SLSA Annual report 2013 Archaeology in the Kingdom of Bhutan: Exploring the Country’s Prehistory Peter Fux1, Christoph Walser2, Namgyel Tshering3 Abstract By today, archaeological insight into the cultural history of the Kingdom of Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas is still lacking. In the course of the ongoing Bhutan-Swiss collaboration project in order to institutionalize archaeology, not only highly important sites were detected but also the exigency of archaeological regulations and site protection becomes evident. On the basis of interviews with local informants, the authors conducted field surveys and documented the cultural landscape in the mythical core area of the Tang valley in central Bhutan. The general picture composed of collected data seems to illustrate a mythical or Buddhist-historical meaning of manifold historical and prehistoric sites which is generally accepted and venerated by the local society. Nowadays however, Bhutan faces enormous cultural changes, mainly caused by rapidly increasing tourism influx and information technology. As a consequence, mythical-religious beliefs, which have protected archaeological sites from looting, are weakening to a certain extent. This danger of cultural heritage loss becomes evident by a looted chorten on top of a prehistoric burial mound. The discovery of large burial 1 Museum Rietberg Zurich and University of Zurich, Department of Prehistoric Archaeology. 2 Universities of Bamberg and Zurich. 3 Helvetas, Swiss Intercooperation, Thimphu, Bhutan. mounds in the Phobjikha Valley illustrates the importance of immediate archaeological regulations and site protection and furthermore shows the tremendous scientific potential of archaeology in Bhutan. Brief geography of Bhutan Fig. 1 Map of Bhutan ( Data source: © ESRI 2013 ; The Kingdom of Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas, situated between India in the south http://www.gadm.org ) and Tibet (China) in the north, covers an area of approx. 38.000 km2 (Fig. 1). In the north, 29 the highest peaks reach an altitude of more than 7.500 m.a.s.l. In the south, the foothills descend into the subtropical Duars Plain, only about 200 m.a.s.l. Bhutan’s first parliamentary elections were induced by the Fourth King, His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, in 2008. Television and internet were kept at bay until 1999.4 Before 1981, a total of 7.800 tourists visited the country, and 6.392 were counted in 2001.5 Since 2012, however, approximately 100.000 tourists per year have been expected. Along with this tremendous rush of tourism and cultural exchange, building constructions – mainly hotels – are increasing rapidly and endanger archaeological sites, if unrecognized or disregarded. Furthermore, it has to be pointed out that Bhutan holds an exceptional position in the Buddhist Himalayan cultural landscape. Whereas Mongolia was affected by the Russian, and Tibet by the Chinese Cultural Revolution, Sikkim and Ladakh have been part of the Indian state for a long time. The Kingdom of Bhutan, however, right at the beginning of facing extensive international impacts, keeps exceptionally vital and pristine historic traditions and myths alive. For this reason, Bhutan is of great importance to the study of Buddhism and cultural history in the Himalayas. For archaeologists, religious knowledge and historical myths provide unique research opportunities. Therefore, archaeological research and protection are urgent desiderata for this cultural gemstone in the Himalayas. Gurus and Hidden Treasures – History in Bhutan According to myths and oral history, Bhutan entered the historic period not earlier than in the mid-seventh century AD with the foundation of two Buddhist temples, Kyerchu Lhakang in the Paro Valley in the west and Jampa Lhakang in the Choekhor Valley, Bumthang district. It is said that the two buildings belonged to the 108 temples built by Sangtsen Gampo (c. 605 –650 AD ), the 32nd King of the Yarlung dynasty of Tibet, and his Nepali and Chinese queens. The temples subdued the supine demoness on which Tibet was founded.6 Later on, during the eighth century, as tremendous translation efforts of Chinese and Indic Buddhist literature were forced by the Tibetan King,7 Padmasambhava, known as the precious teacher Guru Rinpoche and nowadays considered as the country’s patron saint, arrived in Bhutan and successfully taught and spread Buddhism. As the Bhutanese historian Karma Phuntsho convincingly explains, the challenging discrepancy between a traditional Buddhist comprehension of history and the Western way of exploring the past now becomes illustrative. Whereas in Western historiography events and concrete personalities are fixed on and adhered to a linear timeline, Padmasambhava shows us the contrary. In an anachronistic way, he appears in different forms in very different times and spaces and is able to leave footprints in stones