Moon_of_Pejeng,_Pura_Penataran_Sasih_1463

The Moon of Pejeng, also known as the Pejeng Moon, in Bali is the largest single-cast bronze

kettle drum Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionally ...

in the world. and "the largest known relic from Southeast Asia's

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

period."Rita A. Widiadana,
Get in touch with Bali's cultural heritage
," ''The Jakarta Post'' (06/06/2002). It is "considered highly sacred by local people." It is thought to be a relic of early rice cultivation rituals. The drum is high and the diameter of the tympano is . It is kept at

Pura Penataran Sasih Pura Penataran Sasih is a Hindu temple in Pejeng village, Bali. It was founded, according to a modern chronogram displayed at the entrance, in 1266 AD, and served as the state temple of the Pejeng Kingdom, 1293 - 1343 AD. Significant featur ...

Temple in

Pejeng Pejeng is a village in Bali, Indonesia, in the Petanu River valley. It is a bit east of Ubud in Gianyar Regency. It is home to the Moon of Pejeng, the largest single-cast bronze kettle drum in the world. Pejeng is a rural area with extensive, ...

, near

Ubud Ubud is a town on the Indonesian island of Bali in Ubud District, located amongst rice paddies and steep ravines in the central foothills of the Gianyar regency. Promoted as an arts and culture centre, it has developed a large tourism indust ...

, in the Petauan River valley which, along with the adjacent Pakerisan River valley, forms the heartland of South Bali where complex irrigated rice culture first evolved on the island.

History

The Dong Son people made the drum around 300 B.C., more than two thousand years ago.Yayasan Bumi Kita and Anne Gouyon, ''The Natural Guide to Bali: Enjoy Nature, Meet the People, Make a Difference'' (Tuttle Publishing, 2005)
109
/ref> According to Balinese legend, the Pejeng Moon was a wheel of the chariot that pulled the real

moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

through the night sky. One night, as the chariot was passing over Pejeng, the wheel detached and fell to

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

, landing in a tree, where it glowed nearly as brightly as the real moon. This light disturbed a thief who, annoyed, climbed the tree and urinated on it; the thief paid for his sacrilege with his life. The moon eventually cooled and has been preserved as a sacred relic by the local villagers. It is the largest and most complete type of drum known as the Pejeng type drums which have been found in Bali and

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. The Pejeng Moon was first reported to the western world by G.E. Rumphius in his book '' The Ambonese Curiosity Cabinet'', published in 1705. The Moon was first systematically described by the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

artist W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp who reproduced the famous face motif.

References

{{coord, 8, 30, 49.54, S, 115, 17, 36.50, E, display=title Drums Bronze Age Gianyar Regency Indonesian musical instruments Dong Son bronze drums

History

See also

References