ARCHEOLOGY PROGRAM COLLABORATES WITH BRIN AND LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IN INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH IN FLORES

• By Admin
• Sabtu, 25 November 2023

13th May – 13th June 2023, Program Study Archaeology, Udayana University was involved in the excavation at Liang Panas, west Flores that held by an international research collaboration between National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN Jakarta, Indonesia) dan Lakehead University (Thunder Bay, Canada). Liang Panas is a limestone rockshelter cave with 40 m altitude and about 10 km from the coast of Labuan Bajo. Administratively, it is located at Dusun Mbore, Kampung Liang Panas, Tondongbelang village, Mbeliling, Manggarai Barat. Liang Panas is situated in limestone hills which are known by the local people as Golo Panas.

Liang Panas was first excavated by Theodor Verhoeven in 1952 by opening 3x3 meters box excavation with a depth of approximately 145 cm from the surface area. In 2006, the excavation was continued by Emanuel Wahyu Saptomo from National Research Centre for Archaeology by reopened the excavation from Verhoeven and the two new box excavations. These excavations recovered various findings such as lithics, shells, animal bones, pottery fragments and human remain which assumed as Holocene in age and probably less than ~5.000 years old.

In 2023, the excavation was led by Nico Alamsyah, M.Sc. (Junior Research Archeologist, BRIN) with I Made Agus Julianto, M.Sc. (Lecturer in Program Study Archeology, Udayana University), Dian Sulistyowati, M.Hum. (Lecturer at University of Indonesia) and Dicky Caesario Wibowo, M.Si. (Ikatan Ahli Arkeologi Indonesia) as a team member. This excavation also recovered various findings such as lithics, pottery fragments, animal bones, shells, charcoals and human remains. Some samples from this excavation will send to DirectAMS for radiocarbon (14C) dating and stable isotope analysis.