and to hold texts in a time warp for their rediscovery centuries later.8 Thus, «he is not merely a historical person but an enlightened energy or state of being.»9 What is known about Padmasambhava, however, is conveyed by hagiographies and other texts, considered as treasure texts from the eighth century and found by socalled tertöns or treasure-discoverers, mainly in the thirteenth to sixteenth centuries. Probably the most popular Bhutanese tertön, Pema Lingpa ( 1450 –1521), accompanied the authors of this article during their Tang Valley survey (discussed further below). Pioneering Archaeology in Bhutan In 2005, Bhutan’s former Prime Minister expressed to Helvetas the wish to initiate ar- 4 Karma Phuntsho 2013, p. 585. chaeological projects in Bhutan and the request to receive further support. Further- 5 Karma Phuntsho 2013, p. 585. more, it has to be mentioned that it is His Majesty, the fourth King of Bhutan’s per- 6 Karma Phuntsho 2013, pp. 76 –84. 7 Kapstein 2006, p. 72. sonal wish to initiate archaeological projects in the country. By invitation of Helvetas, the Swiss-Liechtenstein Foundation of Archaeological Research Abroad ( SLSA ) organized preliminary inquiries and clarifications in 2006.10 Consequently, the Bhutan-Swiss 30 8 Karma Phuntsho 2013, pp. 84 –110. 9 Karma Phuntsho 2013, p. 84 /85. 10 See Fischer 2006. Fig. 2 Survey Map of the Tang Valley (Data Archaeology Project, a cooperation to institutionalize archaeology, was set up between source: ASTER GDEM – « ASTER is a product the Kingdom of Bhutan, Helvetas, and SLSA . of METI and NASA »; http://www.gadm.org Fig. 3 Site No 1 «Challakhang» During the first three year project term ( 2008 –2010 ), the historically important Drapham Dzong fortification ruin in the Jakhar Valley, Bumthang district, was excavated.11 The second phase ( 2011–2013 ) was focused on capacity building in the field of archaeology and its institutionalization. In cooperation with the University of Zurich, a modular teaching program was elaborated. Cultural officers from several district administrations, university lecturers, architects and employees of the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs were taught in numerous aspects of archaeology by means of classroom teaching and practical fieldwork, including a rescue excavation and site inventories.12 As a first and very important result, the Royal Government of Bhutan is currently establishing an Archaeology Section under the Division for Conservation of Heritage Sites of the Department of Culture. Oral History and Field Survey in the Tang Valley, Bumthang In the context of the Bhutan-Swiss Archaeology Project, the authors conducted a field survey in the Tang Valley in October 2013 (Fig. 2 ). The Gup (county officer) of Tang, Mr. Thinley Namgyel, put the authors in contact with Mr. Kencho Tsheltrem from Kunzang Drak, a former monk of the Tamshing monastery and school teacher, locally admitted as literate adept of local history. Together with Mr. Kencho Tsheltrem, the authors visited and documented the sites discussed below and interviewed local people. Even though this information may differ from other historical sources, it documents the current state of knowledge of the local society. 3 No 113 : Challakhang (N 27,56346°; E 90,80827°; Alt. 2723 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) 11 See Meyer 2010. 12 Della Casa, Fux, Mäder 2011; Della Casa, Fux, Diggelmann, Walser 2012. 13 The numbering of the survey sites corre- sponds with the numbering of the map. At the beginning of a north-south oriented hill ridge, a few meters above the valley, a small chorten was built. Besides the chorten, a flat round stone (approx. 1.5 m in diameter) is located (Fig. 3 ). The name Challakhang refers to the village, the name of the site is Kakaling, and the stone is called Simbu golang, or the demon’s Golang. 31 According to the oral legend, a human eating demon housed at this site. It was Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) who then destroyed the demon who cooked hu- Fig. 4 Site No 2 «Palingtakpa» Fig. 5 Site No 3 «Gomba Pema Ling» man beings on this particular stone. Then, the chorten was built at the site. It is said that chortens are often erected on sites where demons once lived. No 2 : Palingtakpa (N 27,56427°; E 90,80782°; Alt. 2773 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) Approximately 50 m further up the densely overgrown hill, a thin, approximately 50 cm long stone stele is located (Fig. 4 ). Adjacent, a small chorten was recently built. The authors are informed that it was Pema Lingpa’s place of meditation in 1476. Nowadays, the serpent god is adorned at this place. According to the amount of stones lying around, the whole hill ridge was once overbuilt. However, local people removed stones for their own construction purposes. No 3 : Gomba Pema Ling (main tower, so-called utse: N 27,56894°; E 90,80609°; Alt. 2891 