2. Thetenegreisa sword that has originsin PanayIsland
in the Visayas. Sure, you can still get a brand new one if
you look around hard enough. But if you want something
that was probably used in a fierce fight, then check this
listingforan antiqueonefrom the18th-or19th-centuryout.
PricedatP255,000,you cannowhave it ondisplayaround
your pad.
The Banton burial cloth, another National Cultural
Treasure,isjustapieceoftheblanketusedbyFilipinos
in the 13th to 14th centuries to wrap a corpse. It was
found in the 1960s inside the Guyangan Cave in
Banton, Romblon along with other artifacts such as
Ming period blue and white ceramics.
Bahay na bato(Tagalog, literally "house of stone") is a type of building
originating during the Philippines'Spanish Colonial period. It is an updated
version of thetraditional bahaykubo.Its designhasevolved throughouttheages,
but still maintains the bahay kubo's architectural basis which corresponds to
the tropical climate, stormy season, and earthquake-prone environment of the
whole archipelago of the Philippines and fuses it with the influence of Spanish
colonizers and Chinese traders. Thus created was a hybrid
of Austronesian, Spanish, and Chinesearchitecture with American influence
during the American era, supporting the fact that the Philippines is a result of
these cultures mixing together. Its most common appearance is that of an
elevated, overhanging wooden upper-storynipa hut (with balustrades,
ventanillas, and capiz shell sliding windows) that stands on Spanish-style solid
stone blocks or bricksand posts as foundation instead of
just wood, bamboo stilts, or timber posts. Roofing is either Chinese tiled roof
or thatch(nipa, sagopalm,orcogon),ofwhichmanytodayarebeingreplacedby
galvanized or other modern roofing. It followed the bahay kubo's arrangements
such as open ventilation and elevated apartments used as living space with the
ground floor used for storerooms, cellars, and other business purposes.
Likebahaykubo, muchofthis groundlevelwas reserved for storage;in business
districts, some spaces were rented to shops. Horses for carriages were housed
instablescalled caballerizas.Bahaynabato hadarectangularplanthatreflected
vernacularAustronesian FilipinotraditionalhousesintegratedwithSpanishstyle.
3. Archaeological discoveries let we as a species connect with our history: both
our recent and our ancient past. While historians can hypothesize and postulate
as tothe likelyconditions,cultures,anddaytodaylifeinbygone eras,the artifacts
uncoveredby archaeologistsatsites worldwideoffer us a truly tangiblemeansof
contemplatingwherewecamefrom.Unfortunately,thepassageoftimeisnotkind
to most human constructed artifacts. Because of the emotional significanceour
speciesplacesonthem, artifactpreservation is a vital meansof protectingthese
physical validations of our past.
Archaeological excavations, although over time they move huge amounts of
soil and other material, progress slowlyand deliberatelyin large part due to the
fragilenatureof the findsthey expecttouncover.Artifact preservationprocedures
begin even before the dig uncovers anything of value. When a miner finds
something that might be an actual artifact, be it a shard of pottery or an earth-
encrusted swordhilt, allnearbyactivity willceasewhiletheseniorarchaeologists
moveto investigatethe potentialfind.Airtight containerscomprisedofacorrosion
resistant substancewillbeset upto receivethe artifactonceithas beencarefully
excavated and some of the dirt cleaned from it to authenticate its importance.
Long term artifact preservation and storage is also important to ensure that,
once at a university or other research center, artifacts can remain a tangible,
visible part of history for years to come.Hereagainclimate-controlledcasesand
rooms are optimal to prevent corrosion damage to the artifact. Preservation can
be a laborious process but when properlydone artifacts ranging from pottery to
dinosaurbonesto writingson ancientscrollscan be kept for the benefit of future
generations.
TheformidableBolinaoSkullisonlyoneof 67skullsrecoveredfrom
the BalingasayArchaeologicalSiteinBolinao,Pangasinan.Theywere
found along with several Early Ming dynasty(1368-1644) ceramics.
The skulls have teeth that are decorated with gold ornaments, a
symbol of wealth and braveryduring the prehistoric era.
The Bolinao Skull (shown above) stands out because gold scales
wereobserved: “on thebuccalsurfacesof the upperandlowerincisors
and canines.” The gold decorations have flat rounded tops that are
placedinaboredholeontheteeth. Thesegoldornamentsoverlapone
another, making them look like fish scales.
