Laos' Plain of Jars

Considered one of the poorest nations inthese jars were used as giant urns to bury the
Southeast Asia, you may think that Laos hasdead. Another mystery yet unsolved is how the
nothing to offer being a tourist destination. Thatjars are made. Locals believed that these jars
didn't hinder tourists to discover this archaeologicalwere made from clay, sand, sugar, and animal
wonder that has the makings of being an asiaproducts mixing together to form a cement-like
travel spot. Haven't you heard, there's thismixture.
historical landmark that consists of thousands ofSince the time of Pathet Lao-American war
jars scattered in the highlands of Laos called Plainbegan, most of the jars were destroyed by
of Jars. Situated at Xieng Khouang plain, this Laosbomb explosions leaving bomb craters and trench
pride consists of thousands of stone jars big andsystems in the area. This makes the area
small distributed in the place.dangerous until today due to unexploded bombs
It is believed that this stone jars ages fromthat was a result of massive bombardment of
1,500–2,000 years and older. According to athe recent wars. In fact only three sites of the
local folktale, the emerging of jars began whenplain is safe for visitors and locals alike. Aside from
the king of the giants Khun Jeuam fought andthe huge stone jars, you can also found original
won a battle against the evil ruler Chao Angka.artifacts like Buddhist statues, colonial items and
The king, whose fond of throwing parties brewscraps from the exploded bombs in the US war.
and store huge amounts of lao lao rice wine in thisLike no other, Plain of Jars is the mute witness of
huge stone jars. When the archaeologists studiedLaos' historical occurrence in the past and in the
the jars, they have found burned bones, beadsyears to come.
and iron tools leading them to the conclusion that