Today was an information fest.
Fascinating. Absolutely fascinating. Arriving at the National Museum with low expectations may have helped, but the first section on human evolution in the region was brilliant, consisting of very interesting information about the development of humans in general and in this region in particular:
As well as some dinosaur bones:
But the best thing was the objective reporting. They were really clear on what I was looking at, what was original, what assumptions had been made, what they did/didn’t know and why and where best-guesses had been made (and why). It was a breath of fresh air.
Here’s what I learnt:
- Excavations in Laos yielded evidence of Neolithic, and potentially Paleolithic, human habitation
- One skeleton existed before 6190 +/- 40 BP, so more than 6000 years ago, and was found in the foetal position which was typical of burials previously observed in the region
- When digging a golf green, a large jar was unearthed. Inside a baby had been buried, with jewellery, beads and probably textiles, food and other materials (long since departed). Was it the child of rich parents? Or did the elaborate burial reflect the parents’ grief? Unfortunately, we cannot know from the remaining evidence (see, clear reporting), but “it gives us a unique opportunity to meet the Lao Pako people, and to see their expressions of fundamental human feelings of love and grief.”
The Plain of Jars has been dated 300 BCE to 300 CE. I’m hoping to visit this on my way to Luang Prabang, so will cover more of it then, but it’s thought to be an ancient cemetery. One theory (with subsequent supporting evidence) is that the jars are burial urns for human remains and grave offerings (including beads from India and China, as it was a hotly-contested area being a key trade route between countries). As there are also smaller jars, it is thought that the less wealthy were cremated, with stone jars for the aristocracy; another theory is that remains were first interred in the giant urns, sealed with carved lids, and then later disinterred, cremated and buried in the earthenware jars. A further legend (not substantiated) is that the jars were used to make rice beer to celebrate military victory. It’s worth noting that the area is still contaminated with Unexploded Ordnance (UXO), donated by the Americans.
Buddha’s now-familiar figure was strangely comforting. There was one with him under Naga (as Buddha was meditating, he was caught by a raging storm, so the serpent king emerged and unfurled his hood to protect him). Interestingly, it was noted as being a gift from a Jean-Francois Rottelear in 2002, further evidence of the trade in other countries’ ancient artefacts. Fair play on him for returning it, though.
And my favourite Ganesha. Quick recap: he’s the son of Shiva, who chopped his head off in a rage and replaced it with that of the first animal that came past. A remover of obstacles and the god of knowledge, today I also learnt that his pot belly betrays his predilection for sweets (which he’s using his trunk to snaffle from a pot in his hand):
Another Buddha’s gently slipping shoulders and pot belly represent old age, and his most unusual aspect was his two-hands-down position – giving his last teaching. Only one Buddha in every 100,000 is in this “provocative death pose”, apparently:
The Buddha cave is actually from the 1970s when Laotians put them in there to protect them from bombs.
The also now-familiar Linga (with a square base representing Brahma, the octagonal middle for Vishnu and the rounded top section for Shiva, which represents his generative role in creation):
I also learnt that the font is called a “yoni” and represents “the feminine principle of power” – nurture and fertility:
The textile section wasn’t quite so interesting, only because I’m not so interested in it, but there were a few things that caught my eye:
The body-tensioned loom (I think there’s a photo of someone using one of these somewhere, on my trip with Hai, I recall) is not only difficult to use, but puts lots of strain on the user’s body. It’s been abandoned by many cultures as it’s associated with miscarriages and premature births – eek!
Baylane are palm-leaf manuscripts popular during Lane Xang period, and contain religious texts, folk tales, history, traditional law, astrology, magic mythology and traditional medicine:
In the next section was a model of Pha That Luang – the most important national monument in Laos, and a symbol of Buddhist religion and Lao sovereignty. I plan to see this later.
Gold and silver Buddhas from C14-17 unearthed during excavations, were put on display and then promptly stolen (hence the metal cabinet):
The accompanying note made the point that it’s evidence of a universal problem of “the illicit trade in art and artefacts, especially from countries with a rich cultural heritage and limited resources to protect them.” That’ll be Lao, then.
