Prambanan temple - all photos copyright Wolfgang Kaehler

Indonesia Photo Tour - Day 2

By Michelle Alten

Prambanan is a colossal edifice, the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia, built around AD 856.  It recalls the time when Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms ruled Java.  We depart Solo early so we can reach this stunning UNESCO site when it is still bathed in a gentle early morning light.  Climbing the steps to Candi Siva Mahadeva, the tallest of the three temples, and the one devoted to Shiva, we peer into dark chambers to discover impressive statues of Shiva’s consort Durga, and son Ganesha.  I am stunned by the entire complex’s marvelous restoration, enabling us to slip back in time to an age when a pantheon of Hindu gods  played such an important role on this island and archipelago.

Relief carving Prambanan temple
Sewu Temple, a Buddhist Temple in the Prambanan temple complex