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Numéro spécial "Manuscript Libraries and Colonialism in Island Southeast Asia"
Colonial intervention and royal libraries

Where are the Palembang Kraton manuscripts? Trajectories of a royal library

Où sont les manuscrits du kraton de Palembang ? Parcours d’une bibliothèque royale
Alan Darmawan
p. 45-118

Résumés

Le rôle des cours royales malaises en tant que mécènes de la production de manuscrits est reconnu, mais les collections qu’elles abritaient restent largement méconnues des chercheurs. À travers l’étude du cas du sultanat de Palembang à Sumatra, j’examine les manuscrits existants provenant de la bibliothèque du palais. Certains sont passés entre les mains de collectionneurs privés à Palembang, tandis que d’autres ont été dispersés dans des collections coloniales en Europe et en Asie du Sud-Est. En retraçant la formation de la collection royale au XVIIe siècle et sa destruction lors des attaques britanniques et néerlandaises au début du XIXsiècle, cette reconstitution utilise la bibliothèque royale comme point de départ pour comprendre l’impact du colonialisme sur les traditions manuscrites dans la région et pour situer la culture intellectuelle de Palembang au sein des réseaux savants régionaux et interrégionaux.

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  • 1 Hij had eene vrij uitgestrekte bibliotheek.” All the translations to English are my own unless oth (...)
  • 2 To get a sense of the perspective, we should contextualise van Sevenhoven’s view in the European co (...)

1In his report about the geography and sociocultural life of the river city of Palembang, the Dutch commissary J.J. van Sevenhoven (1823: 58, 76) told of the wealthy yet “absolute despotic” kingdom, aiming to convince his Dutch readers that the presence of their rule would be accepted by the people, especially those of the Arab communities who would be “very happy to be under the protection of the Dutch government.” Despite his cynicism and denigration of the native rulers in many aspects, van Sevenhoven admitted that Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (r. 1804–1821) was an exception in terms of literacy. He stated that the sultan “had an extensive library” (ibid.: 80).1 From a European perspective, the “library” (“bibliotheek”) implies a house of books or a room to store an “extensive” collection of books.2 However, van Sevenhoven neither described the physical setting of the palace library nor the collection it contained. The library itself seemed to have been empty when he discovered it. This study uncovers new evidence about what the library contained and where the manuscripts went, providing a fuller context to the royal collection with more additional manuscripts found in Palembang that were unidentified in previous scholarly works (e.g. Drewes 1977, Iskandar 1986).

2Before the early 2000s, next to nothing was known about the royal manuscripts left in Palembang. There were no new discoveries of royal manuscripts after the work of Drewes (1977) and Iskandar (1986). Pudjiastuti (2006), who based her work on the 2004 project of cataloguing Palembang manuscripts in situ, did not focus on identifying royal manuscripts, and neither did other digitisation initiatives up to 2022, despite their contribution in unearthing previously undocumented manuscripts. Using these projects’ documentation to identify the royal manuscripts of Palembang, I further what Drewes (1977) and Iskandar (1986) initiated and combine it with a substantial number of royal manuscripts found in my field study in the region to reconstruct the royal library collection and the impact of colonial destruction on it.

  • 3 The initiatives include those carried out by the Yayasan Naskah Nusantara (YANASSA) sponsored by th (...)

3Royal libraries in island Southeast Asia are little known to scholarly scrutiny due to a focus on the contents of individual manuscripts and how they were transmitted over time, as well as scanty evidence of that kind. Mulaika Hijjas (2021) provocatively poses a glaring contrast that, despite the importance of Malay royal patronage to textual production in the manuscript age, there are no surviving libraries in situ such as those in the Javanese royal courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta. Colonial spoliation played a major role in the displacement of royal manuscripts in some cases, including the collecting that followed the assault on the palaces of Selangor, Lombok, Bone, and Palembang (Gallop 2025, Sastrawan 2025, Tol 1993, Iskandar 1986). The 33 surviving manuscripts of the kingdom of Bone reveal the violent collecting preceded by “the seizure of the palace” (Tol 1993: 615). Likewise, the dispersal of manuscripts stemming from the royal collection of Palembang involved a number of colonial agents that shaped institutional collections of modern libraries in Europe and Indonesia to the present (Drewes 1977: 198–216; Iskandar 1986: 67–72). This study reconstructs the Palembang royal library collection, reuniting its manuscripts scattered in the collections shaped in the colonial era—now at SOAS University of London, the Royal Asiatic Society (London), the British Library (London), the Bodleian Libraries (Oxford), the Bibliothèque nationale de France (Paris), Universiteitsbibliotheek Leiden (Leiden), Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig (Leipzig), Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (Kuala Lumpur), and Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia (Jakarta)—and those remaining in the hands of private owners in Palembang. While some of the latter have been catalogued and/or digitised in the past two decades through several initiatives,3 this study is the first to identify a further 46 manuscripts as coming from the Palembang Kraton, totalling 144 volumes when combined with those in the above colonial collections (Appendix II).

4The reconstruction of the Palembang royal library collection traces manuscript provenance by considering material aspects, as well as textual and paratextual elements. It is part of current scholarly attempts to decolonise artefacts originating from the former European colonies, not just by showing the often violent means by which they were removed from their original contexts but also by uncovering their “social lives” over time (Appadurai 2006). For example, a note in a Palembang royal manuscript entitled Shumūs al-anwār wa-kunūz al-asrār reveals that the codex was looted, sold in an auction house, found by a local collector in Batavia, sold to a Dutch scholar, and finally donated to a university library (Cod. Or. 7283). This object’s circulation resonates with Arjun Appadurai’s theoretical premise: “today’s gift is tomorrow’s commodity, yesterday’s commodity is tomorrow’s found art object, today’s art object is tomorrow’s junk, and yesterday’s junk is tomorrow’s heirloom” (ibid.: 15). The change of values as illustrated will help better explicate how the colonised objects were (re)defined and (re)valued across time, space, and society. My reconstruction, therefore, is aware of materiality, movements and changing valuations of the manuscripts as they moved out of the palace library.

  • 4 This seems to be comparable to mosque libraries in the Islamic world (Taher 1992; BenAicha 1986).

5Based on this reconstructed collection, what do the manuscripts portray of literary traditions developed in Palembang’s past? What are the immediate and further impacts of colonialism on the manuscript culture in the region? In the context of island Southeast Asia, the library is not necessarily an enormous collection akin to modern European libraries or the imperial Mughal library (cf. Edwards 2009 [1864]: 31–38; Seyller 2023). Rather, it is a collection of books, regardless of the size—dozens to a few hundred—sharing a space in royal palaces and community learning centres like the Minangkabau surau.4 Studies on libraries like these, belonging to royal family members, including Tengku Said Jafar of Selangor (28 volumes and 46 documents) and La Ode Zaenu of Buton (300 manuscripts), uncover, respectively, the active role of royal family members in shaping a “small but coherent theological library” comprising works well-known across the Islamic world (Gallop 2025: 214), and the “localism of Arabic literary tradition,” producing works that are mostly unknown elsewhere but a significant part of the local intellectual culture (Peacock 2023: 75). This confirms Gallop’s remapping of the writing traditions of archipelagic Southeast Asia, drawing a picture of a manuscript culture in which the majority of manuscripts are Islamic, with an immense proportion of them written in Arabic, and found mainly in their original place of production and/or consumption (Gallop 2020: 100). As I will show with reference to the Palembang palace library, royal patronage and the role of ulama in manuscript production from the late 17th to the early 19th century developed a unique artistic style of bookbinding, illumination motifs, and poetic composition, within a long-standing Islamic intellectual culture that is both locally embedded and inter-regionally connected to the wider Islamic world.

