Borobudur, the great Buddhist stupa on Java (Indonesia), built and decorated perhaps before 800AD, should be on anybody's list of the ten greatest art-complexes in the world for its size, quality, sophistication and excellent state of preservation.
These pages introduce various aspects of this monument, and present it using a web browser. VRML is used to provide preset and self-guided tours of this monument; the collection of 2,672 reliefs, both narrative and decorative, can be accessed; relevant texts are linked to the images where appropriate; and links are provided to other great complexes and Buddhist sites, in order to set Borobudur in context.
Borobudur form part of Project Jigsaw, funded by the ANU's Major Equipment CommThe selection of Borobudur as a suitable subject for the first part of Project Jigsaw arose from several circumstances:
This World Heritage monument is accessible, substantially complete, and the object of scholarly, religious and touristic interest; Borobudur is the largest man-made monument in this class near to Australia;
The restoration campaign conducted by Theodoor van Erp generated publications containing large monochrome photographs of Borobudur and all its reliefs, including those of the Hidden Basement (the majority subsequently covered up again);
The volcanic stone of Borobudur is dark-grey and porous (it was probably covered with plaster and then painted), so a project focussing on over 3,000 monochrome images is possible and reasonable: any colour now to be found on the monument is due to mosses and lichens, themselves the result of the tropical climate.
Borobudur (or Barabudur - the origin and meaning of the name are unknown) is a squat pyramid-shaped stupa 40km to the north west of Yogyakarta, in a volcanic region on the Indonesian island of gs of central Java, this Buddhist monument was probably abandoned within not much more than a century after construction when the power-base moved to east Java. There is no foundation inscription, no way of dating beyond the palaeography of the workers' inscriptioJava. Erected in the late 8th or early 9th century, presumably by the kinns, and no later mention of the sanctuary until 1709 AD.
The quality and importance of Borobudur are world-class, for the sheer abundance and beauty of its figured reliefs, decorated panels and sculptures. In Europe, no such sculptural complexes had been seen since well before the fall of the Roman Empire; and none would be seen until more than 100 years after its abandonment. In the region, it ranks with a much larger complexes at Pagan (Burma) and Angkor (Cambodia).
The stupa is some 31.5m high, and almost square with a side of 123m. From a broad podium, the visitor progresses through four relief-covered galleries to a circular terrace, adorned with 72 bell-shaped perforated stupas, each containing a seated Boddhisatva, surrounding a central stupa, once much taller than it is now, which may once have held a relic of the Buddha. Because the structure was built out of a mid- to dark-grey volcanic stone, the tropical climate, with an average rainfall of over 2m per annum, has ensured that the structure has been invaded by mosses and lichens.
Originally, it was probably plastered white, and painted in bright colours. There must have been a substantial monastery for the monks who looked after the structure and the pilgrims, but nothing adequate has yet been discovered. The point of the pilgrimage was that the stupa (its shape perhaps intended as a replica of the universe) allowed the pilgrim to mimic a journey from base life through to enlightenment - from this temporal world to the attainment of enlightenment, symbolised by the Bodhisattvas on the circular terrace. (There are parallels here with the mazes found in mediaeval Christian buildings.)
The shape of the stupa - like a badly-risen cake, says one scholar - results from a mix of climate and ambition. The first building campaign began with a basement covered in 160 relief panels but, when the substantial weight of the first terrace was added, the land slipped, no doubt because the core of the structure (part natural hill, part infill) soaked up water like a sponge. A decision was taken to abandon the basement by girdling it with a terrace - a corset to ensure against future landslips. Hence we might assume that the profile originally intended was taller and sharper than what we see today.
As we see it today, Borobudur is the result of three major restoration schemes. After its description by the Engineer officer H. C. Cornelius on the commission Sir Stamford Raffles, the English Governor, in 1814, the trees and bushes on the site were felled, and stones dislodged by water and earth movement rolled down to the base (with some damage) to await re-positioning. The resident of Kedu, C. L. Hartmann, did further clearance work in 1834 and 1835. Nevertheless, degradation continued; making casts of all the reliefs was contemplated, and in 1882 it was even proposed that the reliefs be dismounted and displayed in a purpose-built museum.
