burial conclusion that the practice of burial in jars was introduced by a
of infants in small globular jars. He notes: "All of the jars, at "Jar Burial People," probably by a Hakka tribe or a closely related
the one time, had stone covers made from a coral limestone ... " group, from Fukien Province or from " ... some other area on the
and that " ... each jar had either an iron point or points, or a few central China coast" [Beyer ( 1948b) x-xi l. He dates the movement
beads and possibly a glass bracelet" [Solheim (1960) 132 J. The from about the 3rd to the 8th century A.D., falling into the "Iron
sites are thus Developed Metal Age in date. Age." Having its origin in the north, Beyer believes that the peo-
ple of the "Golden Urn Burial" migration first reached the Batanes
Open jar burial sites have also been found in Sorsogon and and Babuyan Islands where they passed down the east coast of
Samar Provinces which Beyer ( 1947: 268) believes are of " ... the Luzon, Samar, and Mindanao, crossing into the Celebes. An off shoot
same general type ... " as those in San Narciso. Jars in these sites of this migration crossed southern Luzon, in the area of the Bon-
were also associated with iron tools, and the jars in the Samar dok Peninsula, passing into Marinduque Island and from there to
site had covers of worked "stone" provided with grooves to fit Mindoro, the Calamian Islands, Palawan, and finally into Borneo where
over the rims of the jars. Solheim (1954) excavated another jar it died out according to Beyer 0948b: xi).
burial site at Makabog, Masbate, with glass beads and bracelets
and with generally similar types of burial jars and limestone covers. As pointed out by the writer rFox 0959a) 22 l and by Solheim
He notes [Solheim ( 1954) 65 J that the Makabog site " ... probably (1960: 145), Beyer's description of the spread of a jar burial tra-
dates from the Early Iron Age." dition by a migration of a people during the 'Iron Age" is not
supported by the present far more detailed archaeological record.
During the pre-war years a number of persons l see Beyer (1947), First, the excavations in the Bato Caves, Sorsogon Province, and on
210-212] made brief explorations and rather haphazard excavations Cagraray Island, Albay Province [Fox and Evangelista 1957a and
in the jar burial sites of the Batanes and Babuyan Islands, north 1957b] and now in Palawan-excavations which have associated C-14
of Luzon, where the jars were commonly placed in stone cairns. dates-show that pottery and the practice of burial in jars entered
With little evidence and probably influenced by the geographical lo- the Philippines during Late Neolithic times. Mr. Alfredo Evangelista
cation of these islands, Beyer (1947: 210) arrives at the rather of the National Museum also excavated a jar burial site in Carrang-
contradictory conclusion that the Batanes "jar burial culture" was lan, Nueva Ecija, which is Late Neolithic in date. The small, sphe-
" ... perhaps the oldest jar burial type in the Philippines-going back roid-shaped jars, obviously secondary burials, had similar spheroid-
to the early centuries of the Christian Era." Brief excavations by shaped covers. Stepped adzes were associated· with these jars. The
Solheim ( 1960) in the Babuyan and Batanes Islands suggest, on the interior location of the Carranglan site is unique, for heretofore jar
158
1 159
burial sites have been found only along the coasts or near coastal ed with changes in the jar burial complex. Unfortunately, as noted -
regions of the Philippines. in the Introduction, the archaeological data on the cultural sequences
which include jar burials in the Tabon Caves, as well as elsewhere
Secondly, as Solheim (1960: 144) has pointed out, the pottery in Palawan, were derived almost entirely from the study of burial
(and the writer would add the types of associated artifacts) recov- practices. No habitation sites of the people who buried their dead
ered in the many jar burial sites throughout the Islands show in jars in the Palawan caves have been discovered.
marked variation which is not consistent with the view that the
practice of jar burial was spread by the migration of a single peo- That the practice of jar burial as found in the Tabon Caves
ple. came from the south and southwest, not from the north, is sug-
gested by a brief comparative study of the characteristics of the
Finally, the present excavations in the Tabon Caves demonstrate pottery, as well as of the associated tools and ornaments, with other
that the closest affinities of the Tabon Jar Burial Complex is with pottery complexes and archaeological assemblages found in South-
Borneo and Inda-China, and came into Palawan, the author believes, east Asia. The Tabon Pottery Complex, as discussed, shows strik-
from the south and southwest. Moreover, "urn burial" is encoun- ing similarities with the pottery of Niah in Borneo, Malaya, and Sa-
tered in Indonesia, as in west Java (Heekeren 1956), and did not huynh in_ Inda-China and Thailand, but differs greatly from the pot-
die out in Borneo during its supposed movement from the Philip- tery and artifacts of the central and northern Philippines. This is
pines to the south as Beyer (1948b: xi) writes. It is also far more demonstrated by the absence (or rarity) of cord marking and carve
likely that jar burial was introduced into Indonesia, as in Palawan, paddle impressions in the Kalanay Pottery Complex of the Philip-
from the south mainland of Asia, rather than from the northern pines. The Tabon Pottery Complex has cord marking (and paddle
Philippines. impressed designs) as a major feature of surface treatment which,
as noted. appears among the early potteries of Thailand ( Sjllrensen
There is a considerable evidence, however, of a jar burial com- 1967) and Malaya (Peacock 1959).
plex reaching the Philippines from the north, as Beyer argues. Sug-
gestive relationships of the Babuyan-Batanes jar burials are seen with It is now known that pottery was made in the Philippines dur-
Formosa (Solheim 1960) and with jar burials in Japan (Mori 1956). ing the Late Neolithic and that both cord marking and paddle mark'-
It is not reasonable at present, however, to continue to attribute ing were associated with the Late Neolithic of Palawan and very
the presence of jar burial in the Philippines solely to the migration common during the Early Metal Age. Carved paddle and bound pad-
of a Hakka people from Fukien Province or the central coast of dle decoration also survived into the Developed Metal Age of Pa-
China during the "Iron Age." Rather, it is now apparent as the lawan, but these types of decoration are relatively rare in the jar burial
author has pointed out [Fox (1959a) 22-23] that jar burial has ap. sites which contain iron. In short, this trend-the disappearance of
peared in the Philippines as the result of a number of distinct move- paddle impressed designs in Developed Metal Age sites-may also
ments of people, the influences coming from the south and· possibly have occurred elsewhere in the Philippines which explains the gen-
from the north and beginning in the Late Stone Age. Jar burial ral absence of paddle decorations in the "Iron Age" sites of the
in the Philippines also involved much local development and spe- Kalanay Pottery Complex. Or, more likely, if paddle impressed de-
cialization. signs entered the Philippines from the southwest, as the writer b~
lieves, it may have faded out as a major type of surface treatment
Cultural and Temporal Sequences of the Jar Burial Complex while diffusing to the central and northern Philippines during the
Found in the Tabon Caves.-That a number of actual movements Metal Age. It should also be pointed out that carved paddle deco-
of people were involved in the appearance and development of jar ration is still known to the peoples of Palawan and Mindanao, but
burial as found in the Tabon Caves and Palawan is clearly shown is apparently not used by contemporary potters in the central and
by the abrupt changes in the types and materials of tools and or- northern Philippines.
