GO WITH THE FLOW (SPAFACON) THAILAND 2019

At that time I was a student on the 5th semester. I asked Mark, "what should we do if we want to do underwater archaeological research for the first time?".

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Photo credit by Ibu Anggraeni

I am grateful for the support of MaP Fund in attending The 3rd SEAMEO SPAFA International Conference on Southeast Asian Archaeology (SPAFACON1919) in Thailand on 17-19 June 2019. As a young researcher who is attending SPAFACON for first, I personally found that this opportunity was very interesting and challenging. 

SPAFACON which is organized by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organizing Regional Center for Archaeology and Fine Arts can be regarded as one of the places for archaeological researchers in Southeast Asia and the World to share knowledge, especially the latest research that they have done or are doing.  SPAFACON_Papers 

I gave a presentation at Session 18, discussing maritime archaeology with the theme "GO WITH THE FLOW: Environment Interactions in Southeast Asian Waters". The title of my presentation is Underwater Archaeological Sites in Sangihe Islands. It is one of the results of major research we did while studying at Gadjah Mada University in 2017, the title "UGM Maritime Culture Expedition.

Photo credit by Sandy

Through this presentation, I conveyed that the Sangihe Islands (Nusa Utara), one of Indonesia's border areas that directly adjacent to the Philippines had important roles such as a maritime trade route since the 15th century AD from the Pacific Ocean and the Philippines to Maluku Island. With abundant natural resources in the form of spices and gold, this region was once controlled by Spain, Portugal, VOC, Dutch East Indies, Sultanate of Ternate, Sultanate of Mindanao, Japan and the Allies from the 16th century to the middle of the 20th century AD. 

These notions were explained by various historical documents and supported by underwater archaeological findings that we found which were the shipwreck and anchors in the Sangihe Islands. UGM Maritime Culture Expedition ,  Book , Video

For me, there were lots of interesting researches presented at SPAFACON. One of them was a presentation by Shinatria Adhiyatama, one of the MaP Fund Grant recipients as well, with the title "Sulawesi Iron Age: An Underwater Sites of Matano Lake". Please take a look up to his abstract.

In addition, there was also research from Dwi Kurnia Sandy and Salma titled "MV Boelongan Underwater Museum: A Concept of Renewal Museum". It is one of the results of the research we conducted together in 2016 as a team, with the theme of Preservation of the Boelongan Shipwreck in Mandeh Bay, West Sumatra.  Click here to see the Boelongan research, and  Video

In my personal opinion, SPAFACON is not only a place for sharing various research results but also as a medium for a little nostalgia for our journey in learning about maritime archaeology. I remember in 2015 when Mark Staniforth gave a public lecture about maritime archaeology at our university (Universitas Gadjah Mada) for 3 days arranged by Dr. Widya Nayati (Department of Archaeology).

Photo credit by Loka Riset Sumber Daya dan Kerentanan Pesisir (2015)

At that time I was a student on the 5th semester. I asked Mark, "what should we do if we want to do underwater archaeological research for the first time?". He then gave me an answer which I can conclude as, "prioritizing safety, do it in detail even though the scope is small and the study is simple". It was such an inspiring answer. 

A year later, my team and I conducted maritime archaeological research in the Mandeh Bay about the Preservation of Boelongan Shipwreck. In 2017, another research was conducted in the Sangihe Islands. Eventually, in 2019, we managed to receive a grant to attend SPAFACON 2019 from the MaP Fund which was founded by Mark Staniforth and Paddy O'Toole. What a sweet fate.

Thank you, MaP Fund, for the unforgettable experience. For all archaeological researchers, I hope to see you again in another opportunity, especially you guys the young ones. We will continue to learn about maritime archaeology like (or more than) our senior researchers who have done it. Yes, sometimes we should go with the flow, but we need to have clear plans for the future.

Cheers!

Thank you to Veronica Walker Vadilo, Agni Mochtar, and Ligaya Lacsina as conveners in session 18 and who have allowed me to present this research.