859 
149). In a study 
¡struction of the 
jaaka year 928 
igned to a "Maha 
of terrible 
major volcanic 
ainfall and very 
ing Dharmawangya 
and noble birth 
rs old, escaped, 
ga ("He, able to 
kingdom in east 
ediri) continued 
a modified form, 
h century in the 
in East Java). 
ancient sources 
flourishing and 
(Van Hinloopen 
d new hypotheses 
le of gravity- 
ts in relatively 
calamity as a 
Merapi Volcano, 
destroying the 
Java , and con- 
grim deserts of 
s outburst would 
lapse of much of 
hich slided down 
e Gunung Gendol 
locking the Kali 
ing up, flooding 
e (van Bemmelen, 
as remained very 
haeologists as a 
ift of political 
activities from 
,1976, 1976/82, 
-cmono, 1976). 
arther confirma- 
L trial trenches 
ibudur from 1973 
ral places of an 
;s to a few cen- 
. thick layer of 
to a depth of 1 
iny potsherds of 
:ure (Boechari, 
:e, 1981). 
rery well be the 
;floods from the 
xth. In any case 
» of a magnitude 
:o human occupa 
le fact that the 
:efacts, sign of 
period of about 
nst the deposi- 
>yroclastics and 
;ed year of 1006 
-iptions. In the 
irobudur no less 
ive been inven- 
of 43 temples 
i deeply buried, 
ir, several feet 
be cleared away 
temple square, 
[ 
roc 
ûme 
Mfv 
Mov 
Qb 
Sd 
' 
OA 
A A 
AAA 
YA 
da 
ill 
1 1 1 
all 
road 
river 
Fig.l. Location map with outline of drainage system 
and geology 
while in some places the topsoil here even reaches 
up to 3 m. (Brandes, 1902, 1903 ; van Hinloopen 
Labberton, 1921). 
Moreover, Mendut already lies on the lower Merapi 
slope, where easily some thickness of sediment 
accumulation, in the absence of adequate cleaning- 
up and maintainance, can occur through " normal" 
volcanic activity and lahar outwash. An accumula 
tion of considerable amounts of dust, rubbish and 
organic matter, and the falling down of parts of 
the mortar-free masonry at the Borobudur site 
during eight to nine centuries of neglect, accel- 
lerated by the gradual invasion of shrubs and 
trees, need not surprise either and does not re 
quire exceptional disasters for an explanation. 
Fig.3. Long profile of the Progo river, after 
Schmidt( 1934) 
Many authors have mentioned this partial cover of 
Borobudur, starting with Sir Thomas Stamford 
Raffles in his "The History of Java "(London, 
1817), the Baroness U.S. Baud-van Braam in her 
diary describing her travelling through Java in 
1834 (published in the original French version in 
"De Indische Gids, Maart 1939, pp. 198-224) and S. 
van Kinsbergen in 1873 (Notulen van de Algemeene en 
Bestuursvergaderingen van het Bataviaansch 
Genootschap voor Kunsten en Wetenschappen, XI, 
1873, pp.71-74). 
This is quite in contrast with the situation east 
of the town of Yogyakarta, where during the last 25 
years several important archaeological finds, 
inclusing the beautiful Sambisari Temple, were 
found underneath 2-8 metres of lahar deposits, in 
an area where there are almost no surface finds of 
antiquities of the Hindu-Javanese period.This area