Lesson 2.1: Pre-Filipino Historical Source

ScSc12n – Readings in Philippine History

Department of Liberal Arts and Behavioral Sciences

Visayas State University
Lesson 2.1: Pre-Filipino Historical Source

Lesson Summary
This lesson will be focused on the analysis of primary sources from the
pre-Filipino period in Philippine history. The primary source materials to be tackled
in this particular lesson are artifacts of the Philippines during the pre-Filipino
period.
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lesson, you are expected to:
1. Name and familiarize artifacts from the pre-Filipino period of Philippine
history.
2. Create a concept map of archaeological evidence as a starting point for
content analysis.
Motivation Question
Do you have old items at home? Have you ever been to a museum?
Did you know that these museums house many artifacts that may tell you events
that happened in the past?
How well do you know your pre-Filipino past?
Discussion
It is the purpose of this course to let you experience being exposed to
primary sources in Philippine history. In the case of the Philippines, historical
documents about the country “Philippines/Felipinas” was only started being
written during the colonial period. Written information about the islands now
known as the Philippines before it was colonized is also available in the records of
the Chinese and Japanese who were our trading partners during the olden times.
It is important to note though that not all the sources of history are written
documents. The Philippines have recovered and stored several artifacts which
also instrumental in painting a picture of what was the Philippines like before it
was called the Philippines.
One way to process archaeological sources for information is to use
concept mapping. Concept maps are tools for organizing and representing
knowledge (Novak, 1990). It is a graphic organized or a visual map of a certain
concept. Concepts may be concrete objects or abstract ideas. It may be done by
linking aspects of the concept to the central concept – the archaeological source.
Figure 1 A concept map of the Tabon remains
The figure above is an example of using concept mapping to process

information about an archaeological source. From the figure above, you can create
an essay about the general concept (Tabon man skull cap) from the linked
concepts. Look at the paragraph below:
The Tabon man skull cap was discovered on May 28, 1962, at the Tabon
Cave in Palawan by Dr. Robert B. Fox, an anthropologist. The fossil is said to have
been from an old human female. According to the archaeological dating system,
the fossil is dated 16500 years old (from 14500BC). One importance of this
archaeological evidence to Philippine history is that it served as concrete evidence
of human existence in the islands several thousand years ago. Prof. F. Landa
Jocano, a professor of the University of the Philippines, used this discovery to
propose his theory of earlier evolution and movement. Based on the fossil, he
posited that the peopling of the islands of the Philippines was not a product of the
wave of migrations of outsiders – a contradiction to Prof. Otley Beyer’s Wave
Migration Theory.
Pre-Filipino Artifacts
There are many artifacts left by our ancestors to us. Many of these artifacts
became instrumental to how Filipinos picture history before the coming of the
colonials to our land. Most of these artifacts tell us about the practices of the pre-
Filipino inhabitants of the land. Among the many artifacts, the most mainstream
of them can be found now in the National Museum of the Philippines. Some of
these mainstream artifacts about pre-Filipino history are the Manunggul jar,
Maitum anthropomorphic pots, Butuan ivory seal, and the Butuan silver
paleograph.
Manunggul jar
Perhaps one of the more
famous artifacts in Philippine
history is the Manunggul jar. Its
popularity can be credited to how
it is talked of in the elementary
and high school history curricula
in the Philippine school system. It
is also an artifact featured in an
old peso bill. In terms of
discovery, the jar was discovered
by Dr. Robert B. Fox and Miguel
Antonio in 1962 from Manunggul
Cave, Lipuun point, Palawan
which is close by the area from
which the Tabon remains were
recovered. It is said to be dated
890-710 BC, which is the Figure 2 The Manunggul Jar.
(from:https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/nationalmus
Neolithic Period (new stone
eumbeta/Collections/Archaeo/Manunggul.html)
age). The main purpose of this
jar is for secondary burial. It is 26.2 inches in height and 20 inches in diameter in
its widest area. It sports a top cover that has a boat with two human-like figures.
It also has wave-like designs imbedded in the upper areas. This jar’s importance
to the construction of the pre-Filipino period in our history is it gives us an idea of
the culture and practices the old inhabitants of the islands have. For example, the
practice of secondary burial is not common to modern society anymore, but this
kind of practice was done by our ancestors. Furthermore, the design of the jar
might also tell us about the beliefs of our ancestors, such as how water is
instrumental to them from the wave-like design. Lastly, it tells us our ancestors’
belief on the journey of man’s soul after he/she dies.
Maitum anthropomorphic jars

