Megalithic Cultural Heritage of Lore Lindu Area

Tadulako Site:
Latitude: 1 42 40.096 S
Longitude: 120 15 30.774 E
 
Pokekea Site:
Latitude: 1 41 28.436 S
Longitude: 120 12 46.942 E

Megalithic Cultural Heritage of the Lore Lindu Area is a serial property consisting of four components which are geographically situated in the highland of Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. At about 1,100m above sea level, the plateau consists of a series of valleys that form a broad basin surrounded by hills up to 2,800m in height. Such a setting creates a beautiful natural landscape as a backdrop for the existing megalithic remains in the area. Lore Lindu area has been recognized by UNESCO as a biosphere reserve (1977) and designated as a National Park by the Government of Indonesia (1993). Within this area there are a number of traditional settlements and agricultural land cultivated by  several ethnic groups who traditionally live there.

The entire property covers an area of approximately 156,127 Ha where no less than 2,000 megalithic remains are found within 118 sites. The four components of this serial property are Napu Valley (45,905.059 ha, with 29 sites); Behoa Valley (7,115.490 ha, with 32 sites), Bada Valley (4,646 ha, with 35 sites), and Palu Valley (98,469.606 ha, with 22 sites). In each component, there are a large number of megalithic remains in various forms including large stone burial jars (kalamba) sometimes with lids (tuatena), stone ancestor statues, stone mortars, pitted flat stones, engraved stones, stone discs, dolmens, stone circles, stone troughs, flat stones, stone markers, and earthenware jar burials.

Research on megalithic cultural heritage of the Lore Lindu Area has been conducted since the early 20th century, mainly by A.C. Kruyt (1908-1938), Grubauer (1913), Raven (1926; 1933), and W. Kaudern (1938). After the 1970s, research was conducted by Indonesian researchers from the Archaeological Research Centre and Manado Archaeological Office. The results showed that the megalithic remains in the Lore Lindu area are relics of an ancient civilization that may have developed in this area 3,000 years ago. This ancient civilization demonstrated its high ability to adapt to the natural environment at that time and reached its peak in the Early Metal Period around 2,500 to 1,500 years ago. The people of this civilization lived in villages consisting of a number of pile-built houses supported by stone pillars. They relied on agriculture, animal domestication, and hunting for their livelihoods.

They highly respect their ancestors and erect large statues to immortalize their presence in the world. The bodies of deceased family members are stored in large stone vessels (kalamba) covered with stone discs (tuatena) often carved with fairly advanced technology. Alternatively, the remains of the deceased are buried in smaller earthenware burial jars. The carvings on the stone vessels, their lids, and the ancestor statues are neatly done and have a unique style and ornamentation. The ancestor statues are carved in a style that emphasizes the face and body, the position of the hands pointing to the stomach, and generally showing a certain gender (genitalia). The dimensions of the ancestor statues are varied, the largest being 380 cm high. This style of statue is more commonly found in the Wallacea and Oceania islands. The ornaments are quite diverse, especially in the form of human faces, geometric shapes, and decorative ribbons found on large stone jars and the lids, and other carved stones. These decorative motifs are reminiscent of the ornamental characteristics of the Lapita Culture that developed in Melanesia-Polynesia around 3,500 - 2,700 years ago which typically depict human faces and their stylization, geometric shapes, and decorative ribbons.

The results of genetic studies on human skeletal remains in the large stone jars attest their affinity to people with Southern Mongoloid racial characteristics. i.e early Austronesian speakers who migrated from southern China or Taiwan. Such genetic markers are also found in several ethnic groups that still lives in Sulawesi today, including the Kaili (Central Sulawesi), Toraja and Kajang ethnic groups (South Sulawesi), the Mandar (West Sulawesi), and Minahasa (North Sulawesi). All of these ethnic groups are also Austronesian speakers who still maintain the megalithic remains. In fact, ethnic groups living in the Lore Lindu area still practice traditions that represent aspects of megalithic culture. The Bada people use pitted-stones to calculate the farming season calendar, and make cloth from tree bark with bark-cloth beaters made of stone like those found in burial vessels. Meanwhile the Tado people in Lake Lindu still use stone mortars, reside in pile-built houses, produce traditional pottery, practice traditional metal technology, use stone or wooden grave markers, cook rice in bamboo tubes, preserve art and folklore, and create traditional crafts.

The Megalithic Cultural Heritage of the Lore Lindu Region is tangible evidence of the waves of migration of Austronesian speakers that occurred starting around 5,000 years ago from Mainland Southeast Asia and Taiwan to the Islands of Southeast Asia and Oceania. The Great Migration of Austronesian speakers is considered one of the phenomenal events in world history, since geographically it covered a vast area of almost half the globe and took place in a relatively short period of time. Today, Austronesian speakers are spread across the region from Taiwan in the north to New Zealand in the south and from Madagascar in the west to Easter Island in the east. The migration process of Austronesian-speakers has triggered a kind of globalization process in the past, which has led to the interaction of cultures in the Indo-Pacific Region. These cultural interactions have facilitated cultural and human exchanges involving both peoples who had previously lived in the region (the Australo-Papuan populations) and newcomers (the Southern Mongoloid).