naments associataed with the jar burial complex, as well as by
some stylistic changes in the forms and decorations of the pottery. The archaeological evidences from the excavations in the Tabon
It has been possible on the basis of a number of C-14 dates and Caves, specifically the temporal change in the basic. technology and
seriation studies to establish time sequences which are roughly equat- the types of ornaments, suggest a number of separate movements
160 161
of people into Palawan during the Late Neolithic and Metal Age. Jar burial was not common (absent ?) when pottery was first
All of these people possessed in their cultural inventory a highly introduced into the Philippines during the Late Neolithic. Other types
sophisticated pottery ~nd practiced jar burial. The evidences for ·a of burial which are associated with the early stone tool and pottery
few such movements are considered briefly at this time. By "move- assemblages of the Late Neolithic included primary flexed burials
ments" the writer does not mean a movement or "waves of migra- and secondary "bundle" burials. The bones of secondary burials were
tions" as set forth in past discussions of Philippine culture history. painted with hematite.
The term "movements," as used here, implies small-scale move-
ments by boat of probably kin-oriented groups along the coasts (2) Late Neolithic Period: Developed Jar Burial Phase.-Move-
bordering the South China Sea basin. The ethno-historical record ments into Palawan and elsewhere in the southern Philippines during
would suggest, too, that these groups were relatively mobile shifting the Late Neolithic which were associated with a highly decorated
cultivators, supplementing their daily diet with extensive food ga- funerary pottery and a developed jar burial complex, being represented
thering, fishing, and hunting. They probably lived in small scattered by the recoveries in Chamber A of Manunggul Cave. The Late Neoli-
hamlets near the coast and along rivers, and used the extensive thic pottery of Manunggul Cave shows striking relationships with
limestone outcroppings which were honeycombed with caves for for- the Sa-huynh pottery of Indo-China. The unique trunconical jar
mal burial sites. covers found in Indo-China and Malaya appear for the first time as
shown by the recoveries in Manunggul Cave. Cord marked and
Four sharply demarcated periods of cultural change which re- paddle impressed potteries are now common.
flect new movements of people (and ideas) into Palawan during the
period when the Tabon Caves were used for jar burial are reflected Chamber A of Manunggul Cave has two associated C-14 dates, as
in the archaeological record from Pala wan and are considered here- noted, of 890 B.C. and 710 B.C., but the classic sites in Indo-China
in: with potteries similar to those found in the Tabon Caves are fully
Metal Age in date and the" ... Sa-huynh site is definitely of the iron age"
(1) Late Neolithic Period; Early Pottery Phase. - Movements [Finn (1958) 156]. It is highly improbable that the Metal Age sites of Sa-
which began in the late Neolithic, at least 1000 to 1500 B.C., and pro- huynh in Indo-China would be ancestral to Neolithic sites in Palawan,
bably earlier, when pottery was first (?) introduced into Palawan and and it would seem that there must be older sites with Sa-huynh pottery
the Philippines. These movements are represented by the recoveries or related types of pottery on the south mainland of Asia-China, Indo-
in Ngipe't Duldug Cave, Lipuun Point, and Leta Leta Cave at El
Nido. The pottery is associated with small quadrangular adzes-axes, China, Malaysia or Thailand.
gouges, and chisels, sometimes made of nephrite, including stepped
forms. Stone sawing and boring was practiced. Ornaments-beads, Jade beads and bracelets began to appear at this time in sig-
pendants, and bracelets-were made primarily of shell. Jade beads nificant quntities (see Tables X and XII), as well as beads, pen-
and bracelets appeared in limited numbers for the first time, but the dants, and bracelets made of onyx, jasper, and agate; but there were
"lingling-o" types of ear-pendants were not yet known. Beads were no "lingling-o" type of jade ear-pendants.
also made of a shale ( ? ) or microcrystalline quartz but principally
shell. Household items such as awls, scoops, and spoons were (3) Metal Age: Early Period with Bronze, Jade, and Ancient
also fashioned from shell. Glass.-Movements during the Early Metal Age which saw the first
introduction of metals-bronze, copper, and gold, possibly "drift".iron-
The pottery was relatively plain when compared with the Early many ornaments of jade including the diagnostic "lingling-o" ear-pen-
Metal Age wares but included cord marking, paddle impressed de- dants, and beads and bracelets of ancient glass. The pottery con-
corations, and rare incising. Red slipped vessels which were highly tinued to be highly decorated and had a great variety of forms. All
burnished were present. Simple flat bottom bowls were common.
of the types of the Tabon Pottery Complex were now present. Pad-
It is noteworthy that the pottery of Leta Leta Cave, El Nido, included
numerous chalice and goblet-like forms which were undoubtedly as- dle decoration was characteristic of this period, as well as design
sociated with ritual drinking of wines (beers) made probably of patterns which were incised and then emphasized by painting with
rice or wild honey. hematite.
162 163
Late Neolithic types of polished stone tools were still used dur- There were few striking innovations in the pottery of the early
ing the earliest period of the Metal Age (Table VI). There was no phase of the Developed Metal Age, at least these are not revealed in
"Bronze Age" as such in Palawan or, the writer believes, elsewhere the excavations in the Tabon Caves. Stylistic trends may now be not-
in the Philippines. The typical burial items of this period-bronze ed, however, as in the trend towards simplicity of design and in the
implements and ornaments of jade and ancient glass-were obvious- elaboration of specific forms. Paddle decoration was rare in the
ly rare and highly treasured objects. These items disappeared Developed Metal Age of Palawan. Elsewhere in the Philippines dur-
quickly due in part to their being used as "grave furniture." Among ing this period paddle decoration was also absent or very rare.
the contemporary peoples of Palawan, it is the exotic and rare ma- Incised designs were typical of the pottery of the Islands at this
terial culture that are used as grave furniture and linked with the time, as in the Kalanay Pottery Complex of the Cent:r~al Philippines.
cult-of-the-dead. Incising was also present during this period in Palawan, but less
common than in the central and northern Philippines.
