KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, March 6, 2009: Archaeologists in Malaysia have discovered the main site of an ancient Hindu kingdom that predates the Angkor temples of Cambodia by some 900 years and could be the oldest civilization in the region. The find, made last month in northern Kedah State, could lead to a rewriting of the history books.
Archeological team leader professor Mokhtar Saidi said buildings found at the site indicate it was part of the ancient Hindu kingdom of Bujang, which existed in the area some time in the third century. The Angkor civilization, in Cambodia, flourished from the 12th to 14th centuries.
“We have dated artifacts from what we believe are an administration building and an iron smelter to 1,700 BP (250AD), which sets the Bujang civilization between the third and fourth century AD,” Saidin said. He pointed out that the iron smelter showed that this early civilization was already quite advanced technologically.
“We have 30 more mounds at the site that have to be excavated and we are hoping to also find the port area for the kingdom as it was near the sea,” he said.