The Industry of Empire: Investigating the spatial and technological organization of Angkorian iron production around Phnom Dek, Cambodia
Résumé
Intensive surveys around Phnom Dek, the “Iron Mountain,” in central Cambodia have revealed the presence of a massive iron production landscape dating between the ninth and twentieth centuries. Using a combination of site morphology, spatial distribution, field pXRF analysis and in-slag radiocarbon dating this paper attempts to reconstruct these industrial-scale iron smelting practices with particular emphasis on the Angkorian period (ninth to thirteenth c.). The results will inform on the localized technological systems at work around Phnom Dek and contribute to the broader question of how iron enabled the expansion of Angkor across medieval mainland Southeast Asia