Gedongsongo Temple

August 11, 2015 by: tournesia in: Religious & Heritages No Comment

Gedong Sanga complex is located at the peak of Mt. Ungaran, precisely in the Village Temple, District Somawono, Semarang, Central Java. Experts have not been able to ascertain the time and development purposes Gedong Sanga, because until now there is no inscription that mentions about the existence of the ancient building. Location in the hills underlying suspicion that this temple was built in the early development of Hinduism in Java, during the reign of the kings of Sanjaya dynasty. Given the architectural style and location, Hindu Shiva temple is believed to be built for the purpose of worship. At that time the plateau or hilly regarded as the embodiment of ‘heaven’, the dwelling place of the gods.
Existence of this temple was first disclosed in the report Raffles in 1740. Initially, only seven groups of buildings were found, so the Raffles call Gedong Pitu. Once found, do some research on the temple by Dutch archaeologists, among others, Van Stein Callenfels (1908) and Knebel (1911). In that study found the other two groups of temples, so the name was changed to Gedong Sanga (in Javanese means nine buildings). In 1928 and 1929, archaeological department at the time of the Dutch government for restoration of the Gedong Gedong I and II. The restoration of the temple and environmental management carried out by the Indonesian government for nearly 10 years, ie 1972 to 1982.

Gedong I
Gedong I consisted of the building intact, are relatively small with a rectangular ground-plan. The roof rectangular layered with ornate pattern paste paper around it. Half of the roof peak seen have been destroyed. In the southeast looks G. Telomoyo, G. Merbabu, and Mount Merapi.

Batur (foot of the temple) with a rectangular ground-plan decorated with a row of panels with carved floral (lotus) and tendrils simple. High-shelf approximately 1 m, with stairs leading to a small room in the temple is located on the east side. Shelf surface formed about 0.5 m-wide corridor surrounding the temple. Along the edges of the hall was given a fence, but the majority of the stone fence already dates or even disappear.

The outer wall of the temple plain, without reliefs or recesses place to put the statue. In the middle of the wall are carved floral form a kind of empty frames. Can not be ascertained whether in the frame there was another statue or sculpture.

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Gedong II

Gedong II consists of the whole building with a square ground-plan area of approximately 2.5 m2. The temple sits on high base of about 1 m.
Seam on the shelf juts out to form a 0.5 m-wide corridor surrounding the temple. Stairs up to the lobby located on the east side, right in front of the door Mauk into a small room within the body temple. The door has a sort of corbelled roof that juts out about 1 m from the body of the temple. Above the doorway decorated with carved Kalamakara.

On the outer wall of the north, south and west there is a stone structure which juts out walls, forming a frame a niche where the statue. The front of the frame is tiled with patterned pieces of flat. The bottom of the frame decorated with a pair of dragon head with mouth gaping. At the top of the frame are ornaments Kalamakara without lower jaw.
Roof shaped temple three tiered beams, the upward decreasing with gabled roof peak. The roof peak current is not there. Around each cube decorated with a sculptured pattern paste paper. In every corner there are ornaments shaped like pointy-toed round crown. Most of the ornaments are damaged. In front of the temple there is another building which left only the foundation and piles of rubble were estimated as ancillary temples.

Gedong III

Gedong III consists of three buildings, two buildings were lined up facing east and one to the west meghadap building. The third building can be said to be in one piece.

Both buildings facing east like a pair of twin buildings, but that was on the north are larger and higher than that in the south. Larger building, which is in the north, diperlirakan the main temple or the main temple, while the smaller building is estimated as ancillary temples. The temple sits on a low shelf with square-shaped ground-plan.

Both the building roof-shaped square 3 tiered, decreasing progressively upwards to the top of a pointed roof, like the roof of Gedong II. Surroundings cube decorated with a sculptured pattern paste paper. In every corner there are ornaments shaped like pointy-toed round crown. All around the temple body are narrow and without fencing hall.

The entrance to a small room in the temple body has a corbelled roof that juts about 1 m out of the temple. Right in front of the door there are stairs up to the lobby is equipped with a cheek staircase with carved flowers at the base. On the wall at the left and right of the doorway of the north of the building there is a niche containing a statue of Shiva in a standing position with his right hand resting on a long mace.

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The second building facing east stands on a low shelf with a square ground-plan. In the middle of each side of the foot of the temple there is a niche, one of which contains a statue of an elephant.

On the wall on the west side, north and south of each of the buildings there are niches to hold the statue. Recesses in the walls of buildings perwara currently empty. In the niches on the south wall of the main temple there Ganesha statue in a cross-legged position, while in the south there are niches in the walls of the eight-armed Durga in a standing position.
The third building in the complex Gedong III is located in front of the main temple and ancillary temples. This building has a rectangular ground-plan with a roof-like ‘pyramid’ curved. On the roof lining extends 3 ornament shaped like a small tower. The entrance of the building facing the main temple looks simple borderless. Above the threshold of the doorway seemed former ornaments were broken. There are niches in the walls of the building are similar to Semar temple on Dieng temple complex. Allegedly function of the building is the same as Semar temple function, namely as a storage or warehouse.

Gedong IV

Gedong IV consists of the whole building and a number of other buildings in the surrounding ruins. Not yet known how the original form and what the function of buildings that have collapsed, but there are allegations that the buildings are ancillary temples.
Buildings are still intact is shaped like the building Gedong II. The temple sits on approximately 1 m high base with a rectangular ground-plan. Seam on the shelf juts out to form a 0.5 m-wide corridor surrounding the temple. Stairs up to the lobby located on the east side, right in front of the entrance to a small room in the temple.

The door has a sort of corbelled roof that juts out about 1 m from the body of the temple. Above the doorway decorated with carved Kalamakara without lower jaw. On the left and right of the doorway there is a niche where the statue is currently empty. At the bottom threshold ornate niches that are not clear original form.
On the outer wall of the west side, north and south there are niches containing statues. One of the statues that still exist in the form of the figure of a man in a standing position. Arca is in disrepair. Gedong IV-shaped roof square three tiered, decreasing progressively upwards to the top of a pointed roof, like the roof of Gedong II. Surroundings cube decorated with a sculptured pattern paste paper. In every corner there are ornaments shaped like pointy-toed round crown.