3 November 2024 The Future is the Product of the Past

Sumatran fishing crews may have found the legendary Gold Island in the Mud of the Indonesian River

The site of the Srivijaya kingdom, known in ancient times as the Island of Gold, may have been found by local fishing crews doing night-time dives in Indonesia‘s Musi River.

The legendary kingdom inexplicably disappeared in the 14th century, taking its great fortune with it.

Dr. Sean Kingsley, a British maritime archaeologist, believes the discoveries, which include a ruby-studded life-size golden Buddha worth millions of dollars, represent the gradual rediscovery of a lost merchant palace city from the kingdom of Svirijaya, which ruled trade routes in large parts of Indonesia for 400 years.

The palace city, located around the town of Palembang, also known as “Venice of the East,” would have sat on a major artery of the maritime version of the Silk Road.

Dr. Sean Kingsley described the trove as definitive evidence that Srivijaya was a “Waterworld”, its people living on the river like modern boat people, just as ancient texts record: “When the civilization ended, their wooden houses, palaces, and temples all sank along with all their goods.”

Dr. Sean Kingsley said: “In the last five years, extraordinary stuff has been coming up. 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.”

Ancient and early modern Palembang on Sumatra was largely built in the water and then sank. Photograph: Tropenmuseum, Collectie Stichting Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen
Ancient and early modern Palembang on Sumatra was largely built in the water and then sank. Photograph: Tropenmuseum, Collectie Stichting Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen

The findings will be published in the latest edition of Wreckwatch, which Kingsley edits. The Srivijayan research is part of a 180-page fall release on China and the Maritime Silk Road.

Dr. Sean Kingsley thinks Sumatra modern sea people, local fishermen, have finally figured out the Srivijaya mystery.

Previously, Australian archaeologists uncovered exquisite collections of pottery preserved in the river silt, reflecting an astonishing number of cultures—including every major Medieval power in Asia, as well as the Dutch, British, and Portuguese.

Kingsley noted that, at its height, Srivijaya controlled the arteries of the Maritime Silk Road, a colossal market in which local, Chinese and Arab goods were traded.

Srivijaya empire
Srivijaya empire

Dr. Kingsley picks up the narrative when he spoke with Dalya Alberge at The Guardian about his upcoming presentation on the lost city in Wreckwatch Magazine.

“From the shallows have surfaced glittering gold and jewels befitting this richest of kingdoms – everything from tools of trade and weapons of war to relics of religion. From the lost temples and places of worship have appeared bronze and gold Buddhist figurines, bronze temple door-knockers bearing the demonic face of Kala, in Hindu legend the mythical head of Rahu who churned the oceans to make an elixir of immortality. Bronze monks’ bells and gold ceremonial rings are studded with rubies and adorned with four-pronged golden vajra scepters, the Hindu symbol for the thunderbolt, the deity’s weapon of choice.”

The reason for the collapse of the kingdom is unclear. Kingsley speculates that it might have been Asia’s Pompeii, buried by Indonesia’s erupting volcanoes. The prevalence of volcanic activity in Indonesia could offer a Pompeii-like explanation, while it’s also possible that riverine activity could have swallowed the city up during a flood or mudslide.

Cover Photo: WreckWatch Magazine

Related Articles

Beautiful’ Water-Nymph Marble Statue Found in Amastris ancient city

8 September 2023

8 September 2023

Excavations in the ancient city of Amastris, located in the Black Sea province of Bartın’s Amasra district, have unearthed a...

2,000-year-old stone faces and engravings emerge amid severe drought in Amazon

24 October 2023

24 October 2023

As a result of record-low water levels brought on by the region’s worst drought in over a century, faces carved...

Archaeologists uncovered an Aztec altar with human ashes in Mexico City

1 December 2021

1 December 2021

Archaeologists in Mexico have discovered a 16th-century altar in Plaza Garibaldi, the center in Mexico City famous for its revelry...

Archaeologists in northern Spanish have discovered what they believe to be the oldest Basque language text

15 November 2022

15 November 2022

Archaeologists have discovered what they believe to be the oldest Basque language text, on  Irulegi archaeological site, near the Aranguren...

13,000-year-old Clovis campsite discovered in Michigan

10 September 2021

10 September 2021

In St. Joseph County, independent researcher Thomas Talbot and University of Michigan scholars uncovered a 13,000-year-old Clovis campsite, which is...

Ancient Egyptian silos and administrative buildings uncovered at Kom Ombo in Egypt’s Aswan

6 March 2022

6 March 2022

The Egyptian-Austrian archaeological mission working in the Temple of Kom Ombo in Egypt’s southern province of Aswan unearthed an administrative...

A new study says genes and languages aren’t always together

22 November 2022

22 November 2022

Over 7,000 languages are spoken around the world. This linguistic diversity, like biological traits, is passed down from generation to...

White grape pips found in the Negev dated may be the oldest of its kind worldwide

29 April 2023

29 April 2023

Researchers from the University of York, Tel Aviv University, and the University of Copenhagen provide new insight into the mystery...

New Museum being Built for the Stolen Goddess Cybele in Western Turkey

12 June 2021

12 June 2021

A marble statue of the Anatolian mother goddess Cybele, which was returned to its native home of Turkey’s Afyonkarahisar will...

Mystery of the World’s Oldest Map on a Nearly 3,000-year-old Babylonian Tablet Finally Solved

28 October 2024

28 October 2024

A recent British Museum video reveals that the “oldest map of the world in the world” on a clay tablet...

2,300 years old amazing preserved looks almost new Celtic scissors discovered in Germany

30 April 2023

30 April 2023

During a construction project in Munich’s Sendling district, Celtic cremation tombs were discovered. The quality of preservation of the grave...

2,500-Year-Old Phoenician Shipwreck Being Rescued By Spanish Archaeologists

6 July 2023

6 July 2023

A 2,500-year-old Phoenician shipwreck has been found underwater in the southeastern Spanish region of Murcia. An extraordinary Phoenician shipwreck dating...

Archaeologists have discovered a large-sized 4,000-Year-Old steppe pyramid of the Bronze Age in Kazakhstan

10 August 2023

10 August 2023

Archaeologists of L. N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University discovered a massive Bronze Age steppe pyramid associated with a horse cult...

Egypt opens King Djoser’s 4,500-year-old tomb after a 15-year restoration

15 September 2021

15 September 2021

Egypt on Tuesday showcased an ancient tomb structure belonging to the cemetery complex of King Djoser, a pharaoh who lived more than 4,500...

Fingerprints Found on Orkney Pottery Belong to Young Men

14 June 2021

14 June 2021

Details of the two young guys whose fingerprints were discovered on a fragment of a clay pot dating back over...