Another pottery left
by our ancestors which is
evidence of the practice of
secondary burial is the
Maitum anthropomorphic
jars/pots. As the name
suggests, it is called
anthropomorphic because
these many jars try to
present the human form.
These jars were discovered
in Ayub Cave, Brgy. Pinol,
Maitum, Sarangani
province by the National
Museum of the Philippines Figure 3 Maitum Anthropomorphic Jar. (from:
https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/nationalmuseumbet
Archaeology Team. The
a/Collections/Archaeo/pots.png)
pots were dated to be from
the period of early metal
age from 5BC – 225 AD. There are 29 jars/pots which were of many sizes and
shapes and are viewed unique from each other. As for its importance to pre-
Filipino history, same as the Manunggul jar, the anthropomorphic pots also give us
a clue of the practices of our ancestors, particularly about their view of death and
burial.
Butuan ivory seal

The Butuan ivory seal (BIS)
was recovered from the 1970s. It
was found in Libertad, Butuan City,
Agusan del Norte. Archaeologists
date the artifact to be from 9th-12th
century AD, which is still significantly
happened before the first colonizers
came to the Philippine islands. It is
described to have been made of
ivory tusks made from a rhinoceros
horn. It also sports the word “But-
Ban”(Butuan) in the ancient writing
script Kavi/Kawi/Ancient Javanese.
The writing was deciphered by Dr.
Antoon Postma, a Dutch expert on Figure 4 Butuan Ivory Seal. (from:
Kavi. This ivory seal is said to have https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/nationalmu
been used to stamp documents of seumbeta/Collections/Archaeo/seal.png)
trade and commerce in Butuan
during the olden days. This artifact is a very important relic of the past which
serves as evidence to the existence of a complex trading system in the islands and
its neighbors. It also gives us an idea of the existence of old writing systems in the
islands before the Spaniards introduced the writing system we are familiar with
now.
Butuan silver strip

The Butuan silver strip, also known as Butuan silver paleograph, is a 17.8
by 1.3 cm strip made of silver which sports engraving said to may have been
carved out using a knife. It was said to have been found in one wooden coffin by
treasure hunters. It eventually ended up in the hands of the city engineer of Butuan,
Proceso Gonzales. Based on the writings in the artifact, experts date the artifact
to have been from the 14th to 15th century. The writing is said to be in Eskaya script,
a script said to be originating in Bohol. Dr. Beochari of Indonesia pointed out that
the script used in the silver strip is also similar to Kavi (ancient Javanese). As for
its importance to Philippine history, it also serves as evidence of the existence of
pre-Filipino writing scripts that are related to our neighboring countries. Aside from
that, it can also be evidence of trading since silver is a metal that is not existent or
at the very least rare in our land.
Figure 5. Butuan Silver Strip. (from: http://bibingka.baybayin.com/dahon/mystery/silver.html)

Many other important artifacts in the pre-Filipino period in the Philippines

are listed and exhibited in the National Museum of the Philippines
(https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/). Among the many, the Laguna
Copperplate Inscription is noteworthy since it is the earliest dated evidence of a
writing system in the Philippines. Another is the Golden Tara which connects our
ancestors to our neighboring lands through religion, particularly Hinduism.

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ScSc12n – Readings in Philippine History

Department of Liberal Arts and Behavioral Sciences

Lesson 2.1: Pre-Filipino Historical Source

Figure 1 A concept map of the Tabon remains

The figure above is an example of using concept mapping to process

Maitum anthropomorphic jars

Butuan ivory seal

Butuan silver strip

Figure 5. Butuan Silver Strip. (from: http://bibingka.baybayin.com/dahon/mystery/silver.html)

Many other important artifacts in the pre-Filipino period in the Philippines

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