  • 5 For further examination of the demise of Malay manuscript tradition resulting from the western-orie (...)

6Significantly, despite its destructive effects on the royal library, colonial intervention stimulated another aspect of textual production, paving the way to “democratise” it for the local population (e.g. van der Putten 2003) and becoming part of the commercialisation of manuscripts through lending libraries in the 19th and early 20th century Palembang (e.g. Kratz 1977, 1980; van der Putten 2022). In this kampung setting, Malay syair and hikayat became popular, as happened in the port city Batavia (e.g. Chambert-Loir 1984, 1991). Although the manuscript traditions ultimately died because of modernity and the postcolonial nation state,5 the enduring impacts of colonialism carry on to this day. The current discourses of heritage reinvention and decolonisation invite us to reflect on the legacy of colonialism, which remains contested terrain in terms of heritage, memory, and identity formation. To understand the impact of colonialism on manuscript cultures in Palembang, I first look into the late-17th century colonial encroachment, the socio-historical context of literary traditions, and the early formation of the royal library collection in the sultanate.

The Palembang Sultanate and competing colonial powers

7The most devastating and immediate impact of European colonialism on the Palembang Sultanate was its collapse in 1825 after a series of wars against the British and the Dutch. This marks the demise of a local Sumatran dynasty and its prominent role in Javanese and Malay manuscript traditions. Colonial intervention played a major role in the destruction of Palembang dynastic rule and in changing literary practices from the early development of the sultanate. In a dynamic relationship as sometime ally and sometime enemy, the Dutch monopoly of tin and pepper trade both gave wealth to the sultanate and placed it in a difficult position. The library collection was formed in this context of political economy in the early 17th century, when Palembang gained independence from its Javanese overlord.

  • 6 Some different versions of oral stories in Java recount that Ario Damar was father of Kusen, stepbr (...)
  • 7 For further discussion on some considerations of Śrīvijaya’s status as a kingdom, period, and inscr (...)
  • 8 Differing from the Mataram style developed in the royal courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta, the sty (...)
  • 9 See the transcriptions of some piagĕm from Palembang by Brandes (1889: 567–601; 1891: 605–623; 1900 (...)

8Ario Damar or Ario Dilah, a legendary figure from the mid-15th century Majapahit, is known from orally transmitted stories.6 This east Javanese chief arrived during the vacuum of power in the downstream Musi River area after the flight of the preceding Malay dynasty following the decline of Śrīvijaya Kingdom in the 13th century. Despite debates about the precise location of Śrīvijaya’s latest capital and the exact timing of its decline, a Johor-dynastic chronicle, Sulalat al-Salatin or Sejarah Melayu, indicates the eminence of Bukit Siguntang in Palembang as the origin place of the dynasty. The rereadings of 7th century stone inscriptions found in southern Sumatran, Malay and foreign sources suggest the prominent polity of Śrīvijaya to be located in Palembang (Manguin 2021: 89).7 The inscriptions of the Buddhist kingdom bear witness to the tradition of writing of Old Malay language in Old Sumatran script. Yet the tradition seems to have been discontinued by the subsequent ruling dynasty that brought with it Javanese writing practices, which later developed its own specific local style of Javanese script8 for book- and letter-writings in internal correspondence between the aristocrats (e.g. App. II, nos. 4–13), as well as on copper plate as royal charters called piagĕm.9

  • 10 Attempts to disobey the treaty resulted in dispute and war, as happened in 1659, when the VOC burnt (...)

9The descendants of the Palembang royal family today identify as their founding father another east Javanese prince, Ki Gede ing Suro Tuo, who arrived in the mid-16th century, long after the time of Ario Dilah (cf. PNRI Br 157 III: 1–3). Dutch records note that the escape of this prince from Surabaya and the founding of Palembang coincided with the fall of Pajang, the successor of Majapahit and Demak, to Mataram in the 1580s (Roo de la Faille 2020 [1971]: 2–5). It was Ki Gede ing Suro Tuo (r. 1552–1573) and Ki Gede ing Suro Mudo (r. 1573–1590) who founded and ruled the princely state of Palembang, paying allegiance to the central Javanese kingdom of Mataram until the late 17th century (see App. I: Tentative Chronological List of Palembang Rulers). Only then did the interference of the VOC disrupt the political configuration among the kingdoms in the islands, with Palembang shifting its loyalty to the Dutch company. After the first contact in 1616 between Palembang and the VOC’s representative in Jambi, Andries Soury (Heeres 1907: 347–348; Rahim 1998: 70), every single agreement between the two parties removed either a competitor or overlord of Palembang and brought the kingdom under the dominance of the company to rely on and provide it with the commodities it demanded. For example, the first VOC-Palembang contract was concluded in 1642 after a show of military power. On his way back from Mataram to Palembang, having assisted its overlord to fight against the Dutch in Melaka, Pangeran Sido ing Kenayan of Palembang (r. 1639–1650) witnessed the troops led by Jeremias van Vliet launch a surprise attack on Mataram’s naval force. Seeing the weakness of its Javanese patron, Palembang repositioned itself, formed a “friendship” with the VOC, and provided the company with a site for a lodge and granted it a monopoly in the pepper trade (Heeres 1907: 380–386; Rahim 1998: 72).10 Likewise, in its dispute against Jambi in 1681, Palembang asked for support from the VOC to successfully defeat its competitor, after which a renewed contract was signed in the same year (Heeres 1934: 267–273, 285; Rahim 1998: 74–76). Commenting on the long-lasting rule of Sultan Jamaluddin, also known as Susuhunan Abdurrahman (r. 1662–1706), Roo de la Faille (2020 [1971]: 23) claimed that “his power would not be strongly entrenched without the support of the government in Batavia for its great interests in pre-empting the fighting Malay nobles from destroying people’s pepper plants.” After this “success” the existing relations among the local kingdoms were reordered, and the VOC appeared to become the sole partner Palembang would rely on to solve any internal disputes.

10In 1722, during the conflicts between Sultan Abdurrahman’s sons after the regicide of the crown prince, Pangeran Purbaya, Pangeran Jayo Wikramo asked the VOC for enforcement to vanquish his older brother, Sultan Anom. Once he had successfully overthrown Sultan Anom, who then fled to Jambi, Jayo Wikramo took over the throne as Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I (r. 1724–1757) and concluded a renewed agreement with the VOC. The new contract had been signed in 1722, giving a trade monopoly to the company for pepper and the newly discovered commodity in Bangka Island in 1710, tin. This treaty prohibited any deals with other buyers, which was now deemed smuggling, required the Palembang sultan to provide 30,000 pikul of pepper every year to the company; and to pay all the 1722 war expenses counted as debt (Stapel 1935: 536–543; Rahim 1988: 77). Hikayat Palembang, written by Kiyai Satyanandita in 1830s, recounts how

  • 11 Pada tiap-tiap tahun utusan Palembang pergi di Betawi mengantarkan timah dari tanah Bangka berapa (...)

every year the emissaries from Palembang sailed to Batavia to deliver a certain amount of tin that the company [VOC] bought at 8 ringgits per pikul. None of the people of Palembang was allowed to trade the tin to other buyers except the company. They would be killed and [the commodity] seized when they got caught by the Sultan of Palembang, as some from Mentok and Palembang were, due to selling tin to the English (Cod. Or. 2276 C: 14–15).11

11However, despite being required to abide by the treaty and even though colonial authority could not be resisted, Palembang also benefited from the cooperation. The kingdom obtained prosperity from commerce and Sultan Badaruddin I’s reign witnessed the construction of the stone mosque and fortified palace complex known as Kuto Lamo, different from the previous wooden Kuto Gawang, which had burned down in 1659 during the war against the Dutch. Hikayat Palembang explicates nostalgically that, on complying with the treaty, Palembang became

  • 12 Aman sentosa selama berdamai dengan kompeni dan rakyat seisi negeri dengan segala jajahan itu bany (...)

peaceful as long as it went along with the company, and peoples of the country and of dependencies gained affluence in the tranquillity as many merchants came through the land and sea, and from upstream, as the Palembang king was just in his rule, taking care of the people and foreigners (UBL Cod. Or. 2276 C: 21).12

  • 13 Marga kept their old tradition of writing with the ulu script (surat ulu) on various supporting mat (...)
  • 14 Some notes written in 1889 retrospectively ascribe the ownership over these old manuscripts to Sult (...)
  • 15 See the watermark in the manuscript EAP 1454-2-6 against that of in the catalogue of watermarks by (...)

