Kotagede, a typical Javanese city

Kotagede, a typical Javanese city

By Bambang M.

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Kotagede is usually associated with silver
handicraft items because the industry has become its trademark.
In fact, the southeast area offers more than that.

Kotagede is a typical Javanese traditional city with all the
characteristics.

Kotagede, which originally was called Mentaok, was the first
Islamic Mataram kingdom founded by Danang Sutawijaya, who later
adopted the royal name Panembahan Senopati after ascending to the
throne in 1575.

The capital city was designed following the basic
architectural pattern called catur tunggal (four in one). At the
center was the palace where the king resided. In front of the
palace was a square, and a mosque was built on the left-hand side
and a marketplace on the right.

"The citizens' housing complexes around the palace served as a
shield to protect the palace from enemy attacks," said a lecturer
of philosophy at Gadjah Mada University, Ahmad Charris Zubair,
who is also chairman of the Center for the Study, Documentation
and Development of Kotagede Culture (Pusdok).

The commoner's houses were built on the property of
aristocrats, and this had a social meaning. It indicated that the
more people who lived on the aristocrat's property, the more
respected the aristocrat was.

Five centuries later, we can still find the remains of the
first Islamic Mataram kingdom. The palace is in ruins and the
square is occupied by residents, but the marketplace and the
mosque still exist and are in use after renovation.

The palace is in the present-day village of Jagalan.

Other remaining historical sites of the first Islamic Mataram
kingdom are Watu Gilang and Batu Gateng, Panembahan Senopati's
tomb, fort, Sendang (spring) Saliran and Gapura (gate) Paduraksa.

The approximately 19,000 Kotagede residents now live in
ancient villages built at the same time as the palace.

"This can be traced back to the names of the villages -- they
had historical-functional relationships with the ancient Mataram
kingdom," said Zubbair.

The villages were usually named after the residents'
occupations. For example, Prenggan was a village where its
citizens were producers of kris frames, while Purbayan was where
noble families resided, Mondorakan was where Ki Ageng Pemanahan
lived, Sayangan was where men who made copper handicrafts lived
and Jagalan was where butchers resided.

These villages of old dwellings also had many old Javanese
houses with joglo architecture. These houses are situated on the
sides of narrow lanes only two meters wide and are surrounded
with high walls. If you visit there, you would feel you have
stepped back into another time.

Among the joglo houses are also big European-style houses. In
ancient times, owners of these houses were gold, silver and
bronze merchants who had business in European countries.

Zubair said the joglo houses that still exist today were
generally constructed in the 19th century. From his 1985 study,
he found 170 joglo houses in Jagalan, Alun-alun, Purbayan,
Prenggan and Basen. The oldest can be found in Purbayan and
Prenggan. But because of their poor condition, many houses have
been renovated.

Many historical joglo houses are in bad shape and their future
is in doubt. One belonging to Sopingen in Prenggan is a typical
example. It no longer has a front verandah because he sold part
of the property. The same thing happened to the Bakris' joglo
house. In some cases, the old houses are abandoned and neglected.

It turns out that it is not only old houses which have
deteriorated. Much of the furniture, such as gebyog (meticulously
carved partitions made of teakwood), regol (a fence gate made of
teakwood) and antique wardrobes, have been sold.

"All this happened because of economic hardships," said
Sholehuddin Basyori, the Jagalan village chief in Kotagede.

According to Pusdok's records, the oldest joglo house which is
still intact and well-maintained is the one owned by Prawiraharjo
PH in Jagalan village. The house, occupied by his son, Soediyo
Prasetyo, was built in 1750 by Raden Djimat Amadalem Hanomtapsir
I, whose royal title was Raden Ngabei Djajaniman, father of
Prawiroharjo PH.

Soediyo said Raden Ngabehi Djajaniman was the 11th generation
of Sultan Hadiwijoyo, also known as Joko Tingkir, the founder of
Pajang kingdom and the fifth descendant of Raden Tumenggung
Wiroguna, the central figure in the Javanese folk legend, Roro
Mendut -- Pronocitro.

"Even before the government made an appeal for old houses to
be preserved as cultural heritage, my father told me that this
house would be kept for the family," said Soediyo.

The house was neglected and unoccupied between 1948 and 1980
but it underwent a major renovation between 1985 and 1990.