Prambanan Plain
Encyclopedia
Merapi
Merapi may refer to:* Mount Merapi, an active volcano in Central Java, Indonesia** aka Gunung Merapi * 2010 eruptions of Mount Merapi* Mount Marapi , an active volcano in West Sumatra, Indonesia...
in the north, Bantul
Bantul
Bantul is a town and the capital of Bantul Regency, Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia.-2006 Earthquake:On 27 May 2006 an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale struck near Java's southern coast causing widespread damage. Bantul Regency was the region most affected by the disaster...
lowlands and Sewu
Gunung Sewu
Gunung Sewu is the name for the karst region of southern central Java that lies to the south east of Yogyakarta, south of Surakarta, and is considered a very dry and poor socio-economical region in Java. It has poor rainfall compared to the volcanic mountain areas to the north and east...
limestone range in the south, Bengawan Solo river valley in east, and the Progo River
Progo River
Progo River is a river in southern central Java, Indonesia. The river passed through two provinces of Indonesia; Central Java and Yogyakarta. The river source is at the slopes of Mount Sundoro, Central Java. The river runs to southeast through Magelang city. The river runs through historical Kedu...
in the west, and Kedu Plain
Kedu Plain
Kedu Plain is the fertile volcanic plain that lies between the volcanoes Mount Sumbing and Mount Sundoro to the west, and Mount Merbabu and Mount Merapi to the east on Central Java, Indonesia. The plain also bordering the Menoreh hills in the southwest and Prambanan Plain in the southeast...
on northwest. It is located within the Yogyakarta province
It lies within the regencies of Sleman
Sleman
Sleman is a town in Sleman Regency, Indonesia. It is on the road between Yogyakarta and Magelang. It is in the regency that is home to Mount Merapi, which started its most recent eruption in late October and early November 2010, killing hundreds, including Maridjan, the spiritual keeper of the...
, Klaten
Klaten
Klaten is a regency in Central Java province in Indonesia. Its capital is Klaten.-Geograpy:Klaten borders on Boyolali Regency in the North, Sukoharjo Regency and Wonogiri Regency in the East, and Special Region of Yogyakarta to the South and West...
and Solo regency of Central Java
Central Java
Central Java is a province of Indonesia. The administrative capital is Semarang. It is one of six provinces on the island of Java.This province is the province of high Human Development in Indonesia and its Points Development Index countries is equivalent to Lebanon. The province of Central Java...
.
Historically the area was identified as Mataram, it was the center of both Medang i Bhumi Mataram kingdom in 8th to 10th century, and later Mataram Sultanate
Mataram Sultanate
The Sultanate of Mataram was the last major independent Javanese empire on Java before the island was colonized by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force in interior Central Java from the late 16th century until the beginning of the 18th century....
in 16th century. It has been an important location in Central Javanese history and culture for over a millennium, since it contains many ancient archaeological remnants of historic significance. If each temples structure was counted separately, the 9th century Central Java period could be said to have produced thousands of temples, scattered from Shiva (Dieng) Plateau
Dieng Plateau
Dieng Plateu, is a marshy plateau that forms the floor of a caldera complex on the Dieng active volcano complex near Wonosobo, Central Java, Indonesia. Referred to as "Dieng" by Indonesians, it sits at 2,000m above sea level far from major population centres...
, Kedu Plain
Kedu Plain
Kedu Plain is the fertile volcanic plain that lies between the volcanoes Mount Sumbing and Mount Sundoro to the west, and Mount Merbabu and Mount Merapi to the east on Central Java, Indonesia. The plain also bordering the Menoreh hills in the southwest and Prambanan Plain in the southeast...
to Kewu Plain.
Apart from the Prambanan
Prambanan
Prambanan is a ninth century Hindu temple compound in Central Java, Indonesia, dedicated to the Trimurti, the expression of God as the Creator , the Sustainer and the Destroyer...