One gains the impression that the jade :ornaments and ear-pen-
dants were not locally made but were carried into Palawan through Beyer believes that " ... a well-developed iron smelting and forg-
the actual movements of people. At the same time and later, these ing culture, as well as the arts of glass-making, weaving, and pot-
ear-pendants were duplicated in shell. Working in nephrite was ex- tery manufacture ... " came into Batangas " ... from South India
tensively developed in Batangas during the Neolithic, as Beyer (1948a: through the Malay Peninsula and Borneo l Palawan ?l, probably not
83-97) has shown. The "lingling-o" types of jade ear-pendants were earlier than the 2nd or 3rd century B.C." l Beyer ( 1948a) 66 J. This
also found in Batangas but in sites which apparently also yielded estimate for the first introduction of iron agrees very closely with
bronze objects. These ear-pendants are more common in Palawan the archaeological record from Palawan. It is now known, however,
than in Batangas, at least the largest number recovered to date in that pottery was of Late Neolithic introduction into .Palawan, as
the Philippines being from the Tabon Caves and Palawan. If the ori- well as other areas of the Philippines, and appeared to have its
of these ornaments is northern Inda-China, as Finn and others believe, closest relationship with the pottery of northern Inda-China, South
than these ear-pendants may well have come into the Philippines China, Malaya, Thailand, and Borneo. Whether or not glass was
through Palawan diminishing in numbers as they were carried into made in the Philippines during the early phase of the Metal Age
Batangas and the central and northern Philippines during the Early or simply reworked from introduced glass is still open to question.
Metal Age. Iron, as well, may also have come from Inda-China or South China
and not from India, although the association of iron and carnelian
The Early Metal Age was brief, a maximum time span as shown beads-the latter are probably from India or from South Asia-
by the C-14 dates from the Tabon Caves of about 500 years, circa is highly suggestive of a South Asian origin of iron.
700 B.C. to 200 B.C. If the Late Neolithic persisted in Palawan
to after 700 B.C., then this transitional period would have been ever Generally, the archaeological record from Palawan indicates that
shorter, 500 B.C. (or later) to 200 B.C. it was during the periods of the Late Neolithic and the subsequent
short lived Early Metal Age, not the Developed Metal Age, which
(4) Metal Age: Developed Period With Iron.-Movements also witnessed extensive movements of peoples and ideas into Palawan;
occurred during the Developed Metal Age when iron appeared, be- and that genetic ties were mainly with Inda-China and South China
ginning about 200 B.C., as established by the C-14 date from Chamber secondarily with Malaya and Thailand. Indian influences appear t~
B of Manunggul Cave. It should be emphasized that iron did not reach be much later in date, although the recovery of carnelian beads,
all of the areas and islands of the Philippines at this time, the Stone &nd other unique types of Near Eastern ( ? > beads suggest, as noted.
the beginning of influences from India during the early phase of the
Age surviving into even the Christian Era in some regions. Jade Developed Metal Age.
beads and bracelets continued to be used in the Developed Metal
Age, as in Tadyaw Cave, but in decreasing numbers. Many types The southern and southwestern affinities of the cultural mate-
of beads of glass, glass-paste, and carnelian were now common, and rials found with the jar burials in the Tabon Caves, that is, affinities
a few clear, green glass bracelets. The iron tools and weapons had with Borneo and the south mainland of Asia, may be explained to a
a solid haft or tang, as Beyer ( 1948a: 65) has pointed out. great extent by the geographical characteristics of the South China
164 165
Sea basin which allowed for relatively easy movement of people by
T CHAPTER VIII
water. Mallaret (1959: 120) has described this circumscribed mari-
time area as an "Asiatic·Mediterranean" which " ... from early times TEST EXCAVATIONS AND EXPLORATIONS IN PALAWAN
was crisscrossed by numerous navigators." Within the Philippines,
the writer has shown how cultural and linguistic similarities de- Explorations from time to time in the nearby Q
members f th N . uezon area by
veloped and persisted around the margins of the inland seas, such as . o e at10nal Museum Field Team during the period
the Sulu Sea, due to the ease and rapidity of movements of people from 1962 to_ 1966 have _revealed thirty-five cave sites in addition to
by water [Fox ( 1957) 3-4]. The term "crisscrossed,'' as used by Mal- the twenty-nme cave sites found on Lipuun Point E 1 t·
were
. also ma d e m
· the Ransang area south of Quezon· andxpinora
the10ns
El
laret, probably describes more accurately however the later periods
of proto-historic movements. The author would argue that the ear- Nido ar~a. on the northwest coast of Palawan which revealed ·
lier peoples sailed along the coasts cf the South China Sea basin, teen addit10nal cave sites. In all, eighty-four cave sites (see T~~:-
reaching Palawan via the north coast of Borneo. The many bays and XIII) were found along the west coast of Palawan and it · t ·
that ma th . , is cer am
mouths of rivers along the coasts offered not only protection but . ny o er cave sites will be discovered during future ex 1
a ready source of protein foods for migrating peoples. The open rations of the many limestone exposures. P o-
South China Sea, swept by the winds of the prevailing monsoons
during most of the year, is anything but pacific, and is in fact ex- Table XIII
tremely dangerous to small boats.
STATUS OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS AND
The successive movements of people into the island world of EXPLORATIONS OF CAVE SITES ON PALAWAN ISLANDS
Southeast Asia during the prehistoric period involved integrated com- THROUGH 1966
plexes of culture traits, as Heine-Geldern ( 1932) early stressed, not
simply the diffusion of a diagnostic pottery or the practice of jar Name of Area* Number of Caves Caves Caves not
burial. The excavations in the burial caves of Palawan clearly re- Caves Completely Partly excavated
veal such a trait complex-a highly developed cult-of-the-dead. Com- Discovered Excavated Excavated but which
ponent traits of this cult-of-the-dead included jar burial, a ritual and contained
funerary pottery, body maceration and bone washing, painting bones surface
with hematite, the use of ships-of-the-dead, and grave furniture which artifacts
was rare and highly valued. A cult-of-the-dead persists to this day
Lipuun Point 29 9 7 13
in Palawan as an intrinsic feature of traditional religious beliefs and
Iwaig 10 2 2 6
practices among the indigenous peoples, such as the Tagbanwa and Kalatagbak 10 8
Pala'wan, and still involves the use of spirit boats, elaborate grave Kuruswanan 3 1 1 1
furniture, and so forth. Taglumot 1 6
Tumarbong
In summary, as Chang (1962: 17) has emphasized, " ... the civili- (Anunug) 6 6
zations of South China and northern Inda-China during the late first Sareg 5
millennium B.C. and the beginning of the first millennium A.D. are Balabag Cliffs 1 1 5
of extreme importance to the study of the culture history of South- ( Ransang Area
east Asia as a whole." The excavations in the Tabon jar burial in Southwestern
caves strongly support the view that developments in Inda-China and Palawan)
South China mediated through Borneo have had a great impact upon El Nido 19 6 2 11
the culture history of Palawan and the Philippines generally. Al-
though little archaeological data is available, Thailand and Malaya, Totals 84 14 51
too, certainly played an important role in influencing social and cul-
• See Figures 2 and 5 for the locations Of the areas described.
tural developments in Palawan.