12It was in the 18th century that Palembang flourished and extended its territory to include in its jurisdiction the interior regions (marga)13 for their supply of pepper and the offshore area (i.e. Bangka Island) for tin. The issuance of the royal charter, piagĕm, deriving from the Mataram tradition of granting a territorial authority, to the chief of marga called pesirah appeared to increase from two in the 16th to 19 in the 18th century (Damais 1995: 204). The practice of commissioning manuscripts by the Palembang court seems to have been established by the 17th century. The oldest known surviving manuscript is dated 1650, PNRI A 162 ʿUmdat al-murīd li-jawharat al-tawḥīd (cf. Drewes 1977: 202), and evidently escaped the fire of 1659 during the war against the VOC which burned Kuto Gawang. The remainder of the surviving library post-dates this fire. The next oldest known manuscripts are copies of Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn by al-Ghazālī, part of a multi-volume series of which 13 survive (e.g. App. II, nos. 104–105, 109–119), dated between 1691 and 1695.14 The date in the colophon corresponds to the material which the manuscripts are made of, namely Ottoman paper produced between the 1670s and the 1690s that has a watermark of crown with star and crescent.15 Thus, the formation of the royal library collection must have taken place from the reign of Sultan Abdurrahman between 1690 and 1706.

  • 16 maar wel Arabieren hebben om deze boeken gevraagd.”

13The increase of the royal collection reflects the engagement of Palembang aristocrats in literary production and Islamic intellectual culture. As I will discuss in the next sections, the royal collection developed significantly in the 18th century, in which sultans and princes like Ahmad Najamuddin I (r. 1758–1776) and his son Muhammad Bahauddin commissioned copies and Malay translations of Arabic works from ulama like Kemas Fakhruddin. Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin (r. 1776–1804) was the owner of many books copied or translated on his request. Manuscripts written in Javanese also form an important part of the royal collection, representing the language of the ruling group and the official language of the court. This royal collection appeared to have been loaned out to Islamic scholars in Palembang, especially those of Arabic descent, as van Sevenhoven related that not ordinary people “but the Arabs have asked for these books” (1823: 80).16 It is apparent that the progress in the art of writing and intellectual culture benefited from the flourishing commerce that Palembang royal family members enjoyed for two centuries. However, the kingdom’s sovereignty in the political economy was profoundly interwoven with the economic interests of the VOC, which demanded an ever-increasing amount of tin and pepper annually.

14Due to the failure of his grandfather to pay off the debt stipulated in the 1722 contract, Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin inherited the obligation. The VOC ultimately collected this debt by military force. Hikayat Palembang records the event when

  • 17 Datanglah pula Komisaris membawa kapal perang masuk Palembang mendapatkan Sultan Muhammad Bahauddi (...)

the [Dutch] commissary came with a warship to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin in Palembang to bill him 400 thousand ringgits; and manifested the letter of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I asking for reinforcement from Batavia when he was the Prince Jayo Wikramo. (Cod. Or. 2276 C: 19)17

  • 18 The English translation cited here refers to that of provided by Ahmat Adam (2009: 236).

15The entire country was in uproar, while Sultan Bahauddin negotiated with the commissary to pay half the amount, which was then approved. While the grip of the VOC became tighter, attempts by Palembang to counter the monopoly continued, including “smuggling” the tin for trade with other agents like the East India Company (EIC). In settling the tensions between the VOC and Palembang, more amendments to the agreement were made in 1755 (cf. Stapel 1955: 59–64; Rahim 1998: 77–78). Diplomatic letters between Palembang sultans and the governor of the VOC exhibit how issues related to the implementation of the agreement were manifested and solutions imposed. In a letter to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, dated 1780, VOC Governor-General Reynier de Klerck complained about the shipment of pepper and tin that “too little has been brought here, thus there is no manifestation of the sincerity,” and hence, warned the sultan to meet his “promise to send adequate amounts of pepper and white tin” and “adhere to the contract” of 1755 (BL Eur D742/1, ff. 58a.r–b.r).18 There are, however, other examples of collaboration between the VOC and Palembang, such as when VOC Governor-General Willem Arnold Alting, in his letter dated 30 July 1784, asked Sultan Bahauddin for a collaborative investigation of the Dutch fetor of Palembang, who was suspected of smuggling, and of a Chinese captain suspected of trafficking. In the same letter, Alting requested to pay his company’s debt to the sultan in a few instalments, in which “of 48,000 dollars, 20,000 has been paid through the emissaries of Your Majesty” (RAS Malay 142 H: ff. 1–3).

  • 19 Other short terms are Jul.–Aug. 1813 and Jul. 1818–Dec. 1819, where Sultan Badaruddin II interrupte (...)
  • 20 Raffles’ letter to Sultan Badaruddin II, 5 Dec. 1810. English translation by Ahmat Adam (2009: 354)
  • 21 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s letter to Raffles, 5 May 1811 (ibid.: 263–264).
  • 22 Ibid.
  • 23 This episode is much disputed in the scholarship. Dutch-slanted interpretation of this corresponden (...)

16Into this complex relationship came a new power, the English. It was in 1810–1811 that the EIC had the ambition to expand its colony to the eastern islands under the command of Raffles, who asked Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (r. 1804–1812)19 to expel the Dutch from their lodge on the bank of Sungai Aur. The European war between the French and the British drove the attempts to annex the Dutch (allied with the French) colony and more importantly to take control over the tin-deposit island of Bangka. In the British campaign for the invasion of Java, Raffles persuaded the Sultan of Palembang for support against the Dutch. To Sultan Badaruddin II, Raffles said “our friend should, instead, strike to expel them entirely if the Dutch are not willing to deliberate cordially according to our friend’s wishes” (UBL D Or. 270 A).20 Being aware of the legacy of Palembang-Dutch relations he had inherited, Sultan Badaruddin II cautiously waited for the result of the Anglo-Dutch war. His letters to Raffles indicate care not to declare which side he stood for. Far from rejecting Raffles, he said, “in all truth we shall undertake to the best of our effort so that our friend’s plan will happen as is intended […] we have now sent an emissary to Batavia requesting that the Dutch in Palembang be withdrawn with speed.”21 Yet this does not mean a provocation for war against the Dutch, as Sultan Badaruddin also wrote of the history of their presence, that “in the olden days they contributed too much help and kindness to our forefather, therefore our forefather did not wish to lose their affection, so until today there are still Dutchmen in Palembang.”22 But when he learned of the fall of Batavia to the British, Sultan Badaruddin, who had long wanted to get rid of the Dutch, violently expelled them from Palembang, otherwise he would have found himself under British rule.23 Raffles, who considered the Dutch under his “protection”, found out about the event a few months afterward and interpreted it as disobedience against the British. He then sent a fleet to “punish” Sultan Badaruddin.

