The Museum of Science

A few months ago in July, I went to Japan and visited the Kansai region, or Osaka to be precise, under the youth exchange program that held by Japanese Government, JENESYS. During my visit in Osaka city, me and with other participant have visited many places. To name a few, Osaka Science Gas Museum is one of them.

Osaka Science Gas Museum built in Osaka city port, where the LNG or Liquefied Natural Gas that have been exported from across nations, including Indonesia (maybe all of the LNG reserve we have are being exported there), stored and processed before used as an energy across Japan for home, commercial, and Industry usages.

The museum complex is quite large since it’s also functioned as the depot for the gases itself. Since the museum is located at Osaka bay and there are harbours nearby, ships that carry the gases will directly sent them to gas depot for procession. It needs to be processed since the gases take different form when being transported overseas by ship and when they are being stored in gas depot.

Japan suffered an energy crisis state after Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant radiation leak out when tsunami stroked eastern of Japan. Few Japanese east nuclear power plants also have been shutdown to prevent the same incident occur in another perfecture. Thus, the government have forced to search for alternatives energy sources solution for their home, commercial, and industry massive needs of energy. Liquefied Natural Gas or abbreviated as LNG is popular to become alternative energy source since it is quite environmental friendly and produce as much as energy like oil did.

First, what is LNG? Why we exported them to Japan not use it for ourselves? For both of you and my convenience, I will copy and paste the info straight away from our beloved Wikipedia:

” Liquefied natural gas or LNG is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4) that has been converted temporarily to liquid form for ease of storage or transport.

Liquefied natural gas takes up about 1/600th the volume of natural gas in the gaseous state. It is odorless, colorless, non-toxic and non-corrosive. Hazards include flammability, freezing and asphyxia.

The liquefaction process involves removal of certain components, such as dust, acid gases, helium, water, and heavy hydrocarbons, which could cause difficulty downstream. The natural gas is then condensed into a liquid at close to atmospheric pressure (maximum transport pressure set at around 25 kPa/3.6 psi) by cooling it to approximately −162 °C (−260 °F).

LNG achieves a higher reduction in volume than compressed natural gas (CNG) so that the energy density of LNG is 2.4 times that of CNG or 60% of that of diesel fuel. This makes LNG cost efficient to transport over long distances where pipelines do not exist. Specially designed cryogenic sea vessels (LNG carriers) or cryogenic road tankers are used for its transport.

LNG is principally used for transporting natural gas to markets, where it is regasified and distributed as pipeline natural gas. It can be used in natural gas vehicles, although it is more common to design vehicles to use compressed natural gas. Its relatively high cost of production and the need to store it in expensive cryogenic tanks have prevented its widespread use in commercial applications.”

In last paragraph, we can gain information that LNG requires extensive advanced technology with no small feats to acquire. A something that us, Indonesian doesn’t have. So, since LNG proved to be worthless (currently) in our possession it will better if the gas were imported instead to Japan since they have the technology to process them

Now, we back to the museum itself. Although it’s named “gas science museum”, the museum was dedicated more than just science of gas, but also science of energies in general. There are many exhibit shows on how some energy normally works and how the energies used all the way from shipping to house family usage in all of Japan.

The Exhibit there is not like some usual museum exhibition that encases historical objects in glass display. But most of the exhibits were using some interactive way of displaying their objects. There are exhibit that show us how big air balloon work. Their most famous attraction is some kind of virtual and interactive theatre. The theatre would show us

Well, here is brief information that I copy pasted fro Osaka city’s official tourist website:

“The Gas Science Museum, featuring a wide range of scientific exhibits relating to gases and energy, is designed to communicate to current and future generations the importance of preserving the global environment and the effective use of energy. The facility has many attractions that people of different ages can enjoy. Various displays at the Museum are interesting not only for adults, but also for children, especially elementary school students, who are often fascinated and even astonished to learn about energy through various programs. The facility has a theatre, where a movie about a robot competition is shown, and Labo Air and Labo Fire, where various experimental programs are available. In addition, at Experiment Station visitors can participate in experiments using liquefied natural gas at extremely low temperatures. Children watching the experiment around the laboratory table are amazed. These experiments and attractions help visitors recognize the various characteristics and advantages of natural gas, which they use every day without paying special attention. Natural gas is more environmentally friendly than other fossil fuels, and has the potential of becoming a main energy resource in future. At Eco Studio, elementary students looked slightly anxious when told that natural gas would be depleted by the time they retired, if consumption continued at the current pace. The Gas Science Museum offers entertaining and informative programs to help visitors of all ages realize what they can and should do in their daily lives to strike the best balance between energy use and environmental conservation. The director and attendants of the Museum, who are always smiley and friendly, tell us that it is not too late to start taking action for environmental conservation. Reservation required.”

Read the bolded part? Yes, you need to make reservation beforehands to visit this museum. It was natural though for the government to take precaution, since the museum stored massive amount of gasses will cause big mess of incident of anything wrong happens because of terrorist or simple tourist wrong doings.

Now I will tell you my travel experience there. Do not expect very much detail in my story since the visit take place in four or five months ago, so my memories must be fuzzy.

We (yes, we since I am visited Japan in group) arrived in Osaka Natural Gas Science museum in the middle of the day after some tiring visits to some places before. I forgot what kind of places we visited before the museum but that did not matter and not very important. We were greeted by the museum director and museum attendants as we arrived there. Before we began our tour, the director and the attendants brought us first to meeting hall for some introduction to the museum. From the introduction presentation that brought by the director, I learn many thing about gases, the importance of clean energy, some future possible alternatives energy, and how LNG being used as an alternatives energy after the energy crisis occurred.

As the director of the museum finished with his informative presentation, the attendants guide us to the museum bus so we could take a look around the museum and the whole gas depot complex.  One of the attendant, a beautiful with glasses accompanied us during the tour and for the rest of the day. During the tour, I could say that I am impressed by Japanese technology prowess and their effort to preserve ecological nature. There are gas depots as we look to the left and right. Pipelines are everywhere as far as we see them, connecting every depots and facilities in the complex. They have monitor station to watch over these pipes from any gas leakage. Beside metal structures and pipes  the museum and gas depot also have their own green area that filled with natural lifeform such as birds. Plants are also scattered across the complex.

Finished with complex tour on bus, the attendants direct us to some exhibit that show us the mapping of energy transportation from overseas shipping to home usage in Japan and the importance of LNG. The director and the attendants patiently explain it to us all the information there. From them, I learned how the energy form the gas made through from transportation overseas to homes in Japan.

Done with that, the attendant has to skipped through many of the museum exhibit because time restriction and brought directly us to the main attraction of the museum, the Theatre of Energy History. The theatre is somekind of show with the attendant look like directly interacted with the show although they are merely projection. The show was about history of energy usage in human history with two men from primitive era explaining them and the attendant ”help” them with some things. The show is very attractive and entertaining since I never saw anything like it before.

After the show at Magic Theatre was finished, the beautiful attendant with glasses brought us to the last event at Osaka National Gas Science museum visit. The show is about how liquid nitrogen can make rubber ball frozen solid and make it break apart like glasses because the temperature. The ball was really made from rubber but it break apart like glass when fall after it dipped into liquid nitrogen.

Our visit at Osaka Gas Science museum was all finished, and we have to leave for we must attend to the next place. The director personally accompanied us to the bus and with the attendants, he said goodbye to all of us and hoped for our next visit.

That was my story. Thanks for reading if you read them at all.

Ambil Saweran

Me and National Museum

On Saturday, on May 28, 2011, I and my two friends, Gitasha and Wimala decided to visit the National Museum or the Museum better known as the Elephant Museum because at that museum's forecourt, there is a elephant statue made of bronze.That was a gift from the King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) from Thailand who visited the national museum in 1871.National Museum or Elephant Museum is located at Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat 12 Central Jakarta, near the National Monument or Monas which is also located at Jalan Medan Merdeka. Before going to the museum, me and my two friends meet at Pondok Indah Mall 2 to go together to the Elephant Museum. At 10:00 on the three of us set off from the PIM 2 to the National Museum or the Museum Gajah.