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) Along the most upper part of the north-south oriented hill a large elongated fortification ruin is located in the dense forest. Parts of the stone walls are still up to six meters high but are most likely to collapse within the near future (Fig. 5 ). The main tower, the so-called Utse, in the extreme north, has the ground dimension of seven by seven meters. An outer bailey seems to be situated in a lower position in the south, comparable to the Drapham Dzong ruin in the Choekhor Valley.14 The elongated shape along a hill ridge, however, recalls the Yushingte Dzong in the Choekhor Valley, mapped in 2012.15 4 The authors are told that this was Pema Lingpa’s birthplace. He was born in the year of the Iron Horse, on the fifteenth day of the eleventh month. His mother was Pema Seldon, the father’s name was Gelwa Dhendup. 5 No 4 : Zhongmai (N 27,56315°; E 90,81051°; Alt. 2781 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) According to the authors’ informant, a ruin was recently situated on the adjacent hill top, but local people removed the stones for construction purposes. In the dense vegetation building, structures are hardly visible nowadays. It it said that Pema Lingpa’s ox, which was stolen by the local farmers and was not returned even when he requested them to do so, was kept at this site. Hereupon, the local deity transformed the ox into stone. It is alleged that the petrified ox was 14 still visible approximately fifty years ago, but it is now overgrown by the dense veg- See Meyer 2010 ; Grün et al. 2009. 15 See Della Casa, Fux, Diggelmann, Walser etation. 2012, pp. 156 –157. 32 6 Fig. 6 Plan of Site No 5 «Manigomba» No 5 : Manigomba and the ruin nearby (N 27,57751°; E 90,80898°; Alt. 3117 m.a.s.l.; Fig. 7 Site No 5 «Guru Rinpoche’s throne» WGS 84 ) A multistoried stone building is located underneath a rock shelter next to a waterfall (Fig. 6 ). In the plastered walls, several wooden constructions, e.g. lintels, are well preserved. This site offers a breathtaking prospect of the lower valley. On the opposite hill ridge, approximately thirty meters further south and on the other side of the waterfall, some building remains and a ’throne-like’ simple stone construction are documented. The latter is still adored, as some banknotes indicate. Supposedly, the building belonged to Lam Choying, the husband of Pema Lingpa’s aunt, and the stone construction was Guru Rinpoche’s (Padmasambhava) throne (Fig. 7 ). Here, Pema Lingpa was taught and blessed by Guru Rinpoche (note the time difference of the two lifetimes). Guru Rinpoche handed over a script which authorized Pema Lingpa to search for treasures. Subsequently, Pema Lingpa recovered a text- 7 book from the lake Nari Drak, later called burning lake, from which he then taught his followers. No 6 : Gartshang (N 27,58192°; E 90,79457°; Alt. 3019 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) In the dense forest on a terrace above the creek, some large remains of clay walls are preserved up to a height of approximately three meters (Fig. 8 ). The floor space of this building amounts to approximately 12.5 by 8.5 meters. At the edge above the creek, a stove-shaped stone construction is located. Some stones seem to be slagged. After having left behind his life as a shepherd, Pema Lingpa became a blacksmith and built his shop here. It is said that in Tamshing an iron chain, which was manufactured by Pema Lingpa at this place, is still preserved. 33 8 According to the informant, local farmers still collect iron slag pieces as devotional Fig. 8 Plan of Site No 6 «Gartshang» objects. Furthermore, there was a cave, Choshey Drak, above Gartshang, where Pema Fig. 9 Site No 7 «Petroglyphs with cup and Lingpa taught his people. ring marks» No 7 /8 : Petroglyphs, cup and ring marks (large rock: N 27,57927°; E 90,80122°; Alt. 3055 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84. Several rocks, spread in the open grassland: N 27,57655°; E 90,80199°; Alt. 2978 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) In the open grassland above the valley and near Pema Lingpa’s chorten (see below), several large rocks with artificial cup and ring marks were detected (Fig. 9 ). Up to 30 cm deep cup holes in mostly flat rocks are partially connected with shallow trenches. Several concentric dot-circle structures were also documented. It is said that Pema Lingpa’s mother was cremated here. The rocks served as his playground during his time as a shepherd. 