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| Old hearse in Museum PrasastiBERITAJAKARTA.COM — 11/6/2009 5:48:28 PM
Cemetery is identical with spooky atmosphere. But that is typically different from the old cemetery on Jl Tanahabang I, Central Jakarta. It has been 4 centuries old. It saves many priceless art objects. It is Museum Taman Prasasti. People nearby call it Kebonjahe Kober cemetery.
There are three little angel statues completing the main gate. The cemetery is maintained nicely. It is beautiful although spooky.
In the auditorium there are 16 giant ancient inscriptions made of black steel and some other inscriptions.
At the left side of the cemetery, there is an old hearse in a gazebo. Not many people know it. It has 6 meters of length. It was made of a black teak and glass wall on its sides and back. It is tidily saved at the museum. It still looks strong.
Allegedly, it functioned as the carrier for the Netherlands’ body from a boat in Krukut River. It was used only for the Netherlands. Native Indonesian could not use it.
The coffin of Indonesia’s first president, Soekarno and Indonesia’s first Vice President Muhammad Hatta are also placed there. VOC officials’ gravestones are also there, for example Olivia Marianne Raffles’s gravestone. She was a wife of VOC Governor General, Thomas Stamford Raffles who passed away in 1816, and Netherland and England figures A.V. Michelle and Dr. H.F. Roll (founder of medical school at the era of Dutch colonialism) and Capt. Jas (his grave is believed to give fertility, security, prosperous and happiness).
The cemetery is divided into 10 blocks and it has almost 1,500 collections. Most of the gravestones were written in the year around 1800 to 1900.
At that time, there were only VOC officials who could be buried there. But time to time, common people could also be buried there, with an expensive cost.
Museum Taman Prasasti name was established in 1977. Previously, people knew it as Kebonjahe Kober. Because of city development, the previous wide of it around 5.5 hectares is shrinking to only 1.3 hectares.
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| | Translator: ajeng |
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