The Singapore Stone Was Found Here (9/9)

The Singapore Stone is a large sandstone fragment that dates back to between the 10th and 13th century. The fragment originates from a stone slab that was discovered by Sir Stamford Raffles and his labourers at the southeast side of the Singapore River mouth in 1819. The slab had been inscribed with 50 or 52 lines of unknown script, which Raffles himself tried to decipher but to no avail. Sadly, the entire slab got blown up in 1843 to widen the passageway at the river mouth. Thankfully, several fragments were recovered and one of them returns to be displayed at the National Museum of Singapore. The inscription is believed to be in Old Javanese or Sanskrit, and the stone is said to be part of the grave of Badang, a legendary wrestler who defeated regional challengers in the Kingdom of Singapura.