Friday, 6 September 2013

Borobudur ship from Indonesia

Borobudur ship

Borobudur shipA Borobudur ship is the 8th century wooden double outrigger sailed vessel of Maritime Southeast Asia depicted in some bas reliefs of Borobudur Buddhist monument in Central Java, Indonesia. The function of outrigger is to stabilize the ship, single or double outrigger canoe is a typical feature of Austronesian boat cruise and the most likely type of ship used for shipping and their exploration in Southeast Asia, Oceania, and Indian Ocean. The ships depicted on Borobudur was most likely the type of vessels used for inter-insular trades and naval campaign by Sailendran and Srivijayan thalassocracy empire that rules the region around 7th to 13th century.
Borobudur shipThe bas reliefs of Borobudur is known to depict everyday life of 8th century ancient Java, from the courtly palace life to those of commoners in the village. It depicted temple, marketplace, architecture, flora and fauna, dress, jewelry and fashion, as well as mode of transportation such as palanquin, horse carriage and ship.
In 1982, Philip Beale, a British citizen sailor previously served for the British Royal Navy, visiting Borobudur to learn traditional boats and marine tradition and became fascinated with ten bas relief images of ancient vessels depicted on Borobudur. Since then he planned to reconstruct this ancient ship and reenacted the ancient maritime trade route. Working from very limited data — 5 stone carvings — Beale planned to head an expedition team in reconstructing the ship and sailing it from Jakarta in Indonesia to Madagascar and then around the Cape of Good Hope to the west coast of Africa.
Extensive research and design work preceded the building of the ship by a team of experienced Indonesian ship builders, based in the Kangean Islands some 60 miles north of Bali. Nick Burningham, an acknowledged expert on Indonesian watercraft and maritime archaeology, supervised the building of the vessel. The ship was built by Assad Abdullah al-Madani, a seasoned Indonesian traditional ship builder and his men, with little more than a balsa wood model that Nick Burningham had created to help him. The vessel is named Samudra Raksa and was inaugurated in Benoa Harbor, Bali in 15 July 2003 by Minister for Tourism and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia I Gede Ardika together with Philippe Delanghe, UNESCO Office Jakarta Program Specialist for Culture.
The expedition took
August 2003 until February
Priok harbour, Jakarta on 30
President Megawati
of Tema, Accra, Ghana on 23
demonstrated ancient trading links
The treacherous Cinnamon
Indonesian waters across the
Seychelles, Madagascar, and South
place during the 6 months from
2004. It started in Tanjung
August 2003, launched by
Sukarnoputri, and arrived in the port
February 2004. The epic voyage
between Indonesia and Africa .
shipping route took vessels from
Indian Ocean past the
Africa to Ghana.
Today the Samudra Raksa
in Samudra Raksa Museum,
meters north of Borobudur
Borobudur Archaeological Park.
Raksa was opened by
Prof.Dr. Alwi Shihab of the
August 2005, a fitting tribute
worked with and supported the
ship is housed and displayed
located just a few hundred
temple within the complex of
The Ship Museum Samudra
Coordinating Minister for Welfare
Republic of Indonesia on 31
to the crew and all who
Borobudur Ship Expedition.

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