Closeup of specimen still on original newspaper pressing.
Recently, our partner institution, the Academy of Natural Sciences, ran a featured blog about the Ban Chiang specimens they now house. From ANS’s description: “Recognizing the significance of this collection, the Academy gladly agreed to house these unique specimens from Southeast Asia in its prestigious Herbarium. The Herbarium is the ninth largest in the U.S. and the oldest in the western hemisphere and boasts an impressive collection of 1.4 million specimens dating from the late 17th century to modern times.” You can view the origins of both the Year of Botany’s collection and other collections worldwide through this interactive map on their site: https://www.gbif.org/dataset/f873ef66-231a-4ea3-bd4d-a16f182bf337
They described the significance of the Ban Chiang collection as: “With unusual strength in data concerning cultural knowledge and practices, the collection deepens the Academy’s ongoing discussions of global foodways and plant material culture practices, while the original data in Thai language is preserved in various associated datasets.” This marks a shift in archaeological practices from an Anglo-centric view where most data is only in English and is collected by those who are not from the communities whose resources they are working on.
ANS described its appreciation for the methods used by Year of Botany’s team, especially the mounting of each specimen on acid free paper with an additional translated information card. They also remarked on how the methodology embraced the plants’ Thai roots (pun intended): “By incorporating Thai and international experts and preserving indigenous knowledge, down to the Thai letter, the project demonstrates a dedication to ethical collection and the evolving practice of decolonization.” Thailand’s history of archaeology started with French Indochina, which has left some hesitancy amongst those who see more archaeologists from abroad coming in. However, Joyce White was careful to include Thai knowledge by learning the language and working with Thai guides in Ban Chiang as well as bringing in Thai experts to help with the project in Philadelphia.
YOB staff and volunteers hard at work mounting specimens
The Academy’s hope is to preserve not only the specimens, but the cultural knowledge and significance that made them special to the people of Ban Chiang.
The Academy of Natural Science’s full blog post can be accessed here: https://www.anspblog.org/ban-chiang-collection/