166 167
The principal objectives of the extensive exploration were to
find new habitation sites of Palaeolithic Man, as well as cave sites
1'
I cave. Pleistocene Man in Palawan, as noted, also used bats exten-
I sively for food. The Pala'wan in the area of the Balabag Cliffs
which would fill in the gaps in the cultural chronology of Palawan, may also flee to the caves during periods of intense thunder of which
particularly Early Neolithic sites. And, as hoped, the test excava- they have great fear. Neolithic stone tools which have been acci-
tions and surface collections during the numerous periods of ex- dentally found by the Pala'wan are called, in fact, ngipe't duldug or
ploration did yield data on cultural sequences which were not en- "thunder teeth."
countered in the Tabon Caves. A number of these cave sites have
been selected for systematic excavations in the future when funds During an earlier aerial survey of this area when the Great Cave
and personnel are available. The relevant data obtained from the in the Balabag Cliffs was first seen-an aerial survey made possible
explorations of limestone areas and test excavations 1n areas other through the cooperation of Mr. Lee German, pilot-missionary with
than Lipuun Point are sketched below. the New Tribes Mission-possible cave sites were also seen at the
towering Pagoda Cliffs near the headwaters of the Panalingaan River
in southern Palawan. This area has not been explored from the
THE BALABAG CLIFFS ground.
The Balabag Cliffs of the Ransang and Semerem watersheds (see THE KALATAGBAK AREA
Fig. 2), some 90 kilometers by water south of Quezon and a day's
hike into the interior, were explored for one week in 1963 with Ten caves and rock shelters in the rugged limestone exposures
of the Kalatagbak area (Fig. 5) were found to contain surface arti-
negative results. Only one recently used cave site was discovered.
facts. The artifacts found in the Kalatagbak caves range in age
This small cave located high on the face of an almost sheer cliff from edge-ground Neolithic tools to burial and habitation sites as-
contained the skeletal remains of two adults, an iron knife, a wooden sociated with monochrome trade potteries, probably Yilan, of Chinese
bowl and spoon, and a ladder-like frame used in carrying the bodies origin. Caves here and in the Tumarbong area were also inhabited
to the cave. The Pala'wan guides recognized the materials as "mod- for brief intervals during the last war by the local Pala'wan popu-
ern," but stated that these items were no longer made. The use lation, specifically when there were rumors of approaching Japan-
of this cave may be safely dated to the late 19th or early 20th ese soldiers, and may be disturbed as a result of these activities.
century. Many large caves were visited but the caves were either wet The Kalatagbak area is approximately one day's hike from the Na-
or had rocky floors which were generally unsuitable for habitation tional Museum's Field Station at Quezon. The area was first ex-
or burial. However, it will be necessary to re survey the Balabag plored by Mr. Angel Espeleta who worked briefly with the field team,
Cliffs, for the limestone exposure is huge-three-hundred hectares and later by the writer and Mr. David Viola of the University of the
or more-and may well contain prehistoric sites. At least one or Philippines.
two months of daily explorations would be necessary to achieve an
Brief test excavations were made in two rock shelters at Kala-
effective survey.
tagbak-Sasak and Ulo. The shallow deposits in Sasak Rock Shel-
ter were apparently stratified, yielding highly decorated Metal Age
This area is of considerable interest anthropologically. During pottery in the lower levels and sherds of Chinese trade pottery near
a few months of each year, local Pala'wan families live in the mouth the surface. The sherds of the Metal Age pottery from Sasak are
of the Great Cave in the Balabag Cliffs, as well as in nearby rockr notably different from the pottery types of the Tabon Caves, al-
shelters. The people establish residence in the Great Cave in order though there are relationships. The most frequent design found
to catch the tens-of-thousands of small edible bats which leave the on the shoulders of the smaller vessels from Sasak Cave, including
cave in clouds just prior to sunset. The bats are impaled by a de- angle-bodied forms, is a "Sloping-S'' pattern (see Fig. 50). This dis-
tinctive design has been encountered to date in only one site on
vice which consists of a long bamboo pole at the end of which are
Lipuun Point-Pawikan Ledge. Design patterns made with an Arca
tied many thorny lengths of rattan. The pole is simply whipped shell are also found on the shoulders of small vessels from Sasak
back and forth in the air impaling the bats as they fly out of the Rock Shelter. Corner points are notched or scalloped. A recurring
168 169
,
I
I
A few glass beads and iron fragments recovered with the de-
corated sherds indicate that the one level of cultural materials in
Sasak Rock Shelter falls into the Metal Age. It is presently be-
lieved that this rock shelter was used during the Developed Metal
Age and generally after the principal period of jar burial in the
Tabon Caves, approximately 400 A.D. to 600 A.D. A more precise
statement as to the chronological position of this site will not be
possible, however, until systematic excavations have been made in
this site.
0 2 3 4 5 6 CM
Only one day's exploration in this area, which may be reached
from the coast by fallowing either the Isugod or Iwaig Rivers
(Fig. 5), disclosed three caves sites. Two of these sites contained
coffin burials, the first burials of this type to be reported from Pa-
lawan Island. The two coffin sites had been discovered nearly thirty
years earlier by the present inhabitants of the Pala'wan village of
Mara'may who had formerly lived in and farmed the Kuruswanan
valley. There were no people living at Kuruswanan in 1963-64. It
will be necessary to systematically re-explore the extensive limestone
outcroppings at Kuruswanan.
172 173
,..
I
been found in a number of caves and rock shelters in the Kalatagbak, of the first century B.C. to A.D. 200" [Sharma (1953 165]. These
Iwaig, Taglumot, and Tumarbung areas, as well as in two caves on diagnostic beads would seem to have appeared in Pala wan, however,
Lipuun Point. Only preliminary work has done in these proto-his.- at a much later date; not until after the beginning of formal trade
toric cave sites, but striking changes in the associated cultural ma- with China.
terials as well as in the forms and decorations of the earthenware
Numerous other caves and rock shelters associated with Ytian
potteries may be seen. and Sung monochrome trade potteries of Chinese origin have been
found in the Quezon area, but no excavation have been made in
A small earthenware jar, decorated on the shoulder, was found these sites. Based upon the archaeological data available at present,
behind a nest of rocks on a shelf near the base of Magmisi Moun- there would appear to be a "Ming Gap" in the caves on the central
tain (Fig. 53). The bones of an adult also found on this shelf in- west coa:st of Palawan Island as in Borneo (Harrisson 1958), for
dicated that the jar was used for secondary burial, and the associated no cave has been found which contains the typical early Ming
Chinese sherds of the Sung Dynasty date this site as 11th or 12th porcelains and stonewares from China or the 14th and 15th century
century A.D. wares from Thailand and Annam ( Indo-China).
