World legacy awaits caretakers

World legacy awaits caretakers

Built between 762 and 824 A.D. during the Syailendra Dynasty,
Borobudur Temple is prominent in the landscape as an intriguing
historical monument.

The World Heritage Committee has inscribed Borobudur temple
into the World Heritage List of the Unesco-Heritage Center since
December 1991. The temple is refined work in the form of a
stepped pyramid of six rectangular stories, three circular
terraces and culminated in a central, grand stupa, and comprises
of some 55,000 square meters of stones.

When it was first discovered during the Dutch colonial time,
according to head of the Center for Borobudur Study and
Conservation Dukut Santoso, the temple was in a ruined shape.

"It was still in a very poor shape when I joined the Borobudur
restoration project in 1971," said Dukut, who is also vice
chairman of the 4th International Expert Meeting on Borobudur's
steering committee.

The restoration project that Dukut joined in was not the first
restoration work done of the largest Buddhist temple in the
world. Reports say the first large scale restoration work was
held in 1907 to 1911 by a Dutch engineer named Teodhore Van Erp.

But the restoration conducted by Van Erp was only partial,
just to prevent the temple from collapsing. It did not stop the
temple's damaging process, like due to natural factors.

The temple kept deteriorating and in 1969, it was declared in
a dangerous condition and in need of restoration.

With the support of the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (Unesco) and other international
organizations under the coordination of Unesco, the government
conducted a comprehensive restoration of Borobudur in 1973-183.

According to Hubertus Sadirin of the Indonesian Ministry of
Culture and Tourism, Borobudur was the only archeological
heritage in Indonesia that was restored comprehensively by
involving modern technology to diagnosis technical problems
encountered during the restoration works.

Yet, again, the successful restoration that was completed in
1983 could not totally stop the natural deterioration process of
the temple, like those due to natural factors such as rainwater,
radiation, and microorganism. The restoration, therefore, just
slow the process down.

Superficial scaling, cementation and micro-cracking are among
the problems the Borobudur conservation center has been dealing
with in its routine conservation works. The conservation work
itself, according to Dukut, basically consists of two main
activities, routine maintenance and monitoring.

Routine maintenance includes mechanical washing, which is
conducted twice a year, and chemical washing once a year.
Monitoring activities mainly focus on monitoring the condition of
the stones, the temple structure and the hill beneath the temple.

Of the three, both the temple structure and the hill were
considered in good conditions. Researcher Kabul Basah Suryolelono
of Gadjah Mada University, who has conducted a stabilization
analysis and monitoring of the temple, confirmed the condition.

The stones condition, according to Dukut, was the most
concerning, especially the superficial scaling on it due to the
existence of seepage water in the stones. Such a superficial
scaling could eventually damage the temple relief if nothing was
done about it, he said.

The conservation center has so far found 112 locations of
seepage water on the temple stones since the completion of the
restoration of Borobudur in 1983. They are spread out in the
first gallery (81 locations), second gallery (six locations),
third gallery (six locations) and fourth gallery (19 locations).

Further research conducted after the completion of the
restoration revealed the seepage water happened due to various
problems related to the lead sheet installed beneath the temple
balustrade. The problems included lead sheet perforation, leaning
position and improper installation.

The problem was, of the 112 locations found since 1983, only
12 of them have been successfully repaired during 1992 to 2001.
What was concerning, according to Dukut, was not because the
seepage water could not be stopped but instead it was mainly due
to limited fund and human resources.

The Center of Borobudur Study and Conservation currently
employs 114 civil servants and 30 employees paid by honorarium.
Of the 114 civil servants, 54 are security guards, 50 are
technicians, and the rest are administrative staffs.
Unfortunately, most of them are going to retire in 2005, leaving
only two security guards in 2007.

"I can imagine what would happen to the conservation works
here when no one is left due to retirement," said Dukut, adding
that he had tried to propose recruitment but so far he received
no clear answer.

"This could create a serious problem in the future if nothing
is done about it. We are dealing with a world heritage," Dukut
said.

-- Sri Wahyuni