  • 24 For detailed accounts of the British military expedition in 1812, see Thorn (1815: 127–148), Woelde (...)
  • 25 For more about the Dutch attacks on Palembang in 1819–1825, see Woelders (1975: 16–27) and Wargadal (...)

17Colonel Robert Rollo Gillespie led the fleet, departing from Batavia to Palembang in March 1812. The military expedition proceeded slowly, moving upriver from Sungsang on the Musi River mouth. Once taking over the Borang fort, they lunged at the royal palace, which was already abandoned by the sultan. Attempting to put down the unrest caused by the troops from the upriver (uluan), Gillespie gained control over the palace and hoisted the British flag on 28 April 1812. The British then installed Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s brother as Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II in May 1812.24 The rivalries between two competing sultans escalated, especially when the Dutch returned to reinstate their power, allying with Sultan Badaruddin II to dethrone Sultan Najamuddin II in 1818. Attempts to obtain independence from the Dutch were then undertaken by Sultan Badaruddin II and his son, Pangeran Ratu, who later became Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin III, in a series of wars between 1819 and 1821. After their defeat, the Dutch installed the son of Sultan Najamuddin II, Prabu Anom, as Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin IV, who was then vanquished in his resistance against the Dutch in 1824–1825.25 Finally, the Palembang sultanate was annihilated in 1825, and the two competing camps of the royal family were sent into exile in West Java and the Moluccas. It was during this series of wars and occupations that sultans’ treasures were looted, and the royal library collection escaped from the palace.

British attack and the dispersal of royal manuscripts

  • 26 For more information about the manuscripts sent by Captain Owen to Marsden other than those of Pale (...)

18How was the Palembang royal library collection displaced and where did it go? The objects and their trajectories adduce the further impacts of colonialism on the valuation of manuscripts circulating among British agents and institutions. From the British attack in 1812 and interregnum until 1816, manuscripts went to the collections of Thomas Raffles and William Marsden in London. A record of this is a note written and signed by Captain William Fitzwilliam Owen in the manuscript of a Malay translation of Futūḥ al-Shām (SOAS MS 11505), reading “From the palace of Palembang, 28 April 1812, W.F.W. Owen.” Captain Owen was one of the military leaders in the British expedition to Palembang led by Colonel Gillespie, and he led the groups on the ship Cornelia, advancing from the siege of the Borang fort defence to occupying the fortified palace, Kuto Besak (Thorn 1815: 127). As one of five contacts of William Marsden working in the archipelago, sending some manuscripts to him (Mulaika 2022: 12–15),26 Owen gave the war booty manuscript new life as a gift to his friend. A gift is special as it “contains both the quality of the giver and the receiver” (Appadurai 2006: 20). That is to say, the gift represents Marsden with a reputation as one of pioneers in the scholarship of Malay-Indonesian studies and individuals of his personal network with achievements in the expansion of British colonial power to island Southeast Asia (Mulaika 2022: 4, 8, 12).

19Other manuscripts that came from Palembang’s palace to Marsden include two religious treatises kept at SOAS (MSS 12225 and 12145) and a divination book at the Bodleian Libraries in Oxford (Malay d.1), which may also have come to Marsden from Palembang through Owen (ibid.: 15). Surely, we cannot expect Captain Owen to sign all the books he plundered from the court, but their similarity in terms of the particular binding style of the royal manuscripts (e.g. Figs. 1–4) and ownership statements are adequate to indicate their provenance (e.g. Figs. 5–9). This binding has an envelope flap and specific floral motifs stamped on the leather covers (cf. Plomp 1993: 580–583). The ownership marks, either in the colophon or on a separate page prepared for it, state that the book belongs to Susuhunan Ahmad [Najamuddin]: “Alamat surat Susuhunan Ahmad” (MS 12225: f. 177v). Other notes describe the commission of the manuscripts by order of the Crown Prince, of His Majesty Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin (“dengan disuruh Pangeran Ratu, ibni Paduka Sri Sultan Ahmad Najamuddini” (MS 11505, f. 211r), and “daripada suruh ibnu as-Sultani, Pangeran Ratu negeri Palimbani” (Malay d.1, f. 18r). These four manuscripts went different ways after the death of Marsden: the first three were donated to King’s College London in 1835 and then transferred to SOAS in 1916 upon its foundation. Whereas, the final one went to a certain Dr William Curran’s library, which was then sold to an auction house, Puttick and Simpson in London, from which the Bodleian Libraries acquired it on 20 May 1819 for £2.6.2 (equal to the purchasing power £132.57 in 2017).27

Fig. 1 – EAP 1454/2/4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd, 1103 AH / 1691-2 AD.

Fig. 1 – EAP 1454/2/4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd, 1103 AH / 1691-2 AD.

Source: Endangered Archives Programme 1454/2/4. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.

Fig. 2 – Bodleian MS Malay d.1 Collection of divination texts, including Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman.

Fig. 2 – Bodleian MS Malay d.1 Collection of divination texts, including Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman.

Source: Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS Malay d. 1. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.

Fig. 3 – MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt. Source: Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52.

Fig. 3 – MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt. Source: Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52.

Creative Common license CC0 1.0.

Fig. 4 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn.

Fig. 4 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn.

Image courtesy of SOAS Library.

  • 28 Annabel T. Gallop, pers. comm., 13 June 2024.

20These trajectories reveal how a very special gift obtained from afar in the east upon the injury of others turned into a piece of junk of a deceased scholar of high reputation, part of it going to an auction and part donated to become part of the important collections of renowned institutions in oriental studies like SOAS. Despite SOAS’ mission for decolonisation, conversation about its own colonial collection remains unbroached. Likewise, discourse on the return of the Royal Asiatic Society’s (RAS) collection containing manuscripts and documents that were formerly in the possession of Raffles, seems to be unexplored. In the society’s collection there are a number of letters from Malay sultans, Dutch and English generals sent to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin between the 1770s and the 1780s (App. II, nos. 14–35). Those addressed to the sultan must have come from the royal archive or library, and “were probably captured there in 1812” and indeed it seems “the whole collection may have come from Raffles” (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2004: 155). Another part of this collection of lavishly decorated letters remained in the hand of Raffles’ heirs and was first lent to the India Office Library, then acquired by the British Library in 2007 (App. II, nos. 36–37).28

  • 29Bahwa ini alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. Tamat.”

21Apart from Javanese letters (App. II, nos. 11–13), an important part of Raffles’ collection at the RAS are seven codices written in Javanese script and language (App. II, nos. 4–10). Some of the manuscripts appear to be clean copies, which suggest that they may have been commissioned by Raffles or taken shortly after their completion. From Raffles’ possession, these manuscripts were presented by Lady Raffles to the RAS in January 1831. The bindings of these manuscripts are not original, and possibly “Raffles had them rebound in England upon his return from Java in 1816” (Rahardjo 2018: 15). These Javanese manuscripts are written in a peculiar style that is typical of Palembang, and one bears a mark of ownership that “this is the sign of the book of the Crown Prince, son of Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, finis” (RAS Raffles Java 28: 104).29 Yet, the lack of record or other indications make it difficult to explain how they came to Raffles (acting as the Governor of Java in Batavia), whether through Gillespie, or local intermediaries, or other British agents.

  • 30 Amal Sultan Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin fi balad Palembang dar al-salam sanat 1183.”