9 34 10 Fig. 10 Plan of Site No 9 «Baridong or No 9 : Baridang or Barpong (N 27,57623°; E 90,80177°; Alt. 2979 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) Barpong» The approximately 5.5 m high chorten was built on an artificial mound, located on a striking hill ridge in an open grassland above the valley ground (Fig. 10 ). In the outer areas of the mound, clearly artificial stone accumulations are visible. The wooden roof construction of the chorten is still partially preserved. The chorten itself is surrounded by a rectangular wall construction with dimensions of 5.2 by 10.5 meters. The entrance is located in the south-east. More recently, the chorten was abrasively destroyed and opened on its southern part. The authors are informed that the chorten was built by Pema Lingpa. Tang Valley – Survey Conclusion: Treasure Discoverers and Treasure Hunters The first archaeological survey in one of Bhutan’s historical core regions clearly indicates that this extraordinarily rich cultural landscape actively lives on myths and oral history. Local people are deeply rooted in their world view and religious scenery with its meaningful places, traces and relicts. Although it was not possible to further examine the discovered sites or to determine the exact age of structures within this timelimited survey, the authors were able to clearly recognize a discrepancy between the lively Buddhist history and the western, chronological concept of history. The cultural relicts referred to Pema Lingpa and Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) seem to have quite different ages. Following the initial assessment of Gomba Pema Ling, Manigomba and Gartshang for example, neither their construction techniques nor their state of conservation indicate a rough contemporaneity. Nonetheless, a clear dating of the structures on the basis of e.g. radiocarbon dating would be desirable. Together with Zhongmai, the stories pertaining to these sites seem to illustrate how cultural remains 35 from different times took on a new meaning in the course of Buddhistization of the Himalayan regions. Another example worth mentioning in this context is the stone slab at Challakhang. Thinking of prehistoric structures from Europe or South America, one might get the impression that, according to the topographic situation, a stone plate taken from pre-Buddhist remains was displaced and later overwritten with a new myth- Fig. 11 Survey Map of the Phobjikha Valley (Data source: ASTER GDEM – « ASTER is a product of METI and NASA »; http://www.gadm.org Fig. 12 Panoramic Image of the burial mounds in the Phobjikha Valley ical story. Furthermore, the authors have been informed that chortens are traditionally built at spots where ’demons’ used to live. The stele at Palingtakpa, only a few meters further up the hill ridge, might be a reutilization of a much older cultural relict, too, as it is the stone slab of Guru Rinpoche’s throne at Manigomba. This might lead to the question if the tertön Pema Lingpa, for example, was also a treasure-discoverer in an ambiguous sense, maybe able to reframe cultural relicts? The petroglyph rocks covered with cup and ring marks most probably were part of a prehistoric ritual place, including the artificial mound of Baridong. In the neighboring Choekhor Valley, at Kenchosum, similar petroglyphs were documented in 2012, and in their vicinity prehistoric burial mounds were detected.16 Thinking of these results, it seems the Baridong chorten was built on a prehistoric burial mound. The rather unusual wall that surrounds the chorten could have been part of mound’s burial chamber. We know from previous excavations from the Himalaya region17 that burial mounds similar to this often contained quite a lot of artefacts. Therefore, it might not be unlikely that the Baridong mound was excavated a long time ago, and later a chorten – maybe accommodating some of its grave goods18 – was erected on its remains. This chorten was damaged quite recently. The features of destruction clearly indicate that it became the target of looters, and the object(s) that were kept inside were taken. In the end, this hypothesis is hard to prove. Nevertheless it is a sad alarm signal for Bhutan’s national cultural heritage! Up to now, cultural relics are morally protected by history and the religious belief of the local people. As soon as tradition is challenged by different concepts, these places are seriously endangered. The Baridong site is proof that this change is already happening. Bearing these aspects in mind, the urgency of installing another cultural heritage protection in Bhutan becomes even more obvious when discussing the results of the Phobjikha Valley survey below. Bhutan’s Monumental Burial Mounds – Field Survey in the Phobjikha Valley The documented burial mounds at Kenchosum in the Choekhor Valley and the Baridong site raised the author’s attention. Being aware of large burial mounds in the cen- 16 See Della Casa, Fux, Diggelmann, Walser 2012. 17 Particularly Tibet. 18 It is known that spiritual objects or ‹treasures› are kept in chortens. 