Page 56 - THE MELANESIA DIASPORA FILE CETAK ISI 10022017

The Hoabinhin Culture developed in North Sumatra—Aceh around 10,000-3,000 years
ago characterized by the inhabiting of pile houses along the coast, and by making use of
sea shells as their main staple food. The disposal of sea shells around the inhabited area
sooner or later piled up so as to form a shell hill. The existence of human beings with lithic
artifacts and eco-facts of other animal remains inside the shell hill provide convincing
evidence of their life style. Another typical aspect of this culture was the stone tools which
were flaked only on one face (monofacial) with retouched sides. Because they were first
found in this region, they were called “Sumatraliths” (Matsumura et al., 2011). Shells
were not only found as food remains disposed of in piles but also in burial sites. A human
skeleton of one of the inhabitants of Australomelanesid Race was found in the shell hill at
Stabat, North Sumatra with an estimated age of 5,000-7,000 years ago (Heekeren, 1972,
Soejono, 1984).
The sites with sea shells in Sumatra are very important as evidence that the
Australomelanesian population of around the end of Ice Age was very likely to have
been not just moving outside the archipelago, but include people who had arrived in the
archipelago from Southeast Asia. Another open air inhabited site is in Paso, at the edge
of Lake Tondano, North Sulawesi. It is characterized by shell exploitation and industry
for making lithic tools made of obsidian and other stones. Based on radiometric dating,
the site was already inhabited at least 7,530±450 years ago (Budhisampoerno, 1985). No
remains of any inhabitants have been found at this site, but based on its ancient dating the
inhabitants were very likely to have been Australomelanesid.
In terms of subsistence life styles, while the coastal inhabitants made use more of the
sea biota without ignoring the land animals and plants, the cave inhabitants made more
use of various kinds of animals living around them. Various kinds of pigs (Suidae),and deer
(Cervidae) werethe most hunted species, while other animals hunted according to their
availability in the neighborhood. In the region of Mount Sewu monkeys (cercopithecidae)
became the dominant hunted animals. In Song Keplek, for example, the remains of these
arboreal animals were dominant, especially in the inhabited layer aged between 8,000-
4,000 years ago (Bellwood, 1979). This finding indicated that monkeys were one of the
main foods, in an environment which was rich with trees and fruits at that time. Monkey
bones were also found used as tools, presumably because of availability and them being
relatively easy to work. Meanwhile, in the Cha Cave in Malaysia, pigs (Sus scrofa and Sus
barbatus) were the main hunted animals among all along the cave inhabitants, the rest are
deer, bear, monkey, rhino, and cow (Simanjuntak, 2002).

56 Chapter 1

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