General Education Curriculum

COURSE MODULE

For

GEC 007
Readings in Philippine History
School Year 2021-2022
 Table of Contents
Lesson 1 An Introduction to Philippine Historiography: Sources and Discourses

Lesson 2 History of the Philippine Islands

Lesson 3 The Manunggul Jar

Lesson 4 The Laguna Copperplate

Lesson 5 Duties of the Katipunan of the Sons of the People (KKK)

Lesson 6 Act of Declaration of Philippine Independence

Lesson 7 1899 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines (Malolos

Convention)

Lesson 8 Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the

Kingdom of Spain (Treaty of Paris)

Lesson 9 Jose Rizal’s Retraction Controversy

Lesson 10 Convention between the United States of America and Great

Britain Delimiting the Boundary between the Philippine Archipelago

and the State of North Borneo {1930}

Lesson 11 Minutes of the Proceedings on the National Territory of the

Constitutional Convention

Lesson 12 The Role of Islam in the History of the Filipino People

Lesson 13 History of Terrorism in the Philippines

Lesson 14 Agreement on Peace between the Government of the Republic of the

Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front

Lesson 15 Report of the Cholera Epidemic in the Philippines

Lesson 16 Mintal “The Little Tokyo of the Pre-war Philippines”

Week 2
Lesson 3 The Manunggul Jar
By the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

 Identify the parts of the Manunggul jar

 Interpret the significance and symbolisms of the design of the jar
 Relate the design of the jar with the cultural practices of the early civilization
 llustrate the significance of the discovery of the jar to the history of the Philippines

The Manunggul Jar is a secondary burial jar excavated from a

Neolithic burial site in Manunggul cave of Tabon Caves at Lipuun Point at
Palawan dating from 890–710 B.C. The two prominent figures at the top
handle of its cover represent the journey of the soul to the afterlife. The
Manunggul Jar is widely acknowledged to be one of the finest Philippine pre-
colonial artworks ever produced and is a considered a masterpiece. It is
denoted a national treasure and it is designated as item 64-MO-74 by the
National Museum of the Philippines. It is now housed at the Museum of the
Filipino People and is one of the most popular exhibits there. It is made from
clay with some sand soil.
The cultural treasure found in the early
1960’s in Manunggul Cave, Lipuun Point,
Palawan is a secondary burial jar. The
upper portion of the jar, as well as the
cover is incised with curvilinear scroll
designs and painted with natural iron or
hematite. On top of the jar cover or lid is a
boat with two human figures representing
two souls on a voyage to the afterlife. The
boatman is seated behind a figure whose
hands are crossed on the chest. The
position of the hands is a traditional
Filipino practice observed when arranging
the corpse.

The burial jar which is unrivaled in

Southeast Asia and considered as the work
of a master potter, signifies the belief of
early Filipinos in life after death. It is
dated to the late Neolithic Period, about
890-710 B.C.
 Discovery of the Jar
The Manunggul Jar was found by Dr. Robert B. Fox and Miguel Antonio in
1962. It was found alongside the discovery of the remains of Tabon
Man. It was recovered by Dr. Fox in Chamber A of Manunggul Cave in Southwestern
Palawan. Manunggul Cave is one of the Tabon Caves in Lipuun Point. In the
expansion, the Tabon Caves is known to be a site of jar burials with artefacts dating
a range from 4250-2000 BP. Chamber A dates as a Late Neolithic burial site (890-710
BC). Seventy-eight jars and earthenware, including the Manunggul Jar, was
discovered on the subsurface and surface of Chamber A. Each artifact varied in
design and form but was evidently types of funerary pottery.
First Excavation and Response to Discovery
As mentioned earlier, the first ever excavation that gave way to the discovery
of this burial jar is on the year 1964 by Dr. Robert Fox. During that time, he and his
team were excavating the Tabon Cave Complex, specifically in the Lipuun Point. In
Fox’s excavation, it is yet the most unusual in all angles. The inside of the jar
contains human bones which are covered in red paint. Like the Egyptian burial
practice, the jar was also found to be equipped with numerous bracelets.
“... is perhaps unrivaled in Southeast Asia, the work of an artist and a master potter.”
— These words were said by Robert Fox when asked as to how he would describe
the jar’s origin, based from its appearance.

