TG. BUNGAH, PENANG, 4 July 2018 – The Centre for Global Archaeological Research (CGAR) at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) recently hosted the 23rd Suyanggae International Symposium with the theme ‘Suyanggae & Lenggong: Prehistory Adaptation’ from 1-7 July 2018.

“This is the first time the symposium has been held in Southeast Asia, and I am delighted that USM has been given the honour to host the symposium in Malaysia.

“It is a good opportunity for the staff from CGAR to learn from the Suyanggae International Symposium Committee (SISEC) by working together, and for SISEC to assist the centre, as we only have a small number of archaeologists in Malaysia.”

The USM Vice-Chancellor, Professor Datuk Dr. Asma Ismail stated the above at the opening ceremony of the 23rd Suyanggae International Symposium held here.

She also congratulated Professor Dato’ Dr. Mokhtar Saidin, the Director of CGAR for collaborating with the well-known researchers in this International Symposium. Based on its track record, CGAR has also proven to be among the world’s best archaeological research centres, with 30 years of experience in research.

“I would like to implore SISEC and CGAR to discuss further on what have been learnt between both sides during this symposium, build stronger networking, and think on how to attract more people to get involved with archaeological research, especially the younger generations,” she remarked.

The annual symposium led by Professor Lee Yung-jo from the Institute of Korean Prehistory and SISEC was also attended by world-class archaeologists from 12 countries including China, Japan, Russia, Poland, Australia and the United States among others.

This symposium also commemorates the late Chairman Kim Jae-ho, who was instrumental in establishing the Suyanggae International Symposium in 1996.

At the same ceremony, Prof. Lee presented the 12th Suyanggae Academic Award 2018 to Professor Sato Hiroyuki from the Department of Archaeology, Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, The University of Tokyo, Japan for his valuable contributions to the close-knit community of Suyanggae Family, in the area of research and development of prehistoric archaeology.

Suyanggae is a valley in South Korea, rich with archaeological evidence that was discovered in 1996, while Lenggong Valley in Perak, Malaysia was recognised as a World Heritage Site in 2012 and is regarded as having the richest archaeological treasures in Southeast Asia. It also holds evidence of human occupation since 1.83 million years ago.

Meanwhile, Mokhtar said, Suyanggae and Lenggong highlight a comparative study of two isolated sites with evidence of similarities, especially in the topography of both areas. Both valleys revealed significant prehistoric evidence and their impact on world archaeology.

“The week-long symposium provided a unique opportunity for researchers, postgraduate students, policymakers, NGOs and the heritage community to meet together and discuss and debate the current issues in world prehistoric archaeology.

“On top of that, established and well-known researchers who called themselves ‘Neighbours of Suyanggae’ from across the globe, including Korea, Malaysia, Japan, China, Russia, Poland, USA, Czech Republic, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Australia, shared their knowledge on global prehistoric research and development,” he added.

The symposium participants were also brought for site visits to the Centre for Global Archaeological Research (CGAR) in USM, Lenggong Valley and Sungai Batu Archaeological Complex in Kedah.

The symposium was supported by Perak and Penang state government, MSI Technologies (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. and DKSH Technology Sdn. Bhd.

Text: Puteri Najwa Othman (MPRC intern) & Tan Ewe Hoe