New clues on Islam's arrival in Indonesia

Most historians believe that Islam arrived in Indonesia in the 11th century, but a new discovery suggests that the noble religion might have reached the country in the late 10th century, The Jakarta Post reported. Horst H. Liebner, a German scientist, said a salvage mission recently retrieved 490,000 pieces of ceramics, glassware, stoneware and metal items from the wreckage of a ship some 70 kilometers off the Cirebon coast.Subsequent scientific analyses showed that the ceramics were made in China between 930 AD and 990 AD, while the glassware was brought from Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad and Basra. Experts say the value of the materials could reach up to U.S. $40 million."It is safe to conclude that the ship sank in the second half of the 10th century, possibly around 960 AD," Liebner said. An Indonesian historian, Asvi Warman Adam, welcomed the discovery, but warned that it was still too early to change Indonesia's history. "I think more evidence should be gathered and more analysis conducted to be able to claim that Islam came to Indonesia at that time, since it's still unclear whether the ship is really that old," he said.Mr Adam said he supported suggestions that Islam might have come to Indonesia from China. Historians have long speculated that Islam may have reached the Asian country from Arabia, India or China. "So, the findings will support the speculation," he said. The ship is believed to have sunk in the Java Sea on its way from Sriwijaya Kingdom in South Sumatra to Singosari Kingdom in East Java.Among the important items recovered from the wreckage are beads, or tasbih, on which several Arabic letters are sculpted, and several small printing plates used to duplicate Arabic letters and words. Another important finding is a metal sword handle, whose style and lettering looked like weapons used by the Malay or Palembang people, who are mostly Muslim. "The Arabic letters have been analyzed by international and local experts and they have come to the conclusion that the letters or word form one of Allah's names. This suggests that several high-level Muslims were on board (the ship)," said Liebner, who was also member of the salvage mission.Liebner added that an evaluation of the materials indicated some passengers were coming to Java to spread Islam. Although further scientific analyses should be carried out in order to be able to make a more precise conclusion, the discovery is the earliest proof of Islam's (existence) in Indonesia," he said. Dipetik daripada www.islamonline.com