The Mysterious Plain of Jars
The thousands of stone jars scattered on the most enigmatic plain on earth. In what ancient time did the plain witness the existence of these stone jars to form a bizarre archeological collections in history? Although they have been determined to be over 2000 years old, the mystery of purpose and the appearance of the stones are still remained today.
From Vientiane, tourists will be taken to the north national highway 13 through Phou Kuod ( Mount Kun), then go straight to Luang Prabang. Xieng Khouang located in the northeast of Laos with mountainous terrain, elevation from 1.500 to 2.000m, cool climate all year round.
Phonsavan, capital of Xieng Khouang, is 435 km away from Vientiane to the northeast. Xieng Khouang occupies an area of 15.880km2 with a population of about 23,000 people. Ethnic people in Xieng Khouang include: Black Thai, H’Mong people, Lao Lum and Viet people. Lao Sung market sells local made products such as knives, hoes, shovels, etc.
Phou Bia which is the highest mountain in Laos, is 2.820m above the sea level. The road through hills and valleys is tortuous and full of obstacles. Both sides of the road views are forests and waterfalls that make up a very majestic and picturesque scenery. Most of the towns in Xieng Khouang have been destroyed completely by American bombs during the war and then were rebuilt after 1975.
Xieng Khouang is well known for its plain of jars with three main sites around Phonsavan. During American war in Vietnam, plain of jars were the subject to heavily bombings in Laos by US Air Force with attempt to destroy Pathet Laos and prevent North Vietnam ‘s logistics supports to the South via Ho Chi Minh trail. The volume of US bombs dropped this place was enough for each person to suffer 350 tons of bombs from 1964 to 1973 with an average of 8 minutes per mission in total of 580.344.
Today, grass grows full on peaceful vast plain of jars with more than 650 huge stone jars of 1 to 3.5m height and a diameter of about 1m. One of the large jars is over 14 tons weight dating back about 2.500 to 3.000 years.
How the ancient people processed the jars from natural rocks and how they could move them all to this place since the mountains are far at least tens of kilometers away are still a mystery. Another question not yet to be answer definitely is the purpose of making the jars. Have also assumed:
1. These huge jars were made in the reign of leader Khun and used to contain food and wine for soldiers
2. The jars were used for burials the kings, ministers in that period of history. The higher rank the social position was, the larger size the jars took. And over the time, the number of stone jars increased to form the plain of jars today.
Now, archaeologists who study the plain of jars favor of the second theory.
There are two hot springs up to 60°C that is 52 km away to the north of Phosavan bordering Hua Phan province. The number of pagodas in Xieng Khouang is less than that of other places in Laos. Xieng Khouang attracts tourists for its wild landscapes, fresh and original nature.