Bulletin of the Geological Society of Malaysia, Volume 29, July 1991, pp. 157 – 169
Department of Geology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi
Abstract: Natural and synthetic gem artifacts discovered at the Pulau Kalumpang archaeological site, are identified as beryl, sodalite, moldavite, plasma, aventurine, quartz cat‘s eye, analcime, jasper and glass beads with the latter predominating in quantity over the others. These gems were fashioned as facetted, cylindrical or spheroidal beads with each containing an axial string hole. The style of cutting, grinding and polishing seen in these gem artifacts are relatively inferior in terms of modern day lapidary practices, but nevertheless authenticate that these gems are relicts of past cultures. The glass beads which are allochromatic, commonly show annealing features as well as conchoidal fractures. From the geology of the Malay Peninsula, it can be inferred that the gem relicts were not locally mined, but had been imported from elsewhere such as India, Middle East and perhaps China. The glass beads were probably imported from elsewhere, with some being synthesized locally.
Besides the gem artifacts, several rock artifacts had also been unearthed. The rock artifacts which occur mainly as pebbles and cobbles of varying sizes, are identified as sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, chert, quartz, schist and basic igneous rock. Since rocks of similar lithology occur in abundance in the vicinity of the archaeological site, it can be inferred that these rock artifacts, unlike the gem artifacts, were derived from local sources.
Abstrak: Beberapa artifak batu permata tabii dan buatan yang ditemui di tapak arkeologi Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia di Pulau Kalumpang telah dikenal pasti sebagai beril, sodalit, moldavit, plasma, aventurin, kuarza mata kuching, analsim, jasper dan paling banyak adalah manik kaca. Batu permata ini merupakan manik-manik yang berbentuk persegi, selinder atau sferoidal yang mempunyai lubang benang di tengah-tengahnya. Mutu bentuk rupa potongan, asahan dan gilapan pada artifak batu permata ini jauh lebih rendah berbanding dengan mutu pengukiran Moden. Walau bagaimanapun batu permata ini amat penting kerana boleh menjadi bukti kepada kesan peninggalan kebudayaan lama. Manik kaca yang ditemui adalah bersifat alokromatik dan menunjukkan fitur sepuh lindap dan retakan lelokan. Daripada geologi Semenanjung Malaysia dapat disimpulkan bahawa artifak batu permata tabii ini tidak diperolehi secara lokal tetapi kemungkinan telah diimpot dari luar negeri seperti India, Timur Tengah dan kemungkinan China. Manik kaca yang ditemui juga diimpot daripada luar dan mungkin sebahagian daripadanya telah disintesiskan semula secara lokal.
Selain daripada artifak batu permata, beberapa artifak batuan juga telah ditemui. Batuan ini berbentuk pebel dan kobel dengan saiz yang berbagai-bagai, dan terdiri daripada batu pasir, batu lumpur, rijang, kuarza, skis dan batuan igneous basa. Oleh kerana batuan yang sama litologi banyak terdapat di sekitar kawasan kajian, maka dapat disimpulkan bahawa artifak batuan ini kemungkinan besar juga berasal dari kawasan yang sama.
https://doi.org/10.7186/bgsm29199105