I was getting a little tired by this point, and the English translations were petering out, so I’m not entirely sure why there were busts and summaries of Lenin and HCM. However, I learnt more about the latter in their one side of A4 than I did in the Vietnamese museum of his name. I wondered if maybe the Laotians could please do a National Museum of Vietnam?!
And then things went back to normal in the war section – lots of photographs, provocative captions and no explanation:
After some musical instruments (no info):
… the exhibition ended with the familiar upbeat, positive outlook how the country is emerging from its troubles.
Patuxay
Firstly, it’s worth taking on board these instructions:
Then to the “Victory Gate” built in 1962 but never completed due to the country’s “turbulent history” (i.e. getting bombed to oblivion):
The plaque’s observations that “from a closer distance, it appears even less impressive, like a monster of concrete” was another breath of honesty. I do feel, however, that they’re being a bit harsh as the ceiling displayed some impressive decoration along with the lower concrete walls:
It took a while for me to note that it hadn’t been restored. And there was a good view of the city from the seventh floor:
… although getting up there required traipsing through more souvenir stalls. But still no hassling, so I don’t mind in the slightest.
This is what a temple under construction looks like:
And, for a country that people kept telling me was “less advanced” than those around it (that’ll be the bombing again), I’ve seen little evidence of this. For instance, they’ve plans for a smoke-free capital, which to me seems two steps ahead of Vietnam.
That Luang:
… where I encountered some racial discrimination:
I’m not entirely sure of the legality of this, charging me more because of my race, but I’m pretty sure it’s not allowed. Whether it’s not allowed in Lao is another matter. It’s kinda like saying you can enter the Tower of London for £15 if you’re white, but if you’ve dark skin, you have to pay £45. Except it’s not really, because they’re actually discriminating based on wealth, and the difference is 24p. Can’t really begrudge them, so I willingly paid my 5000K and went in.
Lots of stone relics:
Some Linga, and I noticed that all Buddhas were headless – from the Thai invasion (they were Hindu, if you remember):
A child’s poster on wall was more on my level and I took a photo as I think it’ll be useful later on:
Wat Sisaket
They seem to refer to their temples as “museums”. Not entirely sure why, or if it’s a slight mistranslation.
Built in 1818 during the reign of the last king of the Lane Xang kingdom, King Anouvong, Wat Sisaket was destroyed in the war. The present construction dates from 1935 (I told you they were a bit more upfront about all this):
Their Buddhas had heads:
… but unfortunately, no accompanying information.
And I think these are female Buddhas. Someone a while back mentioned that there was a lady Buddha, but I hadn’t seen one up until now. I noticed that all the ones with breasts didn’t have a spike on their hat:
But it was when I saw the hips on this standing one that I became pretty sure she was female:
And then to the That, or “stupa”, which is a funerial or commemorative monument for relics, originally built to hold a relic of the Buddha. Later it came into use for the ashes of abbotts and kings.
Originally built between 1819 and 1825, it was razed by the Siamese in 1827-8 who forced most of the people into exile across the Mekong river. All of the temples were destroyed apart from Wat Sisaket. As such, it’s the oldest Wat in the city.
But it’s deteriorating, so the Germans have stepped in to help. I just hope their techniques have improved since they got their hands on Angkor Wat.
And then back to my hostel for a shower and more planning. And I noticed that I’ve got my mojo back – yay! When I left Vietnam, I wanted to take the slow, easy route. But now I want to explore as much of Laos as I can in the time available. So I’m booked on tomorrow’s sleeper bus. Yeah, I know, but there’s no train and the flight doesn’t actually save me any time; and apparently they’ve westerner-size flat beds, so I thought I’d give it a go. Gulp. Watch this space 🙂
Other random stuff from today:
Another baffling T-shirt slogan to add to the collection (well, I get what it’s saying, but I’m not sure why you’d wear it):
I’m running out of moisturiser, but finding skincare products without whitener is virtually impossible:
And another “someone elsie”:
… before a little collection of “miscellaneous” snaps to finish:
