Bronze drums

Last update : December 3, 2023

Drums of the Đông Sơn type, originating in the north of present-day Vietnam, have been found in Cambodia in tombs. But since this ancient period, we have discovered no occurrences of bronze drums in Angkorian archaeological excavations, and no temple bas-reliefs from this period depict such objects.

The first known reappearance of bronze drums in Cambodia is thanks to two video archives shot during the funerals of kings Norodom Suramarit (1960) and Norodom Sihanouk (2013). In each case, we were able to detect the presence of a pair of Burmese-technology bronze drums, of the Heger III type according to  Franz Heger's classification.

In the funeral procession of King Norodom Suramarit, two brand-new drums are clearly visible. They don't appear to be covered in gold paint or gold leaf, but rather in raw, corrosion-free bronze. The tympanum features a central star and four pairs of copulating frogs forming a square. Two handles make it easy to carry. On the side, from the base of the foot, there are six decorative elements, from bottom to top: (1) medium, (2-3) large and (4-5-6) small. The shaft is decorated with all-round sillets, with the exception of a blank band between decorative elements 2 and 5.

The drums are attached to a simple stand, allowing them to be placed on the ground without touching. They are carried by two men in succession, and struck with a single mallet by a third, walking sideways.

The protocol for King Norodom Sihanouk's funeral was modelled on that of his father, Norodom Suramarit. But fifty-three years had passed between the two events, leaving little chance for living memory to do its work. The archives had to be consulted by the organizers.

In the procession, in front of the Ratanakiri ethnic minorities striking the gongs, two Burmese-technology bronze drums are installed on a stand, itself placed on a wheeled cart. The stand is carved and colored with gold and carmine-red paint. Examination of the images reveals that these are the two drums used at the funeral of King Norodom Suramarit; they have developed a patina of copper oxide. They are now on display in the Throne Room of Phnom Penh's Royal Palace.

In the throne room of Phnom Penh's Royal Palace are two bronze drums with cracked eardrums. We have compared the images below with those from the film of the funerals of kings Norodom Suramarit and Norodom Sihanouk, and confirm that these are the same instruments. Since the funeral, the barrels of the two drums have been painted in two-tone gold and carmine red, as have their supports. The tympanum has a verdigris patina.

We have no information on the origin of these drums. Only questioning the Hindu priests (baku) of the Royal Palace could give us a chance to learn more. We have also not found other examples of the use of bronze drums for royal funerals prior to that of King Norodom Suramarit.

The Cambodian court was not the only one to use bronze drums. The current Thai court also uses it. As for the former royal court of Luang Prabang (Laos), we have not yet found any occurrence of the use of bronze drums. The Royal Palace, now transformed into a museum, nevertheless has a large number of them, all of Burmese technology (Heger III).

Bas-relief of Vat Ang Khna. Sambor Prei Kuk. 7^th century. National Museum of Cambodia.

From the point of view of the Red River kingdoms, creators of bronze drums, the use of this object demonstrates the permanence of beliefs and rituals linked to water as a vital, fertilizing resource. On the tympanum of the instrument, copulating frogs are placed at the four corners. The roll, played by the drummer, imitates the rumble of thunder or the croaking of frogs, either of which heralds rain. In the case of this purification ritual, the bronze drum's role is also to inform the population of the accomplishment of this essential act for the perpetuation of the kingdom.

In short, these symbolic signals herald the kingdom's prosperity: rain, rice, abundance, prosperity, descendants...

Two bronze drums open the funeral procession.

At the funeral of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama IX (October 26, 2017) Burmese-style bronze drums were used. They appear to be those used for the funeral of King Rama VIII.

In the video below, we can see an initial ceremony in which two golden drums enhanced with black decorations. Each is suspended from a gilded stand on the floor. They are struck with two mallets. Surrounding these two instruments are an oboe, a cylindrical drum and a number of red biconical drums. 

Following this sequence, the funeral procession opens with four identically decorated bronze drums, each carried by four men and struck by a fifth in the axis of the instrument.

The coronation of King Maha Vajiralongkorn วชิราลงกรณ took place on May 4, 2019. He now reigns as Rama X. The royal procession was preceded by the same four bronze drums used at the funeral of the father king, Rama IX. The only notable difference was the martial cadence of the march. Prior to the coronation of King Rama X, the Royal Thai Army's Ordnance Department paid homage and made offerings to the kingdom's bronze drums.