The fact of the filled-in basement was discovered by J. W. Ijzerman in 1885, and this helped provoke the second great restoration which resulted in the monumental monograph by N. J. Krom & Th. Van Erp of 1919, which published photographs of all the sculptures and reliefs, including the hidden base. It is from this monograph that the digital images which adorn our VRML presentation of the stupa were made.
Nor was Van Erp's careful and restrained restoration the final one: the volcanoes and the climate saw to that. Following a request of 1967, UNESCO undertook the dismantling, stabilisation and restoration of the monument once more.
needs more to finish.
The figures for Borobudur are stupendous:
stone embankment covering the basement: 11,600 cubic metres
1,460 narrative panels covering 1,900 square metres
1,212 decorative panels covering 600 square metres
100 monumental gargoyles to carry away the rainwater
432 Buddha images displayed from the galleries
72 Buddhas displayed in stupas on the great terrace)
1,472 stupa-shaped ornaments
Borobudur
Candi Borobudur, in the vicinity of the village of Magelang, about 40 km northwest of Yogyakarta, is one of the Wonders of the World. It is the largest buddhist temple and it was built by one of the kings of the Cailendra Dynasty, somewhere between the end of the Eighth Century and the beginning of the Ninth. In 950, one century after its construction, Borobudur was abandoned, as were all the other monuments of Central Java. About the same period, an eruption of the neighbouring volcano Merapi buried the Candi which was to be found again only in the Nineteenth Century. This rediscovery, in 1814, was due to Sir Thomas Raffles, who was at the time Governor of Java. As Sir Raffles only cleared the place, Borobudur was then looted during the following years.
The Dutch realized the full importance of the monument early in the Twentieth Century and initiated its reconstruction. This first attempt, executed under the responsibility of the engineer Van Erp, encountered serious technical problems and the eventual results were disappointing. In the early 1960's, the reconstruction job, twice delayed by earthquakes, was interrupted because of financial difficulties. It was relaunched in 1973, with the support of UNESCO. After 10 years of impressive work, the temple of Borobudur was eventually opened to the public. Once again, from the higher levels of the massive Candi, crowned by a large stupa, visitors can look over the slopes of the Merapi volcano and look down upon the rice fields of the Plain of Kedu. Borobodur is now recognized as a World Heritage monument.
Originally, the Borobudur had three levels, each of them corresponding to a level of the Mahayana Buddhism universe: Kamadhatu, the lower level of human life, a world of passions overwhelming the human beings, is represented by the lower level of the temple, which is now partly buried.
Ruphadhatu is the second level. It is represented in the temple by the processional terrace and by the four rectangular terraces; it is ornamented by 2,000 bas-reliefs depicting the life of Prince Siddharta before he became the Buddha. On this level can also be found statues of the Buddha representing the five mudras (or hand positions).
Above the rectangular terraces, three circular ones are ornamented by 72 stupas of stone. These stupas are bell-shaped, representing the sacred shape of Buddhism. Each of them encloses a statue of the Buddha
Above these circular terraces, the higher level corresponds to the world of total abstraction (Arupadhatu), represented by a large stupa, about 15 meters in diameter.
As each level represents a period of human life, the pilgrims had to walk along them clockwise, starting with the stairs on the eastern side. They could thus gradually follow the rules of Buddhist philosophy and eventually gain access to Wisdom.
On the island of Java stands a mountain of a thousand statues... surrounded by volcanoes, shrouded in mystery. In 1814, two hundred men cross the lush Kedu plains of Central Java to search out this legendary mountain near the small village of Boro. For six weeks, they slash and burn the choking vegetation. They clear away tons of volcanic ash. Hidden beneath the debris, they find strange figures carved in stone – thousands of them.
