Central Thailand: U Thong - Key Player of Early SE Asian Civilization | Dvaravati | อู่ทอง

#Thailand #travel #history ☕ Please help support my channel by buying me a coffee here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/willetts... Thank you! 🙏 The ancient town of U Thong, in the west of Suphanburi province, lies about 30km SW of Suphanburi town. It boasts a rich history spanning over 2,000 years and is recognized as a significant archaeological site and a key player in the early development of Southeast Asian civilization, particularly during the Dvaravati period that existed between the 6th and 11th centuries. U Thong's strategic location on trade routes led to its prosperity and cultural exchange with other regions, as evidenced by artifacts like Roman coins and imported beads. U Thong was one of the largest known city-states that emerged on the plains of central Thailand in the first millennium AD but became abandoned around 1000 AD due to an endemic that lost its major trading routes. Radiocarbon dating from the sites of U-Thong suggest that the transition into complex state societies in the area took place between about 300-600 AD. You can still see the original settlement measuring 1700m by 850m surrounded by a moat from satellite images. According to archaeological evidence found in the area, it has been suggested that U Thong was probably the centre or used to be a colony of the Funan Kingdom since the 1st century AD; however, when the Funan Kingdom lost its power, U Thong became an important trade city of the succeeding Dvaravati Kingdom, in the 7th-11th century. Back during this period, the shoreline of the Gulf of Thailand was far more inland to the north than it currently is, making U Thong play a role as an important port city in the area. It had trade contacts with the West, from the Indians to the Greeks and Romans as well as to countries in SE Asia and China. Evidence found in the area, including glazed Chinese ceramics from the Tang dynasty, beads and jewellery from India, Persian wares, and many other artefacts from Greece, Rome, China, and the Middle East, proves the area was contacted by external territories. The trade also brought Brahmanism and Buddhism from India to U Thong, making it the first settlement to practice such religions in the region. However, around the 11th century, navigable rivers dried up meaning that U Thong lost its influence as a port and it was subsequently abandoned. Instead, the city was relocated to where Suphanburi is today on the Tha Chin river. The area around U Thong was later resettled during the Ayutthaya period as it was the origin of the Ayutthaya Kingdom due to the fact that the new kingdom’s first ruler, Ramathibodi, also known as Prince U Thong, when the city was struck by an epidemic, prompting him to relocate east to what would become Ayutthaya. U Thong was abandoned again, in 1767, after Ayutthaya was sacked by Burmese troops. It was later resettled in the mid-19th century and today is a tourist destination thanks to its ruins and excavated sites. In this video, I explore these ruins as well as a fantastic not-to-be-missed national museum full of artifacts found in the area, plus also visit a Buddha sculpture carved out of a rock face. 0:00 - Intro 2:10 - History 5:11 - National Museum 11:39 - Ruean Lao Song Museum 14:20 - Ancient Ruins 15:44 - Wat Khao Phra Si Sanphet 20:34 - Phra Phuttha Pusayakiri Sri Suwannaphum Locations of the places visited in this video are as follows: 📍 National Museum: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ab5vHksUJFRTh... 📍 Ruean Lao Song Museum: https://maps.app.goo.gl/bwPDsB3kd31Xc... 📍 Ancient Site (Chedi) No. 2: https://maps.app.goo.gl/rj2uNwjQz8Mgy... 📍 Ancient Ruins: https://maps.app.goo.gl/JjdabpCstSyYL... 📍 Wat Khao Phra Si Sanphet: https://maps.app.goo.gl/k4MonWDBe4mac... 📍 Phra Phuttha Pusayakiri Sri Suwannaphum: https://maps.app.goo.gl/SBSCcr1oZfmng...