Gunung Padang

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A view of Gunung Padang.

Gunung Padang is a megalithic site located in Karyamukti, Campaka, Cianjur Regency, West Java, Indonesia, 30 kilometres (19 mi) southwest of the regency seat or 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Lampegan station. The site is built of earth and stone at the top of an extinct volcano.

History of study[]

Gunung Padang site.
Gunung Padang site.

In his book entitled "Oudheden van Java: lijst der voornaamste overblijfselen uit den Hindoetijd op Java", Dutch historian Rogier Verbeek mentioned the existence of the Gunung Padang site based on a visit and report by M. De Corte in 1890.[1]

Goenoeng Padang : Op den bergtop Goenoeng Padang, nabij Goenoeng Melati, eene opeenvolging van 4 terrassen, door trappen van ruwe steenen vorbonden, met ruwe platte steenen bevloerd en met talrijke scherpe en zuilvormige rechtopstaande andesietsteenen versierd. Op ieder terrasse een heuveltje, waarschijnlijk een graf, met steenen omzet en bedekt, en van boven met 2 spitse steenen voorzien. In 1890, door den heer De Corte bezocht.
Goenoeng Padang : On the mountain top Goenoeng Padang, near Goenoeng Melati, a succession of 4 terraces, connected by steps of rough stone, paved with rough flat stones and decorated with numerous sharp and columnar upright andesite stones. On each terrace a small mound, probably a grave, covered with stones and topped with 2 pointed stones. In 1890, visited by Mr. De Corte.

— Rogier Verbeek, Oudheden van Java,1891.

The notes on the Gunung Padag site in Verbeek's book are similar to those made by Dutch archaeologist Nicolaas Johannes Krom in the 1914 Rapporten van de Oudheidkundige Dienst (ROD, "Report of the Department of Antiquities").[2] Employees of the National Archeology Research Centre visited the site in 1979 for a study of its archaeology, history, and geology.[citation needed]

Located at 885 metres (2,904 ft) above sea level, the site covers a hill in a series of terraces bordered by retaining walls of stone that are accessed by about 400 successive andesite steps rising about 95 metres (312 ft). It is covered with massive rectangular stones of volcanic origin.[3] The Sundanese people consider the site sacred and believe it was the result of King Siliwangi's attempt to build a palace in one night.

At the end of June 2014, the Education and Culture Ministry declared Gunung Padang site a National Site Area, covering a total of 29 hectares (72 acres).[4]

On 1 October 2014, surveyors halted excavation activities temporarily, hoping to begin them again under the new government.[5]

The 2014 excavation has been criticized for being improperly conducted.[6]

Age estimates[]

Archaeologist Lutfi Yondri from the  [id] in Bandung estimated that the constructions at Gunung Padang may have been built sometime between the 2nd and 5th centuries CE, thus in the Indonesian late prehistoric period, whereas Harry Truman Simanjuntak suggested a later date in historical times between the 6th and 8th centuries CE.[7] Pottery fragments found at the site were dated by the Bureau of Archaeology in the range 45 BCE – 22 CE.[8]

Fringe dating[]

Based on carbon dating, Danny Hilman Natawidjaja, an Indonesian geologist who is an expert in earthquake geology and geotectonics, suggested that the site had been built as a giant pyramid by the inhabitants of an advanced ancient civilization 9,000 to 20,000 years ago.[9]

Natawidjaja's analysis was questioned by other scientists. Vulcanologist Sutikno Bronto suggested that the carbon dating result was influenced by weathering and concluded that the elevation is the neck of an ancient volcano and not a man-made pyramid.[9][10] Thirty-four Indonesian scientists signed a petition questioning the motives and methods of the Hilman-Arif team.[9] Archaeologist Víctor Pérez described Natawidjaja's conclusions as pseudoarchaeology.[11]

Natawidjaja's conclusions gained the attention of Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who set up a task force.[clarification needed] An archaeologist who did not wish to be named due to the involvement of the country's president, stated:

In archaeology we usually find the 'culture' first … Then, after we find out the artefact's age we'll seek out historical references to any civilisation which existed around that period. Only then will we be able to explain the artefact historically. In this case, they 'found' something, carbon-dated it, then it looks like they created a civilisation around the period to explain their finding.[9]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Verbeek, Rogier Diederik Marius (1891). Oudheden van Java: lijst der voornaamste overblijfselen uit den Hindoetijd op Java, met eene oudheidkundige kaart [Antiquities of Java: list of the most important remains from the Hindu period on Java, with an archaeological map] (in Dutch). Landsdrukkerij. p. 43.
  2. ^ Nederlandsch-Indië, Oudheidkundige Dienst in (1914). Rapporten [Reports] (in Dutch). Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen.
  3. ^ Ramadina, Savitri Putri (2013). "Analisis Perupaan Situs Megalitik Gunung Padang di Cianjur, Jawa Barat" [Sculpture Analysis of the Megalithic Site of Gunung Padang in Cianjur, West Java]. ITB Journal of Visual Art and Design. 4 (1): 51–66. doi:10.5614/itbj.vad.2013.4.1.7.
  4. ^ "Balai Pengelolaan Situs Gunung Padang Segera Dibentuk" [Gunung Padang Site Management Center to be Established Soon]. 2014-06-25.
  5. ^ "Timnas Gunung Padang Hentikan Penelitian" [Gunung Padang National Team Stops Research]. 2014-10-01.
  6. ^ Dipa, Arya (2014-09-24). "Archaeologists slam excavation of Gunung Padang site". thejakartapost.com.
  7. ^ Utomo, Yunanto Wiji (2014-06-06). "Mari Terbang ke Atas Situs Megalitikum Gunung Padang" [Let's Fly to the Top of the Gunung Padang Megalithic Site].
  8. ^ Prasetyo, Bagyo (2015). Megalitik: Fenomena yang berkembang di Indonesia [Megalithic: A phenomenon that florished in Indonesia]. Jakarta: Pusat Penelitian Arkeologi Nasional. p. 61. ISBN 9786020818252.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Bachelard, Michael (2013-07-27). "Digging for the truth at controversial megalithic site. Sydney Morning Herald, 27 July 2013". www.smh.com.au. Retrieved 25 November 2022.
  10. ^ Bronto, Sutikno; Langi, Billy B (2017). "Geologi Gunung Padang dan Sekitarnya, Kabupaten Cianjur–Jawa Barat" [Geology of Mount Padang and its Surroundings, Cianjur Regency–West Java]. Jurnal Geologi Dan Sumberdaya Mineral. 17 (1): 37–49. doi:10.33332/jgsm.geologi.v17i1.28 (inactive 2022-11-26).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2022 (link)
  11. ^ Pérez García, Víctor Lluís (2017). "Gunung Padang y el megalitismo indo-malayo: Arqueología y pseudoarqueología" [Gunung Padang and Indo-Malay Megalithism: Archeology and Pseudoarchaeology] (PDF). Arqueoweb: Journal of Archeology on the Internet. 18 (1): 62–104. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-05-05. Retrieved 12 November 2022.

Further reading[]

External links[]

Coordinates: 6°59′36.5″S 107°03′22.96″E / 6.993472°S 107.0563778°E / -6.993472; 107.0563778

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