TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Bogor city to bring history to life in new, revamped museums
Solid history: Batu Tulis inscription, ancient relics of the 16th century Sunda kingdom, in South Bogor, West Java, have been preserved
Change Size
S
olid history: Batu Tulis inscription, ancient relics of the 16th century Sunda kingdom, in South Bogor, West Java, have been preserved. (JP/Theresia Sufa)
The city administration of Bogor in West Java plans to improve its historical tourist destinations by revamping museums and building a new one.
Bogor Mayor Bima Arya Sugiarto said that, unlike neighboring cities, Bogor was rich in historical heritage, hence there was a need to revitalize museums in Bogor.
“We, the people of Bogor, are very lucky. Our place is rich in a history that has created cultures, habits and folklore. The long history gives us characteristics that distinguish us from people from anywhere else. The history gives us a lot to learn,” he said in a discussion about museums on Monday.
He went on to explain that one of the first steps the city had taken was to draw up a preservation plan for the Batu Tulis complex.
Batu Tulis is a historical site holding a masterpiece epigraph from the Pajajaran kingdom. There is also an almost forgotten tomb of Raden Saleh Syarif Bustaman, the naturalist painter who became a landmark figure in the history of Indonesia’s fine arts in the 19th century.
It stands side by side with a house reportedly belonging to Megawati Soekarnoputri, daughter of late president Sukarno and chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
However, reflecting a lack of interest in historical heritage, the sites only see roughly 100 visitors a month, and many of those are students coming for school tasks.
“We’re redesigning [the Batu Tulis complex] this year,” Bima said.
“I will talk to Bu Megawati and ask whether she could consider giving the house as a grant to the Bogor administration, so that we can expand the site. There is also an elementary school next to the house, which we plan to relocate for the project,” he added.
The mayor said, however, that he would first make sure the house actually belonged to Megawati.
Should the city succeed in its plan to expand the Batu Tulis area, Bima said, it would build a new museum named Pajajaran Museum. Alongside that effort, the city would begin collecting important artifacts to fill the museum.
Six museums are located at the heart of Bogor city, just a stone’s throw away from or within the area of the Bogor Botanical Gardens.
They are the Soil Museum, the Zoology Museum, the Indonesia Natural History Museum (Munasin), the Balai Kirti Presidential Museum (inside the Bogor Botanical Gardens), the Map Museum and the Perjuangan Museum (Struggle Museum).
Bima explained that the city also planned to take over the management of museums currently owned by private parties, ministries or other institutions.
“The Perjuangan Museum is now privately owned and managed. We’re working to take it over. We’re communicating with the museum’s heirs,” he said.
One of the Perjuangan Museum caretakers, Ben, said he was happy about the city’s plan for the museum. However, he called on the city to maintain good coordination with other administrations that share historic links with Bogor.
According to Ben, the museum was established in 1958 by history experts from Bogor, Sukabumi and Cianjur — all cities neighboring Bogor. It stands on a 600-square-meter plot of land.
The museum sees only around 300 visitors per month, 90 percent of whom are students. Tickets to enter the museum cost Rp 5,000 (36 US cents) for students or children and Rp 10,000 for adults.
“I dream that schools in Bogor will visit other recreational places less. Just bring the students to museums, including the Perjuangan Museum,” Ben said.
“It’s affordable and the children will be happy because they can learn a lot of things in museum,” he added.
The deputy chairman of the Bogor Museum Enthusiasts Community, Arif, called on the city to prioritize Perjuangan Museum for the revamp, since it housed many collections and information about Bogor residents’ struggle for independence in the colonial era.
“We hope museums in Bogor will become more attractive and comfortable and can lure more people to learn and spend time there,” he said.
With regard to the Batu Tulis preservation plan, Bogor Heritage Council chairman Dayan Layu Allo said there was a need to develop the area as a cultural heritage.
“Batu Tulis’ history dates back to the Pakuan Pajajaran kingdom. This was the center of the kingdom’s governance under Sri Baduga Maharaja [Prabu Siliwangi] and Prabu Surawisesa,” he explained.
