Rice is fundamental to the cultures of South-East Asia. Not only is it the staple food in most of the region, but the rice-farm determines the rhythm of the year as its major ceremonials mark the changing seasons. Not surprisingly, rice has come to represent fertility, and folk beliefs abouthow to farm and store rice and their associated rituals are a corner-stone of South-East Asian cultures.In this fascinating and highly illustrated study, Jacqueline M. Piper details the tremendous impact rice growing has made on the land over millennia, converting mountain, hill, and valley to rice-fields, and providing, through the implements of rice cultivation, many opportunities for craftsmenship,design, and decoration.