The French-Indonesian archaeological project in Kota Cina (North Sumatra): the 2014-2015 excavations

Since 2011, studies have been conducted on the old settlement site of Kota Cina, near Medan, in North Sumatra, in the framework of a French-Indonesian archaeological project. The aims of this article are to introduce the preliminary results of the 2014 and 2015 excavations, to refine comparisons between excavated areas at the site as well as comparisons with other more or less contemporary sites in North Sumatra as regards density of several types of finds, and finally to discuss research prospects based on the progress of the project. Fifty-one excavations covering some 384 m² have been excavated since 2011, including 194 m² in 2014-2015. These last two years of excavation notably yielded some 97,000 earthenware shards, some 32,000 stoneware and porcelain shards, some 89 kilograms of faunal and human remains, and more that 300 coins. This article discusses the density and distribution of religious buildings, midden layers, wood remains, and present intra-site comparisons regarding earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. Based on comparisons with three other old settlement sites in North Sumatra, Kota Cina appears to be the richest site, whether in earthenware, stoneware, porcelain, or in faunal remains.