The metal age of Thailand and Ricardo's Law of Comparative Advantage

A systematic analysis of metal assemblages from Ban Chiang and related sites in northeast Thailand challenges traditional top-down interpretations of the region's metal age development. The study proposes a testable model based on Ricardo's Law of Comparative Advantage, which emphasizes regional exchange systems as the foundation for resilient, peaceful prehistoric societies dating from approximately 2100 BCE to 300 CE. These networks facilitated heterarchical political and economic systems, where goods and valuables circulated among decentralized communities in the middle Mekong and Chao Phraya basins, both before and during the metal age.

White, J. C., & Hamilton, E. G. (2021). The metal age of Thailand and Ricardo’s Law of Comparative Advantage. Archaeological Research in Asia, 27, 100305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ara.2021.100305