Menyulam dan Menenun Kejayaan Maritim di Bengawan Solo

Abstract

Maritime studies in Indonesia have predominantly focused on seas and coastal areas, while rivers as integral components of maritime systems have received relatively little attention. This article examines the historical role of the Bengawan Solo River as a transportation route, trading network, and social space that supported Javanese society from prehistoric times to the colonial period. The study employs the historical method, encompassing heuristic research, source criticism, interpretation, and historiography, utilizing inscriptions, traditional manuscripts, archaeological reports, and modern historical studies. The findings reveal that the Bengawan Solo River has been intensively utilized since prehistoric times, as evidenced by discoveries of early human fossils in Sangiran, Trinil, and Ngandong. During the Hindu-Buddhist period, particularly under the Ancient Mataram and Majapahit kingdoms, the river functioned as a major commercial artery linking inland regions with the northern coast of Java. The existence of dozens of river ports, recorded in the Canggu Inscription and the manuscript Tjariosipoen Banawi Sala, highlights the strategic importance of Bengawan Solo within royal economic and administrative networks. This role continued into the Islamic and Mataram Kartasura periods, shaping distinctive riverbank settlements or waterfront communities. By the late nineteenth century, however, the river’s role as a primary transportation route gradually declined due to the expansion of land-based transport infrastructure under colonial liberal economic policies. This article argues that Bengawan Solo should be recognized as a vital element of Indonesia’s maritime history. Reintegrating rivers into maritime historiography not only broadens conceptual understandings of maritime culture but also provides a historical foundation for contemporary efforts to revitalize river-based heritage and sustainable regional development.