A Highland Perspective on the Archaeology and Settlement History of Sumatra

The first systematic archaeological research in the Highlands of Jambi in West Sumatra was pursued by a joint German-Indonesian project from 2002 to 2008. The project was attracted by the impressive megalithic remains which are known since the early 20th century. Different areas of this important cultural region were surveyed and six archaeological sites excavated in order to provide a comprehensive account of the settlement history of this region. With this multi-local and diachronic approach in mind it was possible to document developments in the settlement pattern and material culture from an early Neolithic phase in the mid of the 2nd millennium BC to modern times. Reconstructing the history of this particular highland region by means of archaeological data and additional ethnohistoric sources was not the only objective. Another purpose was to set it in relation to socioeconomic and political developments in the history of the lowlands. The results and conclusions of this highland perspective on the archaeology and history of Sumatra are summarised in this article.