The excavation of the monument, known as Borobudur, has been ordered by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the new British Governor of Java. Unlike the Dutch traders before him, Raffles is intrigued by the exotic stories and architecture of the Indonesian islands: "The antiquities of Java have not, till lately, excited much notice; nor have they yet been sufficiently explored. The pursuits of commerce have been too exclusive to allow there being much interest in the subject."
When Raffles comes to inspect the progress of his expedition, he finds a colossal pyramid, rising to a huge bell-shaped pinnacle. Lacking adequate historical records, Raffles is unable to determine the exact date of Borobudur's construction, but he does have some insight into the purpose of the structure: "The resemblance of the images which surround this monument to the figure of Buddha, has introduced an opinion that Borobudur was exclusively confined to the worship of that deity."
But there is no central altar or sanctuary in this temple. Instead, the galleries that ring the structure are covered with nearly three thousand bas-relief panels carved into the stone.
As word of the discovery spreads, scholars of Asian religions visit. They recognize Borobudur as the largest Buddhist temple in the world... and the most unusual. The panels depict the teachings of the Buddha, each familiar story a step in the pilgrim's progress. The galleries are designed to guide the faithful on a spiritual journey as they move upward from terrace to terrace, each level representing a higher plane of consciousness. In ancient times, pilgrims may have come from all over Southeast Asia to study the sacred texts full of mystery, meaning, meditation and morals. Borobudur is a three- dimensional guide to Enlightenment.
But despite Raffles' best intentions, uncovering Borobudur has placed it in grave danger, as reports of the exotic temple attract a new breed of pilgrim. The local villagers are no longer superstitious of the monument, and now view it as a constant source of building materials.
Souvenir hunters decapitate many of the Buddhas and ship them to mansions and museums throughout the world. For the weary tourist, a teahouse is built high on the crumbling central stupa. According to Asian art historian, Jan Fontein, "Many of the Europeans who came to Asia, and many of the Asians themselves, because they had been converted to Islam, regarded these monuments as the work of heathen, and this prevented them from appreciating their true beauty."
But in 1885, an accidental discovery rekindles interest in preserving this ancient treasure. J. W. Ijzerman, a Dutch architect involved in a restoration project, walks along the high processional path that surrounds the base of Borobudur. "And he noticed that the moldings of the wall continued underneath a crack that he saw in the floor," says Fontein. "This meant that all these stones must have been added at a time when part of the building was already finished."
Ijzerman excitedly calls for a section of the path to be removed. When sixteen layers of stone have been pulled away, Ijzerman discovers another tier of panels quite unlike those of the upper galleries. These are portrayals of hellish tortures mixed with scenes of sweet pleasure. In all, one hundred sixty panels are uncovered. A few scenes had been left unfinished, with instructions to the stone carver inscribed in Sanskrit, and the style of lettering is so distinctive that it can be dated specifically to the middle of the 9th century. Experts conclude that Borobudur must have been built by the Sailendra kings who ruled in Central Java at that time.
Further efforts at restoration by Europeans throughout the next century are well meaning, but ultimately do more damage than good. The sediment and plant life that had shrouded Borobudur for so long had also protected it from the elements. As the galleries are cleared, the porous volcanic stone is exposed to Java's relentless heat and torrential downpours. Throughout most of the 19th century, Borobudur suffers more damage than in the thousand years before.
In 1968, the Indonesian government and the United Nations, working through UNESCO, launch the "Save Borobudur" campaign. Over the next fifteen years, twenty million dollars are raised to support a bold plan: the complete dismantling and reconstruction of the lower terraces of the monument – stone by stone. Professionals from twenty-seven countries join their Indonesian counterparts to carry out the project.
Over one million stones are moved during the course of restoration, and set aside like pieces of a massive jig-saw puzzle. Thirteen hundred carved panels are taken apart and individually cleaned, catalogued and treated for preservation. And Borobudur becomes a testing ground for new conservation techniques – new procedures to battle the microorganisms eating away at the stone. Experts in engineering, chemistry, biology and archaeology all share their skills to solve the multitude of problems. The restoration takes eight years of labor and unprecedented international cooperation to complete.
