Sragen is one of the Central Java province which is located
in the border with East Java province. It could also be said that Sragen state
is the “gateway” to Central Java when travelling from the East. Sragen is also
called as “Tlatah Sukowati” which as an area of 941.55 km2 wide, with a
topography as in the middleof Bengawan Solo river (the longest river in Java
island) and south of the Lawu mountain valley. North of Sragen is part of the
Kendeng mountain and west are very well known as “Kubah Sangiran”
One of the interesting object of the Sragen state in
the Sangiran Museum which is located in the area of Kuah Sangiran. Kubah itself
means vault. Hence the vault is located in Depresi Solo, foot of Lawu mountain
(about 17 km of Solo city). The presence of Sangiran is a perfect example of
the ancient human existence, as you could find the Java. The area is about 56
km wide that spread over 3 sub-district in Sragen state, which is Gemolong,
Gondangrejo and Karanganyar district. Sangiran is one of the most important
site for anthropological, archeological, biological, plaeonthological,
geological and of course travel site.
The existence of the site is very important as out
of the fossils, flora and fauna fossils along with their statigrafics. Sangiran
is passed by a beautiful river, cemoro river this flows to the delta of
Bengawan Solo. This is the region where most land erosions occur, the erosion
caused the difference of the layers of the earth. In this layersis where the
fossils are mostly found.
Today, the Fossils site of Sangiran still hold a lot
of mystery that is left to be discovered about 50 individuals of Human fossils
(Homo erectus) is found. This number represents 65% of the Homo Erectus in the
world (Widianto: 1995,1). The whole fossils found numbered about 13,809
piesces. About 2,934 fossils is kept in the Exhibition room of the Sangiran
Museum and 10,875 other fossils are kept in Geological Museum Bandung and
Paleoanthological Laboratory in Yogyakarta. Based on the findings, Sangiran
site is one of the most priced pre-historicall site for understanding and
learning the evolution of men. Based on these facts, Sangiran site is named as
World Heritage Committee during their 20th anniversary in Merida
Mexico. Research about the ancient man and animals is started by G.H.R Von
Koeningswald, a paleonthological expert from Germany, who worked for Dutch
government in Bandung city in 1930’s. He is responsible for training the people
of Sangiran about fossils and the way of handling fossils they have found. The
research was then compiled in the head of Krikilan village, Mr. Totomarsono,
until year 1975. During the period, many visitors have come to visit. This is
where the main idea of building a museum is born. In the forefront, Sangiran
Museum is built in a 1,000 m2 land, located in Krikilan village official house.
However , a new respresentative museum is built in 1980, considering the
founding of more fossils along with the need
to create a better atmosphere for the visitors. The building is built in
an area of 16.675 m2 with the museum building about 750 m2 large.
The architecture of the museum adapted Joglo house
design and consist of a hall, exhibition room, laboratory, library, souvenier
shop (mostly selling fortune stone of Cemoro river), toilet, mosque, parking
area, storage room and audio visual room (a theatrical room showing
pre-historical film about human life).
Sangiran Museum
continues to develop and increase the amounts of building and facilities. The
aim was to firmly establish themselves as one of the important role in the
development of knowledge. Today, the museum has revolutionize to become a grand
museum with modern architecture.
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