In Bubulungun I Cave, Lipunn Point, sherds of six restorable The use of caves for burial purposes appears to have faded out
plates and four jars of Chinese origin were found scattered on the in the Quezon area by the late 14th century A.D., in favor of inter-
ment in open burial sites. Open
surface and in the sub-surface
level of Chamber B. The pieces burial sites which contain Ming
are not later than Sung in date trade pottery and burials in
and possibly "Early" Sung. The stonesware jars are common on
shallow deposits of this chamber the east coast of Palawan Island,
had been badly disturbed and being revealed by the more exten-
contained artifacts associated sive agricultural activities along
with jar burial of the Metal Age, the east coast. It is certain that
possibly earlier. It was not pos- similar cemeteries of this period
sible to establish with certainty will be found on the west coast.
the cultural materials which Stoneware Jars.-An extensive Fig. 54. Modern earthenware vessel made by
were associated with the trade Pala'wan of Quezon showing persis-
trade of stoneware jars made
wares. It is significant, never- tence of incised and impressed de-
the less, that a diagnostic type in South China continued into
signs.
of bead was found only in Cham- Palawan to the Spanish Period.
ber B which also contained the A large collection of these heirloom jars, mostly Early Ch'ing, late
Sung porcelains and stonewares. 17th century and 18th century in date, but including a few Ming
Dr. Juan R. Francisco, Institute pieces, was purchased by the writer for the National Museum from
of Asian Studies, University of the local Pala'wan, now Protestants, who had formerly used them
the Philippines, has identified in rice wine rituals (Plate XVII).
this type of bead as "Inda-Ro-
man,'' and as being made in THE EL NIDO AREA
South India under Roman su-
pervision (Color Plate I-B:v and During the period from Octobef 16 to November ,30, 1965, the
w). The span of the Roman oc- writer and a field team made an initial exploration of the El Nido
:I
cupation of South India was Fig. 53. Magmisi Shelf: Earthenware jar as- area on the northwestern coast of Palawan, some 250 kilometers from
approximately " ... from the close sociated with Chinese trade pottery Quezon. The exploration and excavations in the El Nido area and
of the Sung Dynasty.
174 175
T
I
l
elsewhere in Palawan were supported, as noted, by a timely grant} Below this surface assemblage, in a rock filled deposit varying
in-aid from the National Geographic Society. in depth from 50 cm. to 75 cm., a jar burial assemblage was en-
countered. Associated with this assemblage was a small, socketed
Reports of archaeological sites in the El Nido area, famous for bronze adze and one large jade bead. These materials show inti-
the edible bird nests gathered there, had reached the writer for a mate relationships with the jar burial complex of the Tabon Caves.
number of years, but plans to visit El Nido were continually delayed A, few days before the boat from Quezon was to pick up the field
by the excavations in the Tabon Caves and lack of funds. The El team, another deeper level, about 80 cm. below the surface, was
Nido area had been briefly explored in the 1920's by Dr. Carl Guthe, reached. This level contained three Neolithic burials; one supine and
as discussed in the Introduction, and he recorded four cave sites. two flexed. All of the graves had pendants made from the tops
An aerial survey of the area was accomplished in March, 1964, when of Cone Shells, and one grave yielded a Tridacna adze (Fig. 55).
Brigadier General Jonas Victoria, then the Chief of Staff of the Phil- The types of burial and artifacts are identical to those found in the
ippine Air Force, furnished a DC-3 to a Museum party. Accompanying Neolithic grave of Duyong Cave which has a C-14 date of 2680 B.C.
the flight were Mr. Avelino Legaspi of 'the National Museum, Mr.
Hans Kasten, Capt. Robert Fisher, USAF, who acted as photographer Leta Leta Cave.-Twenty one days, October 27 through Novem-
for the flight, and Lt. (jg) Richard Johnson, USNR. Flying at low ber 16, 1965, were spent in excavating this small, rich fissure on
altitudes, they saw at least 200 large caves in the Calamian Islands the east side of Langen Island, Bacquit Bay, El Nido. The cave
north of Palawan, and in the Taytay and El Nido areas of Palawan. was visited but not excavated by Dr. Carl Guthe and erroneously
Later, in February, 1965, Lt. Johnson sand his wife visited and pho- designated by Solheim ( 1964a) as an "Iron Age'' site. The cave
tographed a few undisturbed caves in the El Nido Area which con- is actually a Late Neolithic burial site with polished stone tools
tained surface artifacts. and pottery,. A thorough site report on Leta Leta Cave is in prepa-
The initial Museum survey of the Bacquit Bay area at El Nido ration and only brief remarks on the findings are included herein
in 1965 yielded 18 cave sites, four of which had been previously for comparison with the ·Late Neolithic burial sites of the Tabon
visited by Dr. Carl Guthe and Lt. Richard Johnson. Six relatively Caves.
small cave sites were completely excavated and test excavations made
in two sites (Fox 1966c). The cultural assemblages range in date Leta Leta Cave is best described as a fissure-like shelter (Plt. XIV>
from Early Neolithic burials to the use of caves for burial in the with an extremely steep floor protected by an overhanging cliff (it
17th or 18th century A.D. Although not as rich archaeologically as was necessary to build platforms in order to work in the cave and
the Quezon area and Lipuun Point, the initial period of exploration screen the deposits). A small chamber was found at the upper end
of El Nido shows that the area is of major archaeological impor- of the precipitous floor of the fissure. A great profusion of arti-
tance. A new jar burial was discovered by the writer and ·or. facts and human bones were encountered on small ledges along
Paul Zahl of the National Geographic Society when they visited El each side of the fissure and in the small chamber, including
Nido in March, 1968, in order to photograph the caves and study the three perfect earthenware vessels. One of the earthenwares is a
birds which build the edible nests. And, since that date, Mrs. unique drinking vessel, the neck and lip of the vessel forming a hu-
Gloria Fernandez of El Nido, the Museum's Field Representative, has man head and face with a yawning mouth (Fig. xvn. The pre-
reported many new cave sites. sence of many stone and pottery artifacts on the surface of the
cave suggest that there has been much erosion and exposure of
Paredes Shelter.-One small site, Paredes Shelter on Langen Is-
sub-surface materials in the cave since visited by Dr. Guthe some
land, was found to be stratified. The remains of three individuals
40 years before.
which had apparently been wrapped in mats or shrouds-one male
and two females-were discovered on the surface of this shelter.
