Archaeologists Discovered Indonesia's lost "Island of Gold"
Researchers believe they have discovered the remains of Indonesia's long-lost "Island of Gold", a mythical place shrouded by mystery.
The legends regarding the "Island of Gold" speak of man-eating snakes, volcanoes that belched smoke and fire, parrots that could mimic Hindi, Greek, and Arabi, fascinating treasures, as well as and well-armed sailors, Live Science reports.
The discovery was made near the Musi River near Palembang, Indonesia. Divers searching the river bottom have brought up hundreds of figurines, temple bells, tools, mirrors, coins, Buddhist statues, and Chinese ceramics.
They also discovered gold sword hilts, ruby-encrusted gold rings, carved jars, and wine jugs and flutes shaped like peacocks.
All these interesting artifacts discovered by archaeologists point to one thing - they have found the lost city of Srivijaya, once a wealthy and prosperous port at the crossroads of trade routes between East and West.
The Lost City Of Srivijaya
Srivijaya, which was ruled by a king, controlled the Straits of Malacca from the mid-600s AD until 1025 when war with India's Chola dynasty broke the city's power. From then on Srivijaya's influence declined, although historians say trade flourished here for another two centuries.
The city's last prince, Parameswara, tried to restore its former glory in the 1390s but was soundly defeated by the nearby Kingdom of Java. Srivijaya and the surrounding areas subsequently became a haven for Chinese pirates. Today there is almost no trace of the city's glory days, except for artifacts pulled up by divers from the river bottom.
"We're starting at ground zero. It's like walking into a museum wing, and it's completely empty. People don't know what clothes the people of Srivijaya wore, what their tastes were, what kind of ceramics they liked to eat off, nothing. We don't know anything about them in life or in death," explained marine archaeologist Sean Kingsley.
The legends regarding the "Island of Gold" speak of man-eating snakes, volcanoes that belched smoke and fire, parrots that could mimic Hindi, Greek, and Arabi, fascinating treasures, as well as and well-armed sailors, Live Science reports.
The discovery was made near the Musi River near Palembang, Indonesia. Divers searching the river bottom have brought up hundreds of figurines, temple bells, tools, mirrors, coins, Buddhist statues, and Chinese ceramics.
They also discovered gold sword hilts, ruby-encrusted gold rings, carved jars, and wine jugs and flutes shaped like peacocks.
All these interesting artifacts discovered by archaeologists point to one thing - they have found the lost city of Srivijaya, once a wealthy and prosperous port at the crossroads of trade routes between East and West.
The Lost City Of Srivijaya
Srivijaya, which was ruled by a king, controlled the Straits of Malacca from the mid-600s AD until 1025 when war with India's Chola dynasty broke the city's power. From then on Srivijaya's influence declined, although historians say trade flourished here for another two centuries.
The city's last prince, Parameswara, tried to restore its former glory in the 1390s but was soundly defeated by the nearby Kingdom of Java. Srivijaya and the surrounding areas subsequently became a haven for Chinese pirates. Today there is almost no trace of the city's glory days, except for artifacts pulled up by divers from the river bottom.
"We're starting at ground zero. It's like walking into a museum wing, and it's completely empty. People don't know what clothes the people of Srivijaya wore, what their tastes were, what kind of ceramics they liked to eat off, nothing. We don't know anything about them in life or in death," explained marine archaeologist Sean Kingsley.
