| Abstract: |
X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis has been found to be a powerful tool in the classification of ancient pottery into groups of identical mineral patterns. It is achieved in most of the cases either by simple visual identification of similar XRD patterns, or by computer matching of the patterns without actually identifying the minerals. The analysis of pottery from Tha Kae, a Bronze Age site 10 km north of Lopburi in central Thailand, has produced dramatic results. XRD analysis of the pottery from various stratigraphic layers from this site showed that the pottery came to this site from numerous places. By comparing XRD patterns of the local clays and the pottery, it was possible to sort out the pottery into two groups: local and non-local. A comparison of the non-local pottery with clays and pottery from the contemporary Bronze Age site in the Lopburi province, indicated that some of the pottery at Tha Kae could have come from the sites at Huai Yai and Nil Kham Haeng. The analysis indicates that Tha Kae was a major trading centre in Thailand during the Bronze Age.
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