The Temple Of Borobodur

Somewhere in the centre of Java, close to a huge volcano that sometimes sends out clouds of smoke and fountains of red hot lava and molten rock, a group of experts from all over the world, helped by 700 Indonesian workers, are struggling to save one of the world’s most beautiful art treasures: the ancient temple of Borobodur. The history of Borobodur begins many centuries ago at the end of the eighth and the beginning of the ninth century. During that time, over 10,000 labourers worked to create this huge mountain temple with its carved walls, its terraces, and its stupas. But not long after the temple was built, the civilization that built it left the area. For the next 700 years the temple was almost forgotten. Ash from the nearby mountain covered it and thick trees grew over it. It wasn’t until 1814 that people became interested in the temple again. It was in that year that the British governor of Java ordered the army to clear away the jungle that covered the temple. For a couple of months the soldiers chopped and dug, carrying away the rubbish and revealing the beauty of the ancient temple once again.