As many as 22 ancient gold plates were found from a construction site in Ringilarik village, Musuk district, Boyolali in Central Java. The workers discovered a chest containing small gold plates estimated to date back to the eighth century.
The box, resembling a jewellery casket, was found from a pile of rocks that was dug up construction activities of a water aquifer project.
The Jakarta Post reported a construction worker, identified as Sumardi, saying that the box was made of stone and had a lid.
A Central Java Heritage Conservation Agency (BPCB) official, Gutomo, said that the plates were of 18 carats and had inscriptions in ancient Javanese letters. The inscriptions are likely to be the names of cardinal and ordinal directions of Dewa Lokapala's wind Gods, reported the news agency.
"We recorded eight names of wind Gods. We have also declared the location as a heritage site," Gutomo said.
He also said that BPCB has announced compensation for those who found the plates, as well as the landowner.
Several ancient artefacts including statues have been unearthed before from the same the land in Musuk district. Earlier, in July, a structure of a candi (Buddhist or Hindu temple) was found at the same location.
Also in the month of April, a brick maker found a statue of Mahakala (an avatar of Shiva) which was later estimated to be from the Shiva Hindu period in the ninth century. It was found at a depth of 30 centimeters.
In March, another Nandeswara statue was dug out from the same location.
In Nepen village, four stupas were found, one measured of which was 1.5 meters in height and 1 meter in diameter.
