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An ancient site in Laos, known as the Plain of Jars, is finally beginning to give up its secrets, as the first major excavation effort since the 1930s digs into its mysteries.
Strewn over hundreds of square miles in central Laos, thousands of ceramic jars ranging from three to nine feet in height pepper the landscape, scattered in clusters of anywhere between one and 400 individual pieces.
[...] And while the specific function of these jars is still to be determined, those involved in the most recent work have their theories.
One such theory is that the pots were actually used for decomposition, as lead researcher Dougald O'Reilly of Australian National University in Canberra explained in a statement.
The professor hypothesized that once the process was complete, the bones would then be buried nearby. But whatever the details, he is now convinced that the jars "were used for the disposal of the dead."
Wikipedia says, "[Grave sites] are one of the chief sources of information on prehistoric cultures, and numerous archaeological cultures are defined by their burial customs."
What does it say about ancient cultures in Laos that they put their dead in big stone jars?
(Score: 5, Interesting) by devlux on Saturday April 09 2016, @07:22PM
Assuming that these are composting jars for human remains, the most logical answer to my mind is this...
They believed in reincarnation.
When we come into this world we start out in an earthen jar (people are mostly made of dirt and water).
When we come back into this world we repeat the process. Doesn't it make sense that to get to the next level you need to go back into the womb?
It makes perfect sense to me to imagine that the ceremonial death practices of a society that claims to believe in rebirth would incorporate elements such as a womb into it's funerary rites. Whether it's reincarnation, moving to the next plane or something like an Elysian field.
More sense actually than floating around on a cloud and playing a harp.