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A Village in Mojokerto
Visitors to this Courtyard House
Trowulan is a village in Mojokerto, in the Indonesian province of East Java. It is surrounded by an archaeological site covering approximately 100 square kilometres. It has been suggested it was the site of the eponymous capital city of the Majapahit Empire, which is described by Mpu Prapanca in the 14th-century poem Nagarakretagama and in a 15th-century Chinese source. The Nagarakretagama contains poetic descriptions of the palace of Majapahit and its surroundings, but is limited to the royal and religious sectors. Some of the details are vague, and scholars who have tried to compile a plan of the capital have come to different conclusions. Older research at Trowulan has concentrated on monumental remains: temples, tombs, and a bathing place. Archaeological surveys and excavations have recently found the remains of industrial, commercial and religious activity, habitation areas and water supply systems, all of which are evidence of dense population during the 14th to 15th centuries. According to the account of Prapanca in the Nagarakretagama poem, the royal compound was surrounded by a thick, high wall of red brick. Nearby was the fortified guard post. The main gate into the palace was located in the north wall, and was entered through huge doors of decorated iron. Outside the north gate was a long building where courtiers met once a year, a market place, and a sacred crossroads. Just inside the north gate was a courtyard containing religious buildings. On the western side of this courtyard were pavilions surrounded by canals where people bathed. At the south end a gate led to rows of houses set on terraces in which palace servants lived. Another gate led to a third courtyard crowded with houses and a great hall for those waiting to be admitted into the ruler's presence. The king's own quarters, which lay to the east of this courtyard, had pavilions on decorated red brick bases, ornately carved wooden pillars, and a roof decorated with clay ornaments. Outside the palace were quarters for Shiva priests, Buddhists, and other members of the nobility. Further away, and separated from the palace by open fields, were more royal compounds, including that of the chief minister Gajah Mada. Here Prapanca's descriptions end. A 15th-century Chinese source describes the palace as clean and well kept. It was said to have been enclosed within a brick wall more than 10 metres high and with a double gate. The houses inside were built on pillars and were 10–13 metres high, with wooden floors covered with fine mats on which people sat. Roofs were made from wooden shingles and the dwellings of the common people were roofed with straw. A book on Majapahit court etiquette defines the capital as 'All where one can go out without passing through paddy fields.' Temple reliefs from Majapahit do not depict urban scenes, but some contain sketches of settlements indicated as pavilions enclosed within walls. The word 'kuwu' in Nagarakretagama seems to refer the settlement units consisting of a group of buildings surrounded by wall, in which a large number of people lived under the control of a nobleman. This pattern characterised the 16th-century coastal cities of Java described by early European visitors, and Majapahit's capital was probably composed of such units. Credits: From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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