The Museum National is located on the side of Merdeka Square or Lapangan Merdeka and was built in 1862 at that time Dutch colonial administration realized about the great treasure of Indonesian cultural heritages and long history of Indonesia. The biggest surprised for the Western historians was the fact that historical record in Indonesia showing tremendous level of similarities with those in India, India and Asia mainland in general. The elements of India is the most interesting aspect at one side and the fact of Indonesian ethnography. All these facts had invited various experts to study Indonesia in more intensive and extensive effort. In the field of history the archaeologists, paleontologists, epigraphists, linguistic, paleographic and ceramologists have dedicated themselves for the light of Indonesian history, educated local student to understand their culture which had been a great historians such as Prof. Dr. Poerbatjaraka, Prof. Wiryosuparto, Prof Soekarto, Prof. Soekmono, Prof. I.B. Mantra and many others. In the field of Anthropology even more expert were born, although it is much later such as Prof. Koentjaraningrat.

Deeper study on Hindu tradition has brought into light the eat influence of Indian Epic such as Mahabharata and Ramayana in the life of Javanese and Balinese. Everywhere in the region of Indonesia were found the remains of ancient Hindu kingdoms and culture. The remains either in thee form of monuments and artifacts. This fact has encouraged the establishment of national museum as the center for Indonesian cultural study. As a national museum, their collection consist of ethnic map, Indonesian relief map, various ethnic cultural objects from cloths, music, house model, and relics. In the field of history, a big number of collection from ancient Hindu kingdoms, and Chinese ceramic from Hand dynasty.

On April 24, 1778, a group of Dutch intellectuals established a scientific institution under the name Bataviaasch Genotschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen, (Batavia Society for Arts and Science). This private body had the aim of promoting research in the field of arts and sciences, especially in history, archaeology, ethnography and physics, and publish the various findings.
One of the founders - JCM Radermacher - donated building and a collection of cultural objects and books, which were of great value to start off a museum and library for the society. Due to the growing collections, General Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles built a new premises on Jalan Majapahit No. 3 at the beginning of the 19th century and named it the Literary Society. In the 1862 the Dutch East Indian government decided to build a new museum that would not only serve as an office but also could be used to house, preserve and display the collections.
The Museum was officially opened in 1868 and became known as Gedung Gajah (Elephant House) or Gedung Arca (House of Statues). It was called Gedung Gajah on account of the bronze elephant statue in the front yard donated by King Chulalongkorn from Thailand in 1871. It was also called Gedung Arca because a great variety of statues from different periods are on display in the house.
On February 29, 1950 the Institution became the Lembaga Kebudayaan Indonesia (Indonesian Culture Council) and on September 17, 1962 it was handed over to the Indonesian government and became the Museum Pusat (Central Museum). By decree of the Minister of Education and Culture No. 092/0/1979 of May 28, 1979 it was renamed the Museum Nasional. The Museum Nasional is not only a centre for research and study into the national and cultural heritage, but also functions as an educative, cultural and recreational information centre.
Currently the Museum Nasional houses collections of 109,342 objects under the categories of prehistory, archaeology, ethnography, numismatics-heraldic, geography and historical relics.
In 1994, the museum started with is expansion project. The new building, constructed in the same architectural style as the old, comprises an arena for theatrical performances and more spaces for exhibitions. The building is scheduled for completion this year.

The collections are the Prehistoric Age has long time frame, beginning from the presence of man until the emergence of writing differs in every part of the world. From the discovery of ancient human fossils in Indonesia, it is estimated that man lived here around one million years ago. Writing emerged before the 4th century.
Paleontology, the study of Prehistoric periods, explains the lifestyles of prehistoric civilizations through research into their fossilized remains and the artifacts that they made.
The Neolithic era emerged gradually between 2500 BC and 1500 BC when the vast number of people emigrated from the Asian mainland to the Malaysian peninsula, then to the island of Indonesia by sea. The immigrants built dwellings, planted rice on dry land or in irrigated fields and raised cattle. They formed agrarian village communities. This settled lifestyle enabled men to develop their skills in many areas, thus establishing a specific Neolithic culture, examples of which can be seen in this room.
Treasure Room
The Treasure Rooms are divided into two sections - the Archaeology Room and the Ethnography Room. There are about 2,00 items in the Museum's gold and silver collections, the majority of which were found accidentally rather than on organized digs.
Indonesia has been rich in gold and other precious metals for centuries. Artifacts were made using such processes as casting, soldering, riveting an sewing with gold wire, and were decorated by chiseling, the repousse technique (whereby the design is hammered from the inside of an object), and by adding detailed ornamentation.
Due to the biodegradability of the most materials used by the ancient Indonesian kingdoms, relatively little remains for scholars to base their study of these civilizations upon. As a result, since gold does not deteriorate, these objects are treasured not just for their value and decoration but also for their great historical importance. As well as a high level of culture, the gold items reveal a great deal about the life and rituals of the early kingdoms.
In 1990, farmers found a cache of treasure from java's classical Era ( 5th-15th century ) in Wonoboyo, Klaten, Central Java. These exquisite gold and silver items, collectively weighing more than 35 kg, are believed to have been buried in Lava in the early10th century, perhaps due to a major eruption of Mount Merapi. They comprise the largest find in Indonesia this century and are currently displayed in the showcase in the center of the Archaeology treasure room.
The collection in the Ethnography treasure room comprises objects from the 18th to the early 20th centuries. The artifacts are mostly crafted from 14-24 carat gold and many are adorned with precious stones.
Bronze Collection
Bronze is well-represented in the Museum and the collection, which comprises up to 3,199 pieces, is absolutely spectacular.
The Bronze Age in Indonesia is estimated as having begun around the st century BC, and it drastically changed man's way of life both practically and culturally. Bronze is a mixture of copper and tin, and as it has a low melting point, objects were either produced by forging (heating then beating the bronze) or by wax-casting techniques. Bronze axes, ceremonial items and jewelry were the most popular items made.
With the onset of the Classical Age production and casting processes improved, and techniques such as soldering were introduced. Bronze items became more varied, ranging from statues of Buddha for worship to domestic appliances, and their decoration more ornate. Bronze was also used to replace materials that were easily damaged, so the shape of domestic appliances, for example, did not radically change - a water jar would look the same in bronze as it did in terra cotta.
Stone Sculptures
Stone tools and statues have been made by Indonesian civilizations since prehistoric times. The gradual sophistication of these objects and tools used to create them are indicative of cultural progress.The Museum Nasional has a wealth of stone statues in many different forms and sizes, most notably relating to ancestral worship, Hindu gods and goddesses, kings and animals. The statues were usually put in temple alcoves or in the temple's main room (cellar), and the majority of them were discovered in Central Java and Sumatra. Volcanic andesite was most commonly used but many of the East Javanese statues made during the 14th and 15th centuries, were sculpted from sandstone or limestone. As a result of the Hindu-Buddhist influence that was prevalent in Indonesia between the 4th and the 10th centuries, statues created during this period were very similar to those made in East India. Sculptors (silpin). In India had to follow precise rules stated in the Silpasastra book; for example, eyes had to be shaped like lotus (padma) leaves, eyebrows like an archer's bow and arms like an elephants trunk. While these features were copied in Indonesia, the Silpasastra rules were generally not strictly adhered to, and after this period, especially during the Majapahit era (14th and 15th centuries ), statues made throughout the archipelago exuded a more 'Indonesian' style. In the Museum Nasional, Stone Sculpture Collections is included into the Archaeology Section.
Ceramic collection
The ceramics collection differentiates between artifacts originating from countries such as China, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and Japan, and objects made in Indonesia or made in Indonesia or made out of terra cotta. This particular collection gives us a good insight into Indonesia's maritime trade over the countries.
Research indicates that the Chinese sailed to India via Indonesia as early as the Western Han period (205 BC to 220 AD) and that firm trade relation were subsequently established.
The islands of Indonesia were the source of many rare commodities and foreign trades were motivated to undertake long and risky sea voyages to get there. Many ships sank before reaching their journey's and, however.
Their non-perishable cargoes, such as ceramics, which would have been used as barter, were washed ashore. Some items were used as common household utensils but fine ceramics were more rare and much sought after. They become cherished heirlooms and were used during the specials ceremonies for birth, circumcision, marriage and death. Occasionally, they were specially commissioned for a private buyer or given as tributes to local dignitaries.
The nucleus of the Museum Nasional's foreign ceramic collection was donated by the Dutch philanthropist and collector, Egbert Willem van Orsoy de Flines, who also became the first ceramics curator of the Museum in 1959.
Although originating in other countries, the ceramics objects in the Museum collection were all found in Indonesia. As well being objects of great beauty, they form an important part of the nation's history. 