22Even if they were copies commissioned by Raffles, we would then be close to the missing originals. Raffles’ copying reflects his interest in shaping knowledge of the East, especially on Javanese culture and history, the reestablishment of the Society of Arts and Science in Batavia, and the sending of dried plants to the society with description called “Flora Javana (Raffles 1830: 135–137). This reminds us of Raffles’ obsession for objects he collected from the archipelago that sank with the ship Fame which he embarked on to return to England (ibid.: 566). Objects like manuscripts, in this case, are cultural artefacts that were turned into gifts, commodities, and a source of knowledge and reputation. They are always multidimensional, never having a singular significance (Appadurai 2006: 20). Particularly they should be contextualised in the British acquisition of other objects from Palembang, including emblematic artefacts like the sword and dagger of Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II kept in the Royal Collection Trust of King Charles III in Windsor; and a canon with the inscription “the work of Sultan Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin of the state of Palembang, Abode of Peace, the year 1183” (1769/1770)30 kept in the Royal Armouries of the Tower of London (Gallop with Buck 2024: 113). Moreover, this displacement of the manuscripts did not cease after the end of the British interregnum. As it turned out, a series of Palembang-Dutch wars followed which ended in the creation of a new Dutch colony under direct colonial rule.

Dutch attack and the hunt for the sultan’s treasure

  • 31 Despite Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s success in wars against the Dutch troops led by Herman Warner (...)
  • 32 For more detailed accounts of the Palembang-Dutch war, see Woelders (1975: 16–27) and Wargadalem (2 (...)

23In its attempts at reinstating its power in Palembang, the Dutch East Indies waged a war against Palembang sultans from 1818 to 1825,31 which ended with sending them and their families into exile.32 After the defeat of Sultan Badaruddin II and his son Ahmad Najamuddin III Pangeran Ratu in 1821, the Dutch enthroned but shrank the authority of Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin IV Prabu Anom with a transfer of power declared in August 1823 (for the transliteration of the declaration, see Rahim 1998: 281–282). The inception of direct government commenced with the appointment of a commissary, J.J. van Sevenhoven (1822–1823), who disarmed and plundered Sultan Badaruddin’s family and properties. Hikayat Palembang, which was written for J.S.G. Gramberg in the 1860s, recounts the following scene:

  • 33 Dan setengah demikian masa masuklah Komisaris ke Palembang meriksa di mana-mana tempat harta Susuh (...)

And after that then came Commissary [Sevenhoven] to Palembang to inspect any places of the properties of Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin, who had been [in exile] in Ternate. Several princes brought in this effort, including Pangeran Bupati Panembahan, were detained in a warship for seven months long. His country and residence were unloaded by the Commissary (Cod. Or. 2276 C: 73).33

24In this looting, van Sevenhoven seized 55 manuscripts and sent them to the Department of Native Affairs of the General Secretariat in Batavia on 13 June 1822 (Drewes 1977: 204–205). These items brought the collection at the secretariat to 91 manuscripts (Voorhoeve 1980). However, of the 55 Palembang royal manuscripts sent by van Sevenhoven, “by 1880 next to nothing was left” due to, as the Dutch linguist van der Tuuk declared in 1849, “indifference and empty amateurism” (Drewes 1977: 205). It is a shame that the loot was carelessly treated like valueless trash. Fortunately, some information about these now lost manuscripts is preserved in the notes of van der Tuuk, who in 1850–1851 stopped over at the secretariat before proceeding to an expedition in Sumatra. He summarised 32 out of 91 codices in the collection in his notebooks that are now kept in Leiden (Cod. Or. 3300 and 3301; cf. Voorhoeve 1980: 71; Drewes 1977: 205). His summary records titles and contents of the manuscripts, and, importantly, includes ownership statements copied entirely from the originals. As indicated, of 32 manuscripts, 22 are from the Palembang Kraton, of which 15 were by then missing and seven had been transferred to the Batavia Society (Koninklijk Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen). Based on van der Tuuk’s summary, all the missing manuscripts were on Islamic religious subjects, including tasawwuf, jurisprudence, and astronomy (App. II, nos. 39–53), topics that attracted less interest in 19th century colonial scholarship (Peters 1997: 6–7).

  • 34 During my visits to Kemas Andi Syarifuddin in October–November 2023, he told me stories about his g (...)

25As found in van der Tuuk’s digest, the seven codices transferred to the Batavia Society were as GS 12, 46, 51, 14, 20, 6, and 37. Following this order, they were relisted as BG Mal 75, 117, 118, 119, 120, 121, and A 206, as recorded in the minutes of the society’s meetings in 1879 and 1880, providing us with the date of the transfer of the manuscripts to the society (van Ronkel 1909: 369, 389, 375, 404, 431, 447). After Indonesian independence the manuscripts moved from the society’s collection to the Museum Pusat in Jakarta and finally the National Library of the Republic of Indonesia (App. II, nos. 62–68). An addition to the society’s collection of Palembang royal manuscripts are four Arabic manuscripts sent by Khatib Imam of Palembang, Kiagus Haji Abdul Malik, in 1875, namely BG CLX – CLXIII (Drewes 1977: 201–202, Iskandar 1986: 69–70). These items, after transfer from the society to the national library as above, are now part of the PNRI Arabic manuscripts collection (App. II, nos. 54–57). Though how Kiagus Haji Abdul Malik acquired the manuscripts and why he sent them to the Society are unknown, it indicates that kraton manuscripts were still extant in the hands of the second-rank elites like him in the late 19th century. Since the fall of the sultanate, the existing religious administrative offices (khatib penghulu, khatib imam, khatib, and modin), formerly headed by a Palembang prince entitled Pangeran Penghulu Nata Agama, had been replaced by the Dutch-appointed Hoofdpenghulu who reported to the Dutch Resident of Palembang (Rahim 1998: 123–125). When all the activities of the Muslims and the ulama were monitored and reported by the Chief Penghulu to the Resident, someone like Kiagus Haji Abdul Malik might have been forced to surrender his manuscripts. A Khatib Imam in the late 19th century, Kemas Haji Umar (ca. 1880s–1950s), hid his manuscript collection in the ceiling of his house to keep it from Dutch eyes, with the result that it has now passed down to his grandson, Kemas Andi Syarifuddin (b. 1971).34 This shows that there were royal manuscripts circulating among the local populace and scholars, shedding light on another trajectory of manuscript circulation.

26A few Dutch individuals also collected royal manuscripts that had escaped the palace during the wars between 1812 and 1825, circulating among the locals. A Dutch commissioner in Palembang acquired four Javanese manuscripts and sent them to the Batavia Society in 1876 and 1886 (Drewes 1977: 202–203). These manuscripts of Panji stories and Menak Amir Hamzah are now kept at PNRI (App. II, nos. 58–61). This portion of the collection illuminates another aspect of the social life of the manuscripts after the royal palace and before the Dutch learned society. Panji Palembang (KBG 185), for instance, was owned by “Pangeran Adi Menggala ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin” (who then became Pangeran Adipati, and later was crowned as Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II). An attempt to efface his sign of ownership with black ink suggests a move to a subsequent owner (PNRI KBG 185: f. 1r), while the last two pages of the book, enumerating rules of borrowing for readers in the form of Malay syair (cf. Kratz 1977, 1980), reveals that this owner ran a lending library. The manuscript attests to the change of its readership from the Javanese-speaking aristocrats to Malay-speaking people, who then enjoyed the Javanese text. This circulation among the people in the town also hints at a local dispersal of royal manuscripts, which were only later collected by the Dutch scholars and officials stationed in Palembang.

  • 35 To get a better sense of Gramberg’s collection of Palembang manuscripts, we should juxtapose these (...)

