FINGER-MARKED DESIGNS ON ANCIENT BRICKS IN MYANMAR U AUNGMYINT AND ELIZABETH MOORE SCHOOL FOR ORIENTAL AND AFRICAN STUDIES UNIVERSITY OF LONDON Introduction heavy, and not very useful as individual pieces. Immense quantities are needed for the construction of a city wall or Bricks with finger-marked designs are found at many stupa. Generally, the transportation of this number of bricks of the ancient cities of Myanmar. A comparative study of the is cumbersome and uneconomical over great distances, so that bricks, the designs, and the sites where they are found has bricks are manufactured locally or in the neighbourhood of a been conducted over the last twenty-five years. Aerial pho­ structure. This appears to have been the case even at Pagan, tographs have long been used in Myanmar, but there has situated in a rain-shadowed area and without sufficient local­ been no previous classification of the ancient settlements, ized woodlands to fuel brick kilns. Pagan's bricks were supplied by many surrounding villages, all within the eco­ numbering over one hundred, whose walls and/ or moats nomical transportation limits. A large number of Pagan bricks make them visible from the air. Aerial discovery has also bear village names indicating sources of supply; some, such prompted initial excavations by the Department of Archaeol­ as Sale, are on the west bank of the Irrawaddy River (Dr. ogy, for example at Maingmaw and Kyaikkatha. Using a Than Tun 1973). sample of the ancient cities, it has been possible to initiate Thus for the construction of a city wall, the produc­ comparison of common artifacts recovered from surface sur­ tion and firing of the bricks would have been carried out by vey. These include coins, beads, and bricks. It is hoped that the local people. Alternatively, if local expertise was lacking, publication of this work can encourage recording of more technicians may have been brought in from elsewhere to give finger-marked bricks in Myanmar, and in other regions of instruction on methods of making and firing bricks. In this South and Southeast Asia. way, expertise in brick making could easily spread. Changes The finger-marked patterns of Myanmar bricks con­ in the patterns marked on the bricks offer a means of charting stitute a cultural tradition which coincides with the construc­ the spread of this technology. The finger-marked designs tion of Mon and Pyu walled cities in the early centuries of the found on a percentage of the bricks also implies large-scale Christian era. The practice faded out by the early Ava period production requiring a systematic means of recording output. (13th-14th century). Many of the artifacts such as beads and The designs can be divided into seven stages, forming a scale coins, diagnostic of this era, are easily collected or traded, of increasing sophistication: perhaps as a souvenir or gift. Bricks, however, are bulky, (1) haphazard markings with no preconceived pattern or design (2) known patterns repeated with variations, includ­ Note on spellings: As "Myanmar" and "Yangon" are now in common ing simple lines, straight, curved or diagonal usage, this spelling has been used in this article in place of "Burma" (3) greater complexity in the patterns, still using the · and "Rangoon". However, for ease of recognition and because of same straight, curved or diagonal elements different means of transcription, many other placenames have been left. For example, we have used Tavoy (not Dawe or Dawei), Prome (4) finger-drawn numbers, symbols or letters (not Pyi or Pyee), Irrawaddy (not Ayarwady or Eyarwady), Pegu (not (5) stamped symbols, numbers, or letters, imprinted Bago or Pago), Salween (not Thanlwin), Sittang (not Sittaung). initially or as overmarks on finger-drawn lines 82 U AUNG MYINT AND ELIZABETH MOORE ... ........ .... ' I I I I I MAINGMAW I I \ \ \ \ N ' \ ' \ 1:>\ +c..'\ "~\ 1 \ ' \ ' \ ' ' ',_,..,.. ... - /\, I \, \,,OHNHNEPOK 0 ', 0 0 0 ' ' c 0 c r·-'-:::.... ----. ,.,. •••• •• •• • ....... , ~INGMAW,.," 11 1 ; " \·.;.-a.,.~-~ .. -- ... -I" " ,' I' · -~--· · \ I I / \ Q \ .. l I /', I 1 NYAUNGBINTH I / !\'•.NANDAW~A PAGODA \ _,,/ ,. .i··,.~ ) I I oo Ioo /' ... •· : \ I I ' I ; / '.-··· : \ / I I 1., / ......_ ,...,., "" I 1 ,.,"" ,,· -- ~ -- ' I /"' I ,/ : \ I --- I / I' --- - ·,- \.... - ~ l .. " ----- -'- - -\- - -- - -_I \ I \ I I I \ J I I / 1 ~----I,..>, \0 \,....>, l';t \~ \;.!