Muara Kaman Ulu, Civilization in The Land of Birth of Kutai

Muara Kaman Ulu

Civilization in the Land of Birth of Kutai

Why does the vamsakreta (founder of the kudunga dynasty) and its successor kings, namely Mulawarman and Aswawarman, tend to choose Muara Kaman in Kutai Kartanegara Regency as the capital of kadatwan or his kingdom until a very long period (fourth century to XVII century AD)? It may be because the area of the kadatwan is in Benua Lawas, on the hilly ground called Brubus (the meaning of the word “brubus” is “early growth,” resembling the meaning of the word “trubus”) along with the surrounding ancient swamps.

One of the Early Civilizations in the Archipelago -

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Vanua - Zul Lubis

The designation element “benua” comes from the Sanskrit Language “vanua” which means village. The toponymic element “benua” (as in the designation “Benua Lawas” in Muara Kaman Hilir Village, the designation “Benua Tuha” in Sabintulung Village, and the designation “Benua Puhun”) becomes an indicator of the archaic nature for these places.

As for the designation element “lawas (old)”, it becomes a clue that the area in the Kedang Rantau Watershed is an ancient village (wanua) which is said to be the “center of settlement” Muara Kaman residents in the past. The relocation of settlements from Benua Lawas (Old Continent) area to the edges of Mahakam and Kedang Rantau only took place in the early 1900s. Therefore, it can be understood if in this area many marine artifacts (past) are found, including seven yupa inscriptions, Lesong Batu, ruins of a number of temples, old tombs, traces of ancient fortifications, remnants of swamp architecture type stage buildings, and so on. It is understandable that in the former ancient swamps in the 1980s, the remains of a sinking river ship were found. The local legend “Aji Bidara Putih” also revolves around the sinking of a Chinese ship in Lake Lipan.

Geo-strategic Dimensions

The geographical position of Muara Kaman located in the estuary of Kedang Rantau and Kedang Kepala at the Mahakam Central Watershed plays a strategic role that explains the reason for the establishment of the Kutai Kingdom there. Muara Kaman plays an important role as a link between the area on Hulu Mahakam and its tributaries and grandchildren of the river abundant in natural resources. This is recorded in Yupa inscriptions that mention the existence of gold, oil, and forest crops (especially agarwood). In addition, in Hilir Mahakam, there is access to the opposite islands as well as foreign countries. By occupying a position in the “branching of the three corners”, Muara Kaman arguably has important geo-strategic properties. Many natural resources in Hulu and Tengah Mahakam cannot be delivered through the waterway without crossing the Muara Kaman area in the Middle of Mahakam. Muara Kaman’s strategic position is what makes it a “crossing area” of goods in Mahakam business history.

Thanks to its geo-strategic nature and the existence of waters in the form of rivers, swamps and lakes (in local oral tradition narrated about the existence of “Lake Lipan”), in the waters of Muara Kaman, once a type of a river port, transito (interport), was built. Through the port, natural products from the interior in Hulu and Central are delivered by boat, dismantled at the transito port, then loaded onto the buyer’s ship from outside the island and foreign countries to be then taken downstream, then forwarded to the

buyer’s place of origin. Although Muara Kaman is not on the coast, it is located quite far in the interior of the island of Kalimantan, but because of its geo-strategic characteristics the area is visited by traders from far-distance places.

Muara Kaman proved to have, since the beginning of the date AD, acted as a potential producer of crops, and at the same time as a market for merchandise with a barter transaction model. Many traders outside the region or outside the island (Bugis, Makasar, Buton, Banjar, Malay) and from foreign countries (including India, China, the Middle East) arrived at the transito port of Muara Kaman. In fact, since the second century and later the fourth century AD, Indian traders and clergy willingly traveled more than 100 kilometers to hunt for natural resources that used to be marketed in the transito port of Muara Kaman.

On the basis of that understanding, it became clear that whoever controlled Muara Kaman, he was the one who held hegemony over business in Mahakam. It was also a trigger for the Deployment of Sinum Panji Mandapa from Kasultanan Kutai Kartanegara to expand power by expanding the military to Muara Kaman in the XVII century AD. Nusa Martapura which is located opposite Mahakam became his base of operations. Therefore, according to the library Salasilah Kutai, in his title it was added the word “ing Matapura” after he successfully placed Muara Kaman which was then under the orders of King Darmasetia under the auspices of kasultanan kutai kartanegara since the XVII century until the 1950s.

Main Transportation -

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Dynamics of River Maritime Civilization

Thus, from the beginning of AD until the 1950s, two monarchies grew and developed in Mahkam. The first is the Kingdom of Kutai which was domiciled in muara Kaman Uku village for 1.3 millennia (4th-XVII century AD) and dominated the Central and Upper Mahakam areas. The second is the Kingdom of Kutai Kartanegara in the Downstream area and in parts of the Mahakam Central region.

When referring back to the past, in the Upper and Central mahakam area, traces of prehistoric life were also obtained, namely relics from the Era of Hunting and Food Gathering at Advanced level until the beginning of the Expertise Era. The transition from Prehistoric Times to the Age of Mahakam History took place in the Muara Kaman area. The discovery of Yupa inscriptions in Muara Kaman becomes the proof that “Beginning of History” and “Early Milestones of Literal Tradition” in Archipelagi gradually occurred in the Muara Kaman area.

From here, it can be seen that there is a kind of local wisdom from the ancestors to choose and make the Muara Kaman area as the center of government. This local wisdom rests on familiarity with the geo-strategic value of the region as a center of trade and intercultural interaction space. Because the location for the development of the archaic civilization of the two kingdoms / Kasultanan Kutai is in the mahakam river flow area and it was there for the first time that the oldest preliterature was found in the archipelago, the site deserves to be remembered as the womb of Archipelago civilization.

(Cindy Jacquelline, Daya Desa Muara Kaman Ulu and Dwi Cahyono, Archaeologist and Historian Researcher in Muara Kaman)

Beginning of History -

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Eternal Legacy -

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