I thought it a little odd that my notes termed Halin a "Pyu/Mon" site, but they did. It must have been something Bob mentioned, or my misunderstanding of its location as being further south than it is.
Its hard for me to figure the influences here. Indic influence in much of SEA was what I think can be called social rather than material - in other words, ideas (religious and political), art & architectural styles (as cultural expressions rather than functional constructs), literature, ritual, and such, rather than more basic material things such as tools, weapons, boats, wagons, everyday clothing, etc. There was never a direct invasion or domination by an Indian polity. On the other hand, with regard to the western parts, i.e., Burma & Arrakan, there was actual migration from the Indian cultural sphere. I wonder whether these leaf-bladed daggers with the hourglass handles were brought along by the migrating people, so to speak, and thus "native" to Pyu culture, or emulated, and thus derived from Indic culture. I don't have a copy of Elgood's "Hindu Arms & Ritual," but maybe someone who does will find more evidence to clarify the connection.
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