I \ FEDERA TION MUSEUMS JOURNAL , VOLOME X NEW SERIES for 1965 I' lOHORE LAMA EXCAVATIONS, 1960 \ by WILHELM G. SOLHEIM II AND ERNESTENE GREEN \ \ I \ . KP JB 42 MUSEUMS DEPARTMENT, STATES OF MALAYA KUALA LUMPU'R / FEDERATION MUSEUMS JOURNAL VOLUME X NEW SERIES MUSEUMS DEPARTMENT STATES OF MALAYA KUALA LUMPUR for 1965 JOHORE LAMA EXCAVATIONS, 1960 Wilhelm G. Solheim II and Ernestene Green * INTRODUCTION Johore Lama is the site of a Malayan town which during the Sixteenth Century was the royal capital of the kingdom of J ohore. It is located almost at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, at 104° O'E, 1°34' N. The mouth of the Johore River (Sungei Johor) is directly east of Singapore Island. The site of Johore Lama is on the east bank of the Johore River, approximately ten miles north of the river mouth. The surrounding area is swampy and generally cultivation. However, it is fairly well located to take the Malacca Straits. Apparently, it was this trade resource of the town and its royal inhabitants during unsuited for intensive rice advantage of trade through which provided the main the Sixteenth Century. Previous Excavation First mention of the ruins of this city was made by J. R. Logan in 1847. No excavations were undertaken at the site, however, until 1932-35 when G. B. Gardner visited several archaeological locations along the Johore River, J ohore Lama among them. Gardner collected porcelain and earthenware from the ruins. In 1936 Quaritch-Wales also visited sites on the Johore River and excavated several trial trenches at Johore Lama. He states that deposits here seldom exceed 18 inches. 1 Between 1948 and 1954 several surface collections were made at the site. During 1953 several investigators worked at Johore Lama. A preliminary survey of the earthworks of the fortified city was made by P. D. R. WilliamsHunt and Paul Wheatly in March of that year. In the course of the survey they cleared the jungle from about 1,100 yards of the ramparts. G. de G. Sieveking and students from the University of Malaya conducted excavations at Tanjong Batu (the fort) in August, 1953. These excavations are summarized in the section titled "Excavation and Clearance" below. 1960 Excavation In 1960 the senior author was asked by the Federation of Malaya to assist members of the National Museum in the excavation and reconstruction of the fort at J ohore Lama, to recommend future archaeological work in Malaya, and to begin a study of the locally made Malayan pottery. This report is the '" The fi~st portion of this report was written jointly while the portion on the pottery and what follows were wntten by the senior author. 1 WALES, 1940, 63. FEDERATION MUSEUMS JOURNAL X (1965) second of a series concerning excavation and reconstruction at the site. 2 Excavation of the fort was done jointly with Mr. John Matthews, at that time Curator of Museums for Malaya. There were two interrelated purposes in the excavation of the fort at Johore Lama. The first was to reveal by archaeological methods that portion of the history of the site when it was a royal capital and to solve certain problems, unclear in documentary sources, concerning its destruction. Secondly, excavation was undertaken to discover the approximate appearance of the fort in the Sixteenth Century, in order that the architectural features might be reconstructed, as accurately as possible. During excavation and restoration of the fort, some time was spent in exploration of the total fortified area and the immediate neighbourhood of J ohore Lama as well as other historic sites farther up the Johore River. In the exploration of the fortified area an unusual grass covered mound was discovered in the east corner of the general area considered by Gibson-Hill as the possible site of the palace. 3 Preliminary investigation of this mound indicated that it was primarily made up of potsherds. As no explanation of the mound could be presented by the owner of the land on which it stood, or by other inhabitants of the kampong, it was decided that it would be worth spending some time in excavation to see whether it might have some connection with the palace. There was no local name for this mound, so it is referred to as the "heap." The great majority of the pottery described herein came from the "heap," so a description of its excavation is presented in detail. Final work "'at the site included a partial reconstruction of Tanjong Batu. The six excavated gun embrasures were rebuilt approximately in their assumed condition prior to destruction, and the earth rampart around these embrasures was rebuilt. The soil used in reconstruction was hauled from a ditch southeast of the fort, probably the source of the earth used to build the original wall of the fortification. HISTORY In