Lara Jonggrang complex, Kewu Plain, valley and hills around it is the location of some of the earliest Hindu-Buddhist temples
Candi of Indonesia
Candi are the Hindu and Buddhist temples and sanctuaries of Indonesia, mostly built during the 8th to 15th centuries...
in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Adjacent to the complex to the north are Bubrah temple, Lumbung temple, and Sewu temple; to the east are found Plaosan temple. Kalasan temple
Candi Kalasan
Kalasan , also known as Candi Kalibening, is an 8th century Buddhist temple in Indonesia. It is located 13 km east of Yogyakarta on the way to Prambanan temple, on the south side of the main road 'Jalan Solo' between Yogyakarta and Surakarta....
and Sari temple are to the west, and further is the Sambisari
Sambisari
Sambisari is a 9th century Hindu temple located at Sambisari hamlet, Purwomartani village, Kalasan, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The temple was buried about five metres underground. Parts of the original temple have been excavated...
temple. The Ratu Boko
Ratu Boko
Ratu Boko is an archaeological site known to modern Javanese as Kraton Ratu Boko or Ratu Boko's Palace. Ratu Boko is located on a plateau, about three kilometres south of Lara Jonggrang Prambanan temple complex in Yogyakarta Indonesia...
compounds are on higher ground just to the south. The discoveries of archaeological sites scattered only a few miles away suggested that this area was once an important religious, political, and urban center of central Java. Despite the smaller scale of its temples, the diversity and sophistication of the archaeological sites in this plain are comparable to Angkor
Angkor
Angkor is a region of Cambodia that served as the seat of the Khmer Empire, which flourished from approximately the 9th to 15th centuries. The word Angkor is derived from the Sanskrit nagara , meaning "city"...
archaeological site in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
.
Agriculture
For centuries Prambanan Plain, overshadowed by Merapi volcano, was known for its rich and fertile volcanic soil perfect for intensive riceRice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
cultivation. The economy of Java relied heavily on rice agriculture, and the ancient polity of Central Java, with their complex political, economy and social systems, flourished on this plain.
The images of rice agriculture scenes and activities can be found in bas-reliefs in Borobudur and Prambanan. The early Mataram Kingdom was dependent on rice yields and tax collected from their subjects. Java was famous for rice surpluses and rice export, and rice agriculture contributed to the population growth of the island. Many of the rice paddies in the landscape remains unchanged from the earlier eras.
Archaeological sites
- KalasanCandi KalasanKalasan , also known as Candi Kalibening, is an 8th century Buddhist temple in Indonesia. It is located 13 km east of Yogyakarta on the way to Prambanan temple, on the south side of the main road 'Jalan Solo' between Yogyakarta and Surakarta....
. According to Kalasan inscriptionKalasan inscriptionThe Kalasan inscription is an inscription dated 700 Saka , discovered in Kalasan village, Sleman Regency, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The inscription was written in Sanskrit with Pranagari script .-Contents:...
it is the oldest temple built in the plain. This early 8th century Buddhist temple built to honor female boddhisattva TaraTara-Religions and deities:*Tara , is a tantric meditation deity in Tibetan Buddhism, actually the generic name for a set of similar bodhisattvas*In Hinduism:*Tara , a Mahavidya of Mahadevi, Kali or Parvati...
. - SariCandi SariSari , is an 8th century Buddhist temple located at Dusun Bendan, Tirtomartani village, Kalasan, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta.It is located about 130 meters north east from Kalasan temple. This temple was a two story building with wooden beams, floors, stairs completed with windows and doors; all...
. Once a sanctuary or monastery for Buddhist priests. 8th century. Nine stupas at the top with two rooms beneath, each believed to be places for priests to meditate. - Ratu BokoRatu BokoRatu Boko is an archaeological site known to modern Javanese as Kraton Ratu Boko or Ratu Boko's Palace. Ratu Boko is located on a plateau, about three kilometres south of Lara Jonggrang Prambanan temple complex in Yogyakarta Indonesia...
. Complex of fortified gates, bathing pools, and elevated walled stone enclosure, all located on top of the hill south of Prambanan. - Lumbung. Buddhist-style, consisting of one main temple surrounded by 16 smaller ones.
- Bubrah. Buddhist temple still in ruins.
- Sewu. This Buddhist temple complex is older than Prambanan temple. The original name of this temple is Manjusrigrha and it was a royal buddhist temple of the kingdom. A main sanctuary surrounded by many smaller temples. Well preserved guardian statues, replicas of which stand in the central courtyard at the Jogja Kraton.
- PrambananPrambananPrambanan is a ninth century Hindu temple compound in Central Java, Indonesia, dedicated to the Trimurti, the expression of God as the Creator , the Sustainer and the Destroyer...
