Old Town site excavation ruins artifacts

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Excavation during the construction of a pedestrian tunnel in Old Town, West Jakarta, has destroyed artifacts and hampered historical analysis, an archaeologist said Thursday.

"The cultural and museum agency should have been informed about the excavation at the Old Town site... a permit should have been sought before the project began," University of Indonesia professor of archaeology Mundardjito said.

"Digging beneath a historical site without an excavation permit is illegal," he said.

Late last year, workers who were excavating at the Old Town site -- to make way for a western entrance to the pedestrian tunnel in front of Bank Mandiri Museum -- found an old tram track, timber poles, terra-cotta pipes and a thick brick and andesite wall.

A preliminary analysis carried out by the agency's archaeological team revealed the wall position did not match that of the old city wall.

According to the team, the old city wall was a leaning structure, while the wall uncovered during excavation stood erect.

But since the structure was found near the possible location of the old city wall, experts and heritage buffs assumed it was part of the old wall. Further research was conducted.

A terra-cotta pipe, found several meters from the underground wall, was identified as resembling the pipes used in Banten's water purification system during the 18th century.

Similar pipes were later found inside the Bank Indonesia Museum.

According to Mundardjito, anything found buried in the vicinity of the old city wall area is worth analyzing.

"A Dutch map was not drawn to scale, so it is difficult to determine where the exact location of the wall is," he said.

It takes meticulous calculations to determine a suitable spot for excavation.

For archaeologists, he said, it was important to know what was found in which location, to be able to build a contextual historical analysis.

Unfortunately, the old buried structure, and other artifacts found during the construction of the pedestrian tunnel, have been removed from the site.

A source close to the agency confirmed there was no archaeological study conducted before the tunnel project began.

The project was led by the Jakarta Transportation Agency. Projects involving an official heritage site should involve the cultural and museum agency, Aurora said.