Geographically located at the northernmost tip of the island of Sumatra, Aceh is thus positioned at the intersection of the three world's seas; to the west is the Indian Ocean, to the north, the Bay of Bengal sea and to the east is the most famous strait on the shipping route to the far east, the Straits of Malacca. Being at one of the busiest crossroads of the world's shipping lanes in the past, of course it had a major impact on the development of the country. It is said that in the past, the bay of Aceh was always filled with merchant ships that came from various parts of the world to anchor there. Therefore, the various historical heritages of this country are almost always closely related to the maritime world. One of them is fortresses built in coastal areas to support shipping and trade security. Some of those maritime forts still remain today and can be visited.
The main area of Aceh is actually located in the Aceh valley which is flanked on the left and right by two mountain ranges, and where the Aceh river flows from the south to the north of the mainland. The area where the river pours its water into the bay of Aceh is also the country's capital (Aceh, in the 20th century until now, was a province in Indonesia).
The river that divides the Aceh valley in the capital.
To the right of the Aceh bay, or to the east, there is another bay which is quite famously known as the Krueng Raya bay which is situated in the Krueng Raya district, east of the capital. It is in this district that a number of these ancient forts can still be found and visited. From the capital or from the Aceh valley area to the locations of the fort sites, I had to pass through a promontory called Ujoeng Bate.
On the trip to the site location and passing on the headland which is the northernmost part of the island of Sumatra, it is called Ujoeng Bate in the village of Durung.
After that, less than half an hour, I arrived at the location of the fort site called Indrapatra fort in Ladong village. This Indrapatra fort site is actually a group of associated building structures, which are located today very close to the sea. While a few hundred meters behind it is a hilly area covering the entire land behind it.
No less than four structures can be seen in the site complex which is quite large. Three buildings of which can be said to be ruins because not many parts are visible anymore. On average, only the base part still looks stronger, and still shows traces of the space in the building. One other building looks quite intact but it appears to be younger than the other three. I only chose to take a look at the ruins of three buildings that seemed more ancient.
Being in that area, perhaps, one can immediately recognize that the landscape there has actually undergone extreme geomorphological changes. The area in the past appears to have been split by a canal which divided the four buildings into two to the north of the canal and the other two to the south. But a long settling process has sealed off the canal and is now only visible as a small ditch. We'll have a look at what I think is the main building and one of the older buildings on the site complex.
In the present days, only silence envelops the space there.
The main building consists of a series of structures, the most prominent of which, is the thick wall of a rectangular circumference (fort), two domed buildings built on the inner floor of the fort, and one rectangular building which is a large courtyard, and is over two meters from the floor, equipped with stairs to the north and west. The stairs were positioned opposite or close to the two domed buildings in which, it turned out, were wells ringed with stones.
It is very interesting to observe the two buildings in which there are wells. As it turned out, the domed building was intended to protect the well. One of the domed buildings still looks quite intact where at the top there is still a ball bud.
A purple crab was seen in the well.
While in the other, the dome appears to have partially collapsed and made a large hole there. There are various possibilities that can be estimated as the cause of the damage, one of which, perhaps, is the result of an attack !.
But it's still a mystery. Just like all the buildings in this site complex which are still a mystery. Historians have not been able to explain much scientifically about the existence of these buildings. Only according to local tradition, the site complex is called the Indrapatra fort.
In my examination, only one building could really be ascertained as a pure fortress. The main building itself, it seemed, had a religious and fortified function. While the other two, did not show the characteristics of the fort structure. Not only is its history still a mystery, this place also doesn't leave behind any legends. Only the designation as Indrapatra is known. But of course, because of its location by the sea, this group of buildings can be presumed to be closely related to some kind of maritime life in the past.