27One of these Dutch officials was an associate member of the Batavia Society, J.S.G. Gramberg, who collected some manuscripts and sent them to the society in 1866. Some of these are from the kraton, including BG Mal 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 22 (App. II, nos. 69–75).35 Of these manuscripts, a few like Syair Patut Delapan (PNRI ML 9) and Syair Kembang Air Mawar (PNRI ML 10) were authored by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s brother, Pangeran Panembahan Bupati. This suggests a continuation of literary practice among the aristocrats. These two brothers are also mentioned as the authors of, respectively, Syair Sinyor Kosta (Cod. Or. 1895) and Syair Raja Mambang Jauhari (Cod. Or. 1896). These manuscripts came to Leiden University Library through a donation in 1867 by the former Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies from 1861 to 1866, Baron Sloet van de Beele, who brought them with him on his return to Holland. There is no record about how he acquired the two manuscripts, and hence Drewes speculated that they are copies from the General Secretariat. However, there is no mention of these syair in the General Secretariat manuscript list. Furthermore, the binding style of the manuscripts—with leather cover, typical stamped decoration and floral motifs—suggests that they were locally made in Palembang. Marije Plomp proposed that the two manuscripts were made in the early 1860s as the paper was produced in 1862 (in Teeuw et al. 2004: 23). As far as the paratextual elements are concerned, including the same handwriting style, colour palette, and the floral motifs of the first two pages of the manuscripts Cod. Or. 1895 and 1896, it is very likely that they were copied based on originals from the royal library. This may also apply to another manuscript, Cod. Or. 3375 Syair Ken Tambuhan, with the same binding style, and even more luxurious with gilding. Completed in 1862, the manuscript was once owned by Encik Sinjung who obtained it from Nonah Eng Tia, and later came to the possession of van der Tuuk, who donated it to Leiden University Library.

28As with the case of Sloet van de Beele, there is no record of provenance for the manuscripts collected by other Dutch officials. For example, the Resident of Bangka, Ecoma Verstege, acquired two volumes of Panji stories entitled Hikayat Cekel Waneng Pati during his appointment in 1878, and then donated them to Leiden University Library (Cod. Or. 2283 and 2284). These volumes belonged to Dinayu [Raden Ayu] Bupati, daughter of Pangeran Purba, as indicated by their ownership marks. A similarly haphazard act of collecting was when I.J. Kramer plundered a manuscript—originally owned by Prabu Anom who then became Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin IV—during the attack on Palembang in November 1824 and gave it to Leiden as a gift (Cod. Or. 6315). It seems to have been not uncommon for Dutch officials, in their retirement and return to the homeland, to bring “exotic” cultural objects like hand-written books from the colony and to donate them to an institution—Philippus Pieter Roorda van Eysinga is another case in point.

29Roorda van Eysinga was appointed on 16 July 1822 as an assistant to the Dutch commissary in Palembang. In his notes on his travel to Palembang, he described its social and cultural life, including literary practices, recounting that

  • 36 In de wetenschappen of fraaije letteren heeft men te Palembang nog zeer weinig vorderingen gemaakt (...)

one will find there, poets and poetesses, and amongst the latter those who improvise and compose verse extemporaneously. On the victory of the Dutch over Palembang, I received a very nice poem which is very passionate and contains realistic descriptions (Roorda van Eysinga 1823: 152, 221).36

30Roorda van Eysinga also reported that a group of Muslim scholars trained young people in writing in learning centres. As book-writing was a skilful and highly priced craft, he recounted that “I spent a considerable sum on my Oriental manuscripts” (ibid.: 222). It was this collection that Roorda van Eysinga brought with him to the Netherlands in 1830, which included the Palembang royal manuscripts. In 1831, he presented one of the manuscripts as a gift to a Dutch linguist, Hendrik Arent Hamaker, who subsequently in 1843, gave it to a German philologist, H.C. von der Gabelentz. This lavishly bound manuscript, now kept at Leipzig University Library, contains a devotional text, Dalāʾil al-Khayrāt, and a collection of prayers (MS Gabelentz 52). Another volume from Roorda van Eysinga, with binding identical to MS Gabelentz 52, was purchased from him by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and is now Mal. Pol. 104, containing the work by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī, ʿUmdat al-mutājīn.

31A longer trajectory of a looted manuscript circulating in the colonial context is noted in Cod. Or. 7283, a compendium entitled Shumūs al-anwār wa-kunūz al-asrār, bequeathed by Snouck Hurgronje to Leiden. Annotations in this work shed light on a local collaborator or collector named Abdul Mujib, who bought a manuscript from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Aud through Aḥmad b. Muḥammad Bā Kathīr. Abdul Mujib then passed it down to his son, Muhammad Kelanah, who later sold it to Snouck Hurgronje (cf. Iskandar 1986: 70). Asserted by a sign of ownership of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II, some notes by Aḥmad b. Muḥammad Bā Kathīr on the first flyleaf reveal that this manuscript once belonged to the sultan and how the ownership had changed. Further in the note, this kitab was brought to Batavia by one of the sons of the sultan, and after his death, the Dutch acquired the book together with his other property and sold it at auction. Written on 29 October 1848 by Ahmad, the note reveals that:

  • 37 Temannya ini kitab satu bernama Fatḥ al-Ma‘ārīfa yang kedua namanya Kitab Shams al-Ma‘rīfah inda[h (...)

The companion of the first [text] in this book entitled Fatḥ al-Ma‘ārif is the second called Kitab Shams al-Ma‘rifa, which are beautiful in their contents written in Arabic and Malay, that is the book once belonged entirely to a king. The reason for this to come to Batavia is that his son brought it out of his country in disguise and then death came to him. That’s why this book was probably caught by the [VOC] company together with other treasures of Sultan Mahmud. Then, the company had brought the treasures of the sultan for sale. This book probably had been sold at auction together with other treasures, God knows. [Written on] Sunday 2 Dhū al-Ḥijja 1264, coinciding with 29 October 1848. That I, Aḥmad Bā Kathīr, truly had brought this book from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Aud and been asked to sell it, which then, had been purchased by ʿAbd al-Mujib Muhammad Zabidi for 18 (copper) rupiahs. With my signature in this book as below: Aḥmad b. Muhammad Bā Kathīr.37

32The above account resonates with the relegation of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II and his family, and their voyage to Batavia before banishment in Ternate. As with the looting of their family houses in Palembang, the seizure of property seemed to precede their exile, as the above note uncovers. The displacement and movements of the royal manuscripts through local and European agents to several institutions, as discussed above, have shaped colonial collections in several Indonesian and European institutions. But is there any part of the collection that escaped colonial collecting and remains in Palembang today?

Surviving manuscripts in Palembang

33The escape of the royal manuscripts from the palace to a lending library in the town (e.g. PNRI KBG 185) provides an indication of the move of literary activities from the royal house and aristocrats to village settlements on both sides of the Musi River, spatially and socially illustrating what could be called the “democratisation” of manuscript practices. The mid-19th to early 20th century witnessed the commercialisation of literary culture through lending libraries (Kratz 1977, 1980), which included the emergence of customised designs of illuminated pages (van der Putten 2022), and the advent of lithographic printing in 1848 (Proudfoot 1995; Peters 1995: 181–190). By the late 19th century, people in the town sent letters to family and friends on a daily basis (van der Putten 2003). Within these democratised and commercialised writing and reading practices, did the royal manuscript production and consumption survive at all? How did the Palembang aristocrats, either in their homeland or in exile, respond to this situation? Did they continue the literary practice they once had in the “golden age” of the kingdom?

