Minister Inaugurates Batutulis Inscription Shelter

KBRN, Jakarta: Minister of Culture Fadli Zon officially inaugurated the cungkup, a protective shelter building, for the historic Batutulis Inscription in Bogor, West Java, on Wednesday, December 31, 2025. The ceremony marks a pivotal step in the government's broader strategy to revitalize Sundanese historical sites and modernize the region's cultural infrastructure.

The Batutulis Inscription, a relic of the Sunda Kingdom, is a grey-black andesite monolith standing 1.82 meters tall with a unique flat triangular shape resembling a gunungan. It features nine lines of Old Sundanese inscriptions carved in Old Javanese script.

During the inauguration, Minister Fadli Zon emphasized that this site is just one piece of a much larger cultural puzzle in West Java that requires urgent attention.

"In West Java, there are many site discoveries that we haven't had the chance to fully revitalize. There are also several sites in the Bogor area that we are working to preserve," said the Minister on December 31, 2025, as quoted by Antara.

He highlighted recent technical triumphs in heritage preservation as evidence of this renewed commitment.

"For example, for the first time in decades, we relocated the Muara Cianten Inscription, which weighs nearly 20 tons. It was previously in the middle of a river, and now, thank God, it has finally been lifted," he explained, referring to the effort to protect the artifact from erosion.

The Minister articulated a philosophy that links heritage preservation directly to national progress, viewing museums and cultural sites as essential mirrors for the nation.

"If we want to know today, we must know the past. And if we want to design the future, we start from today. So, in reality, the past, the present, and the future cannot be separated," he said.

Looking ahead to 2026, Fadli Zon urged active participation from various government levels to accelerate the revitalization of museums and cultural heritage sites across the province. He specifically set his sights on the upcoming Pajajaran Museum, which is intended to serve as a world-class repository for Sundanese history.

"The civilization in the Land of Sunda indeed has much that we need to bring back to the surface. Of course, this requires collaboration between the Ministry of Culture, the provincial government, and the district/city administrations. Hopefully, in 2026, we can soon inaugurate the Pajajaran Museum with representative exhibition layouts and artifacts," he added.

Following the inauguration, the Minister toured the Batutulis site and performed a pilgrimage to the Mbah Dalem Batutulis tomb. Director General of Cultural Protection and Tradition, Restu Gunawan, extended his appreciation to the Cultural Preservation Center (BPK) Region IX of West Java and the Bogor City Administration for their synergy in strengthening the Batutulis site, which is already designated as a national cultural heritage site. ***