[Article] Majapahit Site Left Neglected.

Friday, 17 September, 2010 | TEMPO Interactive | WIB | Muhammad Taufik

Mojokerto : Nothing more can be done to prevent the damage to the ancient site of the Majapahit Information Center Museum in Trowulan, Mojokerto, East Java, by rain and erosion.
Terob, which is used to protect the site, has been damaged and repaired several times until it spent hundreds of millions of Rupiah.
“Rather than waste money to repair terob, the fund would be of better use to build the museum,” said the Director of Archaelogical Heritage at the Department of Culture and Tourism, Yunus Satrio Atmojo, yesterday.
The four excavated sites with a depth of 1-2 meter are submerged in water and polluted with dirt due to the high intensity of rain.

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[Article] Maritime Museum Plan Runs Aground, Threatening Nation’s Oldest Known Ship.

September 16, 2010 | Jakarta Globe | Antara, JG

Rembang, Central Java. A funding shortfall has threatened to sink the planned development of a maritime museum — set to be the biggest museum in the country — in Punjulharjo village in the Central Java district of Rembang.
Preservationists say the museum, which would be built around the remains of the oldest-ever ship to be discovered in the archipelago, requires five hectares of land.
The ship, however, was discovered on private property, and finding money to purchase the land has proved difficult.
The Rembang Historical Society, the main group behind the museum, said the local government had agreed to purchase the land needed for the project.
“However, the government could only provide enough money to acquire one hectare,” Edy Winarno, head of the society, said on Thursday. “We are hoping to bring this to the attention of the central government.”
Villagers discovered the 1,200-year-old vessel on July 26, 2008, as they were digging a pond in what had been a coconut grove. Carbon dating tests performed in the United States suggested the ship was built in the seventh century.

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[Article] The temples of Yogyakarta have it.

Saturday September 4, 2010 | Star Weekend via The Star Online | By S.S. YOGA

When in Yogyakarta, you don’t want to miss Java’s twin gems of Hindu and Buddhist treasures — Prambanan and Borobudur.
THE heavens really opened up, and water, the equivalent of Niagara Falls, Victoria Falls and probably a few hundred other waterfalls combined, fell upon the earth. Or to be less dramatic about the whole thing – it rained like there was no tomorrow.
The day had been hot. As was the day before, when we first arrived in Yogyakarta, Java. The sun was scorching, so we were really caught unawares by the downpour.

Heritage: The Buddhist complex Borobudur in Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia. – S.S. YOGA

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[Article] Ancient ship replica helps fund Java dig.

4 July 2010 | The Japan Times

NAHA, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) The Indonesian government and a Japanese academic group have recently reconstructed an ancient ship to raise money for an archaeological study on historic ruins in and around Java.

 

Glimpse of the past: A replica of an ancient Indonesian ship leaves Madura Island, Java Province, on June 27 for a six-month, 9,000-km journey. JAPAN MAJAPAHIT ASSOCIATION/KYODO PHOTO

According to the Japan Majapahit Association, the ship has been making port calls in Asian countries since late last month, asking for financial and technical support to excavate the ruins of the Majapahit kingdom, which existed in the area from the 13th to the 16th century.
The ship was built in Madura, part of Indonesia's Java Province, and left there on June 27 for a six-month, 9,000-km journey, before heading back to Jakarta.
It will reach Japan around the middle of July, making its first stop in Kudaka Island, Okinawa Prefecture. The island served as a trading post of the Ryukyu kingdom, which used to govern Okinawa.
The ship will then sail to Naha. The crew will pay Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima a courtesy call before continuing on their journey to Kagoshima, Yokohama, Tokyo and Fukuoka.
The 20-meter ship was reconstructed based on an ancient painting that was on a relief in Java's Borobudur ruins dating back to the eighth century. It is made entirely of wood using materials such as teak and bamboo, and does not use a single nail, according to the group.
The majority of the 15-person crew is Indonesian. Yoshiyuki Yamamoto, a Japanese explorer who canoed across the Indian Ocean, is on board as a project leader.

More informations :

- ‘Majapahit spirit’ to sail to eight countries | The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | 06/28/2010

[Article] Religious Affairs Ministry to Help Manage Historic Temples

March 16, 2010 | Candra Malik & Ulma Haryanto | Jakarta Globe

In response to calls from Hindu and Buddhist leaders, Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said his ministry would play a role in the management of historic temples in the country. 

“In the past, the government has only looked at temples and historic sites from the point of view of tourism and culture. In fact, temples and historic sites have an important religious function,” Suryadharma said during a ceremony on Monday at Prambanan Temple in Klaten, Central Java, to welcome Nyepi, or the Day of Silence. 

