Ratu Boko or Ratu Boko Palace is an archaeological site in Java. Ratu Boko is located on a plateau, about three kilometres south of Prambanan temple complex in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The original name of this site is still unclear, however the local inhabitants named this site after King Boko, the legendary king mentioned in Roro Jonggrang folklore. In Javanese, Ratu Boko means "Stork King".
Archaeological remains
Ratu Boko stands 196 meters above sea level and covers an area of 250.000 square meters. It is divided into four parts, the central, the west, the southeast and the east. The central section of the compound consists of the main gates, a crematorium temple, a pool, a stone pedestal and the paseban (or audience hall). The southeast part covers the pendopo (attached open pavilion), balai-balai (public hall or building), three miniature temples, a pool and a walled compound popularly named by locals as kaputren (women's quarter).
Functions
Despite the large quantity and variety of remains found there, the exact functions of Ratu Boko site is still unknown. Some believe it was the former palace of ancient Mataram Kingdom; other scholars interpret this site as monastery. While third group holds that it was a place for rest and recreation. Inscriptions shows that the site was occupied at least during the 8th and 9th centuries.
Five inscriptions in pre-Nagari script and Sanskrit describe the construction of a shrine for Avalokitesvara. One inscriptions refers to the constructions of a Buddhist monastery modelled after Abhayagiri Vihara (means a monastery on a peaceful hill) in Sri Lanka, where a group of ascetic forest dwelling monks resided. Three dated inscriptions in Old Javanese and poetic Sanskrit recount the erection of two lingga, and bear the date of 778 Saka or 856 AD. Another undated inscription mentions the erection of lingga named Hara at the order of King Kalasobhawa. [source]
Video