11 36 12 tral Tibetan highlands, mapped by Austrian archaeologists and dated back to the fourth to ninth centuries AD,19 and furthermore informed by Walter Roder – the former Country Director of Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation in Bhutan – about some non-natural looking mounds in the Phobjikha Valley, the authors decided to conduct a brief survey there (Fig. 11 and Fig. 12 ). What was immediately detected, exceeded all expectations: No 1: Burial mound 1 (N 27,43731°; E 90,20381°; Alt. 2877 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) On a prominent hill ridge at the eastern slope of the valley, a large temple has recently been constructed. A large mound structure with a diameter of approximately 30 meters is located north of this temple site. The top of the mound is flattened (comparable with the Tibetan MT-A.2 burial mound type).20 Both shape and localization clearly indicate its artificial character. In addition, decorated ceramic sherds were found on top of the mound during the field survey. Group of three burial mounds (N 27,43544°; E 90,20658°; Alt. 2898 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) South of the newly built temple, three mound structures with a diameter of approxi19 Hazod 2013 ; http://www.oeaw.ac.at/ tibetantumulustradition/. 20 Hazod 2013 ; http://www.oeaw.ac.at/ mately five meters are arranged in a row from east to west. The area is covered with prayer flags. The structures seem to be untouched except for the damage caused by tibetantumulustradition/sites/introduction- the flag poles. Yet, the small hills are clearly recognizable as artificial mound structures and-legend/. and are therefore endangered to be detected and looted. 37 13 38 Fig. 13 Time series of satellite images. Dashed circle marks «burial mound 1» – arrow indicates unknown archaeological structure on the hilltop. (Google Earth™ V Monumental mound at the creek (N 27,433847°, E 90,208769°, Alt. 2864 m.a.s.l.; WGS 84 ) Just below the hill ridge next to the river, a monumental cone-shaped mound is situ- 7.1.2.2041 – Phobjikha Valley, Wangdue Pho- ated. Its diameter is about forty meters, and its height approximately 15 meters. The drang, Bhutan. Coordinates: 27°26’09.67» authors argue about its artificial nature. N 90°12’14.35 » E, Eye altitude: 3.62 km. Date of imagery: A – 1/15 /2000, B – 1/9 /2006, C – 11/26 /2011. Source of imagery: Digital Globe 2014. After comparing the field survey data with satellite imagery from the last 14 years using Google Earth™, it became obvious that the hilltop of burial mound 1 was removed sometime between January 2006 and November 2011 (Fig. 13 ). This can probably be associated with the construction work for the new temple nearby. It is also worth mentioning that most likely another artificial structure of unknown age and function was affected by the construction of the modern temple. In and around the nearby settlement north of the temple area, further mound structures are obvious. It is clearly a site of very high cultural historic importance and needs to be protected immediately. If the author’s first estimation is true, we deal with a prehistoric burial site of prime significance, not only on a national but also on international level. It has to be pointed out that burial mounds, particularly in such monumental dimensions, are hardly ever found in an untouched and complete state of conservation. A scientific examination of the site is highly desirable and will shed light on Bhutan’s prehistory for the very first time in the country’s archaeological research history. The fact that the largest burial mound has already been partially destroyed does indeed emphasise the vital importance to protect Bhutan’s archaeological cultural heritage sites immediately! 39 Bibliography DELLA CASA, PHILIPPE; FUX, PETER; MÄDER, ANDREAS ( 2011) Bhutan-Swiss collaboration to institu- tionalize archaeology in Bhutan. In: SLSA annual report 2011. Zurich. 173 –186. DELLA CASA, PHILIPPE; FUX, PETER; DIGGELMANN, HANSRUEDI; WALSER, CHRISTOPH ( 2012 ) Bhutan- Swiss collaboration to institutionalize archaeology in Bhutan: Report on activities in 2012. In: SLSA annual report 2012. Zurich. 145 –160. FISCHER, EBERHARD ( 2006 ) Proposal for a new SLSA project in the Kingdom of Bhutan. Mission report by Dr. Eberhard Fischer. In: SLSA annual report 2006. Zurich. 33 –40. GRÜN, ARMIN; FUX, PETER; EISENBEISS, HENRI; BLAHA, MAROS; SAUERBIER, MARTIN ( 2009 ) UAV photogrammetry project Drapham Dzong, Bhutan. In: SLSA annual report 2009. Zurich. 61–70. HAZOD, GUNTRAM ( 2013 ) The stele in the centre of the Lhasa Mandala: About the position of the 9th century Sino-Tibetan treaty pillar of Lhasa in its historical-geographical and narrative context. In: Tropper, Kurt; Scherrer-Schaub, Cristina (eds) Epigraphic Evidence in the Pre-modern Buddhist World. 2013. (http://www.oeaw.ac.at/tibetantumulustradition/) KAPSTEIN, MATTHEW T. ( 2006 ) The Tibetans. Oxford. KARMA PHUNTSHO ( 2013 ) The history of Bhutan. Noida and London. MEYER, WERNER ( 2010 ) Bhutan-Swiss archaeological project 2008 –2010 Drapham Dzong, Bhutan 2010. Excavation results from stage 3 (autumn 2010 ). In: SLSA annual report 2010. Zurich. 229 –244. 40