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Use of in situ silica bodies in identification of rope fibers from the Phanom-Surin shipwreck, Samut Sakhon, Thailand

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Abstract

The remains of an ancient wooden ship were found in a shrimp farm in Samut Sakhon Province, central Thailand, in 2013. The remains, referred to as the Phanom-Surin shipwreck, are thought to be from the ninth century CE. The objective of this project was to investigate ropes from the shipwreck by comparative scanning electron microscopy in an attempt to identify the sources of the rope fibers. Two types of rope were shown to be made from bundles of fiber cells surrounded by files of stegmatal cells containing silica bodies. Stegmata are found in many species of Arecaceae, as well as in several other monocot families. Fibers from a black rope wrapped around a torpedo-shaped jar had hat-shaped silica bodies with a flat base and spinules on the outer surface, similar to those occurring in the palm tribe Caryoteae, which consists of 3 genera, Caryota, Arenga, and Wallichia, restricted to India eastward to the Pacific Islands. The fibers on a second type of rope had spherical silica bodies with spinules, found in many genera of the subfamilies Calamoideae, Coryphoideae, Ceroxyloideae, and Arecoideae, including the coconut, Cocos nucifera. These results are consistent with reports of many ancient sewn ships using ropes made from fibers of the sugar palm, Arenga pinnata, and coconut. A third type of rope was made from a rattan palm. This study demonstrates the usefulness of SEM analysis of silica bodies and cellular anatomy in determining the taxonomy and biogeographic origins of rope fibers from shipwrecks or other sources.

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Data is presented in an appendix. More details of the silica-body measurements are available upon request.

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Acknowledgements

Support was provided by the Northeastern Research Institute of Petrified Wood and Mineral Resources, Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University. Siwat Choomsuk and Kewalee Prompiputtanaponare are thanked for operating the SEM. The Forest Herbarium, Bangkok (BKF) allowed access to their specimens. The 1st Regional Office of Fine Arts Department, Ratchaburi, Thailand, is thanked for allowing study of the shipwreck plant specimens. Two anonymous reviewers of the draft are thanked for helpful comments.

Funding

Funding of this work was supported by the National Research Council, Thailand, and Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University (grant NRMS 2559A13502178) to Wipanu Rugmai.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Northeastern Research Institute of Petrified Wood and Mineral Resources, Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University, Nakhon Ratchasima, 30000, Thailand

    Paul J. Grote & Wipanu Rugmai

  2. Biology Program, Faculty of Science and Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University, Nakhon Ratchasima, 30000, Thailand

    Wipanu Rugmai

  3. Underwater Archaeology Division, Fine Arts Department, Chanthaburi, 22000, Thailand

    Sira Ploymukda

  4. Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn University, Bangkok, 10200, Thailand

    Borisut Boriphon

  5. The 1st Regional Office of Fine Arts Department, Ratchaburi, 70000, Thailand

    Preeyanuch Jumprom

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  1. Paul J. Grote
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Correspondence to Paul J. Grote.

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Appendix

Appendix

Table 1 Species used in comparative study of fibers*
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Grote, P.J., Rugmai, W., Ploymukda, S. et al. Use of in situ silica bodies in identification of rope fibers from the Phanom-Surin shipwreck, Samut Sakhon, Thailand. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 13, 183 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-021-01448-4

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