Buried, Bombed, and Rebuilt Twice

Borobudur spent centuries buried under volcanic ash and jungle growth before anyone outside the immediate area treated it as a monument again.

Abandoned, then buried

Building activity around the temple appears to have declined by the fifteenth century as Java's population shifted toward Islam and political centres moved elsewhere, and volcanic ash falls from nearby eruptions along with dense vegetation gradually covered much of the structure. Local memory of it as a place did not vanish entirely, but its scale and meaning had been lost by the time colonial administrators took an interest.

Raffles and the Dutch restorations

Thomas Stamford Raffles, then British lieutenant governor of Java, ordered the site cleared and surveyed in 1814. Dutch colonial authorities carried out partial restorations from the early twentieth century, but rising damp and structural instability were not properly addressed until a major UNESCO-backed restoration between 1975 and 1982, which dismantled and rebuilt much of the lower structure with improved drainage and waterproofing.

The 1985 bombing

On 21 January 1985, nine of the monument's stupas were badly damaged by bombs planted by an Islamist extremist group; the perpetrators were later tried and convicted. The damage was repaired, and the site now operates under tightened security alongside its continued function as an active Buddhist pilgrimage destination, particularly during the annual Vesak observance.