The recent discovery of an ancient human skeleton, estimated to be at least 29,000 years old, in Prachuap Khiri Khan proves that the area which is now Thailand was inhabited by humans in the Old Stone Age.
On Monday, the Fine Arts Department and the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation (DNP) jointly announced the discovery of a skeleton from the Pleistocene period and ancient cave paintings at the Tham Din archaeological site in Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park.
According to the Fine Art Department's Director General Phanombootra Chandrajoti, the skeleton, believed to be of an eight-year-old child, is the oldest human skeleton ever discovered in Thailand, providing archaeologists with a good starting point to expand the study into the beginning of the development of prehistoric technology.
He believes this will lead to many more discoveries, whether in archaeology or related to the local ecosystem.
Kannika Premjai, who led the team of archaeologists at the site, said the exploration kicked off in 2022 to study paintings inside Tham Din Cave.
During the exploration, the team believed the cave held something more significant, with findings of ashes, animal bones, earthenware, shells and burnt seeds at 1.6 metres below the surface.
Samples of ashes and shells were then sent to a laboratory in the United States to verify their ages.
Using an Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS) testing method, the samples were concluded to be between 10,000-29,000 years old.
The test results have led to an assumption that a child's skeleton later found at a deeper level last year could be older than 29,000 years, Ms Kannika said.
The bone samples will be sent for a lab test to confirm the real age, she added.
Trace of civilisation
According to Ms Kannika, the skeleton was found two metres from the surface in an "extraordinarily perfect" condition. Judging by the bone joints and the size of the skull, the skeleton was estimated to be of a child around six to eight years of age, living in the Palaeolithic Period.
The period began 2.6 million years ago, around the end of the last Ice Age, and ended 12,000 years ago. "This should be the oldest skeleton found in the country," Ms Kannika said.
According to her, the team found the skeleton facing up with stones and red earth covering the forehead and chest areas.
The stone and red earth are believed to be symbols of blood and power, she said.
There are indications the ankles were bound, and the body is believed to have been smoked.
"It is believed that the way the body was treated involved rituals, including a theory that this was one way to keep it from being eaten by wild animals.
"We have learnt from the position and direction in which the body was placed that it was a ritual, meaning the community living here had their own culture and way of living.
"We also learnt that they ate deer, barking deer, boar, shellfish and plants. We will learn more as we continue our exploration," she said.
She added that the skeleton, named by the team as "Nong Pang Pond", was a homo sapien, very close to today's humans due to its straight backbone characteristic when standing.
The cave where the skeleton was discovered is located in the 98- square-kilometre limestone hills national park on the Gulf of Thailand coast of Prachuap Khiri Khan province and the largest wetland site in the country.
Chaiporn Siripornpibul, a retired geologist from the Department of Mineral Resources and adviser to the team, said it is believed the age of the limestone caves at the national park should be around 250 million years.
The cave is believed to be under a freshwater ecological system, judging from evidence of water erosion.
He said the site and surrounding areas are considered fertile land perfect for human beings' habitation, with caves serving as their shelters.
Cave paintings in various chambers, tools and other man-made traces have confirmed the existence of a prehistoric human community, Mr Chaiporn said.
Rasamee Chusongdech, an archaeologist from Silpakorn University, said the discovery proves the area where Thailand is now situated has been a place for human settlement since the prehistoric age.
Many types of seeds in the cave also suggest their ways of living and farming. Further study is needed to put all the jigsaw pieces together, Ms Rasamee said.
If successful, it might elevate Thailand as one of the world's most important learning sites for human evolution, she said.
Mr Phanombootra said the Fine Arts Department and the DNP plan to develop the site as a learning place. At present, the site around Tham Din Cave is not yet ready for tourism as officials conduct surveys and excavations.
This discovery requires further work and the department will keep exploring more archaeological sites, Mr Phanombootra said.