Ambil Saweran

Fatahilah Colection

COLLECTIONS FATAHILAH COLLECTIONS
(JL. Fatahillah No. 2, Old Town, Central Jakarta)

1. INSCRIPTION TUGU





The monument inscription is one of the inscriptions that come from the Kingdom Tarumanagara. The inscription describes the contents Candrabaga River by excavation and trenching Rajadirajaguru Gomati River by Purnawarman in year 22 of his reign.Excavation of the river is an idea to avoid the natural disasters of flooding that often occurs in the reign Purnawarman, and the drought that occurred in the dry season.

Location found inscriptions:

Monument inscriptions found in the village Bjatutumbuh, village monument, exactly at the coordinates 0 ° 06'34, 05 "BT (from Jakarta) and 6 ° 07'45, 40" LS is now a monument south sub region, sub-Koja, North Jakarta

The discovery of the inscription:

In 1911 on the initiative Roo de la Faille P.de inscription stone monument was moved to the Museum Bataviaasch Genootschap Kunsten van en Wetenschappen (now National Museum) and registered with the inventory number D.124.

Materials in her inscription:
The monument inscription carved on the stone-sized oval ± 1m.
The contents of the inscription:
The monument inscription reads Pallawa characters arranged in the form of Sanskrit seloka with metrum Anustubh teridiri of five lines that follow the shape of the surface of the stone circle. As all the inscriptions of the Tarumanagara general, monument inscription also does not list pertanggalan. Chronology is based on an analysis of style and form letters (analysis palaeografis). Based on the analysis note that the inscription is from the mid-5th century AD. Special monument and inscription inscription Cidanghiyang have similar characters, it is perhaps the sculptor posts (citralaikha> citralekha) The second inscription is the same person. Compared to the inscriptions of the other Tarumanagara, monument inscription is the longest inscription issued by Sri Maharaja Purnawarman. The inscription was issued in the reign of Purnnawarmman in year 22 in connection with the inauguration event (complete built) channel of the river Gomati and Candrabhaga. The monument inscription is unique ie there are sculptured ornaments yag rod at its end comes a kind of trident. The image was sculpted upright stick extends downward as if to function as a demarcation between the beginning and end of sentences in his inscriptions:
ura rajadhirajena guruna pinabahuna khata khyatam Purim prapya candrabhagarnnavam yayau / /
pravarddhamane dvavingsad vatsare sri gunau narendradhvajabhutena services srimata purnavarmmana / /
mase phalguna prarabhya khata krsnastami tithau caitra sukla trayodasyam dinais siddhaikavingsakaih
Ayata satsahasrena dhanusamsasatena ca dvavingsena pulse ramya gomati nirmalodaka / /
pitamahasya rajarser vvidaryya sibiravanim brahmanair sahasrena prayati krtadaksina ggo /

Translation:
"Formerly named the river which has been excavated by the overlord Candrabhaga noble and who have the toned and strong arms Purnnawarmman ie, for running it into the sea, after a time (river channel) is up in the famous royal palace. In year 22 of the throne of His Majesty the King Purnnawarmman glittering sparkling because of his ability and his wisdom and become the banner of all the kings, (so now) he was also commissioned to explore times (river channel) are gorgeous and clear watery Gomati name , after a time (the channel of the river) flows across the middle-ground tegah residence of Her Majesty the Reverend Nenekda (King Purnnawarmman). The work began on a good day, the 8th of the dark half-moon Caitra, so it only lasted 21 days, while digging the channel length is 6122 arc. Salvation for him by the Brahmins with 1000 head of cattle are presented

2. INSCRIPTION PADRO



Inscription-Portugal Agreement Sundanese or Sundanese Padrão Coconut is an obelisk-shaped stone inscription (padrão) found in 1918 in Batavia, Dutch East Indies. This inscription marks the agreement, the Kingdom of Portugal Kingdom of Sunda made by the Portuguese from Malacca trade envoys led by Enrique Leme and carrying goods for the "King of Samian" (meaning Sanghyang, namely Sang Hyang Surawisesa, the prince who became the leader of the king's messenger Sunda). Padrão was established on the land designated as a place to build a fort and storehouse for the Portuguese.
This inscription is found again when done excavation to build the foundation of the warehouse at the corner of Prinsenstraat (now Jalan Clove) and Groenestraat (Great East Road I), now includes the area of ​​West Jakarta. Padrao is now stored at the National Museum of the Republic of Indonesia, while a replica on display at the Museum of History of Jakarta.

History of Inscription:
At the beginning of the 16th century, an important trading ports on the northern coast of Java Island has been controlled by the Sultanate of Demak and the Sultanate of Banten, including Bantam and Cirebon. Worried about the role of the port of Sunda Kelapa getting weaker, the king of Sunda, Sri Baduga (King Siliwangi) seeking help to ensure the continuity of the kingdom's main port. The choice fell to the Portuguese, the ruler of Malacca. Thus, in the year 1512 and 1521, Sri Baduga sent the crown prince, Surawisesa, to Malacca to the Portuguese request to sign a trade agreement, especially pepper, as well as giving the right to build a fortress at Sunda Kelapa. In 1522, the Portuguese ready to form a coalition with the Sundanese to gain access to the lucrative pepper trade. Year coincides with the completed exploration of the world by Magellan.
Malacca fort commander at the time was Jorge de Albuquerque. The same year he sent a ship, São Sebastião, under the command of Captain Enrique Leme, the Sunda Kalapa accompanied by valuable items to be offered to the king of Sunda. Two written sources describe the end of the agreement in detail. The first is the original Portuguese documents dating from 1522 which contains the text of the treaty and signatures of witnesses, and the second is the incident reports submitted by the João de Barros in his Da Asia, who printed shortly before the year 1777/78.
According to historical sources, the king of Sunda warmly welcomed the arrival of the Portuguese. At that time King Surawisesa has replaced his father ascended the throne and Barros called him "the king Samio". King of Sunda agreed with friendship treaty with the king of Portugal and decided to give the land at the mouth of Ci Liwung as berths Portuguese ships. In addition, the king promised that if the construction of the fort Sunda has been started that he would donate a thousand sacks of pepper to the Portuguese. The contract documents created duplicate, one copy to the king of Sunda and another for the king of Portugal, both of whom signed on August 21, 1522.
In agreement document, the witness of the Kingdom of Sunda is Off Tumungo, Samgydepaty, outre Benegar e easy e o xabandar, the intention is "That Pertuan Tumenggung, The Duke, Treasurer and Syahbandar" Sunda Kelapa. Witnesses from the Portuguese, as reported by the historian João de Barros Porto named, there are eight people. The witness of the Kingdom of Sunda not sign the document, they melegalisasinya with customs through the "salvation". Now, one copy of this agreement are stored at the National Museum of the Republic of Indonesia, while one copy of the longer stored in the National Archives of Torre do Tombo, Lisbon.
On the day of signing the agreement, some noble kingdom of Sunda with Enrique Leme and his entourage went to the land that would become a fortress at the mouth of Ci Liwung.They set up the inscription, called padrão, in an area that is now the corner of Clove Road and Great Eastern Road I, West Jakarta. It is the custom of the Portuguese to establish padrao when they discover a new land.
Portuguese failed to fulfill his promise to return to the Sunda Kalapa the following year to build a fortress because of problems in Goa / India. This treaty was the trigger to a marauding army of the Sultanate of Demak Palm Sunda in 1527 and managed to expel the Portuguese from the Sunda Kelapa on June 22, 1527. This date was later used as the founding day of Jakarta.