In the words of Professor Soekmono, the Indonesian archaeologist who directed the Borobudur Restoration Project: "Borobudur has resumed its old historical role as a place of learning, dedication and training. We might even conclude that the builders of the monument hoped and planned for such continuity.
An excellent training program, either for the pilgrim-devotee or for the field technician, is always based on a wish, a fervent wish, that the trainee will achieve what is projected. For the ardent Buddhist it is the Highest Wisdom that leads to the Ultimate salvation, and for the technician the highest degree of expertise that leads to the appropriate fulfillment of his duty. In both cases, Candi Borobudur is the embodiment of such a deeply felt wish. It is a prayer in stone."
building Borobudur
Based on inscriptions found on some of the stones of the monument, archaeologists agree that construction of Borobudur was probably begun around 760 AD and completed by about 830, the Golden Age of the Sailendra dynasty, under the reign of King Samaratunga. Sailendras were of foreign origin, either from South India or from Indo-China, and ruled Sumatra and Java from the 8th through the 13th centuries. Under their rule, the islands were major centers of Buddhist scholarship. The Javanese had been carving stone statues and inscriptions since about 400 AD, but between 700 and 900 AD, many of the Island's greatest shrines were erected.
Javanese society of that time must have been healthy and wealthy enough to support an endeavor such as the building of Borobudur. It would have required plentiful manpower to haul the stone – as much as 45,700 cubic yards taken from nearby streams and rivers, all fitted perfectly together without mortar. Skilled craftsmen would have been needed to carve the images, which were completed after the stones were in place, and abundant agricultural resources to provide food.
By the middle of the 9th century, Borobudur was completed with a large monastery at the southwest foot of the hill. "Today it takes a trained eye to see Borobudur from a distance," says Asian art historian, Jan Fontein. "But we know that, in ancient times,this stone was covered with a kind of white plaster – called "plaster as hard as diamond" or "vajalaypa" – which may have been a base for colors and just as the pilgrim who went to Chartres saw the cathedral rise up from miles away, so the pilgrim who came to Borobudur may have seen the monument in ancient times, hours before he reached it."
Records from the 9th and 10th centuries show that Borobudur was a center of pilgrimage for about 150 years during a short but intense period of Buddhism. Chinese coins and ceramics found at Borobudur from the 11th to the 15th centuries suggest that pilgrims continued to visit Borobudur during that time.
historical records
Borobudur stands in the geographical center of the island of Java, fifteen miles from Yogyakarta, on a plateau that is the caldera of an ancient volcano ringed by the Menoreh mountains. Two sets of twin volcanoes – Merapi and Merbabu to the northeast, Sumbing and Sindoro to the northwest – stand sentinel across the plains. Merapi, the "fire mountain," is active.
A legend is told of a heavenly architect who built Borobudur in a single day and laid a curse on anyone who dared ascend his holy shrine. According to Asian art historian, Jan Fontein: "There is a mountain south of Borobudur that when viewed from the monument looks very much like the profile of a man; the nose, lips and chin are clearly delineated. The story goes that the ridge depicts Gunadharma, the architect of Borobudur, who is believed to keep watch over his creation through the ages."
There were only two fleeting references to Borobudur in historical reports of the 18th century. The first recorded visitor to Borobudur was a rebel who fled to the mountain called Bara-Budur in 1709 after leading an attempt to usurp the throne from the Sultan of Matara. The Sultan sent troops who surrounded the mountain, captured him and sent him to be executed.
The next documented visitor to the monument was the heir apparent of Yogyakarta, a defiant young prince who had a reputation for rebellious and depraved behavior. In 1758, he set out to visit the "mountain of a thousand statues" against the advice of a prophecy that royalty who climbed the mountain would die. When he did not return to court, the king sent his men to bring back the wayward son. He was found vomiting blood and soon after died.