Wave after wave of migration of Austronesian speakers to the islands of Southeast Asia and Oceania has resulted in the formation of two rather distinct cultural areas in the region. The Austronesian-speaking culture that developed on the large western islands (Malacca Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and Bali) was heavily influenced by the Austro-Asiatic-speaker’s culture on the Southeast Asian continent. On the other side, the Austronesian-speaking cultures in the Wallacea and Oceania regions adopted cultural elements of Australo-Melanesoid people who had inhabited the region thousands of years earlier. Genetic data also confirms the existence of these two distinct cultural regions in the western and eastern regions of the Austronesian speakers' distribution. Sulawesi Island as the westernmost island of the Wallacea region became a zone of interface between the two cultural streams.

Such a cultural encounter has produced a unique civilization in the Lore Lindu area that shows a blend of the two cultural streams. Evidence of this blend can be seen from the megalithic cultural heritage in Lore-Lindu. Burials in large stone jars (kalamba) are the main marker of western Austronesian region, since their existence has never been reported in areas east of Sulawesi. Meanwhile, the ancestral statues and ornaments with Lapita cultural affinity are evidence from the influence of Eastern Austronesian region. This is also supported by the co-existence of both paddle-impressed pottery (Western Austronesian) and red-slipped pottery (Eastern Austronesian) at Lore-Lindu megalithic sites. The exceptional megalithic civilization of Lore-Lindu is also evidence of how human adapted to the natural environment as well as the dynamics of past cultural changes in the archipelagic world. Until now, some cultural elements of this civilization are still practiced by the ethnic groups living in the area.

Criterion (ii): Megalithic Cultural Heritage of Lore Lindu Area clearly exhibit the exchange of cultural values from at least two cultural regions, namely the Western Austronesian which was influenced by continental Southeast Asian culture and the Eastern Austronesian that has adopted archipelagic culture of Wallacea and Oceania. This cultural interaction is evidenced especially by the co-existence of stone burial jars and ancestral statues in most of megalithic sites in the Lore Lindu Area which is not found anywhere else. Stone burial jars represent the burial tradition of a civilization that developed in mainland Southeast Asia, while large stone ancestral statues carved with distinctive facial shapes and decorative patterns are mainly part of the monumental arts tradition in the Wallacea and Oceania Islands. This exchange of human values occurred as a result of the migration process of Austronesian speakers that has occurred since around 5000 years ago until the early centuries AD. The migration of Austronesian speakers is an extraordinary phenomenon in human history.

Criterion (iii): Megalithic Cultural Heritage in Lore Lindu is exceptional testimony of a unique civilization that shows the ability of humans to adapt to the natural environment and the dynamics of past cultural change in the Indonesian archipelago due to the migration of Austronesian speakers. This civilization has produced various megalithic monuments and earthenware jar burials crafted with high technological skills and excellent aesthetic touch in its time, as a means of burial rituals and respect for ancestors. The megalitihic civilization of Lore-Lindu has developed since approximately 3,000 BP and lasted until 500 years ago. Although the construction of megalithic monuments is no longer carried out, until now the ethnic groups living in this area still continue to practice certain cultural elements of this civilization.

Authenticity

Almost all attributes of the Megalithic Cultural Heritage of the Lore-Lindu Area are still in their original condition, both in terms of material, form, design, ornamentation, and setting. Only a few have been broken or worn out due to natural weathering processes. Several ancestral statues were found toppled or buried not far from their location. The attributes of this serial property can still demonstrate the authenticity of their technology and craftsmanship. The original function of large stone jars (kalamba) and earthenware jar burials can sometimes still be proven by the discovery of human or animal bones, as well as artifacts inside the vessels. By and large, the environment of the Lore Lindu Area has not changed much, so that the "sense of place" of the cultural landscape of the civilization that once existed can be felt. The local community still continues a number of cultural traditions and customs that exist in the Lore Lindu megalithic civilization.

Integrity

Various types of archaeological and ethnographic findings in the Lore-Lindu Area can provide a comprehensive picture of the civilization that developed in the Lore Lindu Plateau since about 3000 years ago. All components and attributes of this serial property are still in good condition to show its Outstanding Universal Value. This property is located in a National Park which is also a biosphere reserve. Moreover, a number of megalithic sites have been designated as cultural heritage. Therefore, this property has been adequately protected and monitored. Agricultural activities around the site that have been carried out by the local community have not resulted in any adverse impacts. Until now there has been no significant development threat to this serial property. Because this property is located in a fairly remote place, public visits to the Lore Lindu Area are also limited. Admittedly, tourism development in this area can put more pressure on it in the future. To anticipate tourism pressure, the Central Sulawesi Provincial Government has implemented a sustainable tourism policy in this area.