Description of Inscription:
Padrao is made of stone as high as 165 cm. At the top of this inscription shows the image of a globe (armillarium) to the equator and the fifth parallel of latitude. This symbol is often used in the reign of King Manuel I and João III of Portugal. Above the emblem there is a small trefoil picture, ie plants with three leaves.
In the first line of the inscription is written there is the symbol of the cross, and underneath there is writing DSPOR which stands for Do Senhario de Portugal (Portugal ruler). In the next two lines are written ESFERЯa / Mo which stands Esfera do Mundo (globe) or Espera do Mundo (the hope of the world).

Ambil Saweran

Dari Labsky untuk Indonesia: Belajar TIK semester 6 itu Menyenangkan (SMA)

TIK SMA Kelas 12 Semester 2

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Ambil Saweran

The Hindu God of destruction, Shiva

Sunday, May 22, 2011 me and my friend, Fatria, visited the National Museum or people used to call it an ‘Elephant Museum’ because there is a bronze elephant statue gift from King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) from Thailand who've been to the museum in 1871, in front of the museum. Sometimes the museum is also called "Sculpture Building" since the building was stored in various types and forms of the sculptures from different historical periods. The National Museum is located in central Jakarta, precisely at Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat no. 12. I deliberately chose the National Museum collection because I think there are so many diverse collection, so I can select an object that I love to be discussed here. This is the third time I visited the National Museum. We arrived at the National Museum at 12.00. We were assisted by a guide who will explain to us about National’s museum collection. So far the National Museum has a collection of historic objects in the hundreds of thousands, made up of seven types of collections, ie prehistoric, archaeological, ceramics, numismatic, heraldry, history, ethnography and geography. First, we entered the exhibit hall statues. This room is right in front of the museum entrance. Inside are sculptures and statues of gods embodiment of Hindu-Buddhist. Our guide explained some of the famous statue of the collection at the National Museum. In the middle there are the statues which were divided based on where the statue was found. On the left side there are statues that came from Central Java and the right side placed the statues of East Java. Differences based on the original statue can be seen from the form of sculpture carving. The Statue of East Java is more detailed than Central Java. After that we were guided into the pre-history exhibition space located at the rear of the museum. Our guide told us the story about human life in pre-history. Difficulty in finding a place to live, food, etc. Next we returned to the front of the museum to the era of colonial space. There are objects such as various types of weapons used at the time Indonesia was colonized by Dutch, Portuguese's inscriptions, ancient wooden furniture that more powerful than now, etc. After we finished look around, we headed into the last room. I visited the golden treasure chamber. In this room there is a collection of historic objects royal relics made of gold that ever existed in Indonesia. Gold treasure chamber is divided into two rooms, namely space and space arkeolohgi ethnography. In this room we see more than 200 pieces of historic objects made of gold and silver. In the ethnography section we see objects that are made 14-24 karat gold and decorated with many precious stones. Many objects in this room are discovered by accident, not by archaeologists. As I look around, we were told from the beginning of the origin of the objects one by one until the story when a collection of objects that have been stolen by a man named Kusni Kadut. We greatly admire the collection of objects contained in this room. My impression is very good against the National Museum. I am very interested in the collections at the National Museum. The most I like about this museum is the gold room. I really admire the jewellery that made of gold. The collection is very nice to show to visitors. Formerly I was not so keen to want to know what is in the National Museum and the history because of my visit was not previously described as detailed as my visit this time. I think the history mediocre even boring, it was very interesting. I see interesting stories that described by museum guides. My curiosity increased every guide told me about anything. I also better understand more clearly about the history of Indonesia. It's not boring at all to know the history of Indonesia from pre-history to the colonial period. What I like more is the visitors. Apparently there are still many parents who bring their children for a vacation in the museum, which uses time not only playing at the mall, but to the museum to make it more useful. Not only local visitors, the day when I visited there many tourists who visit to see the collection of relics that exist in Indonesia. The atmosphere at the National Museum at that time was crowded. Overall I give a positive response to the National Museum.

From some of the collections of the National Museum I chose the statue of a major hindu deity, Shiva, as my historical project.

Shiva is the god of the yogis, self-controlled and celibate, while at the same time a lover of his spouse (Shakti). Lord Shiva is the destroyer of the world, following Brahma the creator and Vishnu the preserver, after which Brahma again creates the world and so on. Shiva is responsible for change both in the form of death and destruction and in the positive sense of destroying the egom the false indetification with the form. This also includes the shedding of old habits and attachments. All that has a beginning by necessity must have an end. In destruction, truly nothing is destroyed but the illusion of individuality. Thus the power of destruction associated with Lord Shiva has great purifying power, both on a more personal level when problems make us see reality more clearly, as on a more universal level. Destruction opens the path for a new creation of the universe, a new opportunity for the beauty and drama of universal illusion to unfold. As Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram or Truth, Goodness and Beauty, Shiva represents the most essential goodness. While of course many hindu deities are associated with different paths of yoga and meditation, in Shiva the art of meditation takes its most absolute form. In meditation, not only mind is stopped, everything is dropped. In deep meditation or Samadhi, even the object of meditation (like a mantra) is transformed into its formless essence, which is the essence of everything and everyone. Thus Shiva stands for letting go of everything in the world of forms. The part of Lord Shiva is the path of ascetic yogi. Shiva wears a deer in the left upper hand. He has a Trident in the right lower arm, with a crescent moon on his head. He is said to be fair like camphor or like an ice clad mountain. He has fire and Damaru and Malu or a kind of weapon. He wears five serpents as ornaments. He wears a garland of skulls. He is pressing with his feet the demon Muyalaka, a dwarf holding a cobra. He faces south. Panchakshara itself is his body. Shiva is often depicted with a third eye, with which he burned Desire to ashes, called "Tryambakam" which occurs in many scriptural sources. In classical Sanskrit, the word ambaka denotes "an eye", and in the Mahabharata, Shiva is depicted as three-eyed, so this name is sometimes translated as "having three eyes". However, in Vedic Sanskrit, the word amba or ambika means "mother", and this early meaning of the word is the basis for the translation "three mothers". These three mother-goddesses who are collectively called the Ambikas. Other related translations have been based on the idea that the name actually refers to the oblations given to Rudra, which according to some traditions were shared with the goddess Ambikā. Shiva bears on his head the crescent moon. The epithet Chandraśekhara refers to this feature. The placement of the moon on his head as a standard iconographic feature dates to the period when Rudra rose to prominence and became the major deity Rudra-Shiva. The origin of this linkage may be due to the identification of the moon with Soma, and there is a hymn in the Rig Veda where Soma and Rudra are jointly implored, and in later literature, Soma and Rudra came to be identified with one another, as were Soma and the moon. The crescent moon is shown on the side of the Lord's head as an ornament. The waxing and waning phenomenon of the moon symbolizes the time cycle through which creation evolves from the beginning to the end. Since the Lord is the Eternal Reality, He is beyond time. Thus, the crescent moon is only one of His ornaments. The wearing of the crescent moon in his head indicates that He has controlled the mind perfectly. Shiva smears his body with ashes (bhasma). Some forms of Shiva, such as Bhairava, are associated with a very old Indian tradition of cremation-ground asceticism that was practiced by some groups who were outside the fold of brahmanic orthodoxy. These practices associated with cremation grounds are also mentioned in the Pali canon of Theravada Buddhism. One epithet for Shiva is "inhabitant of the cremation ground". Shiva's distinctive hair style is noted in the epithets Jaṭin, "the one with matted hair", and Kapardin, "endowed with matted hair" or "wearing his hair wound in a braid in a shell-like (kaparda) fashion". A kaparda is a cowrie shell, or a braid of hair in the form of a shell, or, more generally, hair that is shaggy or curly. His hair is said to be like molten gold in color or being yellowish-white. The Ganga river flows from the matted hair of Shiva. The epithet Gangadhara refers to this feature. The Ganga (Ganga), one of the major rivers of the country, is said to have made her abode in Shiva's hair. The flow of the Ganga also represents the nectar of immortality. He is often shown seated upon a tiger skin, an honour reserved for the most accomplished of Hindu ascetics, the Brahmarishis. Tiger represents lust. His sitting on the tiger’s skin indicates that He has conquered lust. Shiva is often shown garlanded with a snake. His wearing of serpents on the neck denotes wisdom and eternity. His holding deer on one hand indicates that He has removed the Chanchalata (tossing) of the mind. Deer jumps from one place to another swiftly. The mind also jumps from one object to another. Shiva's particular weapon is the trident. His Trisul that is held in His right hand represents the three Gunas—Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. That is the emblem of sovereignty. He rules the world through these three Gunas. The Damaru in His left hand represents the Sabda Brahman. It is He who formed the Sanskrit language out of the Damaru sound. A small drum shaped like an hourglass is known as a damaru. This is one of the attributes of Shiva in his famous dancing representation known as Nataraja. A specific hand gesture (mudra) called damaru-hasta is used to hold the drum. This drum is particularly used as an emblem by members of the Kapalika. Nandi, also known as Nandin, is the name of the bull that serves as Shiva's mount. Shiva's association with cattle is reflected in his name Paśupati, or Pashupati, translated by Sharma as "lord of cattle" and by Kramrisch as "lord of animals", who notes that it is particularly used as an epithet of Rudra. Rishabha or the bull represents Dharma Devata. Lord Siva rides on the bull. Bull is his vehicle. This denotes that Lord Siva is the protector of Dharma, is an embodiment of Dharma or righteousness.