The excavations of Leta Leta Cave yielded a Late Neolithic as-
With the skeletal remains was a Chinese blue-and-white plate of the
semblage of stone and shell artifacts in association with a sophisti-
18th (?) century, a plain earthenware cooking vessel, glass beads,
cated pottery. In atidition to adzes-axes made of .stone (two of nep-
a fragment of fabric, and knives made of iron. An identical assem-
hite-) and stone pendants, nearly 6000 stone and shell beads of
blage of artifacts was found in three nearby grottos. All of the
many types were screened from the shallow deposits. Not a
sites are late 17th century or 18th century A.D. in date.
177
176
T
1111
The analyses of the pottery from Leta Leta has not been com-
the nearQ.y mainland of Palawan. Limited time and transportation
pleted but it clearly shows affinity with the Tabon Pottery Complex difficulties precluded even reaching caves which were reported
and no relationships with the Kalanay Pottery Complex (see Foot- by the bird nest collectors to contain jars.
note 5). There are also other Metal Age sites in the El Nido area,
which contain jade ornaments and pottery intimately related to the There were also reliable reports of caves containing cultural
Tabon Pottery Complex, including examples of cord marking and materials in the Diwil and Taytay areas of northern and northeast-
carved paddle impressions. Thus, the pottery of the Tabon Pottery ern Palawan; and the islands of Coron, and Busuanga farther to
Complex was present in northwestern Palawan during the Stone the north are known to be rich in cave sites. The explorations and
and Metal Ages. test excavations have thus revealed that within the Province of Pa-
lawan, including the Calamian Islands, there are many other lime-
Other Cave Sites.-Two caves were discovered on Kudugnun Point, stone areas of major archaeological importance. It is truly a great
Bacquit Bay, El Nido, which contained coffins, both caves dating it and still pioneer area for prehistoric research.
is estimated from the latest phase of the Developed Metal Age, circa
600 A.D. to 900 A.D. A number of other large and undisturbed jar burial
caves were found which apparently date from the same period and
earlier.
APPENDIX I
F. LANDA JOCANO
University of the Philippines
This report deals with the concept of death and the practice
of bone washing and jar burial among the Sulod of Panay. Unless
otherwise indicated, these data were observed by the writer doing
fieldwork from 1955 to 1958 and from 1959 to 1960 among these
people. During the period of study, the Sulod numbered from 800
to 1000 persons, living in the settlements of Maranat, Siya, Tanga·
hin, Buri, and Takayan in the mountains of central Panay. The
basts of their subsistence is shifting, dry agriculture called by them
kaingin, supplemented with hunting, fishing and food gathering. Des-
pite sporadic contacts with Christian lowlanders, Sulod lifeways have
not undergone basic social and cultural changes in recent times.
Social life is still characterized by superordination of kinship and
by primary concern with socio-religious activities. And death, being
the last rite of passage, is a major event in Sulod life surrounded by
elaborate ritual prescriptions-bone washing and jar burial being
among these. 1
181
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -..........1·,.........-~~~~~~~~-----------------
born alive or dead. This done, he returns home and reports to his corpse a pungent odor, especially after it has been anointed with
brother, Patagos. Patagos is the one who makes the infant select kalawag. It is believed by the Sulod that such odor will prevent
the type of death which it wants and the manner of dying. The the evil spirits from coming to feast on the "insides'' of the dead
choice that the child makes and the agreement reached is sealed man, and the corpse will not rot before burial which usually takes
by Patagos with his "measuring stick." This determines the life span place three days after death. This three-day period is observed in
of the child. order to allow all of the relatives of the dead to gather for the
funeral. The ginger makes the skin tough while the kalawag re-
Sociologically, this myth provides the Sulod with a theoretical moves the "color of the dead'' from the limbs, hands, and face of
frame of reference which enables him to grasp the often subtle rela- the corpse, thus, making it look like a person asleep.
tionship between his basic religious beliefs and the modes of his
everyday expressions. It gives meaning to events which takes place After the burul has been completed, the corpse is dressed with
around him, and serves as an instrument by which convictions are the best attire which the individual had during life. The Sulod be-
renewed and strengthened. It likewise expresses to him the nature lieve that the soul continues to enjoy a mortal-like existence ·in
of life and death and the universe in which he lives. Thus, the the afterlife; hence, if the soul should go on a journey, it must be
phenomenon of death ceases to be mystery to him, because he knows well attired in about the same manner that the living dress when
what looms ahead after death, where the soul goes immediately they go to market or attend parties. The ornaments of the corpse
upon leaving the body, and what happens to it. This awareness finds include bracelets, earrings, spears, knives, and ritual plates. Thus
expression in the rituals associated with death and burial. Umbu Paaw, as most Sulod I know testified, came back to life
after having been dead for three hours, and requested her eldest
Because death is set for the individual at birth by supernatural daughter to readjust her dress because it was put on her inside out
beings, it is necessary that these supernatural beings be propitiated (baliskad), and she was embarrassed before the other souls in Mad-
so that they will not harm the soul as the latter travels from the yaas. And later, when she returned to continue her journey to the
land of the living to the region of the dead. In this setting, it becomes land of the dead, she could no longer find her way as the door
understandable why death and burial is surrounded by many diverse through which she had previously passed was closed.
beliefs and practices, ranging from specific prescription concerning
the corpse to elaborate rituals for the supernaturals. The night following the death of a person, the pukaw ceremony
is held. The pukaw is perfarmed in order to strengthen the soul
Preparing for burial.-As soon as a person dies, the corpse is physically before it starts on its journey to Madyaas, the "land of
washed. A clean piece of cloth is wound around its chin and the the dead." The Sulod generally believed that the struggle which
two ends are tied on top of the crown of the head. This is called the dying undergoes, in trying to prevent the soul from leaving the
bogkos . (see figures in Color Frontispiece). A raised platform; body, drains the body of its energy. In like manner, the weeping
pipig, is built near one corner o~ the one-r~om house .. 'l'hen the and the crying during the hinaya (dirge) burdens the soul with extreme
corpse is laid on this platform, its head raised by using two or sadness. Hence, a ceremony is designed inorder to enable the soul
three pillows. A bambo wall is built around the platform so that
to withstand the strain of travel from the land of the living to
visitors do not see the corpse when entering the house. This is to
that of the dead.
