Megalithic remains in North Borneo
H.G. Keith reports on a series of Tenghilan Dusun cromlechs discovered in January 1937 near Kampong Sarambutan, West Coast Residency, North Borneo, arguing that megalithic remains in the region are more common than previous literature suggests (p. 153).
Summary
Keith challenges Banks’s assertion that megalithic remains are “singularly lacking” from Borneo, noting that while written references are few, the actual remains are not as rare as the silence of earlier authors might imply (p. 153). The site, located about a quarter mile south-east of Mile 36½ on the Tuaran–Kota Belud bridle path, consists of upright stones surrounding rectangular grave-houses, some planted in the ground and others merely resting on the surface and supported by the decaying structures (p. 153). The stones are uncarved and comparable to the “upright stones” of Sumatra as illustrated by van der Hoop (p. 154). Jars are also present as grave markers but are not used as burial vessels (p. 154). Keith notes that the practice of marking graves with upright stones appears to still be in use at the time of his visit, and that nearby roughly hewn four-sided stone pillars used as house posts may represent remnants of former house sites (p. 154).