Pre-Colonial Burial Practices in Batangas
The province of Batangas, situated along the southwestern coast of Luzon, offers one of the richest archaeological records of pre-colonial mortuary practices in the Philippines. The discoveries in Calatagan and nearby sites reveal complex traditions of burying the dead, with the use of earthenware vessels, imported trade ceramics, and other grave goods providing insights into social identity, ritual behavior, and early connections with the wider Asian world.
The foundation of this scholarship rests on Robert B. Fox’s landmark excavations in Calatagan during the 1950’s. In “The Calatagan Excavations: Two 15th Century Burial Sites in Batangas,” Fox documented two major cemeteries accompanied by a wide array of grave goods1.
These included locally produced earthenware vessels, ornaments, beads, and an impressive number of imported Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese ceramics. The presence of such high-value trade goods in burials suggests both participation in regional maritime exchange networks and the use of imported objects as markers of prestige.
 |
| Above is an AI-generated depiction of an archeological dig site. |
The burials were not uniform in either wealth or arrangement. Some graves contained only simple earthenware offerings, while others featured elaborate combinations of local and imported wares2.
This uneven distribution points to social differentiation among the dead, with certain individuals buried in a manner reflective of elevated status. As archaeologist Grace Barretto-Tesoro has argued in her comparative study of Philippine mortuary contexts, grave goods in Calatagan fit into broader patterns of prestige display across the archipelago3.
Beyond Fox’s pioneering work, later studies have expanded knowledge of Batangas mortuary traditions. Surveys in southeastern Batangas identified additional settlement and burial sites that reinforce the long-standing use of pottery in funerary contexts4.
One particularly important contribution is Amalia De la Torre’s 2008 master’s thesis, which examined the Ulilang Bundok site in Calatagan. Her study provides the clearest evidence for secondary burial in Batangas: human remains, often fragmentary, were reinterred within pottery vessels after initial decomposition5.
This practice, long documented in Palawan and Mindanao, thus finds parallel expression in Batangas, though with distinct vessel forms and fewer anthropomorphic jars.
The mortuary vessels recovered from Batangas burials are diverse in terms of type. The National Museum of the Philippines describes forms such as lugged and spouted pots, squash-shaped vessels, and footed dishes with decorative cut-outs6.
Incised motifs resembling suns or stars also appear on some pieces, suggesting symbolic associations with cosmology or afterlife beliefs. While it is tempting to assign definite meanings, scholars caution against over-interpretation: the archaeological record provides suggestive patterns but not conclusive ritual narratives.
The inclusion of imported ceramics further enriches the picture. Kuang-jen Chang’s dissertation on the social use of trade ceramics argues that in Calatagan, these wares were not mere utilitarian items but socially charged objects deployed in mortuary rituals to express identity and negotiate prestige7.
Their presence alongside local earthenware underlines how Batangas communities selectively engaged with external goods within the framework of indigenous belief systems.
When placed against the broader Philippine context, Batangas burial practices highlight both shared traditions and regional particularities. Secondary burials in pottery vessels occur throughout the archipelago, but the forms used in Batangas differ markedly from the anthropomorphic burial jars of Palawan or the large ossuary vessels of Mindanao8.
This suggests a localized adaptation of a pan-Philippine mortuary practice, shaped by available resources, trade connections, and distinct cultural choices.
Taken together, the evidence establishes Batangas as a significant locus of pre-colonial mortuary practice. From the systematic burial grounds at Calatagan to the secondary interments at Ulilang Bundok, the province offers a nuanced glimpse into Tagalog conceptions of death, community, and the afterlife on the eve of Spanish colonization.
The archaeological record — though fragmentary and open to interpretation — affirms that Batangas communities practiced a complex blend of local and cosmopolitan traditions, embedding their dead within vessels that spoke both of earthly status and spiritual transition.