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Published on July 22, 2007

Srisakra has been awarded the academic prize in the 18th Fukuoka Asian Culture Prizes, which are being presented at a ceremony on September 13.

Through his comprehensive approach combining expertise in anthropology, archaeology, history and folklore, and with a local approach to historiography, he has presented Thai history in an entirely new light, the prize committee notes in the press release.

The press conference to announce his prestigious award will be held on Tuesday at the Japan Foundation Bangkok on Soi Asoke (Sukhumvit 21) at 4.30pm.

His profile and in-depth interview will be published in the next edition of Sunday Style.

This year's grand prize goes to Indian social and cultural critic Ashis Nandy while the arts and culture prizes are being awarded to Taiwanese sculptor Ju Ming and South Korean traditional performing artist Kim Duk-soo.

The Fukuoka Asian Culture Prizes were established in 1990 to build a strong awareness of Asian academics, arts and cultures, and to contribute to mutual understanding and peace through the promotion of unique Asian culture.

The first Thai to receive the prize was late writer and statesman MR Kukrit Pramoj in 1990, followed by archaeologist and art historian MC Subhadradis Diskul, who won the grand prize in 1994, historian Nidhi Eoseewong, who was given the academic prize in 1999 and artist Thawan Duchanee, who was awarded the arts and cultural prize in 2001.

After graduating from Chulalongkorn University, Srisakra studied anthropology at the University of Western Australia. He engaged in teaching and research at the Department of Anthropology in the Faculty of Archaeology at Silpakorn University, while holding important positions in a number of academic/research institutions. He made many crucial recommendations to the government when he chaired several committees working for cultural property conservation, including one for the Sukhothai Historical Park Development Project, for which he was the Chief Social Scientist.

He has been an active scholar throughout his career, as witnessed by his efforts to publicise academic research to a wider public as editor of Muang Boran Journal, a leading quarterly on Thai archaeology and history.

His research has covered many areas, but particular mention should be made of his archaeological survey of prehistoric Northeast Thailand, and his research into Thai ancient cities and states.

In the former project, having made thorough inventories during field surveys, he argued the significance of agriculture, salt and iron, and demonstrated that religious worship had existed there from prehistoric times by using the Sema Stone (peculiar to the Northeastern part of Thailand) as evidence. These findings refuted the old image of "the poor Northeast", and gave a new profile to the region as 'the once rich Northeast'.

Some of the archaeological data that Srisakra collected from this region have been made available through the Internet, and have received international acclaim.

In the latter project, by making full use of aerial photography, he uncovered the urban planning and structures of several ancient cities, including the first city state, Dvaravati, and those of the Sukhothai and Ayutthaya dynasties. He argued for a strong influence of Southeast Asian trade on the establishment of cities and states in ancient Thailand.