MERBOK, Dec 10 — Abdul Jalil Osman was overwhelmed when he saw the demolished site of Candi 11 in Lembah Bujang last week.
“I cried when I saw the demolished site. I don’t know how this could have happened,” said the 78-year-old retired officer with the Museums Department.
Candi 11 has been in the news lately after a developer demolished the site, sparking a public outcry.
Jalil had been part of the excavation team that unearthed various temples, including Candi 11, in Lembah Bujang in Kedah from 1969 to 1974.
“I also helped with the reconstruction of Candi 11,” Jalil said when met at Sungai Batu over the weekend.
Jalil, who graduated from New Delhi University, was recalled by USM’s Professor Mokhtar Saidin of the Centre for Global Archaeological Research to assist with excavation work at Sungai Batu last year.
“Candi 11 was built from laterite and river pebbles. I can only imagine how they (the early people) carried the pebbles. Not small ones, but huge ones.”
Based on chronometric dating research, Lembah Bujang is the oldest civilisation in Southeast Asia.
As to whether Candi 11 can be rebuilt, Jalil said with some hesitance: “Yes. With a will, anything can be done.”
