JAPAN

In Japan, inscriptions are known as kinsekibun, “writing on metal and stone.” As Japan did not have a native script, the first inscriptions were on imported objects from China, such as bronze mirrors and swords. There is also a famous gold seal described in the History of the Later Han Dynasty (hou hanshu) as a gift to the ruler of Na, a small state located in Japan, by the Han emperor GUANG WUDI (5 B. C.E.-57 C. E.) in 57 C. E. In 1784, a golden seal was found at Fukuoka in Kyushu, inscribed, “The king of Na of Wa of Han.” It measures 2.35 centimeters (.9 in.) across, and its knob was in the form of a snake. This is probably the same seal recorded in the history. The two earliest inscriptions of local origin were inlaid gold and silver texts on the blades of iron swords from INARIYAMA and Eta Funayama. These record the service of a palace guard and a civil bureaucrat to the emperor and date to the second half of the fifth century C. E. Later inscriptions of the YAMATO state recorded on bronze and stone the careers of the individual in a tomb, but these are very rare. With the late Yamato and Nara periods, written records survive on MOKKAN, wooden tablets that recorded tax receipts, requisition notes for supplies, and orders. These are found in their thousands, particularly at HEIJO-KYO, capital of the NARA STATE.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

The raising of inscriptions was adopted in Southeast Asia from at least the fifth century C. E. The language employed was SANSKRIT or PALI, both derived from India, and in Southeast Asia there are Mon texts in the CHAO PHRAYA BASIN and parts of northeast Thailand, Khmer in Cambodia and southern areas of northeast Thailand, Old Javanese on Java in Indonesia, and Cham on the coast of Vietnam. The locations of inscriptions in these indigenous languages are strong indicators of the ethnicity of people at the dawn of history. Many records must have existed on perishable materials, but only texts on stone or very occasionally on copper, gold, or semiprecious jewelry have survived. In Cambodia, the majority of these records are concerned with religious foundations and merit-making offerings. There is often a reference in Sanskrit to the ruling king, the donor, the god, and the date of the foundation or of a particular donation. The vernacular text follows and often incorporates a list of workers and their duties in maintaining and servicing the temple. The names of the temple servants are usually in the local language, whereas the names of the grandees or major donors are in Sanskrit. Many of the Angkorian period inscriptions were very long and assumed epic proportions both in their content and in the quality of the Sanskrit verses. They provide the genealogies of kings and noble families back through many generations and are thus vital sources for the reconstruction of dynastic histories. However, they must also be seen as advertisements and were often misleading.

JAVA

On Java, in Indonesia, the inscriptions were likewise concerned with land ownership, the organization of taxes, and donations to religious foundations. They were carved onto large stone stelae for permanent display or on copper for personal or corporate use. Most record the establishment of SIMA, defined villages, segments of villages, or rice fields whose tax status was redefined or permanently established. Thus, many texts take a part of a village and ascribe its tax revenue to be paid to a religious foundation through the request of the rake (lord) who owned the temple. The nature of the payment is occasionally specified. On the basis of the area of land in question, it would often be in the form of silver or gold. Corvee labor was another form of payment.

The texts were inscribed to record a permanent charter or relationship between the owners of land and the payment of tax revenue, but much of their contents gives insight into the organization of society Thus, the formula begins with a royal order, often naming the king, to the beneficiary of a sima. It requires his officials to oversee the establishment of a charter and thus names the official titles in the court. This official then sets out the boundaries of the ascribed area. Some inscriptions indicate that a sima could be challenged, and the texts sometimes include curses against any future violators of the charter. A sima was also a means whereby the ruler could restrain the power and wealth of local lords, because it required much expenditure on celebratory feasting and also meant a reduction in the rake’s income.

The detailed analysis of the texts illuminates aspects of the landscape, social order, trade, and subsistence in ninth - and 10th-century Java. The rake was an aristocratic title that could be held by both men and women, and a husband and wife often had the same honorific. It is not known with certainty how a person assumed this title, but it does not seem to have been inherited. women were given the same status as men. They received gifts during sima ceremonies and could own rice land.

The texts reveal a hierarchy in terms of status. A rakryan hino was the highest court official, who supervised administrators of lower rank, known as parujar, cit-ralekha, and pangurang. On some occasions the hino succeeded to the throne, but at all times he was a person of very high status who received the greatest number of gifts. The next highest official was called a rake halu, followed by the rakryan sirikan and then the rakryan wika. A host of minor titles also appears.

The taxation system relied basically on rice production, and descriptions of land usually mention the term sawah, or wet rice field. There are also terms for dry rice field, implying lack of water control and lower rice production, and for garden land, housing land, and swamps. An inscription of King balitung (r. c. 901-910) records how the owners of a rice field, because of low yields, were unable to meet their obligations and so asked the king to allow them to extend this holding and thus produce more rice for the same amount of tax. It indicates that the tax due was assessed on the basis of land area rather than actual production. An inscription from Rongkap describes an exemption from tax, for which a payment of silver was made to the official responsible. Labor for a certain proportion of a villager’s time was another form of payment of dues. The texts often include people’s occupations and give some idea of the activities in early Javanese villages. There are, for example, goldsmiths and jewelers, people who organized cockfights, traders, firemen, and cooks. Rarefy there are officials in charge of prostitutes and Chinese traders.

The establishment of a sima required defining the boundaries of the land involved. This usually involved physical measurement, using the unit tampah. Alternatively, it could be defined by the amount of seed sown on a given plot. Land transactions were paid for in measures of gold.

See also confucius.