This ceremony of military and religious homage to the bronze drums was conducted by the Brahmin Sishanaphan Rangsiprahmanakul according to ancient royal tradition. It consists of three stages: 

1. Begging forgiveness for any mistakes or omissions that may have been made during the coronation ceremony.
2. Offering fruits and vegetarian foods with auspicious names.
3. Wishing success to the troops operating in the royal procession.

Lieutenant-General Sakda Sirirat said that the royal ceremony should be considered important and that it was a great honor for his department to take part in the coronation ceremony procession as drum bearers. 

* Text and photo sources © Siamrath

Two bronze drums, residents of Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew, are struck during His Majesty's change of clothing of the Emerald Buddha. In the video below (without audio) from March 13, 2017, we can see furtively (then in slow motion), the playing of one of the two bronze drums. On this occasion, His Majesty Rama X transformed the winter outfit into a summer one. To see the original video, click here.

The Emerald Buddha has three sets of costumes for each season: one for winter, one for summer and one for the rainy season. All are made of gold. The summer and monsoon suits were created by King Rama I, and the winter suit by Rama III.

The clothes are changed by the King himself in a ceremony marking the change of season. The dates are calculated according to the lunar calendar. The statue changes from one garment to another on the first waning moon of the 4^th, 8^th and 12^th lunar months (around March, August and November).

During the ceremony, the King climbs onto the pedestal, cleans the statue by wiping off dust, pours lustrous water over it and changes the headdress. Then, while His Majesty worships, an attendant changes the garments. Finally, the King blesses his subjects as they wait outside the ordination hall, a privilege previously reserved for the princes and officials who attended the ceremony.

During the ceremony, brahmins from the Royal Palace blow into conches.

Jacques de Guerny has already mentioned the symbolic role of bronze drums in his book Les tambours de bronze de l'Asie du Sud-Est, as well as on his website.

Cambodia and Thailand, like all the countries of Southeast Asia, have a traditional rice-based economy. We have seen that the drums of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh feature four pairs of copulating frogs on the tympanum, and two elephants and a tortoise on the shaft. These animals are directly linked to the primordial element of rice-growing societies: water. The recurrent use of bronze drums in the rituals mentioned above is not insignificant. Aside from their rain-related aspects, they recall the distant origins of Khmer royalty (from which Thailand's is descended) and underscore the fact that, over and above nationalist divisions, they belong to the great South-East Asian family. Jacques de Guerny rightly speaks of a "civilization of bronze drums" that spread across river and sea routes. He's absolutely right! These drums, though no longer Dongsonian, carry the pride of belonging to the distant origins of a culture that was neither Hindu nor Buddhist, but animist. No one can claim to be a pure Buddhist, a pure Christian or a pure Muslim, for animist atavisms remain within each of us and are key to our survival. From time immemorial, bronze drums have been, and remain, outward signs of wealth, and many of our contemporaries aspire to own one to testify to their fortune, or even their power. The bronze drum is a magical object in the truest sense of the word. It is treated as a living entity. Where it is still played according to traditional rules, it is either carefully stored away or buried and made the object of offerings and sacrifices. The very act of playing it is shrouded in prohibition and mystery. The rarity of its sound arouses aural and emotional appetite. Its use in major rituals, in this case royal, makes it an object of fascination and desire.

In the funeral ritual, what differentiates the approach of Cambodian royalty from that of Thailand is that the latter opens the funeral procession with the drums. The drums are given visibility and primordial importance. Whether unconsciously or not, there is a desire to ward off any harmful entities that might encumber the path taken by the royal remains. This practice, along with other instruments, has existed since Angkorian times, and continues to this day, for example, among the Newar people of the Kathmandu valley and Tibetan Buddhists. The rolling sound produced by the four drums has a spiritual effect.

In Cambodia, the instrument is drowned out by the chaos of the procession. At the funeral of King Norodom Sihanouk, they were placed just in front of the powerful gongs of the ethnic minorities of Ratanakiri.

These last two remarks lead us to believe that the use of bronze drums in Khmer royalty may be Siamese-inspired. Let's recall once again that these objects were once made in Burma, a country bordering Siam, and that many families in Thailand owned them, which is not the case in Cambodia. So, traditionally, the appeal of bronze drums is more Siamese (and Laotian) than Khmer.

Visit the only site entirely dedicated to bronze drums by clicking here.