Phu Khao Thong
PKT — Rank 3 port
Late Iron Age port (c.400 BCE–200 CE, bead industry 200 BCE)·Indian Ocean bead-trading port companion to Khao Sam Kaeo·🇹🇭 Ranong Province, Suk Samran District, Kapoe–La-un estuary near Kra Isthmus, Thailand
About
About Phu Khao Thong
Western Kra Isthmus bead-trading port on hill 1.5 ha at Suk Samran, Ranong, Kapoe–La-un estuary, excavated by B. Bellina et al. Companion to Khao Sam Kaeo east (10.5°N) on Bay of Bengal side, yielding Indian rouletted ware, Tamil-Brahmi inscribed pottery (200 BCE) and carnelian bead production linking Tamil Nadu–Khao Sam Kaeo–Oc Eo network before Funan.
Why it mattersWestern Kra Isthmus bead port with Tamil-Brahmi and rouletted ware
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Tamil-Brahmi sherd — trader presence or imported pot?
- 02Kra portage function vs sailing around Malay
Theories
- 01Kra isthmus dual-port model: Khao Sam Kaeo (east) ↔ Phu Khao Thong (west) trans-peninsular shuttle
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.400 BCE
- Period
- Late Iron Age port (c.400 BCE–200 CE, bead industry 200 BCE)
- Culture
- Indian Ocean bead-trading port companion to Khao Sam Kaeo
- Builders
- Bead makers and Tamil-Brahmi traders
- Purpose
- Western Kra Isthmus bead port complementing Khao Sam Kaeo east
- Abandoned
- c.200 CE
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.400 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1153 CE
Rediscovery
On the ground
Structures & features
9.5800° N · 98.6200° E · 30 m · 2 mapped features
Port hill workshop
workshopGlass bead and rouletted ware workshop on hill summit
9.5803° N · 98.6203° ETamil-Brahmi sherd zone
settlementScatter with inscribed Tamil-Brahmi pottery
9.5797° N · 98.6197° E