A.D. 1511, the town of Malacca, capital of the Malay kingdom, fell to the Portuguese, and the Malay ruling family moved southward. While in control of Malacca the royal family and their followers capitalized upon the city's location as a trading centre and entrepot to become prosperous. When they lost the city they also lost their means of support and had the choice of either finding another source of revenue or of accepting a lower standard of living. The defeated Sultan did not immediately establish another capital, but lived in a series of towns on the Johore River or 011 the Island of Bintan, south of Singapore, while trying to find an advantageous location for another capital. The J ohore 2 SOLHEIM, 1960. 3 GIBSON-HILL, 1955, 152. 2 SOLHEIM & GREEN on JOHORE LAMA EXCAVATIONS Lama area was not satisfactory for the production of rice, nor was it as well situated for a trading centre as Malacca. Nevertheless, the Sultan, Ala'u'd-din, probably felt it was the best of the choices available and in the early 1540's decided to establish the royal capital south of the already existing kampong of Johare Lama. The kingdom of Johore was not to remain unchallenged, for sometime between 1551 and 1568, probably 1564, the Achinese attacked the city and captured the Sultan, Ala'u'd-din. The city was burned and the Sultan taken to Acheh and there killed. This, however, did not end the J ohare kingdom; Ali Jalla, a son of the former Sultan and a non-royal wife re-established Johore Lama as the royal capital. He was apparently in alliance with the Portuguese against the Acheh. This somewhat friendly, if strained, situation did not last long, for in 1582 a Portuguese trading vessel was wrecked at the mouth of the Johare River, and its cargo rescued by Ali Jalla. Although the Sultan promised return of the goods, he recanted his decision and sold or kept most of the merchandise. This event ruffled the friendship between the Portuguese and Johore, but it was not as important in the succeeding hostilities between the two as an order from Portugal forbidding any Malaccan to have a factor in a P9rt of Johore. Soon after the order was issued in 1684, an Achinese captain attempted landing at Johare Lama, but the Portuguese intercepted him and escorted the ship to Malacca. Ali Jalla protested, but the arrival of two Portuguese galleons at Malacca checked any show of hostility. Apparently, the motive for sending the Portuguese galleons was not as much a fear of Johore as the fear of an Achinese attack on Malacca. The Malaccan situation appeared quiet and the force soon returned to India. Almost immediately after the departure of the galleons Johore was at war with Malacca. In reaction to the Portuguese order that all ships dock at Malacca Ali Jalla sent out a fleet to force them all to stop at Johare Lama. The result was a famine in Malacca, due to the loss of food shipments. Furthermore, Ali Jalla unsuccessfully attacked Malacca in January 1587, after which the Portuguese dispatched a party to Goa to acquire more ships. These reinforcements joined the pre-existing Malaccan fleet already located at the mouth of the Johare River. The following day they sailed upstream to Johore Lama. For several days the city was simply bombarded while raids were made on places farther up the river. The arrival of still more vessels signalled the Portuguese attack on the royal city of Johare. The city of Johare Lama consisted of two parts at this time, the kampong called "Corritao," a suburb located on a protrusion of land extending into the Johore River, east of the mouth of the Johore Lama River, and the fortified portion of the city, west of the kampong. The fortified section was a roughly rectangular earth-walled area with an entrance on the west, the side toward the 3 FEDERATION MUSEUMS JOURNAL X (1965) Corritao. The strong point of the walled area was a fort located on a point of land extending slightly into the Johore River. This point was called Kota Batu and the fort was named Tanjong Batu. The fort, however, was on the east side of the city, the opposite side from the Corritao suburb. Portuguese accounts mention the artillery which defendants of J ohore Lama possessed. 