The Ganas are attendants of Shiva and live in Kailash. They are often referred to as the bhutaganas, or ghostly hosts, on account of their nature. Generally benign, except when their lord is transgressed against, they are often invoked to intercede with the lord on behalf of the devotee. Ganesha was chosen as their leader by Shiva, hence Ganesha's title gana-isa or gana-pati, "lord of the ganas". Varanasi (Benares) is considered as the city specially loved by Shiva, and is one of the holiest places of pilgrimage in India. It is referred to, in religious contexts, as Kashi.

Ambil Saweran

2 Tahun Perjalanan Di Labsky

Sabtu, 11 Juli 2009 merupakan hari pertama saya mengenakan seragam putih abu-abu. Saat itu tepat pukul 07.00 saya sudah berada di SMA Labschool Kebayoran, sekolah yang akan menjadi tempat saya menimba ilmu selama tiga tahun ke depan. Hari itu saya datang untuk mengikuti kegiatan Pra Masa Orientasi Siswa atau Pra MOS. Ketika Pra MOS inilah saya bertemu dengan wajah-wajah baru yang akan saya temui setiap hari selama 3 tahun ke depan. Dalam Pra MOS ini, kami dijelaskan teknis kegiatan-kegiatan yang akan berlangsung selamas MOS yang akan dimulai hari Seninnya. Kami dibagi menjadi beberapa kelompok besar. Saat itu saya tergabung dalam kelompok terakhir. Bersama kelompok inilah saya akan mengikuti MOS selama 3 hari. Selain itu, kami juga diberikan contoh name tag yang harus kami buat sebagai name tag MOS. Saya sangat terkejut ketika pertama kali melihat desain name tag tersebut. Desainnya sangat rumit dan detail. Saya berpikir bagaimana caranya agar saya dapat menyelesaikan name tag serumit ini sedangkan saya hanya mempunyai waktu 2 hari untuk menyelesaikannya. Akhirnya saya dapat menyelesaikan name tag tersebut dengan bantuan ibu saya.

Kegiatan MOS dimulai pada tanggal 13 Juli 2009. Itulah hari pertama saya resmi menjadi “anak SMA”. Rasa senang sekaligus takut bercampur aduk menjadi satu. Senang karena akhirnya saya sampai juga pada masa yang katanya orang-orang “masa-masa paling indah”. Takut karena saya belum beradaptasi dengan lingkungan yang baru. Kegiatan MOS mengharuskan saya untuk datang pukul 05.00 karena pada pukul 05.30 kami akan lari pagi. Karena rumah yang jauh dari sekolah, setiap hari saya harus berangkat dari rumah pada pukul 04.00. Kegiatan MOS sangat melelahkan, apalagi baru selesai pada pukul 15.00. 

Dalam kegiatan MOS, kami banyak diperkenalkan budaya-budaya labschool. Untungnya, sebelumnya saya bersekolah di SMP Labschool Cinere jadi saya tidak perlu banyak beradaptasi dengan budaya-budaya labschool karena sebelumnya sudah diperkenalkan ketika SMP. Hal yang paling saya ingat dalam MOS adalah kegiatan PBB. Ketika itu kami dijemur oleh kakak-kakak OSIS di lapangan dan dites PBB. Saat itu saya sangat takut jika saya melakukan kesalahan ketika PBB. Selain itu, makanan ketika MOS juga hal yang paling saya ingat. Kakak-kakak OSIS tidak begitu saja memberitahu makanan apa saja yang harus kami bawa. Mereka memberikan clue khusus untuk kami, jadi kami harus mencari tahu sendiri. Pada hari terakhir MOS, pembagian kelas X diumumkan. Saya sangat deg-degan menunggu pengumuman tersebut karena penasaran siapa yang akan menjadi teman sekelas saya. Saya ternyata tergabung dalam kelas X-E dan saya sekelas dengan satu teman SMP saya.

Masa-masa awal kelas X terasa sangat berat. Saya harus beradaptasi dengan lingkungan yang baru. Bukan hanya beradaptasi dengan teman-teman dan guru-guru saja tapi juga dengan pelajaran SMA. Pelajaran di SMA lebih banyak. Saya mendapat tambahan mata pelajaran Bahasa Jepang sebagai tambahan bahasa asing lain selain Bahasa Inggris. Selain itu, pelajaran seperti Geografi dan Sosiologi yang ketika SMP digabung sekarang juga dipisah. Jadi, kurang lebih terdapat 16 mata pelajaran di kelas X. Pelajaran yang sangat banyak dan gaya mengajar guru yang berbeda ketika di SMP membuat saya sulit mengikuti pelajaran dengan baik pada awalnya. Waktu yang dihabiskan untuk membahas 1 bab hingga selesai sangat cepat. Alhasil, nilai-nilai ulangan saya pun jeblok. Remed-remed pun menumpuk. Belum selesai remed pelajaran yang satu, remed pelajaran lain pun sudah menunggu. Belum lagi tugas-tugas yang begitu banyak. Saya baru sampai rumah malam dan langsung mengerjakan tugas atau belajar untuk ulangan keesokan harinya. Rasa-rasanya saya tidak dapat menikmati masa-masa saya sebagai murid kelas X. Yang saya rasakan hanya capai. Keadaan ini sempat membuat saya stress. Saya memutuskan untuk les privat untuk membantu pelajaran saya di sekolah. Setelah saya les privat, pelajaran di sekolah sedikit terbantu. Saya mulai mengerti pelajaran di sekolah, meskipun beberapa pelajaran ada yang tetap remedial. Pengalaman ini justru yang membuat kelas saya, X-E semakin kompak. Dalam satu ulangan, bisa setengah kelas yang remedial. Masa-masa sulit dan melelahkan ini kami lalui bersama. Kami saling menyemangati satu sama lain.

Selain itu, di kelas X juga terdapat berbagai kegiatan wajib yang harus kami ikuti. Kegiatan tersebut adalah Pesantren Ramadhan (PILAR), Trip Observasi, dan Bintama.

Selama Pesantren Ramadhan, kami menginap selama 3 hari 2 malam di sekolah. Kami dibagi menjadi beberapa kelompok. Kami dibimbing langsung oleh kakak-kakak yang didatangkan langsung dari Pesantren Darut Tauhid, Bandung. Kami diberikan siraman rohani tetapi dengan cara yang menyenangkan dan tidak membosankan. Aa Gym juga sempat datang mengunjungi kami dan memberikan sedikit ceramah. Selain itu, terdapat juga kegiatan Outbound. Meskipun outbound sangat melelahkan karena kami dalam kondisi sedang berpuasa, tapi tetap menyenangkan.

