West Sumatra ('Sumatera Barat', abbreviated to 'Sumbar') is a province of Indonesia. It lies on the west coast of the island Sumatra, and borders the provinces of North Sumatra ('Sumatera Utara') to the north, Riau and Jambi to the east, and Bengkulu to the southeast. It includes the Mentawai Islands off the coast. The capital of the province is Padang.
Six kilometers east of Limo Kaum is Batusangkar, the biggest city in the Tanahdatar area. The Dutch built fortress 'van der Capellen' here in 1821, during the Paderi wars. The city council (balai adat), in the southeastern corner of the city square, was built in traditional Minang style in 1967 and decorated with rich local motives.
There is little that remains of the colonial time. The old Dutch fortress (now a police station), was devastated during the times, only the house of the former resident, now the residence of the bupati, remained in tact. In front of the house of the bupati is a collection of objects from the early history, among them an inscription from the 14th century and a fountain with a woman-like shape. Similar fountains were found near royal baths in eastern Java and Bali. There also is a strange statue of two broken figures, which are attached to each other in the waist area; the bottom part probably belonged to a female goddess, the upper part originated from a male god.
From Batusangkar you can take a small tour along several historic sites. Three kilometers northeast of Batusangkar is Payarruyung. This small village can be reached on foot, by bemo or taxi. This place was the location of the last Raja Alan of the Minangkabau, sultan Arifin Muning Alam Syah. In 1815, members of the Paderi-movement killed all of the royal family, except the sultan and one of his grandchildren.
The palace is totally demolished, but visitors can still see the 14th century inscriptions and other stones. The inscriptions probably originate from Bukit Gombak, a little more south, from a location where much more 14th century inscriptions were found.
The road follows the Selo River towards the south until Gudam, the next important village. High point is the islamic burial site with it's unique gravestones, like for example a knife in a belt.
Following the stories the stones mark the locations where members of the royal family of Pagarruyung were buried. In the neighboring Padang Magek, these stones are told to be a part of a racing track for horses. Traditional races like the ones from the past were still held in more recent times, and probably date from the pre-Islamic period. It is very common that such stones were later used to make Islamic graves.
Just a little ahead, in Padang Siminyak, is the famous Balai Janggo, the recently restored palace of the Minangkabau rulers. It was destroyed by fire in 1976, but after six years of hard work, it has now resurrected fully. This enormous rectangular building looks like an traditional rumah gadang, but on a much larger scale. The visitor enters the building through a long central hallway with heavy wooden pillars, which are richly decorated. Across the gallery is a number of rooms. Along both sides of the hallway, stairs bring you to the upper floors of the building with historical objects and Minangkabau arts. Guards giver permission to see all of this, and on special demand they will also show you the ceramics that was saved from the fire. The upper floor also gives you a nice view over the area.
In front of the palace are two rice sheds (rankiang), with behind them the royal bath which leads to the royal hunting area. Luckily the building has stayed free from bright colors during a restoration and the environment is nice. A small entrance fee is collected. Visit the palace early in the morning or later in the evening to avoid guided tours with big groups.
From here, the road crosses the Selo River and follows the foot of Bukit Gombak, to return to Batusangkar, and which also ends the tour through Tanahdatar. Instead of taking the same road back to Bukittinggi, you can use the small and picturesque roads between Gunung Merapi and Gunung Malintang, along traditional villages like Raorao and Tabatpatah. On a clear day a mountain range after Tabatpatah offers a panoramic view over entire Kota-Limapuluh area, the Payakumbuh and Harau ravains, with rice-fields and fuzzy mountains in the distance.
Location map of Batusangkar
Last revised on November 01, 2009
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