The Gedung Gajah located on the south side, or left from the entrance, is the old wing and the original museum structure which was built during the colonial Dutch East Indies era. The building is popularly named
gedung gajah (Indonesian for elephant building) about the bronze elephant statue in front of the building, was the gift of Siamese King
Chulalongkorn. The museum collections are grouped and arranged by subjects:
Stone Sculpture Collection (Hindu-Buddhist Art of Ancient Indonesia) from Padangroco in West Sumatra, believed to be the depiction of King
Adityavarman, among the museum's rich collections of Hindu-Buddhist artifacts of ancient Indonesia. The National Museum of Indonesia has the richest and the largest collection of Hindu-Buddhist art of ancient Indonesia. The Hindu-Buddhist sculptures, relics, and inscriptions were collected from Java, Bali, Sumatra, and Borneo, dated from
Tarumanagara period in the 5th century to
Majapahit period in the 15th century, all are on display in the lobby, the central hall, and the central atrium of the museum. The Buddha statues from
Borobudur in various
mudras are displayed in the lobby. The centerpiece collection also the largest artifact of the museum is the statue of
Adityavarman depicted as
Bhairava dated between 13th-14th century. This statue is more than 4 meters tall and weight 4 tons, On 1937, the Dutch colonial government relocated it to this museum in Batavia. Notable collections include the well-preserved 9th-century statues of Hindu deities taken from Banon Temple, which consists of Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, and Agastya. Several statues of
Durga Mahisasuramardini discovered in Java, the
Tarumanagaran Vishnu statue of Cibuaya, the Srivijayan Avalokiteshvara statue of Bingin Jungut, the Avalokiteshvara head of Aceh, the head statues from Bima temple of
Dieng. Some Buddhist statues from
Singhasari period also displayed here, such as the statues of Buddhist deities from
Jago Temple near Malang, East Java. The large open air
atrium courtyard in the center surrounded by
peristyle gallery displaying numbers of large statues such as statues of
Nandi bull, stone jars and also several
makaras taken from Java and Jambi. The statue of Harihara, dated from the Majapahit period taken from Simping temple, and the statue of Parvati taken from Rimbi temple are among important Majapahit relics. Numbers of inscriptions are also stored and displayed in this section, including
Telaga Batu,
Amoghapasa, and
Anjuk Ladang inscriptions.
Treasure Rooms (Archaeology and Ethnography Collection) , the Buddhist goddess of transcendental wisdom, is the masterpiece of ancient Java art, displayed in treasure room. The second floor of the museum features treasures, gold, and precious artifacts arranged in two rooms: archaeological treasure and ethnological treasure. The archaeological treasure room features ancient gold and precious relics acquired from archaeological findings, mostly originating from ancient Java. One of the most prized collections of the museum is a statue of
Prajnaparamita. Dubbed the most beautiful sculpture of ancient Java, the goddess of transcendental wisdom is displayed at the entrance of the archaeology treasure room to show how gold jewelry and precious ornaments were worn on the body. Such ancient gold adornments were on display; such as crowns, ear adornments, earrings, rings, bracelets,
kelat bahu (arm bracelet), leg bracelets, waistbands, bellybands,
upawita or
tali kasta (golden chains worn across the chest). One of the most valuable treasures of ancient Java was the famous
Wonoboyo hoard, which originated from the 9th-century Hindu
Mataram kingdom discovered in Wonoboyo,
Klaten, Central Java, near
Prambanan. The hoard, consisting of a bowl with a scene from the
Ramayana, a purse, a water dipper, an umbrella finial, and a spoon or ladle, all were made of gold. Also discovered were ancient Javanese gold coins shaped similarly to a corn seed. Golden, silver, and bronze Hindu-Buddhist relics are also on display, such as the Hindu god's images made from gold leaf, bronze statue of
Shiva Mahadeva with gold applied on his lips and third eye, the bronze statue of
Avalokiteshvara and also the silver statue of youthful
Manjusri. This 9th-century silver statue of Manjusri was discovered in Ngemplak, Simongan,
Semarang, demonstrating Pala art influence in Java as well as a fine example of silver art in ancient Java. , Bali The ethnology treasure room features treasures acquired from royal houses of Indonesia, such as regalias from various
istanas,
kratons and
puri of the Indonesian archipelago. Most of these
pusaka royal regalias and treasures were acquired or looted, during Dutch East Indies military campaigns against the archipelago's regional kingdoms, that took place between the 19th to early 20th centuries; including the royal houses of Banten, Banjarmasin, Bali and Lombok. The royal regalia and treasures are arranged in several island zones: Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo, Sulawesi, and Eastern Indonesia (Nusa Tenggara, Maluku and Papua). The ethnology treasure room display various royal precious objects such as golden jewelries, ceremonial containers and weapons. The jewelries are bracelets and rings embedded with rubies, diamond, precious and semi precious stones. The collections are gilded Balinese
kris weapon embedded with precious and semi precious stones and various spear heads. Golden royal crowns, gilded throne, golden royal regalia, golden tobacco container, golden cup,
Pekinangan (silver betel-nut set), sword and golden shield is among the collection of the treasure room.
Ceramics collection -
Ming dynasty found in Aceh The collection of ceramics ranges from prehistoric
Buni culture,
Majapahit terracota, to the ceramics of China, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand, and
Myanmar. Majapahit terracota water vessels, statues, roof tiles to
piggy bank are on display. The museum houses a large and complete collection of ancient
Chinese ceramics. It has one of the best and the most complete collections of Chinese ceramics discovered outside China, which date from the
Han,
Tang,
Sung,
Yuan,
Ming, and
Qing dynasties. This collection gives a good insight into Indonesia's maritime trade over the centuries. Research indicates that the Chinese sailed to India via Indonesia as early as
Western Han period (205 BC to 220 AD) as part of
maritime silk road and that firm trade relations were subsequently established. The ceramics collection gathered since 1932 is mainly from the collection of E.W. van Orsoy de Flines, who was also the first curator of this collection until he was repatriated to the Netherlands in 1957. Because he was so fond of this extensive ceramics collection — which reached more than 5 thousands pieces in quantity — he refused to divide them up, so he left all the collection intact in the National Museum's custody. This collection that dates back from
Han (2nd century BC) to the time of
Qing (18th century) is the largest ceramic collection in Southeast Asia. (
Homo erectus)
Prehistory collection The museum stores some Stone Age artifacts such as fossiled skull and skeleton of
Homo erectus,
Homo floresiensis and
Homo sapiens, stone tools,
menhir, beads, stone axe, bronze ceremonial axe and Nekara (bronze drum), also ancient weapons from Indonesia.
Historical Relics Collection (Colonial Era Collection) The front room of the museum features old relics of colonial Indonesia, from the era of
Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) to
Dutch East Indies. Most of the collections are antique colonial furnitures. However most of the collections has been moved to
Jakarta History Museum that mostly features the history of Jakarta especially the colonial history of Batavia (old Jakarta).
Other Collections • Bronze Collection • Textile Collection • Numismatics Collection ==Gedung Arca (New Wing)==