| Abstract: |
This paper presents some interpretations of the late prehistoric site of Lao Pako on the Nâm Ngum River in Laos. The situation of Lao Pako in the archaeology of Mainland Southeast Asia provides the opportunity to question concepts such as centre, hierarchy and richness, whose significance is often taken for granted. An analytical perspective is used here which puts Lao Pako and its inhabitants in the centre, and they are further considered in relation to their immediate and more distant surroundings. It is argued that the internal structure of the site is pivotal for us to be able to give meaning to its material culture and for our understanding of the people of Lao Pako.
|