He said his ministry would work with other agencies to increase public appreciation for the country’s historic temples, while also facilitating their use as active places of worship. 

Hindu and Buddhist leaders have asked the Ministry of Religious Affairs to jointly manage temples with the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. 

Among their demands is that Hindus and Buddhists going to temples to worship not be charged tourist entrance fees. 

Although no details have been released, the new arrangement could see more rulings similar to Borobudur Temple’s recently announced ban on tourists wearing skimpy clothes to respect the “sacredness of the place.” 

Central Java’s governor, Bibit Waluyo, said he hoped Prambanan Temple would become a center of worship for Hindus in Indonesia and from around the world. 

“The rebuilding of Prambanan Temple after the 2006 earthquake should not be oriented only toward the physical development of the temple, but should also consider religious aspects, cultural preservation and the economic growth of the surrounding community, because this temple is also an object of religious tourism,” Bibit said. 

Suroso, the Ministry of Tourism and Culture’s director of archeological heritage, said the co-management of historic temples should not be a problem as far as the issues of religious observances and conservation were concerned. 

He added that the arrangement “is still in line with the ministry’s basic tasks and functions.” 

Suroso said the Ministry of Religious Affairs would only regulate ceremonial matters at the temples. 

“But the conservation, preservation and maintenance will still be the responsibility of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture,” he said.

Photo Credit : Copyright © 2008 PT. Different Bali Indonesia Tours and Trave.

Archeologists explore kingdom site.

               Archeologists from the Trowulan prehistoric legacy conservation agency (BP3) in Mojokerto(1) have begun surveying a newly discovered site in Malang(2) believed to be the remains of the lost kingdom of Kanjuruhan. A team of archeologists have started their excavation activities by using a grid system to map out the buried site, which was believed to have been lost around 1,300 years ago. Team chairman Kuswanto said the excavation is scheduled for four days, finishing Saturday.

- "We will first see the content and then will decide on what we should do with the historical finding," Kuswanto said.

A pile of five layers of red bricks, with each brick measuring 22X12X9 centimeter, was seen buried on the site, which had initially been developed into a residential complex. Archeologist Dwi Cahyono of the Malang State University said the layers could indicate that the site was the center of the Kanjuruhan Kingdom, believed to have been in existence since the 6th century.

- "The indication can be seen from the floor, which was made of bricks," Dwi said.

Such a floor was believed to be parts of the residential buildings of noble families in the past, he said. He added that before the 15th century, the Kanjuruhan Kingdom was still an autonomous region.

Later, as the pressure from the Mataram Kingdom under the rule of King Gajayana increased, it fell under the authority of the Mataram Kingdom.

- "The site, which was found on Jl. Dinoyo, is believed to have been the center of the Kanjuruhan Kingdom before it received pressure from the Mataram kingdom," Dwi said.

He said other supporting indications included the location of the site, which was near a river.

In the past, the center of a kingdom had always been built near a water resource, in this case the Metro and Brantas Rivers in the region.

Three months ago, workers at a construction site, 30 meters from Brantas River, found the layers of the bricks as they were starting construction to build a residential complex in the area.

Apart from the bricks, they also found pieces of earthenware.

The finding convinced archeologists that the Dinoyo and neighboring Tlogomas area were located on the site of a former center of civilization during the Kanjuruhan era.

Other discoveries previously made in the site included a drainage system under the Dinoyo market. A similar drainage ditch was also found later in a site less then a kilometer away from the market. These exclude other findings including a number of lingga and yoni as well as patirtan (holy water resources). Dwi said that the ancient brick foundation suggested the social condition of the surrounding area in the past, which was likely where the wealthy community lived.

- "People of ordinary social status would not use brick for their houses," he said, "They might just leave the soil to be the floor of their homes."

Dwi expressed hope that Malang municipal administration's relevant agencies would seriously follow up the finding, especially because it was located in a commercial area.

- "Otherwise, they will just destroy the historical site."

A similar site was found once in the Sarana Tidar Indah region, but it was later destroyed and turned into a housing complex due to a lack of serious handling from the city administration.

"If the finding leads to a bigger one, then the location must be excavated," Dwi said.

Wahyoe Boediwardhana , THE JAKARTA POST , MALANG | Fri, 10/30/2009 1:39 PM | National

(1) Mojokerto: Java Est, sud-ouest de Surabaya (capitale provinciale), Indonésie.

(2) Malang: Java-Est, Indonésie.