Divers Stumble on ‘Treasures’ of a Mysterious Civilization That Controlled Sea Trade Across Asia Centuries Ago
History has witnessed the rise and fall of multiple empires. Experts try to understand more about these empires by analyzing the items they have left behind. Some of these civilizations have been really hard for researchers to examine because not much has been found related to them. Findings associated with one of such kingdoms have been coming to the surface from the Musi River in Indonesia, stated Smithsonian Magazine.
The kingdom in question is the Srivijaya Empire (in present day Indonesia), which lasted from the 7th to 11th centuries C.E. The empire is known for controlling sea trade across a large portion of Asia for five centuries. This empire was so rich that there are tales that it ruled over an 'Island of Gold,' stated Live Science. This place supposedly had a lot of gold, fire-belching volcanoes, and man-eating snakes. Most of what is known about the Srivijaya kingdom comes from the accounts of merchants and visitors. Researchers believe that the flourishing kingdom vanished because most of its structures were built from wood and was placed on top of water. Therefore, they were vulnerable to rotting and disappeared after a few generations.
For decades, researchers had no clue where this island was; all of this changed when divers began finding multiple artifacts from the Musi River near Palembang, Indonesia. The collected items included golden sword hilts, gold-and-ruby rings, figurines, mirrors, ceramics, coins, temple bells, and many more.
All of these findings made researchers speculate that the lost island was possibly situated in this area. To date, no official archaeological excavations have been conducted in the region. Therefore, there are no past studies for experts to build on in their pursuit of the lost city. "We’re starting at ground zero," British maritime archaeologist Sean Kingsley shared. "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," said Kingsley.
The artifacts began getting spotted on the shore of the Musi River around 2011, when workers started frequenting the area to take sand for large construction projects. This caused many locals to dive into the waters in pursuit of valuable items. From 2011 to 2015, several items dating back to the Srivijaya Empire were sold in Jakarta's antiquities market. The unearthing of items in such a way is concerning, as it puts many fragile artifacts in danger.
"I think the looting is probably still in progress," John Miksic, a professor of Southeast Asian studies at the National University of Singapore, said. "The river is broad (1 km [0.6 miles] wide) in Palembang. Similar activity has been reported in the Batanghari in Jambi, the next big river north of Palembang," said Miksic.
Archaeologists are therefore asking for protection from the government or help from a wealthy collector to protect the remnants of the Srivijaya Empire. "This is the last great lost civilization that no one's heard about," Kingsley said. "There's an obligation to save it from oblivion."
Researchers were astounded to see the items found in the region, and believe it implies that the tales regarding the opulence of this empire could be somewhat true, stated Smithsonian Magazine. "In the last five years, extraordinary stuff has been coming up," Kingsley said. "Coins of all periods, gold and Buddhist statues, gems, all the kinds of things that you might read about in Sinbad the Sailor, and think it was made up. It’s actually real."