But records revealed no consensus on the meaning of the name "Borobudur." Two alternatives were proposed based on Javanese manuscripts from 842 AD: "the mountain of the accumulation of virtue on the ten stages of the Bodhisattva," or "the mountain which is terraced in successive stages." Sir Thomas Raffles, the British governor of Indonesia responsible for the excavation of Borobudur in 1814, thought that "boro" might mean "great" and "budur" might correspond to the more modern Javanese word "buda," interpreted as "The Great Buddha." One Javanese expert indicated that "boro" is related to the word for "monastery," and "budur" is a place name. This would suggest that Borobudur means "Monastery of Budur."
Fortunately, because of the native tolerance of religious diversity, many of the monuments of Java were simply abandoned rather than destroyed or defaced, and a cloud of mystery and superstition descended on Borobudur.
Borobudur revealed
Built from nearly two million stone blocks of andesite, a bluish-gray volcanic stone, Borobudur is shaped like a stepped pyramid, the base of which is 402 feet long from north to south and 383 feet long from east to west; the height is now 95 feet above ground level. The colossal monument consists of six rectangular terraces topped by three concentric circular terraces.
Four of the terraces are galleries, each enclosed by a balustrade and an inner wall, open to the sky and carved with sculptures. At first sight, the square galleries are an overwhelming mass of images depicting the activities of gods and mortals carved in the dark volcanic stone along the wide processional paths. There are more than 1,300 narrative panels illustrating the life of Buddha and Buddhist texts, the largest and most complete collection of Buddhist reliefs in the world. Originally, there were over 500 statues of the Buddha,* 432 seated in lotus position on the square terraces and 72 meditating inside the bell-shaped stupas on the top terraces. There are no elaborate carvings on these three upper levels.
Sir Thomas Raffles, the British governor of Indonesia responsible for the excavation of Borobudur in 1814, speculated that Borobudur may have originally been a holy place of pilgrimage for believers of the Mahayana branch of Buddhism. Monks from the nearby monastery would have led pilgrims along the galleries, using the carved panels to illustrate the stories of their faith and the way of the Buddha as they circled their way to the top of the monument.
Lacking further historical information, Raffles was unable to determine the exact date of Borobudur's construction. But he knew that in the 13th and 14th centuries, Islam had replaced Buddhism as the island's religion, and he thought it unlikely that Borobudur would have been built since then. Also, ancient records showed that in the 10th century, the region around Borobudur had been mysteriously deserted, and all construction in central Java had stopped then. From the detailed carvings, Raffles concluded that Borobudur had been built sometime between the eighth and tenth centuries, during a period of relative peace in East Asia, after the nomadic and religious invasions had run out of steam.
No one knows what happened to the culture that built the monument. Perhaps Merapi had erupted, choking the rice lands with layers of volcanic ash. Whatever the cause, the population moved to East Java in a mass exodus, and Borobudur was left behind, its meaning lost in time.
In 1896, the Dutch gave the King Chulalongkorn of Siam eight wagon loads of statues and bas-reliefs, including five of the best Buddhas and two complete lions.
Guide to Enlightenment
Gautama Buddha was born in India in the 6th century. At the age of twenty-nine, he renounced riches to become a monk and lead a life of meditation. Originally, Buddhism was not a religion, but a doctrine that explained the steps to reaching Nirvana, a release from life's misery. The ultimate goal is to avoid rebirth and a continuation of life, cycle after cycle. When the Buddha gained Enlightenment, he taught his followers. In his famous sermon at Deer Park in what is now Benares, he established the principles of a faith that brings inner tranquility.
Hear me, gracious ones, for I offer you knowledge of the path to Enlightenment. This is the first noble truth: life is suffering. The second noble truth: suffering is caused by human fears and desires. Third: suffering can be eliminated. And the fourth noble truth is that the elimination of suffering can be achieved by following the Noble Eight-fold path.
The Eight-fold path shows the way to extinguish desire: correct view, correct intention, correct speech, correct conduct, correct livelihood, correct zeal, correct remembrance (which retains what is true and excludes the false) and correct meditation.