Further reading: Barrett-Jones, A. M. Early Tenth Century Inscriptions from Java. Dordrecht: Foris Publications, 1984; Jacob, J. M. “Pre-Angkor Cambodia: Evidence from the inscriptions in Khmer Concerning the Common People and Their Environment.” In W Early South East Asia, edited by R. Smith and W. Watson. Kuala Lumpur: Oxford University Press, 1978; Mattos, G. L. “Eastern Zhou Bronze Inscriptions.” In New Sources of Early Chinese History: An Introduction to the Reading of Inscriptions and Manuscripts, edited by E. L. Shaughnessy. Berkeley: Society for the Study of Early China and Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, 1997; Salomon, R. Ancient Buddhist Scrolls from Gandhara. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1999;-. Indian

Epigraphy: A Guide to the Study of Inscriptions in Sanskrit, Prakrit and the Other Indo-Aryan Languages. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998; Shaughnessy, E. L. “Zhouyuan Oracle-Bone Inscriptions: Entering the

Research Stage?” Early China 11-12 (1985-1987): 146-163; Vickery, M. Society, Economics and Politics in Pre-Angkor Cambodia. Tokyo: The Centre for East Asian Cultural Studies for UNESCO, 1998.

Iron Age The Iron Age of the Ganges (Ganga)-Jumuna River system of northern India and Pakistan is synonymous with the painted grey ware culture dated from the 11th to the sixth century b. c.e. This ceramic, which has a characteristic gray color embellished with black geometric designs, is found over a considerable area, from Lakhio Pir in Sind and harappa in the west to kausambi in the east, from the foothills of the Himalayas in the north to ujjain in the south. The gray ware itself is relatively sparse at the various sites and probably represents a luxury item. Site surveys have identified more than 600 settlements, the vast majority of which are small agricultural villages rarely exceeding two hectares (5 acres) in area. However, there is also some evidence for the development of a two-tiered settlement structure, involving centers extending over an area of 10 to 15 hectares (25 to 37.5 acres), linked with the smaller villages. At the site of Jakhera, there are probably defenses in the form of a rampart around the settlement. Mud bricks were used for a multiroomed building at Bhagwanpura, and a blacksmith’s forge has been excavated at atranjikhera. While some early sites have not revealed any trace of iron, this metal was of central importance because it facilitated the clearance of the thick forests covering the area. iron was used for weaponry in the form of arrowheads and spears and also for sickles and hoes.

No plowshares have been found, but it is likely that plowing was used in an agricultural regime that was based on rice and that also had barley and wheat cultivation. This system, which continues in the area today, would have permitted double cropping. The subsistence regime also included the raising of domestic cattle, sheep, pigs, dogs, and horses. Fishing was also widely undertaken. Houses were made of timber and plastered wattle, as well as mud brick. Some houses were substantial and incorporated up to 13 rooms. Rice and animal bones have been found in the hearths. The material culture included highly proficient ceramics fired in kilns, a bone industry, and, rarely, glass bangle fragments and beads. A stone mold from Atranjikhera was probably used to cast jewelry. Gold, etched carnelian, and agate ornaments were used. There are some terra-cotta human and animal figurines, and dice indicate an enthusiasm for gambling.

This Iron Age culture of the Ganges (Ganga) Valley of northern india was a crucial period in the early formation of states. It is illuminated by the oral traditions known as the later Vedic hymns. When referring to this formative period, they mention the development of rulers termed the ekaraj. A prime role of the ekaraj was leadership in battle, but consecration ceremonies also hint at the presence of a court and functionaries, who include the military leader, a priest, court poet, and collector or distributor of revenue. Religious rituals were also an important feature of life in early centers by the sixth century b. c.e., with particular reference to sacrifices to the gods, for the king’s role was to ensure prosperous agriculture.

CHINA

Iron, like bronze, almost certainly reached China from the West, along the course of the ancient SILK ROAD. It reached Xinjiang in far western China between the 10 th and seventh centuries B. C.E., although the earliest artifacts there took the form of small tools and ornaments. There are some parallels between the iron objects in this part of China and those found in Ferghana. In due course, iron technology was adapted in the central plains and became increasingly important both for agriculture and warfare. Thus the period of WARRING STATES (475-221 B. C.E.) saw a proliferation in the use of iron. Armor, for example, was fashioned from iron plates, as seen in the surviving helmet from Xiadu, a capital of the state of YAN. This same city, like many others during the period of Warring States, incorporated areas where specialist smiths produced iron items. Chinese ironworking took on an impetus all of its own, particularly in the area of iron casting, rather than forging. The control over very high temperatures required in the production of molten iron was a hallmark of Chinese iron technology that long preceded the attainment of similar levels of skill in the West. It is manifested in the casting of an iron cauldron as early as 536 B. C.E. in the foundries of the state of JIN. This expertise, linked with the scale of production during the period of the HAN DYNASTY, led to a veritable economic revolution, as iron was applied to increasing agricultural production.

SOUTHEAST ASIA

How ironworking began in Southeast Asia is not known. It might well have been introduced through trade with southern Chinese states but could equally have been inspired through trade with India or through indigenous discovery. Whichever the case, iron was widely used in the manufacture of tools, weapons, and ornaments during the second half of the last millennium B. C.E. Iron ore is relatively widespread, and while there is some evidence for casting iron items in the DONG SON culture of northern Vietnam, the vast majority of Southeast Asian iron was worked through forging. The efficacy of the iron spades and hoes is seen in the construction of earthen banks to control water flow and create moats at such sites as NOEN U-LOKE in northeast Thailand. The same settlement has produced large socketed iron spears, while one young man was found with an iron arrowhead lodged in his spine, a sign of conflict during the late prehistoric period. At the site of ban don ta phet, many iron billhooks and spears have emphasized this point.