Some discoveries on the Tembeling
W. Linehan published this article in 1928 in the Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, reporting on archaeological finds exposed by the great floods of 1926–27 along the Tembeling River in Pahang. The overarching thesis is that the Tembeling valley was once home to a non-Malay (likely Siamese) settlement engaged in iron smelting, bronze casting, and cannon manufacture, flourishing roughly from the 14th to the mid-15th century before the Malaccan Malay conquest.
Summary
The article reports on four sites along the Tembeling River—Jeram Kwi, Kuala Nyong, Teluk Lubok Puai, and Bukit Jong—where the 1926–27 floods had torn away riverbank earth and exposed buried artefacts. Linehan frames these discoveries as evidence of pre-Malay inhabitants of Pahang, connecting them to the historical narrative in the Malay Annals of Siamese rule over the state and its eventual expulsion by Malaccan Malays in the mid-15th century. The fragmentary nature of the investigation is acknowledged; in no case did time permit thorough excavation, and the urgency of follow-up work is noted given the possibility that the river may shift its course in subsequent seasons.
The core argument rests on associating the material finds with the “Siamese” presence recorded in the Annals. At Jeram Kwi, the discovery of clay gun-moulds, crucibles, and iron slag suggests a settlement where iron smelting and cannon manufacture took place using the cire perdue casting method. Linehan draws a parallel with the continuing practice of toy-cannon casting in Trengganu, speculating that the same ethnic group may be responsible for both. At Teluk Lubok Puai, the most significant find is a large decorated bronze “urn lid” which Linehan interprets as the cover of a bronze cremation urn for a chief, drawing an analogy with the practice still observed among the Siamese. The stone open moulds for casting leaf-shaped spearheads are noted as the first of their kind found in Malaya.
The article also addresses the technological stage of the people whose traces were found. At Bukit Jong, the coexistence of highly finished bronze objects, crudely wrought iron implements, and stone ornaments (bracelets, quoit-like discs) leads Linehan to characterise them as early Iron Age settlers who had not yet abandoned attractive stone for special uses and were skilled in bronze but novices in iron. The Malay Annals and local traditions—the “Siamese” settlement at Bukit Kepayang, the Toh Ala Inang legend—serve as corroborating textual evidence for the identification and dating of the settlement.
Key Findings
- At Jeram Kwi (approximately 60 miles up the Tembeling), a clay mould of the breech part of a cannon was found, measuring 19.9 cm in length with a barrel diameter of 7 cm and wall thickness of 1.3 cm, alongside multiple other gun-mould fragments, clay crucibles, and quantities of iron slag (pp. 67–69).
- The bronze “urn lid” found near Teluk Lubok Puai is 69 cm in diameter, decorated with a ten-pointed sun, concentric circles, and two crested long-beaked birds in flight, and is interpreted as the cover of a bronze cremation urn for a chief (pp. 72–74).
- Two open stone moulds for casting leaf-shaped bronze or iron spearheads, measuring 27 and 30 cm in length, were found at Teluk Lubok Puai; Linehan identifies these as the first of their kind discovered in Malaya (p. 72).
- At Bukit Jong, six ancient iron implements were recovered from a runnel leading to the river, including falchion-shaped tools, chisel-like tools with rounded hafts, a scraper, a knife, and a small-socketed pick-axe, most appearing to be miners’ or metal-workers’ tools (p. 74).
- The stone bracelet from Bukit Jong is made of black stone with a diameter of approximately 5.5–5.7 cm; the quoit-like objects from Bukit Jong and Pasir Kuang measure 14.4 cm and 17.3 cm in outer diameter respectively (pp. 74–75).
- Linehan dates the Jeram Kwi settlement to between the 14th century and the mid-15th century, correlating with the period of Siamese dominance in Pahang before the Malaccan Malay conquest (p. 69).
Conclusion
Linehan concludes that the Tembeling valley was in the past much more extensively inhabited than it is at the present day, serving as the principal inland communication route between Pahang and the northern Peninsula. The convergence of archaeological evidence (iron smelting, bronze casting, cannon manufacture) with the textual record of the Malay Annals and local tradition points to a Siamese settlement that flourished from the 14th to the mid-15th century before being displaced by the Malaccan Malays.
Context
- Linehan was a colonial-era official in Pahang (his precise title is not stated in the article, but his access to district officers, the Sultan’s collection, and his fieldwork methodology are consistent with a British administrative or surveying role). The article reflects the typical colonial-era practice of reporting “discoveries” made during official travel, with the author positioning himself as the discoverer and interpreter of indigenous heritage.
- The article draws on I. H. N. Evans’ contemporary publications in the Journal of the F.M.S. Museums (1928) for typological comparisons of stone implements and pottery, situating the Tembeling finds within the broader archaeological framework being developed for the Malay Peninsula at that time.