Materials for the Medieval History of Indonesia

India is bordered by Zabaj which is the empire of the Maharaja, King of the Isles.(1) Zabaj, which separates China from India, is understood to be part of the latter country.

Here is an interesting story on the history and the customs of the former kings of India and the kings of Qmar [...].(2) This country is not an island but is situated on the sea coast, and is covered with mountains. Few of the lands of India have a greater population and its people are distinguished for the purity of their breath, for like the Muslims they use the toothpick(3) . Most of them go on foot because their country contains far more valleys than plains and plateaux. It is on the route to the land of the Maharaja, king of the islands like Zabaj, Kalah, Sirandib, etc.(4)

Crocodiles abound in the bay of Zabaj, in the lands of the Maharaja.

Around the countries of Kalah and Sribuza(5) are mines of gold and silver.

The ships from Basra, Siraf, Oman, India, the islands of Zabaj and Sanf come to the mouth of the river of Khanta in China with their merchandise and their cargo. [...]

At a distance of about a thousand parasangs [from Sirandb](6) are still more islands called Ramin (i.e. Ramni) well populated and governed by kings.(7) They are full of gold mines, and nearby is the land of Fansur, whence is derived the fansuri camphor, which is only found there in large quantities in the years that have many storms and earthquakes.

The fourth sea, as we have said, is that of Kalah-bar, that is the sea of Kalah. Like all seas which have little water, it is dangerous and difficult to navigate. One meets there many islands and sara’ir, in the singular surr. A surr is what seafaring people term that which joins two sleeves of water(8) when their route passes through it.

[...] In the sea of Kadrang there are many peoples; there are those who are called Fanjab (Panhang), who have wavy hair and strange figures. They sail out in their small boats, waiting for any ships which pass by; and they shoot a strange type of poisoned arrow.

Between this people and the land of Kalah are mines of tin and mountains of silver. There are also mines of gold and lead, which can only be exploited with great difficulty.

One finds there [in the sea of Sanf] the empire of the Maharaja, King of the Isles, who commands an empire without limit and has innumerable troops. The most rapid ship is not able to travel in two years to all the islands in his dominion. The lands of this prince produce all sorts of spices and aromatics and no sovereign in the world draws so much profit from his land. They export camphor, aloeswood, cloves, sandalwood, mace, nutmeg, cardamom, cubeb, and also many other products which we will not mention. These islands touch a sea which is beyond the sea of China, the limits and the extent of which are unknown. In their most inaccessible parts are found mountains where numerous tribes dwell, with white faces and with ears shaped like shields covered with leather and with their hair cut in steps like the hair on a goatskin. From these mountains comes a continual fire of which the flames, red by day and blackish by night, rise up to the clouds. These eruptions are accompanied by claps of terrible thunder, and often by a strange and frightful voice announcing the death of the king or even that of a chief [etc.] Not far from them is found an island where one continually hears the noise of drums.

In the empire of the Maharaja is the island of Sribuza which is situated about four hundred parasangs from the continent and entirely cultivated. This prince possesses the islands of Zabaj and Ramni, as well as the others we have mentioned.

We have already spoken of the Maharaja [...] and other princes of India, such as the king of Panjab, and others from the kings of the mountains which face the islands of Zabaj.

They tell of a third species of monkey found in the numerous creeks around the shores of Zabaj and the empire of the Maharaja, the King of the Isles [...]. The sailors of Siraf und Oman continually make the voyage to Kalah und Zabaj und know very well this species of monkey und understand all the methods used to fish for crocodiles on the bed of the sea.