. A large compound of 9th century Shivaic TrimurtiTrimurtiThe Trimurti is a concept in Hinduism "in which the cosmic functions of creation, maintenance, and destruction are personified by the forms of Brahmā the creator, Vishnu the maintainer or preserver, and Śhiva the destroyer or transformer," These three deities have been called "the Hindu triad" or...
Hindu temple. The construction of grand Hindu temple was probably the sign that Hinduism once again gain royal patronage of Medang kings. - Plaosan. Buddhist, probably 9th century. Thought to have been built by a Hindu king for his Buddhist queen. Two main temples with reliefs of Boddhisatva and TaraTara-Religions and deities:*Tara , is a tantric meditation deity in Tibetan Buddhism, actually the generic name for a set of similar bodhisattvas*In Hinduism:*Tara , a Mahavidya of Mahadevi, Kali or Parvati...
. Also rows of slender stupaStupaA stupa is a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the remains of Buddha, used by Buddhists as a place of worship....
s. - SajiwanSajiwanSajiwan is a 9th century Buddhist temple located in Kebon Dalem Kidul village, Prambanan, Klaten Regency, Central Java. The temple is located nearly two kilometres southeast of Prambanan temple...
. Buddhist temple decorated with reliefs concerning education. The base and staircase are decorated with animal fables. Sajiwan was probably the mortuary temple for a buddhist queen, Sang Sanjiwana or Pramodhawardhani. - BanyuniboBanyuniboBanyunibo is a 9th century Buddhist temple located in Cepit hamlet, Bokoharjo village, Prambanan, Sleman Regency, Yogyakarta, Indonesia...
. A Buddhist temple with unique design of roof. - Barong. A Hindu temple complex with large stepped stone courtyard. Located on the slope of the hill not far from Banyunibo and Ratu Boko.
- Ijo. A cluster of Hindu temple located near the top of Ijo hill. The main temple houses a large lingamLingamThe Lingam is a representation of the Hindu deity Shiva used for worship in temples....
and yoniYoniYoni is the Sanskrit word for the vagina. Its counterpart is the lingam as interpreted by some, the phallus.It is also the divine passage, womb or sacred temple...
. - Arca Bugisan. Seven Buddha and bodhisattvaBodhisattvaIn Buddhism, a bodhisattva is either an enlightened existence or an enlightenment-being or, given the variant Sanskrit spelling satva rather than sattva, "heroic-minded one for enlightenment ." The Pali term has sometimes been translated as "wisdom-being," although in modern publications, and...
statues, some collapsed, representing different poses and expressions. - GebangGebangGebang is an 8th century Hindu temple located in outskirt Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The temple is located at Gebang hamlet, Wedomartani village, Ngemplak, Sleman, Yogyakarta. The temple was built during the Medang Kingdom....
. A small Hindu temple discovered in 1937 located near the Yogyakarta northern ring-road. The temple display the statue of Ganesha and interesting carving of faces on the roof section. - Gana. Rich in statues, bas-reliefs and sculpted stones. Frequent representations of children or dwarfs with raised hands. Located in the middle of housing complex. Under restoration since 1997.
- SambisariSambisariSambisari is a 9th century Hindu temple located at Sambisari hamlet, Purwomartani village, Kalasan, Sleman regency, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The temple was buried about five metres underground. Parts of the original temple have been excavated...
. Discovered in 1966, this Hindu temple was buried in volcanic lahar 4m deep. A main temple housen a large linggam and yoni with three smaller temple at the front. - Kedulan. Discovered in 1994 by sand diggers, 4m deep. Square base of main temple visible. Secondary temples not yet fully excavated. This temple shared similar design and style with Sambisari.
- Morangan. Hindu temple complex buried several meters under volcanic ashes, located northwest from Prambanan.
- PustakasalaPustakasalaPustakasala is a 9th to 10th century Hindu temple located in the area of Universitas Islam Indonesia , Kaliurang road, Kaliurang, Sleman, Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The temple was buried about five metres underground...
. Discovered in 2009 buried in Indonesia Islamic University ground. Together with Morangan these temple is the northernmost of temples discovered in this area.
Further reading
- Groneman, I. (Isaac), (1901). The Hindu ruins in the plain of Parambanan Soerabaia, G. C. T. Van Dorp & Co
- Maria Elizabeth Lulius van Goor (1922). A short guide to the ruined temples in the Prambanan Plain, the Dieng Plateau, and Gedong Sanga. Weltevreden [Indonesia] Landsdrukkerij