4 Not only were muskets mentioned, but also bronze cannons of the types called Moorish basilisk, serpent, lion, large camel, camellete, and falcon. Many of these were housed in the fort, as this was the city's strong point. The initial Portuguese assault was not made on the fort, but "at the corner which lies directly above Corritao, because there only there was no ditch."5 In other words, the attack was from the west, across Corritao suburb, and through the west entrance of the fortified portion of the city. Despite rather stiff Malay resistance, the Portuguese attackers advanced across the city and to the fort, which was taken. The Portuguese then set fire to the city. Johore Lama never again served as a formal residence for the Malay court. However, the site does seem to have been reoccupied after the Portuguese attack, and to have been a place of some importance when the capital was further upriver. "It is extremely likely that there was provision for temporary habitation there during the period 1688-1720, if not earlier, to serve when breaking the journey up and down the river, or as an occasional residence."G There is no evidence of a reconstruction of the fortifications at Tanjong Batu, and we may assume that the site served only as a habitation area for local residents and as a temporary stopping place for royal personages. With the above knowledge of the history of J ohare Lama, we could expect the following archaeological remains: evidence of a living area, Corritao, outside the earth walls; remains of earth walls surrounding another living area, palace, and probably business district; remains of the fort at Kota Batu; evidence of two attacks, one in 1564 and another in 1587, in the form of layers of burned material and charcoal, and materials of war such as cannon balls, musket balls, etc.; and evidence of residence at the site after 1587. EXCAVATION AND CLEARANCE J ohore Lama consists of two parts:' a suburb called the Corritao or Kampong Johore Lama, located southeast of the mouth of the Johore Lama River, a tributary of the Johore River, and northwest of the walled portion of the city; and the fortified portion, a roughly rectangular-shaped area bounded on the west, north, east and southeast by ridges representing the original earth wall surrounding the city (Map 1). During occupation the earth wall extended along 4 MACGREGOR, 5 MACGREGOR, G GIBSON-HILL, 1955, 106-12. 1955, 109. 1955, 167. 4 facing page 4 JOHORE LAMA Map I _;-=L=--..,.~, i fJ,O,!-I'." t T J'NP.lrtd.6"~ .'IM.HAuIO'.i (.'It,ek,,~ 6J1 ~,*~/,4.C"...., IO."Jllf" {'b; 6'lIn111.. .. t4t; 1W"",f.m" ·ltJ.~.". 'l'1"'""w... brUWoll.,II<oINolo~.1Il.,II (I)~,,.. (J '-do fr ~ S..... ",. ,,.,,01 tilhMTnlIcCoo..... 5.0104 l'IIlar Hofopon(.)~7(21_ Io. I Iw.Uk lJ&b'T... fl.<.-kl.lflK'..... O'Cll'IcT._lo '.......... '.I0,.... • 0 T_ .........,. •• n 1'101&1•• ,.,"_li_, flpo TtoooMliW Hr.... a-o.rlc Holt"'. toIK'.. Ho;p<. e-_..;,uo ....... ,,..Wot"s.._,.LalMt.co_,..,••. •• • (II St,t\oIl'IOlfo<wo 0111....1'001 V·,··.-.. ...·1$4.1 ,;1$.1.",0 ••• ~~~ 5lf'O,,....,.." w ..ktlI111o""', (1IClltt To_Cow.. hoIio.Sut-. ' ...... Coe<Rc.WolL """'.. , , "..... (11l.u4(1)t1d(JILo'*" T~.. t>~1* ~ .,14,0, C~,",.. (llh.b....k"'.1l1 l,on.,.,... . __ _"fl'~('IPoni. •••••••• .... !"- ''''~Dr'''' I'Iaooa<fO...... hrUlW.IL "-rWd •••••••••••• t.O. ,('I GIWIoM'" '"" ""'" 11-., ........ •• _•.•••••.••• _ . , _ . _ ; _ . - " . _ '" [) IH ~i:,~;ul" ~ (S) ~oIIwI, •• 10. (JI"n"!..... II"Jc....t sc.u... ",.,, ~. lI...... s,,""'1li'O" W..,.HoltO Gaoop . Io,.. T.C. .... Reproduced by pennission of the Director of National MaPPIng, Malaysia, Government copyright reserved. SOLHEIM & GREEN on JOHORE LAMA EXCAVATIONS the south side of the city also, but now has fallen into the J ohore River. This fortified area extends diagonally between two low hills. The southern limit is on the crest of Kota Batu hill, where the coastline forms a point projecting into the Johore River. This combination of hill and projection into the river makes the point a lookout spot, and it is here that the fort, Tanjong Batu, was built. The northern limit of the fortified area is on the tip of another low hill. The main portion of the fortified area is on the saddle between these two hills and between this and the river bank. Investigations in both 1953 and 1960 included partial excavations of the fort, which juts off from the southeast corner of the fortified area to form a northeast-southwest trending rectangular sector. It is walled on the west, east, and south sides, the north side opening into the main fortified area (Map 2). The excavations directed by Sieveking in 1953 were concentrated on this feature. Two trenches were dug, one adjacent to a dip in the earth wall on the side overlooking the anchorage, and the other at the southeast corner of the fort. The first trench, approximately 12 feet wide and carried to two feet below ground level inside the fort, revealed timber and stones interpreted by Sieveking as a collapsed gun platform. The second, at the corner of the seaward facing rampart, disclosed several courses of masonry which were believed to have been a skirting wall on the exterior of the earth rampart. 