of the temples and other edifices of Brambanan to a prince called by the Javanese
Raja Baka, or Boko as they pronounce i t ; but of this personage nothing is known
but his name, and his connection with the buildings. Tradition expressed, not in
numeral characters, but as usual in rhythmical verse, assigns to the building of the
oldest of the temples of Brambanan the year of Saka, or Salivana, 1188; and to the
latest 1218, corresponding with the years 1266 and 1296 of Christ; and there is no good
ground for assigning to them an earlier date, nor is there any evidence of decay in the
buildings which the heat, rain, and rank vegetation of more than five centuries would
not account for. The thin coating of plaster which seems originally to have belonged
to all the buildings, still remains in some of the parts least exposed to the weather;
and the edges of the blocks of stones are as sharp as when originally hewn. The
destruction of the buildings has, in fact, been chiefly produced by a species of fig, the
young shoots of which insinuating themselves into the interstices of walls without
mortar, and swelling with their growth, to the size of a ship’s cable, have easily
dislocated and overthrown the buildings. Converts to the new faith which was introduced
into Java in the 15th century, would, no doubt, assist in defacing the temples,
and overthrowing or removing their images.
BRATAYUDA. The name is derived from Barata, the ancestor of the Pandawa
and Kurawa, and Yuda, “ war,” from the Sanscrit. The Javanese poem of this name is
an abstract or paraphrase of the Sanscrit poem, the Mahaba-barat, composed in the
Kawi or ancient language of Java, but there is, also, a translation in the modem idiom.
The work is attributed to a Javanese bramin, named Ampusadah, abbreviated
PusSdah; and said to have been written in the year of Saka, or Salivana, 1117,
corresponding to the year of Christ 1195. I t exhibits, at all events, more vigour of
thought than any other literary composition of the Archipelago ; and with a similar
abstract of the Ramayana, forms the chief source of Javanese and Malay mythological
legend.
BRUNAI, BRUNE, or BURNAI, the name of the town and state which European
geographers have called Borneo Proper. The territory extends from Cape Datu,
where it borders on the Malay state of Sambas, to the Bay of Sandakan, where it is
bounded by the portion of Borneo claimed by the sultan of Sulu. Nominally, therefore,
it extends over the whole north-western side of the island, and a portion of its
northern, embracing a coast-line, bays included, of not less than 1000 miles. Its
extent inland, where it is bounded by the lands of wild tribes, is unknown; but,
probably, no where much exceeds 50 miles. If this be so, as it extends from the
2nd to the 7th degree of north latitude, the area of the whole state will not be less
than 15,000 geographical miles, or about half the size of the kingdom of Ireland.
Besides this continental territory, the sovereign of Borneo lays claim to the following
considerable islands: Malawali, Banggi, Balambangan, Balabak, Mantanani, and
Mangkalaan, with the south-western end of the large island of Palawan. With slender
exceptions, his Bornean majesty, whether on continent or islands, is only lord of a
vast primeval forest.
For 30 miles inland from the coast, the territory of Borneo is represented to consist
of low, but generally not marshy land, after which it becomes mountainous,
containing, however, but one mountain of great elevation, Kinabalu, estimated at
about 10,000 feet above the sea level. The geological formation is plutonic and
sedimentary, consisting, as far as it has been ascertained, of granites, sienites, sand
and limestones. The minerals which have as yet been discovered are iron and antimony
ores, but neither gold or diamonds, as on the western and south-western sides
of the island. Its coal-fields, however, so far as they have been traced, promise to
be the best and most extensive in the Indies. The Bornean territory contains no
well-ascertained lake of any magnitude, but it contains many rivers—twelve of them
of considerable size, and two, the Rajang and that of Brunai, being navigable to some
distance from the sea for large shipping.
Of its useful indigenous plants, the most remarkable are the camphor-tree, Dryo-
balanops camphora, and the sago-palm. It has been represented to produce, like some
parts of Sumatra, the benzoin ; but this seems not to be well ascertained. The teak
does not exist here, nor in any other part of the island; but five or six of its forest
trees have been found fit, at least for the construction of the large ships of the Chinese.
The wild quadrupeds are the elephant and rhinoceros, both confined to the districts
of Paitan and Sandakan at the northern end of the island ; the wild ox, the same as
that of Java, called by the Malays of Borneo, tambadau; several species of monkeys,
two of which furnish the bezoar stones; the Malayan bear, and one species of leopard
BRUNAI 69 BRUNAI
peculiar to the island. Neither the buffalo nor the royal tiger are found in the
forests. Among birds, it does not appear that the common fowl or peacock, which
exist in the Peninsula, Sumatra, and Java, exist in the forests of this part of Borneo ■
but it is stated by the natives that a handsome gallinaceous bird, resembling the
latter, does exist, which they name kruwi, probably a pheasant.
