Trenggalek History Enthusiast Preserves Nine 19th-Century Manuscripts

A history and archaeology enthusiast in Trenggalek Regency, East Java, is preserving nine ancient manuscripts believed to have been handwritten around the 19th century. Harmaji, a teacher at SMKN 1 Pogalan, revealed that the entire collection is a family heirloom entrusted to him by his father in 2015 for safekeeping. The manuscripts contain various classical Islamic knowledge, including Arabic grammar (nahwu and sharaf), stories of the Prophet’s companions, Qur’anic exegesis, and other religious texts. All the texts are handwritten using traditional dip ink on deluang paper, a traditional material made from tree bark, and some on antique European paper. Harmaji reported ownership of the manuscripts to the Regency Library Service in 2019, after which they were identified, digitised, and officially registered with the National Library of Indonesia. He believes this process is crucial for preserving the knowledge within the fragile texts, allowing the public and academics to access the content without handling the physical items. He noted that owners who register their manuscripts receive benefits such as free digitisation, philological identification, and special storage boxes. Harmaji also encouraged other residents who may possess similar historical texts to report them for preservation and research purposes.