Candi Kimpulan (Pustakasala Temple) - Indonesia

Address

Candi Kimpulan (Pustakasala Temple) – Indonesia

Moolavar

Shiva

Introduction

Kimpulan (also known as Pustakasala temple) is a 9th to 10th century temple located in the area of Islamic University of Indonesia (UII) library in Kaliurang road, Sleman Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The temple was buried about 5 meters (16 ft) underground. Parts of the temple have been excavated to reveal square andesite stone walls and statues of Ganesha, Nandi, and Lingam–Yoni.

Puranic Significance

The temple was accidentally discovered on 11 December 2009 during land excavations to lay foundations for the construction of a new university library. Like the temples of Sambisari, Morangan and Kedulan, the temple is thought to have been buried by an ancient volcanic eruption from the nearby Mount Merapi about a millennium ago. The discovery of this temple was the most exciting archaeological finding in Yogyakarta recently, leading to speculation about whether other ancient temples still lie underground in the vicinity, buried under Mount Merapi‘s volcanic ash.

The temple clearly shows it is of Shaivite nature, and the style of carving and statues strongly suggests construction took place sometime around the 9th to 10th century, during Mataram Kingdom period. Unlike common Central Java temples, the stone main structure and towering roof are absent. The temple is modestly small in size and has simple decorations. It only consists of several squares of walled stone base and staircases with the carving of Kala. The inner chambers contain statues of Ganesha, Nandi, and Lingam-Yoni.

The body, column, and roof of the temple probably were made from wood or some organic material that has decayed over time and left no traces. The temple was probably similar to present day Balinese temples with a tall Meru-style roof. Unlike the magnificent and richly decorated Prambanan temple that served as the royal national temple of the Mataram Kingdom, Kimpulan was a modest village shrine built by the common people of a village on the outskirts of the capital.