Rotterdam reveals true story behind the Lombok Treasures
Rotterdam reveals true story behind the Lombok Treasures
ROTTERDAM, Netherlands (JP): An unusual exhibition at the Kunsthal in Rotterdam running to Dec. 10 claims to reveal the true story behind the Lombok Treasures while celebrating 50 years of Indonesia's independence.
Over 100 years ago, on Nov. 19, 1894, 239 kilograms of gold coins, 7,199 kg of silver coins and over a thousand gold objects and jewelry were looted by Dutch soldiers from a burning palace in Lombok. Part of these spoils were then shipped to the Netherlands in 75 sealed crates. The once powerful Ratu Gede Ngurah Karangasem, former king of Lombok, died two years later after being banished to Batavia (now Jakarta).
In December 1973, the General Assembly of UNESCO unanimously demanded the immediate and unconditional return to their rightful owners of all war treasures which colonial powers had taken from Africa, Asia and Latin America. That was why half of the Lombok treasures were then returned to Indonesia by the Netherlands. Although Indonesians may wonder why it was not possible for the complete Dutch collection to be returned, at least sixty objects originating from these treasures are now on permanent display at the Museum National in Central Jakarta. The rest of the treasure was recently transferred from the Nederlandsche Bank to the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde in Leiden.
Towards the end of 1994, Ewald Vanvught published a book, De Schatten van Lombok, about the lost treasures of Lombok. It obviously caught the attention of the Kunsthal in Rotterdam. The Kunsthal management requested Vanvugt use his research as material for an exhibition about the fate of the Lombok treasures. Vanvugt was then installed as host curator for the show. He did not confine the show to only displaying the spoils taken by the Dutch army in Lombok, but also uncovered many objects relating to the Lombok expedition found in various other Dutch collections, including the Museum Bronbeek in Arnheim, the Koninklijk Instituut voor de Tropen in Amsterdam and the Volkenkundig Museum Gerardus van Leeuw in Groningen.
Opium trade
The motive behind this lurid story of greed and cruelty is opium. The lucrative trade in this precious raw material which assured instant wealth to those who handled it was once controlled by the Dutch colonial government. The Dutch operated several opium factories where the opium intended for consumption in Asia was ironically sold in packets with the inscription "Je Maintiendrai" printed clearly on the flap. The Dutch obviously did not agree to the raja of Lombok joining them in this immensely profitable business. Therefore, according to Alfons van der Kraan in his study Lombok: Conquest, Colonization and Underdevelopment, 1840-1940, when the rebellious raja ordered arms from Singapore, the Dutch authorities were able intervene under the pretext the Balinese were oppressing the native Sasak population. The Dutch really intended to secure the opium trade, as well as a safe supply harbor for their steamers. The Dutch sent 4,400 soldiers who were at first accepted by the Balinese, until the Balinese discovered that the colonial power only wished to safeguard its opium interests.
On the night of Aug. 15, the Balinese attacked the Dutch. The result was over a hundred Balinese casualties and three hundred Dutch soldiers killed or injured. The Balinese then continued to claim taxes from the Sasak population after having seized a huge cache of guns. The most serious defeat inflicted on the Dutch Colonial Army in the East Indies was to have even more serious consequences for the still victorious Balinese nobles in Lombok.
Retaliation was swift. Three months later the raja's palace in Tjakra Negara was conquered. The immense treasury of the Balinese raja, consisting of thousands of kilograms of silver rijksdaalders, dollars and pesetas together with gold coins from all corners of the world, jewels and precious objects covered with gems, was rounded off by seemingly endless supply of gold ingots. Witnessed by a Dutch scientist living on Lombok, this was officially plundered and stolen by soldiers. Jan Brandes managed to save some valuable manuscripts, but the violence inflicted by convicts who were sent to help gather the spoils triggered a serious nervous disorder on his way back to the Netherlands.
Part of the spoils remained in Batavia with the Bataviaasch Genootschap, the oldest Dutch academic society based in Batavia. The treasure eventually found its way into the collection of the National Museum in Jakarta after Indonesia's independence in 1945. The rest was shipped back to the Netherlands where the gold and silver was brought to the Mint in Utrecht to be melted down in order to replenish the national cash reserves. Crates of the valuable collection were stored in the Nederlandsche Bank and, with help of Jonkheer Victor de Stuers, some of the treasures were directed to various museums.
Part of the treasure was collected by De Stuers and displayed at the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde in Leiden until World War II. After Indonesia's independence the treasure disappeared into oblivion until July 1, 1977, when the Netherlands government returned almost half of it to Indonesia in response to the UNESCO decree.
This collection forms the back-bone of the display at the Kunsthal in Rotterdam where only a fraction of the former glory of the raja of Lombok is shown. Some of the objects come from the Museum National in Jakarta and other Dutch museums. The visitor's imagination is left to wonder at the real extent of the treasury procured through the sale of opium. An edifying exhibition, and an interesting tale to be understood by those able to read Ewald Vanvugt's book De Schatten van Lombok. Unfortunately the book has not been translated into Indonesian or English.