Kebudayaan dan Tradisi Pengebumian Keranda kayu Balak Kuno di Sabah: Satu Pengenalan

Abstract

The culture and tradition of burial using ancient timber in Sabah has been discovered by archeologists over the years. Thirteen locations were found with timber coffins of the belian, meranti, merbau and seranyah types, and are of various sizes and carvings based on vegetation, animal and geometrical designs. These timber coffins were found in caves which were marked by wooden signs at the mouths of the caves to denote the number of graves inside, and the families that were buried there. The coffins which are accompanied by other artifacts have ages that ranged between 1000 and 1400 years old. These discoveries show there were similarities and uniqueness between timber coffins in Sabah and other places in Sooutheast Asia and China.