The cultivated plants of the Bornean territory are generally the same as those of
the other countries of the Archipelago, namely, rice, some pulses, and farinaceous
roots, the sago, coco, areca and gomuti palms, sugar-cane, cotton, and black pepper.
The domesticated animals are the ox, the buffalo, goat, hog, dog, and cat ; and among
birds, the common fowl and duck only. The horse, small, like all those of the
Archipelago, is bred only by the settled Bajaus and Lanuns of the districts of
Tampasok and Pandasan, at the northern end of the island, and was probably there
introduced from the Sulu Islands. They are not used in any other part of the state.
The tribes or nations inhabiting the Bornean territory are almost innumerable!
The more advanced consist of the proper Malays, the ruling people ; the Bajau
Malays, divided into the settled and roving ; the Lanuns, emigrants from Mindano ; and
the Sulus, from the Sulu Islands. The ruder tribes amount to at least 40, differing
from each other in language and in their state of civilisation. A few tribes have
adopted the Mahommedan religion, and parts of others have been converted to it ; but
the great majority are heathens, and all retain their own language. The Chinese have
been long settled in the territory of Borneo ; and, at one time, are said to have been
numerous. At present, their number is thought not to exceed 500, and these
scattered over the districts in which pepper is grown, of which they are the chief
cultivators. The Malays of Borneo themselves assert that not above one tithe of
the population of the state is Mahommedan. The total population of the state can
only be guessed at, and all that we can be sure of is, that it must be very scanty.
Fifteen inhabitants to the computed acre would give a total of 225,000 for the continental
part of the territory, probably fully more than it contains ; and as to the
islands, they are either very scantily peopled or uninhabited.
The government of Borneo is, as usual, a despotism, the throne being hereditary
in the reigning family, which traces its origin through 30 generations to the more
civilised Malays of Sumatra. The proper title of the monarch, as of all other Malay
princes, is Yang di Pârtuan, which may be translated “ the lord or ruler.” But like
some other petty Malayan princes, he has adopted the Arabian title of Sultan’ first
used by the first Mahommedan invader of India, and afterwards worn by the’well-
known Saladin. The revenue is precarious and trifling, consisting rather of aids and
subsidies, irregularly levied, than of certain and fixed imposts. Altogether the
government, as at present exercised, is more rude than that of any other Malayan
state. Under the sultan, it is administered by four ministers, who form a council
There exists, however, and it seems to be peculiar to this state, an hereditary
nobility, which would seem to exercise considerable power. These amount to
irom 30 to 40 in number, and go under the Javanese title of Pangeran which is
equivalent to prince.
The articles composing the export trade of Borneo are the following: camphor
pepper raw sago, ratans, and canes; tinder, from the gomuti palm ; laka and ebony
wood, bees-wax, swallows’ esculent nests, seed-pearls, pearl-oysters, tortoise-shell
and bezoar stones. To these may now be added, fossil coal and antimony ore. Thé
imports consist of Indian and European cotton cloths (plain and coloured blue)
coarse Chinese pottery, saltpetre, sulphur, fire-arms, unwrought iron, iron caldrons—
the manufacture of China or Siam,—gambier, tobacco, and salt. It is remarkable that
no part of the coast of Borneo is fit for the manufacture of salt, so that the whole
consumption of the island is imported, on the southern side from Java and on the
western and northern from Siam and Cochin-China, through Singapore. The whole
commerce of the state of Borneo is carried on by a kind of barter, the standards of
value consisting of pieces of foreign cloth, or of bundles of native iron weighing a
Chinese cattle or pound and a third. Gold and silver do not form a medium of
6nen 7 and counters for small change are unknown ; so that in
this matter Borneo is m a more backward state than Malacca was near 350 years ago
also traffic Wbh 13’,aî,prf.seilt> chiefl/ with Singapore, but praus occasionally
P a W , 0n tbe western side of the island, and with
to the éud of i , n en 0n th® eastera si(le °f the Malay peninsula. Down
ports of ShaLh^ W- " 7 a oonsld®rable trade was carried on with the Chinese
with Main bv g?°’ A“ °y> aad Canton> by joots, amounting with Macao by square-rigged vessels to the annual number of two.i n aTlhl eto j usinxk, sa nidn