Sono Budoyo museum has rooms with a view on history<\/p>\n
By Ahmad Solikhan<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): The two ancient cannons stand guard to
\nwelcome visitors to the Sono Budoyo museum in Yogyakarta, and
\nprotect the 48,000 archeological and ethnographic treasures
\ninside.<\/p>\n
The cannons date back to 1846 and 1871 during the reign of
\nSultan Hamengku Buwono III. Along with them in the front
\ncourtyard of the pendopo are 16 statues from the Indonesian
\nclassic period of the 8th to 10th centuries. These include
\nrepresentations of Syiwa, Buddha Amithaba and Ganesha from the
\n9th century, and Batara Wisnu embracing the goddess Laksmi from
\nthe 8th century.<\/p>\n
Stepping inside Sono Budoyo is like entering a time machine to
\nrelive Indonesian civilization from prehistoric times (1.9
\nmillion years B.C.) up to the 19th century. Like chapters in a
\nhistory book, the museum is laid out in chronological order.<\/p>\n
The first room introduces visitors to contemporary symbols of
\nYogyakarta as a city of culture, a pivotal hub in the struggle
\nfor independence, and site of tourism and education. In the next
\nroom begins the journey from the earliest Indonesian civilization
\nto the prehistoric period.<\/p>\n
The display shows 25 tools used in the paleolithic until the
\nneolithic eras. There are utensils made of stone and bone for
\npeeling, and axes exhibited in glass cases. In the middle of the
\nroom is a white sarcophagus resting on black sand.<\/p>\n
Ancestor veneration from the middle of the neolithic period is
\nevident in the megalithic structures which are simplistic
\nrepresentations of men and animals. Increasingly rapid
\ntechnological development in the next civilization is revealed in
\ngroupings based on work. In that era Indonesian prehistoric men
\nalready had the skill to melt, mix, forge and mold metal into
\nnekara, a cylindrical kettledrum adorned with frogs, human
\nfigures and geometrical patterns. The kettledrum found at Pejeng,
\nBali, was both for ceremonial use and a mark of social status.
\nThere are also bronze axes and statues of horse and riders,
\ndancers and archers collected from sites in Bangkinang, Riau,
\nPalembang, South Sumatra, Bogor, West Java, and Lumajang, East
\nJava.<\/p>\n
The next room features objects from the classic and Islam
\neras, including archeological relics from the Hindu-Mataram
\nkingdom (732 A.D.) in Central Java. This kingdom was ruled by the
\nSanjaya and Syailendra dynasties. The locations of many temples
\nin Central Java and Yogyakarta yielded many objects now in Sono
\nBudoyo's collection.<\/p>\n
Museum director Basuki, said that Professor Stutterheim was
\ninstrumental in collecting the archeological objects in the areas
\nof Prambanan, Kalasan, Central Java and East Java. There are many
\nobjects in various forms but all are made of bronze -- drums, a
\nsmall statue of Dewi Sri, the goddess of fertility, Dewa Kuwera,
\nstatues of Ganesha and Buddha statute.<\/p>\n
There is even a bronze bust of a god inlaid with 18-carat
\ngold, believed to date from the 10th or 11th century. Basuki said
\nthe bust was discovered by a farmer at Patuk, Gunungkidul,
\nYogyakarta, in 1956. A gold mask is thought to belong to the
\nMajapahit era in the 14th and 15th centuries. "This object was
\npart of the decorative equipment for Hindu and Buddhist
\nceremonies," Basuki said.<\/p>\n
The Mataram Islamic kingdom is represented by Arab calligraphy
\nwall decorations, made of teakwood in the shape of a boat. There
\nis also the ancient book of Tajussalatim transcribed in the Arab
\nMalay alphabet during the Sultan Hamengku Buwono V era in the
\n19th century. The book, still in fairly good condition,
\nillustrates the family tree of the king of Samudra Pasai in Aceh.<\/p>\n
There are fascinating examples of the acculturation between
\nIslam and Hindu cultures, including yellow and green calligraphy
\nfrom Cirebon in the form of Ganesha from Hinduism. There is even
\ncalligraphy in the design of an elephant atop a dog, even though
\nthe latter is considered haram (proscribed) by Islam.<\/p>\n
After the glory of the Islamic kingdoms, traditional art
\nemerges in a room full of batik cloth. The batik on display comes
\nfrom traditional producing hubs such as Yogyakarta, Surakarta,
\nPekalongan, Lasem, Rembang and Cirebon. Next is the room for
\nwayang (shadow) puppets. These consist of Wayang Purwa made in
\nYogyakarta in 1915, Wayang Suluh made of buffalo skin and found
\nin Yogyakarta in 1947 and Chinese puppets made in East Java in
\n1850.<\/p>\n
Although the Sono Budoyo is not a big museum, one to two
\nhundred people from every corner of the world visit it daily. The
\nmajority of the visitors are foreign tourists. The museum is only
\n500 meters north of the Yogyakarta keraton (palace). During the
\nschool holidays visitors, mostly students, may number 500 a day.
\nThe entrance fee is just Rp 200 (US$0.08), but there is no air-
\nconditioning and a visit can be uncomfortable if there are many
\npeople.<\/p>\n
The Sono Budoyo museum was set up at the initiative of
\nIndonesian and Dutch intellectuals in the Java Institute, a
\ncultural foundation established in 1919. The foundation acted on
\nthe authority of the Dutch East Indies colonial government to
\npreserve and develop indigenous cultures. In 1924 the foundation,
\nconcentrating on the cultures of Java, Madura, Bali and Lombok,
\nheld a congress in Yogyakarta which decided to establish a museum
\nin Yogyakarta. It took 10 years before a small pendopo was
\nestablished on a plot of land donated by Sultan Hamengku Buwono
\nVIII. The inauguration took place one year later in 1935 on the
\nSultan's birthday.<\/p>\n
The collection of the museum grew gradually. Objects came from
\nother people's discoveries, personal collections on loan, or
\nbequests, including from the sultan. The museum also received
\nancient objects from the Office for the Preservation of
\nHistorical and Archeological Relics.<\/p>\n
"The museum's collection grows nearly every month," said
\nBasuki. This has compelled the management to use an old building
\ncalled Dalem Cokrodiningratan, situated east of the northern
\nsquare of the Yogyakarta palace.<\/p>\n
An electronic infra-red security system and alarms guard the
\nvaluable collection. Curators make regular inspections of the
\nobjects. "With this protection system, I hope there will be no
\nthefts," Basuki said.<\/p>\n
Like other museums in Indonesia, the Sono Budoyo lacks funds.
\nRevenues from visitors are inadequate. Government funds are also
\ninsufficient to meet the museum's operational requirements.<\/p>\n
"We lack funds to maintain the museum's collection," said
\nBasuki. He said the need for increased funding was pressing as
\nmany items in the collection were ancient and required constant
\nupkeep.<\/p>",
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