Indonesian Suurlähetystö, Helsinki

Ancient Indonesia saw the reign of hundreds of ancient kingdoms all over the archipelago. This gave birth to various traditional customs, arts, and culture, as well as historical sites and relics. For instance, by the Seventh Century, the powerful Buddhist Kingdom of Sriwijaya was expanding and it was during that period the spectacular Borobudur sanctuary was built in Central Java. In the thirteenth Century, the Hindu empire of Majapahit was at the height of its rule, which united the whole of Indonesia and parts of the Malay Peninsula and ruled for two centuries. The remnants of the kingdom can be seen today through monuments such as PrambananTemple, the Penataran temple complex in East Java and many others. The great empire fell after two centuries, leaving Indonesia back to separate, small kingdoms, which were easy prey for European invasions.