protect the members of the family from mabug~uhan. (meaning ~·to
ask unknowingly") which might lead to the unintentional breaking During the pukaw, the efficient who is generally a female baylan
of a taboo known as pamalihon. or "medium" sits in the middle of the room. A seat is prepared
The corpse is next treated with kamangyan, a native incense, for her near the improvised ceremonial altar. The offering or ha-
lad consists of a boiled whole chicken placed on a bamboo
mixed with husks of rice placed inside of a coconut shell. Several
tubers of ginger and kalawag are also obtained and pounded. The tray covered with a banana leaf, around which are placed seven
juice of the latter are strained, and the liquid placed on ~ cer~ handfuls of rice and seven slices of egg. As soon as everything is
prepared, the baylan cautions the crowd to keep silent. She faces
•
monial plate. The entire body of the dead is then rubbed v:ith this
liquid. This ceremony is called burul. The kamangyan gives the the halad, picks up a bamboo node called tibungbung, and invokes
182
l 183
the deified souls of all of the ancestral dead. This ceremony nor- The hamwat ceremony lasts from midnight until about mid-morn-
ing of the next day. During the performance of this ritual, the
mally lasts for about two hours.
baylan falls into a trance several times and each time she is "pos-
The second phase of the ritual is called hinaya. This is per- sessed," all the windows and doors of the house are closed. She
formed the following morning. All the relatives of the dead gather calls for the soul:
around the corpse and weep. The past activities of the dead are
now recalled and everyone wails his/her farewell. The women cover Come back O beloved
themselves with pieces of black cloth. No one is allowed to. ~~ke Come back 0 dear one
noise during this ceremony, and whoever violates the proh1b1tlon Please come back home for a while
Return from where you come
is severely punished. Back with your parents
The night fallowing the hinaya, another ceremony call~d tubung And have your body made whole
is performed. The medium sits near the corpse and swmgs over Strengthen yourself for the journey.
its face a necklace of vari-colored seeds which had been charmed for
the occasion. As she does this, she invokes the souls of departed This ceremony is fallowed by the tun tun or the carrying of the
relatives. After these have been invoked, the baylan, in a loud voice, dead to the place of burial.
calls the patibara.
Carrying the corpse to the grave.-In carrying the corpse to
The patibara is performed to find out what or who caus~d the the grave, certain steps must be carefully followed. The coffin
death of the person. During the ceremony the baylan goes mto a is lifted and brought down, not through the door, but through a
trance and the relatives of the dead may converse with the umalagad. window or an opening made in the wall of the house. The Sulod
It is through this ceremony that the actual cause of death becomes believe that bringing out the dead through the door would bring an-
known and if it were due to either witchcraft or sorcery, who is other death to the family, the door being the main opening in
the house through which each member passes. When the corpse
tile logical suspect.
is passed through the window or wall-opening, the nearest kin, if
After the patibara, the hamwat is performed. Another platfor~ the widow /widower is too distraught to do the task, pours water
is built close to one corner of the house. Used as an altar,. th~s after it. This is to wash away the "contagious smell" of the dead.
construction coasists of two parts: ( 1) a higher portion upon which ~s If this is not done, one of the members of the bereaved family
placed the food offering for Dagit, the spirit of the space a?d his will soon follow the dead to the grave.
followers; and (2) a lcwer portion on which is placed the offermg for
Punay, a powerful female deity of the mountains ~nd. her ~ompan TYPES OF BURIAL
wns. Dagit and Punay normally give each soul a tahsm~n (those
Open burial.-If an important person in the community, the dead
that I saw looked like tektites and polished stone tool) to protect
the soul from melting while waiting for the final decision and as- is not usually buried in the ground. A coffin is prepared by chop-
ping down a large tree, cutting it to a convenient length, shaping
signment to the land of the dead. it like a boat, and then hollowing it out. Carvings are made on
The sulod believe that if the hamwat ceremony is not performed, the cover and sides. The corpse is placed inside the coffin and
the soul of the dead will be placed inside the big dipper. Then, the the cover and body of the coffin are sealed together with almaciga
soul will be transferred by the supernaturals from one jar to an- gu?'1. Then the coffin is placed in a special shed made of cogon
~ther and each time that this is done, the soul will leave part of shmgles, called kantang, which is built on top of a solitary hill.
its b~dy in the jar. When, on the contrary, the hamwat is performed, Finally, a hole is bored in the bottom of one end of the coffin and
Sabug or the guardian-messenger of the souls appears and takes the a small bambo tube called pasuk inserted to facilitate the flow of
soul to the land of the living to attend the ceremony. Mulang, the the decomposing body fluids. The body is left on the top of the
wife of Sabug, watches over these souls. When the souls are under hill for three or more months. This practice is not popular today
the care of Mulang they are specifically called turubusun. with the younger generation.
184
i 185
Tree trunk burial.-Another form of burying an important indi- future. If the tagwati sings an unfavorable song, the Sulod dig an-
vidual is to hollow out a large tree, usually one which ·grew up other grave elsewhere.
at the same time as the person who died. The hollow is normally
prepared beforehand; that is, while the deceased was seriously ill. The Sulod believe that death and sickness are sometimes caused
If the individual does not die during the process, the job is discon- by burying a kinsmen in the wrong place. It is the consensus among
tinued. If he does, then the hollow tree serves as his grave. The them that if the burial ground is infected with earthworms or if it
body is wrapped with a mat and is deposited into the tree trunk is muddy, then the dead would be uncomfortable. And, the soul
in a standing position. The slits are sealed with almaciga gum in the land of the dead but still guarding over its former body,
superimposed by wax derived from the honeycombs of wild bees. would punish the negligent with sickness and eventually death.
A hole is chiseled at the bottom of the hollow to allow the decom-
posing body fluids to flow out. The corpse is left inside the trunk
for about a year, then the bones are removed and washed. Should the dead be placed in the kantang or coffin left in a
small structure, instead of being buried in the ground or a tree
Underground burial.-Among the younger Sulod, especially those
trunk, the members of the household will take turns in visiting
llving in the lower sections of the Panay River, burial in the ground the body until only the bones remain. During these visits, the
is popular. A group of nine men proceed to a hillside in the dead person is invited to eat offerings of food frequently
morning following the death of a km. There, they dig a hole normally left beside the corpse.