Setelah Pesantren Ramadhan, kegiatan wajib berikutnya yaitu Trip Observasi. Trip Observasi merupakan kegiatan besar yang sangat ditunggu-tunggu. Trip Observasi merupakan kegiatan dimana kami melakukan penelitian di sebuah kampung selama 5 hari 4 malam. Selama melakukan penelitian, kami menginap di rumah penduduk. Selain melakukan penelitian, terdapat berbagai kegiatan lainnya seperti pentas seni, PKD, lintas budaya, dan penjelajahan. Trip Observasi angkatan kami berlokasi di Desa Pasir Muncang, Purwakarta. Sama seperti Pesantren Ramadhan, ketika Trip Observasi kami juga dibagi menjadi beberapa kelompok yang masing-masing kelompok beranggotakan 7-9 orang. Pemilihan kelompok dilakukan secara acak sehingga memungkinkan kita untuk sekelompok dengan anak kelas lainnya. Tiap kelompok didampingi oleh 2 kakak PDP dan 1 orang guru. Saya tergabung dalam kelompok Melinting dengan ketua kelompok Reyhan. Selain itu juga terdapat Ais, Adi, Firda, Chya, Lala, dan Naya. Kami didampingu oleh Kak Fira dan Kak Rayi serta Pak Herman.

Sebelum Trip Observasi, kami terlebih dahulu harus mengikuti kegiatan Pra TO. Pada Pra TO ini kami diperkenalkan dengan kegiatan-kegiatan yang akan kami lalui selama TO. Pra TO ini seperti simulasi TO. Pra TO berlangsung selama 3 hari. Pada hari pertama dipakai untuk mengecat tongkat dan membuat nametag. Motif tongkat dan nametag sangat rumit tapi berkat kerjasama kelompok kami dapat menyelesaikannya. Pada hari kedua dan ketiga kami lari pagi dan rutenya pun berbeda seperti lari pagi Jumat. Rute lari pra TO sampai arteri Pondok Indah dan Melawai. Pra TO sangat melelahkan. Pada Pra TO ini merupakan momen yang bersejarah bagi angkatan kami karena pada hari ketiga Pra TO terpilihlah 3 ketua angkatan kami, yaitu Nabel, Danto, dan Olaf. Selain itu kami juga mendapat nama angkatan yaitu “Nawa Drastha Sandyadira” yang mempunyai arti “angkatan 9 yang bermahkotakan persatuan yang kokoh”. Kami juga mendapatkan yel-yel angkatan.

Kegiatan wajib lainnya yaitu Bintama. Bintama merupakan singkatan dari Bina Mental Kepemimpinan Siswa. Kegiatan Bintama berlangsung di Markas Besar Kopassus di Serang, Banten. Selama 6 hari 5 malam kami digembleng oleh para Kopassus. Kami dilatih dan dididik sesuai dengan cara militer. Push up, merayap, jalan jongkok merupakan makanan sehari-hari kami selama Bintama. Tetapi dibalik itu kami juga mendapatkan pengalaman yang berharga karena tidak semua orang mempunya kesempatan untuk dilatih oleh Kopassus. Semua ini bertujuan agar kami dapat disiplin dalam segala hal yang kami lakukan. Bintama awalnya terasa lama dan sangat mengerikan. Tersimpan rasa jengkel pada para pelatih yang hampir selalu membentak kami, tetapi kemudian muncul rasa sedih ketika kami hendak pulang. Begitu banyak pengalaman yang telah kami lalui bersama para pelatih selama 6 hari 5 malam telah mengubah pandangan kami terhadap mereka.

Selain tiga kegiatan wajib tersebut, terdapat pula kegiatan lainnya yang kebanyakan merupakan kegiatan OSIS seperti Sky Battle, Sky League, Sky Lite, Sky Avenue, Hunting On The Trip, Jakarta In Global, dan lain-lain. Saya juga mengikuti kegiatan Lapinsi atau Latihan Kepemimpinan Siswa. Lapinsi merupakan kegiatan yang wajib diikuti bagi mereka yang ingin menjadi anggota OSIS atau MPK. Dalam Lapinsi ini kami diajarkan dasar-dasar mengenai organisasi.

Selanjutnya setelah Lapinsi, saya mengikuti kegiatan TPO yaitu Tes Potensi Organisasi. TPO merupakan tahap lanjutan dari Lapinsi. Bagi mereka yang ingin menjadi anggota OSIS, maka setelah Lapinsi wajib mengikuti TPO. TPO terdiri dari 3 tes, yaitu tes fisik, tes agama, dan tes makalah.

Pembagian rapot kenaikan kelas adalah hal yang paling ditunggu-tunggu. Rasa penasaran dan cemas campur aduk menjadi satu. Alhamdulillah nilai saya mencukupi untuk masuk ke dalam kelas IPA. Kabar menyenangkan ini melengkapi kabar baik yang sudah terlebih dahulu datang yaitu saya juga lulus TPO dan menjadi calon pengurus OSIS untuk tahun kepengurusan berikutnya.

Juli 2010. Saya sudah berada di kelas XI IPA. Sekarang saya berada di kelas XI IPA 1. Masa-masa kelas XI merupakan masa yang paling saya tunggu karena katanya kelas XI merupakan masa yang paling menyenangkan di SMA. Saya pun optimis dengan pendapat orang-orang tersebut. Kelas XI ini akan dipenuhi dengan berbagai macam kegiatan dimana angkatan kami yang akan berada dibalik kegiatan-kegiatan tersebut. Serentetan kegiatan OSIS yang dibantu oleh seluruh angkatan seperti SkyBattle dan SkyAvenue akan segera kembali dilaksanakan.

Berbeda dengan kelas X, di kelas XI ini, tidak lagi 16 mata pelajaran yang saya pelajari. Saat ini saya dapat focus pada 4 pelajaran jurusan, yaitu matematika, biologi, fisika, dan kimia. Ketika awal masuk kelas IPA, saya agak mumet dan bosan dengan pelajarannya. Setiap hari bertemu rumus dan pelajarannya pun juga semakin sulit.

Masa awal kelas XI sangat melelahkan. Dimulai dari membantu kakak-kakak OSIS menyukseskan MOS, latihan Lalinju, tes seksi OSIS, sampai tugas ulangan yang menumpuk.

Latihan Lalinju dilakukan tiga kali seminggu. Latihan ini dilakukan agar kami kuat mengikuti Lalinju. Kami harus berada di sekolah pukul 05.30. Setelah itu kami berlari secara konstan dengan rute yang cukup jauh, tidak sama dengan rute lari Jumat biasa. Kami lari sampai ke Arteri Pondok Indah dan Melawai.

Tes seksi juga tidak kalah melelahkan. Saat itu saya mengikuti tes seksi Bendahara dan Publikasi & Dokumentasi. Saya harus mempersiapkan hal-hal yang diperlukan untuk tes tersebut. Seperti membuat proposal dan poster. Sayangnya, saya tidak terpilih menjadi seksi Bendahara ataupun Publikasi & Dokumentasi. Akhirnya saya mengikuti tes ketiga yaitu tes seksi Edukasi dan terpilih menjadi calon anggota seksi Edukasi berikutnya.

9 Agustus 2010. Hari itu merupakan hari yang bersejarah. Hari itu merupakan hari pelaksanaan Lari Lintas Juang atau Lalinju. Lalinju merupakan salah satu rangkaian kegiatan pelantikan OSIS dan MPK periode berikutnya serta penurunan jabatan OSIS dan MPK periode sebelumnya. Lalinju dilakukan sejauh 17 km dari Taman Makam Pahlawan sampai SMA Labschool Kebayoran. Lalinju biasanya dilaksanakan pada tanggal 17 Agustus, tetapi berhubung tanggal 17 Agustus 2010 jatuh ketika bulan puasa maka kegiatan lalinju pun dimajukan. Hari itu saya resmi dikukuhkan menjadi calon pengurus OSIS periode 2010-2011 dan pelantikan selanjutnya akan dilaksanakan pada 17 Agustus 2010. Pada 17 Agustus 2010, bertempat di Hall Basket, seluruh calon pengurus OSIS resmi dilantik menjadi pengurus OSIS periode 2010-2011.

Pada awal semester 2, seluruh kelas XI melaksanakan studi lapangan ke Jogja. Kami berada disana selama 3 hari 2 malam. Kami menginap di Grand Quality Hotel. Selama di sana kami melakukan kunjungan ke berbagai tempat. Bagi kelas IPA, kami mengunjungi PT Sritex, PT Air Mancur dan AAU. Selain itu kami juga diberikan waktu bebas di Malioboro. Pada malam kedua kami menyaksikan sendratari Ramayana di Candi Prambanan. Meskipun singkat, perjalanan ini sangat mengasyikkan.