_ 500 1000 It$, METRES \~\Cl \ Map 2 FINGER-MARKED DESIGNS ON ANCIENT BRICKS IN MYANMAR 83 (6) letters which are scribed, pressed, stamped or writ­ Maingmaw, Beikthano, Srikshetra, Halin, and Waddi con­ ten as overmarks on bricks tained predominantly rounded grains. Thi13 study, conducted (7) bricks with reliefs, emblems or other decorative in the mid-1970's by Kyoto University, tabUlated the presence designs of three types of rice husks embedded in eighty-two samples Of note also is the correlation between developments of old bricks. The types were rounded grains found on early­ in brick-marking techniques and the enclosure of Pyu and maturing paddy, large grain upland rice, and slender late­ Mon centres. Similarities in city shape, and finger-marked maturing paddy. The results found that the rounded grains designs on the bricks used to build those cities, present a predominated up through the Pagan period. From the 12th significant means of understanding the high degree of inter­ century AD, the percentage of the slender type increased in change which took place between two cultures traditionally the dry-zone Kyaukse region. Today, these late-maturing defined as distinct entities. The presence of finger-marked varieties, many more of which were introduced in the late bricks in the U Thong Museum, Thailand, suggests much 19th century, are the most common (Watabe & Tanaka 1981). future research there as well. Unfortunately, dating of the brick samples was not carried out during the research. Marked Bricks: Definition and De­ Ancient Cities Included scription The presence of marked bricks has been verified at the Marked bricks are found among the bricks of city walls, twenty-two sites, listed below, which are described in this ruined stupas, and other brick structures at cities up to the report [Map 1]. Many have been subject to ground surirey, Ava period. The designs have been made with one or a but many more await inspection. The sites are arranged in number of fingers being drawn across the surface of a soft order of archaeological importance in relation to the size of brick prior to drying and firing. The marks appear on a the ancient scars made by old walls and moats. broad face, in the middle, towards one or the other end, or across the width. Sometimes the brick is marked straight or 1. Beikthano 12. Taungdwingyi diagonally along the whole length. A few examples have 2. Halin 13. Thagara (Tavoy) irregular wavy lines. There are a number of indications that 3. Srikshetra 14. Pinle the patterns were made by fingers. 4. Maingmaw 15. Zothok The maximum number of lines is four, made just deep 5. Thaton 16. Winka enough to make the lines stand out boldly. Exceptions are 6. Kyaikkatha 17. Taikkala weathered bricks where exposure has eroded the marks. Two 7. Waddi 18. Paan or three parallel lines are the most common, a position easily 8. Thegon 19. Waw (Kyontu) taken by the middle two or three fingers of the human hand. 9. Pagan 20. Mudon (Kawparan) The grooves are smooth and rounded, being about the width 10. Hmawbi (Sanpannagon) 21. Muthin of the finger tips. Had they been formed by a blunt stylus, 11. Tagaung 22. Kawgun (cave) the lines would be thinner and more angular. The width of the parallel lines mirrors that of the four fingers when ex­ Marked Bricks at Maingmaw and tended naturally. It can been seen that the thumb was not used, for when the hand is laid flat on the brick surface, the Nearby Sites line made by the thumb is slightly separate from the close parallel position of the other four fingers. The present study of marked bricks began with The marked bricks recovered from Pyu and Mon sites Maingmaw (21-17 north x 76-12 east) [Map 2], about 50 miles vary in size, but can be divided into two groups. The length, (80.5 kilometres) south of Mandalay and some 20 miles (32 width and thickness of the larger bricks is 43-50 em x 19-25 kilometres) from Kyaukse. Although U Aung Myint first em x 6-9 em (17-20" x 7 1/2-10" x 2 1/2-3 1/2"). The smaller identified the site on aerial photographs in 1965, preliminary bricks are 41-43 em x 18-19 em x 6-7 em. [In the accompany­ survey was only able to be carried out in 1977. ing illustrations, the bricks are not drawn to scale, the empha­ Maingmaw is enclosed by two walls, the first site sis being on the patterns.] Generally, the bricks from a site discovered where both exterior and interior walls are rounded. fall into one or the other size group. However, of note at The diameter of the site, measured to the outer wall, is 3 Srikshetra was the mixture of large and small-size bricks. The kilometres from east to west and 2.5 kilometres from north to bricks at nearby Thegon were relatively small, being 35-41 em south. The diameter within the inner wall measures about long, 15-18 em wide, and 5-6 em thick. eight hundred metres across. Maingmaw appears on aerial Within the matrix of the clay used in making the bricks, photographs as a slightly flattened circle, bisected by the large quantities of rice chaff is found. Analysis of a number Nathlwe Canal from southwest to northeast. The present of these inclusions showed that bricks from the Pyu sites of village of Maingmaw is located in the northern part of the 84 U AUNG MYINT AND ELIZABETH MOORE MAINGMAW BRICKS , 2 13 16 3 15 - 18 5 6 17 8 19 9 10 11 12 2'3 Fig.