The panels of Borobudur depict a branch of Buddhism known as Mahayana Buddhism, which developed around the beginning of the Christian era. In Mahayana Buddhism, the ideal is to become a Bodhisattva, an enlightened being who rejects personal salvation and returns to life in order to help others reach Nirvana. The journey up Borobudur shows the way to become a Bodhisattva through good deeds, contemplation and meditation.
Borobudur is a place of pilgrimage rather than of worship, a training center for those who wish to achieve Enlightenment. The student is guided along successive terraces and staircases to the uppermost level, walking in a clockwise direction – the outside world blocked from sight by the balustrades – and experiencing physically as well as spiritually the long hard journey in search of ultimate truth.
The monument is built to represent the universe according to Buddhist cosmology, divided into the Spheres of Desire, Form and Formlessness.
Kamadhatu, the Sphere of Desire, is represented by the panels of the hidden base, which depict man's concern for worldly desires and pleasures.
Rupadhatu, the Sphere of Form, is represented by the five square terraces above the base, which illustrate the pathway to freedom from passions, though man is still bound by the illusion of form.
Arupadhatu is the Sphere of Formlessness, represented by the three concentric circular terraces at the top of the monument, symbolizing freedom from the phenomenal world.
Arupadhatu adalah Lapisan Tanpa bentuk, yang diwakili oleh ke tiga teras/tingkat-tingkat [yang] lingkar sepusat ada di puncak monumen, menandakan kebebasan dari dunia yang luar biasa
Built by the wealthy Sailendra kings of Central Java, Borobudur would have been a testament to their Buddhist faith and a mark of their social, political and religious standing. In keeping with the precepts of Mahayana Buddhism, a Sailendra king had to do his utmost to accumulate as much merit as possible during his reign. The entire population would have participated in Borobudur's construction, reaping a great deal of good karma and ensuring the material and spiritual well-being of the entire kingdom.
Timeline4,000 BC
Javanese descended from seafarers of China.
6th century BC
Birth of Gautama Buddha.
400 AD
Java becomes sea link between India and China
Javanese began carving stone statues and inscriptions.
768-814
Charlemagne rules from northeastern Spain north to the Baltic Sea and east into the Italian peninsula. He is crowned emperor in 800 AD.
800s
Mayans build large cities with tens of thousands of inhabitants under reign of King Samaratunga.
Monks and holy men make pilgrimages to Java from Asian continent.
8th – 13th centuries
Sailendra dynasty rules Sumatra and Java.
750 to 850
Golden Age of the Sailendra dynasty.
760
Probable beginning of Borobudur construction.
830
Probable completion of Borobudur construction.
700-900
People of Central Java enjoy a high level of cultural development, erecting many grand palaces and religious monuments.
930
Javanese culture and political life move east, away from the lands around Borobudur.
13th – 14th centuries
Islam religion comes to Java.
1500- 1800s
Borobudur is abandoned; volcanic ash fills the galleries; vegetation, including trees, takes root on the buried monument.
1709
According to the 18th century chronicle Babad Tanah Jawi, the rebel Ki Mas Dana makes a stand at Borobudur in a revolt against the Sultan of Mataram. The monument is besieged and the rebel defeated, brought before the king and sentenced to death.
1758
In the Babad Mataram (History of the Kingdom of Mataram), a story is told of the crown prince of the Sultanate of Yogyakarta, who disobeyed his father and journeyed to climb "the mountain of a thousand statues." The Sultan sent his men to bring him back, but he became ill and died as soon as he returned to the palace.
1811-1816
Java comes under British rule.
1814
Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles, the English Lieutenant Governor of Java, is informed of the existence of a huge monument called Chandi Borobudur. Raffles orders Dutch engineer officer H.C. Cornelius and two hundred villagers to fell trees, burn undergrowth and dig away the earth that covers the monument.
1815
May 18th: Raffles visits Borobudur.
1844
A bamboo teahouse is built on top of the central stupa of the monument.