Selanjutnya seminggu setelah studi lapangan, satu proyek kerja besar sudah menunggu, yakni SkyBattle 2011! SkyBattle merupakan kompetisi olahraga dan seni antar SMA se-Jabodetabek. SkyBattle dengan tema Gladiator ini berlangsung selama satu minggu. Alhamdulillah SkyBattle 2011 berlangsung dengan sukses dan memuaskan.

Pada bulan Mei 2011, tepatnya tanggal 13-15 Mei diadakan Jakarta In Global atau JIG. Kegiatan ini merupakan program kerja terbesar Seksi Edukasi. JIG merupakan sebuah kompetisi berbahasa Inggris yang terdiri dari debate, speech contest, dan spelling bee. Pelaksanaan JIG saat itu bertepatan juga dengan SkyNation yang merupakan program kerja Seksi Bela Negara. Alhamdulillah, kedua program kerja tersebut berjalan dengan lancar.

Bulan Juni merupakan bulan yang membahagiakan bagi Nawa Drastha Sandyadira. Meskipun sempat terdengar kabar bahwa angkatan kami ada yang veter, tapi alhamdulillah kabar tersebut ternyata tidak benar dan kami pun naik ke kelas XII 100%. Saya juga senang karena nilai saya mengalami peningkatan dari semester sebelumnya. Saya berharap angkatan Nawa Drastha Sandyadira dapat lebih sukses di kelas XII. Semoga kami semua lulus UN 100% dan dapat masuk ke universitas yang diinginkan. Amin :)

Ambil Saweran

The Jakarta History Museum

On Saturday, October 8th 2011, I went to Jakarta History Museum (also known as Fatahillah Museum) it is housed in the former City Hall located in the old part of the city now known as Kota, some hundred meters behind the port and warehouses of Sunda Kelapa.  Jakarta History Museum is located in the building which was the former City Hall of Batavia, known in the past as Stadhuis. This building was the administrative headquarters of the Dutch East India Company and later of the Dutch Colonial Government. The current building was constructed in 1707 by the city government, replacing the former city hall built in 1627. Governor General Abraham van Riebeeck inaugurated it in 1710.

The building contains 37 ornate rooms. There are also some cells located beneath the front portico which were used as dungeons and filthy water. Most prisoners, both Dutch rebels and Indonesian were publicly flogged, barbarically impaled and executed on the square called the Stadhuisplein--now known as  Fatahillah Square--while the Dutch overlords looked down superciliously on the proceedings below from the portico and windows above. A Javanese freedom fighter Prince Diponegoro, who was treacherously arrested, was imprisoned here in 1830 before being banished to Manado, North Sulawesi. Another freedom fighter earlier imprisoned here around 1670 was Untung Suropati from East Java.

Stadhuisplein, Fatahillah square.

This building is located in front of a public square, which in the past was known as Stadhuisplein, the City Hall Square. In the center of the square is a fountain which was used as a water supply during colonial era. Also located in the square is a Portuguese cannon (known as Si Jagur Cannon) with a hand ornament showing a fico gesture, which is believed by local people to be able to induce fertility on women. The square was also used as the place of executions.

Execution part.

 In 1970, the Fatahillah Square was declared a Cultural Heritage. This effort was the beginning of the development of the historical area of the City of Jakarta, carried out by the Government of DKI Jakarta. The Jakarta History Museum was inaugurated on 30 March 1974 as the center for collection (displays the history of Jakarta from prehistoric days to the founding of the town of Jayakarta in 1527 by Prince Fatahillah of Banten and through Dutch colonization from the 16th century onwards until Indonesia’s Independence in 1945) conservation and research for all kinds of objects of cultural heritage related to the history of the City of Jakarta. The building's generous scale with massive timber beams and floorbands.

These are the old stuffs from the prehistoric age.

Jakarta History Museum has a collection of around 23,500 objects, some of them inherited from de Oude Bataviasche Museum (now the Wayang Museum). The collection includes objects from the Dutch East Indies Company, historic maps, paintings, ceramics, furnitures, and archeological objects from the prehistoric era such as ancient inscriptions and sword. museum. Jakarta History Museum also contains the richest collection of Betawi style furnitures from the 17th to the 19th century. The collections are divided into several rooms such as Prehistoric Jakarta Room, Tarumanegara Room, Jayakarta Room, Fatahillah Room, Sultan Agung Room, and MH Thamrin Room.

Hermes Statue.

In the Greek mythology Hermes was the God of fortune, protector for the traders, and the news sender God. Hermes Statue at the garden side in the museum was a grant from the Ernst Stolz family to thank Batavia governor for the opportunity to trade in Nederland Indies.

Prison Underground.

The prison located underneath the building under the garden side in the museum. The hall shaped as half round, dark and musty. The wall of the prison made of concretes with iron bars at the front side. You still can see the iron balls as sized as volleyball which used to be tied up to the prisoners feet.

Si Jago Cannon.

Si Jagur cannon was from in Macao. The cannon was brought to Malako by the Portugal fleet that was dominating Malaka at that time. In 1641 the Dutch fleet brought the cannon to Batavia. The weight of Si Jagur cannon is 3.5 tons with length of 3.84 meters and 25 cm diameter of the pitch. There’s a script “Ex me ipsa renata sum” written on the cannon, which means “from myself, I’m reborn”. Some people believe that Si Jagur cannon is the symbol of fertility, may be because of the script and the how the finger shaped at the back end of its body.

The museum also contains a replica of the Tugu Inscription from the age of Great King Purnawarman, which is the evidence that the center of the Kingdom of Tarumanegara was located around the seaport of Tanjung Priok on the coast of Jakarta. There is also a replica of the 16th century map of the Portuguese Padrao Monument, a historical evidence of the ancient Sunda Kelapa Harbor.

Further historical evidence of thriving Sunda Kelapa Harbour is in 16th. Century map and replica of the 1522 Padrao monument, commemorating the friendship treaty between the Portuguese and the Sunda kingdom. Furthermore, maps and drawings show the establishment of the City of Jayakarta in 1527 by Prince Fatahillah. While the rich collection of Betawi and Colonial style furniture dating to the 17th, 18th and 19th century belongs to one of the most complete in the world. This collection reflects the influences of various cultural elements on the City of Batavia, namely from Europe, especially from the Netherlands, from China and India as well as from Indonesia itself.

And to bring more life and activities to the Old Batavia square, today, the Jakarta Government has organized regular attractions involving local communities and their cultures. On Sundays, shows are performed presenting the Zapin dance, a combination of Betawi and Middle Eastern influences, the Barongsai Chinese lion dance, the Portuguese influenced keroncong music, the typical Betawi Tanjidor music, batik fashion shows, vintage cars parades, food and souvenirs and fireworks.

Ambil Saweran

Musée du Louvre

Last year, on June 2010 I went to Europe with my friends. Europe is the most-wanted continent I've been dreaming to go. Even though the countries weren't the one I've wanted, but it was so nice to actually been there for the first time. It was such an amazing experience to have. Especially having to see the famous Eiffel Tower, Pisa, and of course the famous painting of Leonardo Davinci, the Monalisa, which I saw at the Musée du Louvre in Paris.

One of the painting on the ceilings

The Musée du Louvre or the Louvre Museum or simply the Louvre – is one of the world's largest museums, themost visited art museum in the world and a historic monument. A central landmark of Paris, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the 1st arrondissement (district). Nearly 35,000 objects from prehistory to the 19th century are exhibited over an area of 60,600 square metres (652,300 square feet).The museum is housed in the Louvre Palace (Palais du Louvre) which began as a fortress built in the late 12th century under Philip II. Remnants of the fortress are visible in the basement of the museum. The building was extended many times to form the present Louvre Palace. In 1682, Louis XIV chose the Palace of Versailles for his household, leaving the Louvre primarily as a place to display the royal collection, including, from 1692, a collection of antique sculpture. In 1692, the building was occupied by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres and the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, which in 1699 held the first of a series of salons. The Académie remained at the Louvre for 100 years. During the French Revolution, the National Assembly decreed that the Louvre should be used as a museum, to display the nation's masterpieces.The museum opened on 10 August 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings, the majority of the works being royal and confiscated church property. Because of structural problems with the building, the museum was closed in 1796 until 1801. The size of the collection increased under Napoleon and the museum was renamed the Musée Napoléon. After the defeat of Napoléon at Waterloo, many works seized by his armies were returned to their original owners. The collection was further increased during the reigns of Louis XVIII and Charles X, and during the Second French Empire the museum gained 20,000 pieces. Holdings have grown steadily through donations and gifts since the Third Republic. As of 2008, the collection is divided among eight curatorial departments: Egyptian Antiquities; Near Eastern Antiquities; Greek, Etruscan, and Roman Antiquities; Islamic Art; Sculpture; Decorative Arts; Paintings; Prints and Drawings.