about four to five feet deep. In selecting the site for the grave,
the elder member of the team sees to it that the place is dry and Bone washing.-As soon as the flesh of the dead has decomposed,
hard. The dead man's nearest kin breaks the ground for the grave the bones are exhumed (if buried in the ground or in a tree trunk)
before the other men can dig. or gathered (in case of an open burial) and finally washed. A
special ceremony is 'held on this occasion, and a baylan called to
Upon reaching the burial place, the kinsmen carrying the coffin officiate in the ritual washing which normally starts early in the
place it near the prepared hole. Then the oldest man in the group evening and ends the following morning. The bones are first re-
steps forward and scrapes a handful of earth from the pile nearest moved from the platform where they had been placed during the
the edge of the grave; the rest follow him. Then they throw the ritual and then earried to a river where they are washed. The
handfuls of earth into the hole, as the old man speaks loudly: Sulod believe that the souls of the dead come down from the land
of the dead to that of the living by means of a river. Hence, wash-
If there is bad luck in store for those who are left behind, warn ing the bones in the river makes it easier for the soul to identify
us, O tell us, tagwati, with the long tail, as we cover this grave. its own remains and to put charms on them. The finger and toe
bones are washed first; then the limbs (tibia, fibula, patella, femur,
The tagwati is one of the Sulod omen birds. When a Sulod ulna, radius, and humerus). The hip bones, spinal cord, the ribs,
hears this bird sing, not even the most persuasive plea can induce scapula, and clavicle are washed next, and finally the skull.
him to proceed on his journey or even temporarily to leave his
house. They say that the tagwati is the guardian of the souls which After all the bones have been washed, they are brought back to
notify the living of misfortunes ahead. Thus, the tagwati is called the house. Another ritual is perfarmed at the house before placing
upon to indicate the future of the bereaved family. They believe the bones on a ritual platform to dry. An elder member of the
that if the earth filled in the grave is more than the amount ex- deceased's family, or the widow /widower, secures a wide piece of
cavated when the grave was dug (that is, more than the expected black cloth and gives it to the medium. The medium walks around
mound after the coffin has been lowered and everyone had stepped the bone several time, praying in murmurs as she incenses the
over it), then no one in the family will die. But if the earth is less bones. The bones are then wrapped in tl\is black cloth and hung·
and there is alopyak or a sort of a caved in portion, then it is under the eaves of the house as a "guardian spirit." The charms
certain that someone in the family will soon die. Hence, before which the soul has placed in the bones keep evil spirits away. Some-
lowering the coffin, the Sulod consult the tagwati to fore tell the times the bones are placed inside a trunk or a bamboo basket.
186 187
Then, the container is tied to a beam of the house or secured to HEFERENCES
a construction built beneath the roof.
Berger, Rainer, and W. F. Libby
Jar burial.-The bones of the dead are tended with great 1966 "UCLA Radiocarbon Dates V," Radiocarbon, Vol. VIII, pp.
care. They are kept wrapped in black cloth and intact until the 467-497.
first anniversary of the bone washing ceremony. However, if some-
one becomes ill before this date, the bones are removed and placed Bernardo, Angelo and David Viola
inside an ancient stoneware jar. The Sulod believe that sickness is 1965 "Diwata Cave Pottery Analysis," a typescript prepared dur-
an indication that the charms placed on the bones by the soul of ing the Field Project of the Summer Institute at Quezon,
the departed are no longer powerful. This means that the soul wants Palawan, in 1965, sponsored jointly by the Department of
the bones to be kept "in peace." During the transfer of the bones Anthropology, University of the Philippines, and the Di-
to the jar still another ritual is performed, souls of ancestors being vision of Anthropology, National Museum.
called to participate in this ceremony and " ... to be witnesses to
the fact that the living are taking care of the remains of their Beyer, H. Otley
departed kin." The jar is then placed either on a platform con-
structed for it directly beneath the center of the roof or under the 1947 "Outline Review of Philippine Archaeology by Islands and
house and covered with a large bamboo basket. Provinces," Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. 77, Nos.
3-4 (July-December) Manila.
The oldest daughter or the eldest son of the deceased takes 1948a "Philippine and East Asian Archaeology, and Its Relation
care of the jar. It does not leave their possession until one of to the Origin of the Pacific Islands Population," Bulletin
their sibling dies in which case the jar is passed to the latter's No. 29, National Research Council of the Philippines, Que-
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bones of all of a sibling group have been placed in the jar. The 1948b "Early History of Philippine Relations with Foreign Coun-
jar is normally buried beneath the house. Some informants say tries, Especially China," in E. Arsenio Manuel's Chinese
that in olden times caves and ravines were used as burial sites. I Elements in the Tagalog Language (Manila: Filipiniana
have no case studies to indicate that this has been practiced by the Publication).
Sulod in recent years. 1949 Supplementary Illustrations to the "Outline Review of Phil-
ippine Archaeology by Islands and Provinces," (November),
Manila.
Casino, Eric
1965 "Legends About the Caves of Lipuun Point, Palawan," Sun-
day Times Magazine (March 14), Manila.
Chang, Kwang-chih
1958 "New Light on Early Man in China,'' Asia Perspectives,
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196 197
OATl.JM 9-B DEPTH
c
I- F 1-N 5A-B 15-J 9-1<
---------
----------------- -----------------------
ANCIENT CAVE FLOOR
MOUTH OF
CAVE
KEY:
A CHERT
0 BONE
e MINERALIZED BONE
HARD,
~
FIG, 9 (A) FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE .I[ SHOWING GRITTY BROWN DEPOSIT
-
LOCATION AND STRATIGRAPHIC SOFT, FINE LIGHT• BROWN DEPOSIT
FEATURES
CONSOLIDATED FLESH DEPOSIT
0 10 20 10 40 eo st'fo dMo abo c111
SCALE
~~~~~~~~~::~::~~~----------------&..IOOcm
~ FLAKE TOOL ASSEMBLAGE lir
X PEBBLE
KEY:
+ EARTHENWARE SHERD (JAR- BURIAL)
.A. CHERT
@] C- 14 DETERMINATION
@ PEBBLE
FIG. 9- (B) STRATIGRAPHIC RELATIONSHIPS
BETWEEN FLAKE ASSEMBLAGES
II ANOnT ffi HARD GRITTY BROWN DEPOSIT
-
STERILE
FiG, 9-(C) LARGE FLAKE TOOLS
Of:" FLAKE ASSEMBLAGE lI
0 10
S C A L E 0 1 2 I 4 I 8
c•
SCALE
Fig. 9. Stratigraphic profiles in Tabon Cave: (A) Flake Assemblage II showing loca·
tion and stratigraphic features; (BJ Stratigraphic relationships between Flake
Assemblages II and Ill: and (CJ Large Flake tools of Flake Assemblage II.
CENTER LINE
DATUM
2'15A
I
26C 2it A DEPTH 26
I
c
I
I
+~i-. l
:+
IA
!50cm
(UCLA - 284)
LIGHT IVORY BROWN
l&J
IOOcm
. "'
UN E X CAVATED LIJ
(,)
..... FLAKE
I
DARI< MOWN TO BLACK IOP'T
UNEXCAVATED
KEY•
1Zir HARD
b