1885
Panels that surround the hidden base of Borobudur are discovered by J.W. Ijzerman, Chairman of the Archeological Society in Yogyakarta, under the processional pathway that has been built around the monument. This discovery brings about renewed efforts to safeguard Borobudur from vandalism and natural threats.
1890-1891
The hidden panels are excavated and photographed, then the pathway is replaced.
1896
Dutch Colonial officials give the King of Siam eight wagon loads of statues and bas-reliefs from Borobudur, including five of the best Buddhas and two complete stone lions.
1911
A Dutch archeologist from Leiden University paints many of the reliefs with ochre to improve his photography. The yellow ochre remains, encouraging the growth of algae, fungus, lichen and moss on the stones themselves.
1907-1911
The first major restoration project at Borobudur is begun by Theodor van Erp, a Dutch army engineer officer. He spends the first seven months excavating the grounds around the monument, finding missing Buddha heads and panel stones. Van Erp then dismantles and rebuilds the upper three circular terraces and crumbling stupas. His team cleans many of the sculptures of moss and lichen. However, he is unable to solve the drainage problem which is undercutting the monument. Within fifteen years, the gallery walls are sagging and the reliefs show signs of new cracks and deterioration.
1948
The Republic of Indonesia comes into existence.
1955
The Indonesian government asks UNESCO for advice on treating the weathered stones of Borobudur.
1968
The Indonesian government and the United Nations, working through UNESCO, launch a "Save Borobudur" campaign. A bold plan is proposed to dismantle and rebuild the lower terraces of Borobudur, clean and treat the story panels, and install a new drainage system to stop further erosion.
1971
The plan is approved by the Indonesian government and restoration committee.
1975
Restoration work begins.
1983
Feb. 23: Completion of the project is marked by an inaugural ceremony.
1991
Borobudur is included in UNESCO's World Heritage list.
Nature takes a toll
But during the 19th century, as Borobudur's past became more clear, its future grew much less certain. The climate of Java is particularly ruthless to man-made structures. In the words of Professor Soekmono, former head of the Archeological Service of Indonesia: "For over a thousand years, the rigours of the tropical climate have probed the latent weaknesses of the edifice. Sudden changes of heat and cold between day and night, where temperatures may vary by 40 degrees Fahrenheit in twenty-four hours, cause stones to crack. But the worst havoc has been caused by the heavy rains, over eighty inches a year on average, with torrential downpours of up to half an inch in five minutes. They overwhelmed the inadequate drainage system, percolating down into the central core where they washed away the earth and weakened the foundations."
"Moisture on the stones had also corroded many of the beautifully carved reliefs and favored the growth of disfiguring patches of mosses and lichens. The terrace walls sagged and tilted at crazy angles and the floors sloped inwards. Had the lower terrace walls collapsed, the whole colossal structure would have come tumbling down in a great slithering avalanche of earth and masonry."
Nature itself was destroying the monument, literally tearing Borobudur apart. Despite repeated efforts at restoration throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, major decay and structural disintegration plainly threatened Borobudur with inevitable and irreparable collapse. Several interesting suggestions for protection of the monument were made during that time. One of the preservationists suggested that Borobudur be covered by a giant umbrella to keep the rain off. Another proposal was to demolish the entire edifice and deposit the reliefs in a museum.
In 1907, Theodore Van Erp, a Dutch engineering officer, led a major restoration project. He rebuilt the crumbling stupas and heaving floors of the upper terraces, cleaning the sculptures of moss and lichen. But after four years, the limited funds were exhausted before work could begin on the lower galleries, and the basic problem of drainage had not been solved. Carvings were rapidly disintegrating; walls were crumbling.
By 1948, when the Republic of Indonesia came into existence, Borobudur was on the brink of ruin. According to Soekmono, "Deterioration was so widespread all over the monument that no partial restoration could effectively ensure its safeguard. Since the Indonesian people were determined to pass on the best of their cultural heritage to forthcoming generations, drastic but deliberate action was called for in the form of a gigantic project." But it would be several decades before attention would again turn to Borobudur.
