Batujaya

Batujaya is a village and district in the North Coast region of Western Java, Indonesia. The district is known for the archaeological site of the Batujaya temples.

Understand

Batujaya is known as the namesake of Batujaya temple complex, which is located partly in the district of Batujaya and partly in the neighbouring Pakisjaya district. Both districts are part of the Karawang regency, and located about 40 km northwest of the regency capital Karawang. The meaning of batu jaya is "glorious stone(s)".

Get in

Batujaya is near Java's north coast, about 40 km northeast of Central Jakarta. Several small roads lead to Batujaya. Key roads include the road from East Bekasi to the north, and the road from Karawang to the north, via Rengasdengklok.

Batujaya can be reached by using local public transport. There is an angkot (public minivan) route from the bus terminal of Karawang to Rengasdengklok, and then another angkot route to Batujaya.

Get around

See

Batujaya archeological site

Building material used for the Batujaya temples, using a combination of clay and rice husks.

The historical temple complex of Batujaya was found by archeologists from the University of Indonesia in 1984. At least 30 'unur' (mounds of earth consisting of artifacts) have been found, of which part have been uncovered by archeologists. The 'unur' structures are made of bricks made of mixtures of clay and rice hulls, and thus not made of volcanic rock like other famous temple complex (such as Borobudur). It is assumed that the temples in Batujaya were built during the time of the Tarumanagara kingdom in the 5th or 6th century, which would mean they could be the oldest temples in Java. Experts believe that the temples may be Buddhist (from the Tarumanagara kingdom it is known that they adhered a mixture of Buddhism, Hinduism and early Sundanese beliefs).

• 🌍 Candi Jiwa (Batujaya 1, 'Temple of the Soul'). The Candi Jiwa temple is located in the middle of rice fields. It is one of the temples that has been researched the most, and has been partly restored. It measures 19 by 19 metres, and is 4.7 metres high. In the middle of the temple, there is a circular structure, which could have been a stupa such as found in the Borobudur temple. (updated Sep 2016)
• 🌍 Candi Blandongan (Batujaya 5). One of the other temple buildings that has been recovered and partly restored. The original function of the Candi Blandongan temple building remains unknown. In contrast to the Candi Jiwa, the Blandongan structure has stairs on all four sides. (updated Sep 2016)

Do

Buy

Eat

There are various local eateries around the temple complex and in the surrounding villages.

• 🌍 Kedai Rindoe, Jalan Raya Batujaya, ☎ [phone]. Sat-Thu 10:00-22:00; Fri closed. Simple Sundanese style eatery, offering free wifi. (updated Nov 2016)

Drink

Sleep

There are no hotels in Batujaya. Hotels and other accommodations can be found in Bekasi (30 km), Karawang (40 km), or Jakarta (50 km).

Connect

Go next

• Bekasi — the nearest major city, with many hotels, restaurants, and shopping malls.
• Rengasdengklok — town where Indonesia's proclamation of independence was first drafted in 1945.