7 The 1960 excavations were planned to answer several questions concerning the fort: the nature and construction of the walls, and their vertical, horizontal, and lateral extent; the relation of the walls to the ground level during occupation; the meaning of the nine dips in the walls; the use of the area within the fort; and the history of the fort, as reflected in the stratigraphy. Furthermore, the excavations were planned to answer specific questions, such as that concerning the masonry course found in 1953. Was this a wall skirting the exterior of the earth rampart, or did this wall serve another function? In order to take full advantage of the previous excavations, especially those at the southwest corner of the fort, the trench excavated at this spot in 1953 was enlarged and deepened (WWI, Map 3). FORT WALLS Trench: West Wall I Description: This was the only trench which exposed a corner of the fort, and therefore was somewhat more elaborate than the other wall trenches. Three intersecting excavations were made: one along the north wall; one along the west wall; and one through the corner, extending from the exterior to the interior of the wall. The latter was actually a re-excavation and extension of two separate unauthorized excavations made sometinle between the 1953 and the 1960 work. All three trenches joined at the northwest corner. Porcelain, 7 GIBSON-HILL, 1955, 136-38 and SIEVEKING, 5 1955a, 199. FEDERATION MUSEUMS JOURNAL X (1965) stoneware, and earthenware were found in all portions of the trenches. Fallen stones from the wall were found near the surface in the trenches outside the walls. The portion of the trench along the west wall was so placed to explore the vertical extent of the stone wall. This trench revealed the stone wall mentioned by Sieveking to be a foundation for the overlying earth wall, rather than a course of stones skirting the earth wall. The stone foundation at the corner was approximately 5 feet high and consisted of two different types of construction. The lower portion was of rough, unshaped stones which had been set directly on the original surface of the hill.. The upper portion of the stone base was of regularly shaped stone blocks (called "older Alluvium" by GibsonHiIl 8), at this point three or four courses high (Plate la-b). Only the upper part of the foundation was visible during occupation, as the lower portion was below the new ground surface. The corner itself consisted primarily of shaped stones from the top of the foundation to the base, with one narrow layer of unshaped stone between the fourth course and the deepest shaped block; thus the foundation layer of unshaped stones did not extend completely to the corner, but ended a slight distance from it. A two-inch thick layer of lime was spread over the top of the foundation, but not on the sides. This construction appeared on both the outside and inside of the for1 wall. Portions of this lime layer can be seen above the coral blocks to the left in Plate la. The trench along the west wall showed two narrow layers with varying amounts of charcoal in them and separated by a thicker layer of soil. Below the second layer, in the south end of this trench was a somewhat rectangular volume of earth, running parallel with the wall, in which there was a heavy concentration of charcoal (Plate Ib and IIu). A narrow extension of this can be seen in the west wall of this trench (Plate lIb-c). Dark patterns of post holes in the earth, which was somewhat more yellow than most of the surrounding earth, were present in the bottom and west side of the trench (Plate IIb-c). Large carbonized remnants of a post were found just around the corner by the north face of the wall (Plate Ie). This was not in evidence above the level seen in Plate IlIa). Next to it, but at a lower level, was a flat circular stone with no indications of a post hole above it (Plate IlIa). The cut stones of the north wall were leaning out at a slight angle from the corner and along the wall for the length of three cut stones. A good sized tree root was growing into the wall between the third and fourth cut stones from the corner. Below the three courses of cut stone the unshaped stone extended out into the trench six to ten inches (Plate IIlb), a situation found nowhere else on the wall. The stratigraphy evidenced in the east end and north side of the trench along the north wall was badly confused with patterns of numerous post holes, some crossing or extending into others, all indicating a major disturbance in this area. 8 GIBSON-HILL, 1955, 136. 6 facing page 6 DETAILED SURVEY OF JOHORE LAMA ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE Scale: I inch to 100 links (or 66 feet) I ,,/ Reproduced by permillion of the D' of N l ' Malaysia, Government rrector aIhonafMappmg, copyng t reserved, Map II Sale: Ilncllol6lltt • • )I )0 ~" (I 0 I ! I I " . I "I I• I .. '" ..
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