Collections

The Musée du Louvre contains more than 380,000 objects and displays 35,000 works of art in eight curatorial departments, which are:

1.     Egyptian Antiquities

2.     Near Easter Antiquities

3.     Greek, Etruscan, and Roman

4.     Islamic Art

5.     Sculpture

6.     Decorative Arts

7.     Painting

8.     Prints and drawings

One of the world-known painting is located in Louvre Museum, which is Mona Lisa.

Mona Lisa (also known as La Gioconda or La Joconde, or Portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo) is a portrait by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is a painting in oil on a poplar panel, completed circa 1503–1519. It is on permanent display at the Musée du Louvre in Paris.

The painting is a half-length portrait and depicts a seated woman, Lisa del Giocondo, whose facial expression has been frequently described as enigmatic. The ambiguity of the subject's expression, the monumentality of the composition, and the subtle modeling of forms and atmospheric illusionism were novel qualities that have contributed to the continuing fascination and study of the work. The image is widely recognised, caricatured, and sought out by visitors to the Louvre, and it is considered the most famous painting in the world.

Background

Leonardo Da Vinci began painting the Mona Lisa in 1503 or 1504 in Florence, Italy. According to Da Vinci's contemporary, Giorgio Vasari, "...after he had lingered over it four years, left it unfinished...." It is known that such behavior is common in most paintings of Leonardo who, later in his life, regretted "never having completed a single work”.

He is thought to have continued to work on Mona Lisa for three years after he moved to France and to have finished it shortly before he died in 1519. Leonardo took the painting from Italy to France in 1516 when King François I invited the painter to work at the Clos Lucé near the king's castle in Amboise. Most likely through the heirs of Leonardo's assistant Salai, the king bought the painting for 4,000 écus and kept it at Château Fontainebleau, where it remained until given to Louis XIV. Louis XIV moved the painting to the Palace of Versailles. After the French Revolution, it was moved to the Louvre. Napoleon I had it moved to his bedroom in the Tuileries Palace; later it was returned to the Louvre. During the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871) it was moved from the Louvre to the Brest Arsenal.

There has been much speculation regarding the painting's model and landscape. For example, that Leonardo probably painted his model faithfully since her beauty is not seen as being among the best, "even when measured by late quattrocento (15th century) or even twenty-first century standards.” Some art historians in Eastern art, such as Yukio Yashiro, also argue that the landscape in the background of the picture was influenced by Chinese paintings, however this thesis has been contested for lack of clear evidence.

Mona Lisa was not well known until the mid-19th century when artists of the emerging Symbolist movement began to appreciate it, and associated it with their ideas about feminine mystique. Critic Walter Pater, in his 1867 essay on Leonardo, expressed this view by describing the figure in the painting as a kind of mythic embodiment of eternal femininity, who is "older than the rocks among which she sits" and who "has been dead many times and learned the secrets of the grave."

Subject and Title

Mona Lisa is named for Lisa del Giocondo, a member of the Gherardini family of Florence and Tuscany and the wife of wealthy Florentine silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo. The painting was commissioned for their new home and to celebrate the birth of their second son, Andrea. The sitter's identity was ascertained at the University of Heidelberg in 2005 by a library expert who discovered a 1503 margin note written by Agostino Vespucci.

Over the years there have been several alternative views. Some scholars have argued that Lisa del Giocondo was the subject of a different portrait, identifying at least four other paintings as the Mona Lisa referred to by Vasari. Several other individuals have been proposed as the subject of the painting. Sigmund Freud believed that the famous half-smile was a recovered memory of Leonardo's mother. Other suggestions have been Isabella of Naples, Cecilia Gallerani, Costanza d'Avalos, Duchess of Francavilla‎, Isabella d'Este, Pacifica Brandano or Brandino, Isabela Gualanda, Caterina Sforza, and Leonardo himself. Today the consensus of art historians is that the painting depicts Lisa del Giocondo, which has always been the traditional view.

The painting's title stems from a description by Giorgio Vasari in his biography of Leonardo published in 1550, 31 years after the artist's death. "Leonardo undertook to paint, for Francesco del Giocondo, the portrait of Mona Lisa, his wife...." (one version in Italian: Prese Lionardo a fare per Francesco del Giocondo il ritratto di mona Lisa sua moglie). In Italian, ma donna means my lady. This became madonna, and its contraction mona. Mona is thus a polite form of address, similar to Ma’am, Madam, or my lady in English. In modern Italian, the short form of madonna is usually spelled Monna, so the title is sometimes Monna Lisa, rarely in English and more commonly in Romance languages such as French and Italian.

At his death in 1525, Leonardo's assistant Salai owned the portrait named in his personal papers la Gioconda which had been bequeathed to him by the artist. Italian for jocund, happy or jovial, Gioconda was a nickname for the sitter, a pun on the feminine form of her married name Giocondo and her disposition. In French, the title La Joconde has the same double meaning.

Aesthetics

Leonardo used a pyramid design to place the woman simply and calmly in the space of the painting. Her folded hands form the front corner of the pyramid. Her breast, neck and face glow in the same light that models her hands. The light gives the variety of living surfaces an underlying geometry of spheres and circles. Leonardo referred to a seemingly simple formula for seated female figure: the images of seated Madonna, which were widespread at the time. He effectively modified this formula in order to create the visual impression of distance between the sitter and the observer. The armrest of the chair functions as a dividing element between Mona Lisa and the viewer.

The woman sits markedly upright with her arms folded, which is also a sign of her reserved posture. Only her gaze is fixed on the observer and seems to welcome him to this silent communication. Since the brightly lit face is practically framed with various much darker elements (hair, veil, shadows), the observer's attraction to it is brought to even greater extent. The woman appears alive to an unusual measure, which Leonardo achieved by his new method not to draw the outlines, "mainly in two features: the corners of the mouth, and the corners of the eyes" (Gombrich), as firmly as that had been the use, before (sfumato). There is no indication of an intimate dialogue between the woman and the observer as is the case in the Portrait of Baldassare Castiglion (Louvre) painted by Raphael about ten years later, and undoubtedly influenced by the work.

The painting was among the first portraits to depict the sitter before an imaginary landscape and Leonardo was one of the first painters to use aerial perspective. The enigmatic woman is portrayed seated in what appears to be an open loggia with dark pillar bases on either side. Behind her a vast landscape recedes to icy mountains. Winding paths and a distant bridge give only the slightest indications of human presence. The sensuous curves of the woman's hair and clothing are echoed in the undulating imaginary valleys and rivers behind her. The blurred outlines, graceful figure, dramatic contrasts of light and dark, and overall feeling of calm are characteristic of Leonardo's style. Owing to the expressive synthesis that Leonardo achieved between sitter and landscape it is arguable whether Mona Lisa should be considered as a traditional portrait, for it represents an ideal rather than a real woman. The sense of overall harmony achieved in the painting—especially apparent in the sitter's faint smile—reflects the idea of a link connecting humanity and nature.

Mona Lisa has no clearly visible eyebrows or eyelashes. Some researchers claim that it was common at this time for genteel women to pluck these hairs, as they were considered unsightly. In 2007, French engineer Pascal Cotte announced that his ultra high resolution scans of the painting provide evidence that Mona Lisa was originally painted with eyelashes and with better visible eyebrows, but that these had gradually disappeared over time, perhaps as a result of overcleaning. For modern viewers the nearly-missing eyebrows add to the slightly semi-abstract quality of the face.

Ambil Saweran