ARCHEOLOGY OF THE PHILIPPINES—JANSE 347 
tling discoveries in Honan and Kansu about 1920, most scholars were 
inclined to deny the existence of a Stone Age civilization in China. 
How the Philippines first learned the use of metals—a step of capital 
importance for the promotion of the material advancement of any 
civilization—is still another problem clothed in mystery. It has been 
assumed that the Dong-son civilization—spread over large areas in 
southwestern China and southeast Asia—reached the Philippines from 
the region of the Gulf of Tonkin at the beginning of the Christian Era. 
The Dong-sonians were well acquainted with the utilization of metals, 
especially bronze and iron. Consequently it would be tempting to 
connect the introduction of the knowledge of metals and their use in the 
Philippines to the Chinese-inspired Dong-son civilization. As tan- 
gible evidences of this civilization had been found in many places in 
Indochina and as far south as the East Indies, it is not unreasonable 
to anticipate the possibility of the discovery in the Philippines of 
items characteristic of the “Dong-sonian.” However, there are no 
facts yet known which could substantiate the theory linking the Dong- 
son civilization to the introduction of metallurgy in the Philippines. 
It can be taken for granted that China and India were the main 
sources of cultural impact prior to the Spanish intervention. The 
time or period when these influences first made themselves felt and the 
extent to which they affected the daily life of the inhabitants, spiritu- 
ally or materially, are still open questions. It is known, however, that 
there were trade relations with Siam in the fourteenth and fifteenth 
centuries and that these relations may have brought to the Philippines 
both Chinese and Indian cultural elements. Though Chinese chroni- 
cles mention Philippine relations with China during the Sung dynasty 
(960-1126), it is possible that China exercised some influence in the 
Islands prior to this period. Another problem concerns the effect of 
Arabic and Muslim influences, especially in the southern islands. 
Only the spade of the archeologist, however, can provide the answers 
to these questions. 
These are only a few of the problems which archeologists will have 
to face in the future. If adequately supported and guided, young 
Filipino scientists will find here in years to come a vast and fruitful 
field of research. 
RECENT DISCOVERIES OF EARLY MING WARES IN THE PHILIPPINES 
It is not within the scope of this paper to deal with all these ques- 
tions. Instead, a single problem has been selected as a sample for a 
more detailed study, namely, Chinese influence during the early Ming 
dynasty (1368-1644) as seen in the light of recent discoveries. 
During this period Chinese ceramic art and handicraft reached one 
of its highest peaks. However, until recently our knowledge of the 
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