Design of the Jar

The fine lines and complex design of the Manunggul Jar reflect the artistry of the early Filipinos.
The Manunggul Jar shows that the Filipinos' maritime culture is paramount
that it reflected its ancestors' religious beliefs. Many epics around the Philippines
would tell how souls go to the next life, aboard boats, pass through the rivers and
seas. This belief is connected with the Austronesian belief of the anito. The fine
lines and intricate designs of the Manunggul Jar reflect the artistry of early Filipinos.
These designs are proof of the Filipinos' common heritage from the Austronesian-
speaking ancestors despite the diversity of the cultures of the Filipinos.
The upper part of the Manunggul jar, as well as the cover, is carved with
curvilinear scroll designs which are painted with hematite. The depiction of sea-
waves on the lid places this Manunggul jar in the Sa Huỳnh culture pottery tradition.
These are people that migrated in an East to West migration from the Borneo-
Palawan area to Southern Vietnam. Early Filipinos believed that a man is composed
of a body, a life force called ginhawa, and a kaluluwa.
This explains why the design of the cover of the Manunggul Jar features
three faces - the soul, the boatman, and the boat itself. The faces of the figures and
on the prow of the boat have eyes and mouth rendered in the same style as other
artifacts of Southeast Asia of that period. The two human figures in a boat represent
a voyage to the afterlife. The boatman is holding a steering paddle while the one on
his front shows hands crossed on his chest. The steersman's oar is missing its paddle,
as is the mast in the center of the boat, against which the steersman would have
braced his feet. The manner in which the hands of the front figure are folded across the
chest is a widespread practice in the Philippines when arranging the corpse. The cover of
Manunggul Jar provides a clear example of a cultural link between the archeological past
and the ethnographic present. It also signifies the belief of ancient Filipinos in life after
death.
The Manunggul Jar tells us of our connections with our Southeast Asian
neighbors. The design is a proof of our common heritage from our Austronesian-
speaking ancestors despite the diversity of the cultures of the Philippine peoples.5
Traces of their culture and beliefs can still be seen in different parts of the country and
from different Philippine ethno-linguistic groups, reminding us that there can be a
basis for the so-called “imagined community” called the Filipino nation.
The Manunggul Jar tells us of how important the waters were to our ancestors.
Before the internet, the telephone, the telegram, and the plane, the seas and the rivers
were their conduit of trade, information and communication.6 In the Philippine
archipelago, that, according to Peter Bellwood, the Southeast Asians first developed a
sophisticated maritime culture which made possible the spread of the Austronesian-
speaking peoples to the Pacific Islands as far Madagascar in Africa and Easter Island
near South America.Our ships—the balanghay, the paraw, the caracoa, and the like—
were considered marvelous technological advances by our neighbors that they
respected us and made us partners in trade, these neighbors including the imperial
Chinese.
The Manunggul Jar shows that our maritime culture is so paramount to us
that it reflected our ancestor’s religious beliefs. Many epics around the Philippines
would tell us of how souls go to the next life aboard boats, passing through the
rivers and seas. The belief is very much connected with the Austronesia belief in the
anito. Our ancestors believed that man is composed of the body, the life force called
the ginhawa, and the kaluluwa. The kaluluwa, after death, can return to earth to
exist in nature to guide their descendants. This explains why the design of the cover
of the Manunggul Jar features three faces, those of the soul, of the boat driver, and of
the boat itself. For them, even things from nature have souls, have lives of their own.
That’s why our ancestors respected nature more than those who thought that it can be
used for the ends of man.

Source: https://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/nationalmuseumbeta/Collections/Archaeo/
Manunggul.htm
Requirements:

1. Given the map below, extracted from Google Earth, the Tabon Caves in the
Lipuun Point of Palawan where the Manunggul Jar was discovered are facing the
South China Sea and the Spratly Islands. Below the Palawan peninsula is the
island of Borneo. Do you find any relationship between the symbolism of the
design of the jar and the surrounding environment? What do you think is the
source of inspiration in such design given its environment?
2. Using your own analysis of the map, formulate your own theory of the possible role
of the Palawan peninsula in the history of civilization in the early Philippines.
Map generated from Google Earth

Palawan Peninsula

Manunggul, Tabon Caves

Lipuun Point,
Lesson 4 The Laguna Copperplate
By the end of this lesson, the student will be able to:

 Restate the English translation of the inscription in the copperplate

 Explain the relevance of the discovery of the copperplate to Philippine
historiography
 Justify the existence of advanced Philippine civilization prior to the arrival of the
Spaniards
Requirement:

1. What do you think is the use of the discovered copperplate in Laguna in

writing the history of the Philippines?
2. The copperplate was accidentally discovered by a man who was dredging
sand in Lumbang River in Laguna. Dredging is part of a quarrying activity for
the purpose of accumulating sand and gravel for construction purposes.
With the emergence of many quarrying activities now a days, do you think
there is still a possibility of discovering more artifacts with the same value as
the Laguna copperplate? What do you think is the role of the National
Historical Commission in making sure that areas with possible historical
value are protected and regulated?
3. Presidential Decree No. 1586 declares that any area which has historical
significance or has unique historic, archaeological, and scientific interests
are considered environmentally critical. Hence, the place where the
copperplate was discovered should be now considered environmentally
critical area. You are hereby tasked to produce any evidence like news clips,
online article, or photo or any document to prove that the area where the
copperplate was discovered is already protected by the government. If
there is none, you are going to formulate recommendation to any
concerned government agency or local government unit.