34Digitised materials provided by the Endangered Archives Programme (EAP), Digital Repository of Endangered and Affected Manuscripts in Southeast Asia (DREAMSEA), and my own field visit in Palembang, suggest that, while some surviving royal manuscripts that have stayed in Palembang indicate that they escaped colonial collecting, royal family members continued to produce manuscripts after the abolition of the sultanate. Three kraton manuscripts in the Kemas Andi Syarifuddin’s collection include religious treatises on Sufism and Islamic jurisprudence (App. II, nos. 100–102), and comprise a tiny part of his collection of a hundred manuscripts he inherited from his grandfather, Kemas Haji Umar, a former khatib of Palembang in the late 19th to early 20th century. Inheriting manuscripts from his ancestors who were also in the same office, Haji Umar faced a difficult time under strict Dutch control over religious activities. Despite that, he established a learning centre (zawiyah) that was carried on by his descendants, together with a manuscript collection that he had safeguarded from the Dutch. Andi Syarifuddin discovered his family heritage in the late 1990s and began to undertake some necessary treatment to save and uncover what the collection contains. The royal manuscripts in his collection once belonged to Palembang princes, one of whom stated that he had donated the Kitāb al-ḥikam: “Sign of book donated by Raden Muhammad Zein, who is son of Raden Ismail son of the late Pangeran Nata Wikrama son of the late Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin” (Fig. 8). A similar learning centre housing royal manuscripts is the one that Said Alwi Assegaf inherited and now runs to the south of the Musi riverbank. This centre was used to facilitate the teaching and learning of Islam by the late Ahmad al-Habsyi, Alwi Assegaf’s father-in-law. Three royal manuscripts (App. II, nos. 106–108) inherited through this line of the Muslim scholars of Arab descent remind us of their important roles in 17th and 18th century manuscript culture Palembang (cf. van Sevenhoven 1823: 80).

35The most significant royal manuscripts, in terms of numbers and age, circulating in the Arab families in Palembang are a series of copies of al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. As mentioned earlier, the surviving 13 volumes of the kitab were completed between 1691/2 and 1695. We lack direct evidence of their move to the Arab families, except for van Sevenhoven’s note on the borrowing of royal manuscripts by Muslims scholars of Arab descent cited earlier. However, what we can gather from these extant manuscripts is their transfer of ownership much later in a purchase by a certain Sālim b. Saʿīd from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh on 4 March 1889 in Palembang. This acquisition was well documented in every single volume of the manuscript’s flyleaf, very consistently saying in Arabic: “[this] is transferred to the ownership of Sālim b. Saʿīd Bal‘ajam. He bought it from the estate of Sayyid Ḥusayn ibn ʿUmar Balfaqīh in the country of Palembang on the date 2 Rajab, year 1306” (Fig. 9).

Fig. 5 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn: ‘Alamat kitab Susuhunan Ahmad.

Fig. 5 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn: ‘Alamat kitab Susuhunan Ahmad.

Image courtesy of SOAS Library.

Fig. 6 – RAS Raffles Java 28 Wayang Purwa, p. 104: Bahwa ini ‘alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, tamat.

Fig. 6 – RAS Raffles Java 28 Wayang Purwa, p. 104: Bahwa ini ‘alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, tamat.

Image courtesy of The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland

Fig. 7 – Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt: ‘Alamat Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.

Fig. 7 – Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt: ‘Alamat Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.

Source: Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52. Creative Common license CC0 1.0.

Fig. 8 – Andi Syarifuddin’s Kitab Al-Ḥikam (DS 05 03): ‘Alamat kitab wakaf Raden Muhammad Zein ibn Raden Ismail ibn almarhum Pangeran Natawikrama ibn almarhum Paduka Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.

Fig. 8 – Andi Syarifuddin’s Kitab Al-Ḥikam (DS 05 03): ‘Alamat kitab wakaf Raden Muhammad Zein ibn Raden Ismail ibn almarhum Pangeran Natawikrama ibn almarhum Paduka Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.

Source: Digital Repository of Endangered and Affected Manuscripts in Southeast Asia, DS 0005 00003. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.

Fig. 9 – EAP 1454-2-4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd [1103 H (1691/2)].

Fig. 9 – EAP 1454-2-4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd [1103 H (1691/2)].


Note 1 (upper middle-left):
Ini milik as-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.
Note 2 (lower middle-left): ‘Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin ibn Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin ibn al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad al-Mansur ibn al-Sultan Susuhunan Abdul Rahman ibn al-Sultan Jamaluddin yang bertahta kerajaan di dalam Negeri Palembang Dar al-salam.
Note 3 (middle right): Intaqala ilā milk Sālim b. Saʿīd Balajam isytarahu min q-r-a-j t-r-k-t al-Sayyid Huṣayn b. ʿUmar Balfaqīh fī balad Palembang tarikh 2 Rajab sanat 1306.

Source: Endangered Archives Programme 1454/2/4. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.

36Another note consistently written in all the volumes reveals the previous owners from the royal family of Palembang. These notes retrospectively ascribe the ownership to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I. However, since the latest owner mentioned in the note is “Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin,” the note must have been written after the retirement of the sultan in 1819, when he would have assumed the title ‘Susuhunan’. Why was such a note of ownership added much later than the completion of the manuscript itself? What was it made for? As the commercialisation of manuscripts appears to advance in the second half of the 19th century, with the appearance of lending libraries and evidence of exchanges such as that between Sālim b. Saʿīd and Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh, a royal ownership sign might have added economic value to an already deluxe object. In March 2008, 11 of the 13 volumes were acquired by the provincial Museum Balaputra Dewa from a local antique shop in the town named Palembang Bari. However, the museum cannot disclose the name of the seller (the previous owner). Of 11 volumes (App. II, nos. 109–119), six have been digitised by the EAP project and are now accessible online, while the other five are kept in the museum’s storage. Moreover, the search for the remaining volumes in the series brought me to a private owner, Ahmad Syukri al-Habsyi, who inherited from his mother two volumes of this Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn (App. II, nos. 104–105). All the physical characteristics like binding style, handwriting, title and its layout, and notes on the ownership change, assert that these must stem from the same series of those kept at the museum.

37The surviving evidence of manuscript circulations among the people in Palembang suggests a resilience of writing practices, transmission of manuscripts, and continuation of the shaping of the library collection among the descendants of the royal family. The collection that is now inherited by Fauwaz Diradja, sultan of the revived Palembang Sultanate, contains some works authored by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II. Besides his brother, Pangeran Panembahan Bupati, who composed Malay syair, his grandson and the generations below also produced a number of works on religious subjects, royal genealogies, personal diaries, and literature, continuing and extending the literary tradition they had inherited. On extensive manuscript library (“groote boekerij”) and how the members of the royal family worked on literary practice, Roorda van Eysinga recorded that:

  • 38 De Sultan Mahmoed Badaroedien was een geleerde, schreef uitmuntend fraai en bezat eene groote boek (...)

Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin was a scholar, wrote excellently well and owned a large library, which he valued highly. There is, however, an interest in Malay writings in Palembang, which became apparent to me from the diligence of a prince who, having borrowed a work in the language from me, transcribed it in its entirety (Roorda van Eysinga 1823: 221–222).38

38The interest and spirit in working on Malay writings were still high even after the fall of the sultanate. In Sultan Badaruddin II’s lineage alone, a few works accumulated through generations and have been passed down to Fauwaz Diradja through his father, the late Muhammad Syafei Prabu Diradja (b. 1950–d. 2017). Raden Abdul Habib, Sultan Badaruddin’s grandson, one of the members of the royal family in exile, wrote several personal diaries and compiled some works on religious subjects, dating to the late 19th century. With all their limitation of resources in exile, these modestly produced manuscripts demonstrate skilled labour with beautiful signatures, as found in the works of Raden Abdul Habib, who then passed them on to his son, Raden Syarif. The manuscripts were not bound with a fancy cover, but with the same paper as the book block, woven and sewn with thread. An interesting example is a compendium manuscript by Raden Syarif’s daughter, Raden Ayu Sabihah, which shows a modest binding with the sewing of the quires with red thread. It was Raden Syarif who brought these manuscripts and his own works back from Ternate to Palembang with a detour to Singapore. This collection is currently deemed to be a significant inheritance for the descendants of the royal family, especially since the revival of the sultanate in 2007 (App. II, nos. 123–144). A contender to Sultan Fauwaz Diradja (Mahmud Badaruddin IV), Sultan Iskandar Mahmud Badaruddin, also owns a small collection of manuscripts, the provenance of which he declined to disclose. Three manuscripts in his collection are derived from the possession of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II and Dinayu (Raden Ayu) Rukayah (App. II, nos. 120–122).

39The long journey from Sumatra to Europe, and from exile back to Palembang, of the surviving manuscripts and documents from the Palembang royal library raise important questions. What does the collection as a whole reveal about Palembang manuscript culture and its position in Sumatra and the rest of the Malay world? The profile of the royal collection discloses the manuscript culture of Palembang and the impacts of colonialism on its royal manuscript library.

Reuniting the royal library collection

  • 39 Mang Win’s mother R.A. Galuh’s lineage goes back to Pangeran Adipati Banjar Kutomo, known as Raden (...)

40What remains of the royal library that has been identified is 144 manuscripts dispersed in institutional and private collections. This is a relatively small surviving number, given the probable original size of the royal library, from the descriptions of van Sevenhoven and Roorda van Eysinga. The royal residence and all the houses within the fort of Kuto Besak were destroyed in the 19th century. Oral stories recounted that the manuscripts were brought out on boats by people fleeing through Lawang Borotan, the back gate to the west of the fortified palace. One of the descendants of the royal family, Raden Weini Bastari, also known as Mang Win (b. 1954) whom I met in Palembang, described his mother’s room in the 1970s as full of books in locked shelves. He recounted that his mother, Raden Ayu Asia Galuh,39 always read the manuscripts and often referred to them when she was asked to heal someone ill. It was his mother who told and retold the stories of the escape of the manuscripts from the back gate. It is a pity that Mang Win’s wooden house and the books in it were completely destroyed by fire in 1980 in Palembang.

41The royal manuscripts have similar physical characteristics, which suggest a well-established practice of craftsmanship in bookbinding. Marije Plomp, who looked at the bookbinding traditions across Java and Sumatra, based her study on the Palembang style on a very small sample of two royal manuscripts, namely Cod. Or. 1895 and 1896 (Plomp 1993). Despite that, her findings of the Palembang bookmaking tradition are no less significant to scholarship. With many more Palembang bindings identified, my study suggests that the bookbinding style was a stable and long-lasting tradition, spanning from the 17th to the 19th century. The earliest examples, the manuscripts of Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn series made in 1691–1695 are bound with stamped decoration of brown reddish colour leather cover. The brown reddish itself may have been the official colour of the kingdom, as it was the colour of the seat and table cover used at the coronation of Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II (Wargadalem 2017: 75). These bindings are decorated with a diamond-shaped medallion in the centre with floral motifs. The medallion is surrounded by four small buds in four directions and four corner pieces (Figs. 1–4). These elements are framed by a rope-like border. This style seems to persist in the manuscripts produced in the 18th century (SOAS MS 11505, 12225), the early 19th century (Cod. Or. 7283), and even in the second half of the 19th century after the fall of the sultanate (Cod. Or. 1896 and 3375). This suggests that there might have been a bookbinding workshop in operation outside the palace, which continued to operate up to the late 19th century, when blue paper covers appeared (Cod. Or. 1895). This blue colour corresponds with the colour palette in the first two pages of some manuscripts like Cod. Or. 1895 and 1896 (cf. Gallop 2021). In the 1880s, the blue paper colour cover may have become popular and was very likely cheaper than leather, and hence, a preferable alternative for use in rental manuscripts in lending libraries (e.g. PNRI ML 514 and 515). While further research is needed on this, suffice it to say that there is a long-standing tradition of bookbinding in Palembang.

  • 40 Kemas Andi Syarifuddin explained that Raden Santri was grandson of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I.

42All the manuscripts in the royal library were owned by the members of the aristocratic family, including women (Raden Ayu Sabihah wrote and had her books bound). The owners of the royal manuscripts mostly come from the ruling royal lineage, which allows the inheritance of the collection through the line of sultanship. Although some owners are also from the branches that are close to the line of sultanship, including princes with certain political roles, titled pangeran, and first-rank aristocrats—sons of sultan and princes—titled raden. These include, for example, Pangeran Sutanandita ibn Susuhunan Husin Diauddin (Cod. Or. 6672), Pangeran Panembahan Bupati, Raden Santri,40 and Raden Abdul Habib ibn Pangeran Prabu Abdullah ibn Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II. From the line of sultanship, the oldest owner recorded is Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I Jayo Wikramo, who owned 13 manuscripts. As indicated, the passing of the manuscripts through the line of sultanship allowed their accumulation to form a collection. Excluding those who owned fewer than four volumes, below is the numerical comparison of manuscript owners.

Table 1 – The owners of Palembang royal manuscripts

Owners

Numbers

Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I Jayo Wikramo

13

Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin I (Susuhunan Ahmad)

4

Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin

27

Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II

38

Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II/Pangeran Adi Menggala

4

Pangeran Panembahan Bupati

4

Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin IV Prabu Anom

4

Raden Abdul Habib

5

43Of 144 volumes in this royal collection, only 22 have no mark or indication of ownership. In the context of lendable royal manuscripts indicated by van Sevenhoven, it makes sense that every owner marked his/her books. These signs of ownership may also indicate that books belonging to different owners living in the fortified quarter of Kuto Besak might have been stored together in the royal library. These owners are aristocrats who wrote themselves, as Roorda van Eysinga reported, or ordered a scribe to author or copy some works. The mention of a syair composed/authored by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II and his brother, Pangeran Panembahan Bupati, such as PNRI ML 5 and 10 seems to have been affirmed by Roorda van Eysinga who described the former as an excellent writer (cf. Roorda van Eysinga 1823: 221). While the anonymity of the royal scribes was not uncommon before the mid-19th century in the Malay world, Palembang is an exception with some mention of the royal scribes, such as Muhammad ibn Kemas Haji Ahmad and Kemas Fakhruddin.

  • 41 Dan adalah yang menyurat kitab ini, yang bernama Kiyai Mas Fakhruddini, dengan disuruh Pangeran Ra (...)

44Kemas Fakhruddin was an ulama and prolific author of his time. His works span adaptation of Arabic works and Malay, copies of, and Malay translation of some Islamic divination texts, historical literature, and religious treatises. Some examples are adaptation of texts including Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman (Bod Malay d.1), Malay translation of Futūḥ al-Shām (SOAS MS 11505), and Khawāṣṣ al-Qurʾān al-ʿazīm (PNRI ML 75). It is typical of Kemas Fakhruddin’s work to include a colophon with information about his patron. Some works indicate the name of prince: “and he who wrote this kitab is he whose name is Kiyai Mas Fakhruddin, as ordered by Crown Prince the son of His Majesty Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin” (SOAS MS 11505: 211).41 As the date of completion, “in the month of Safar on Friday 1183” (or June/July 1760 AD), is also recorded, there is no doubt that the crown prince is the one who would become Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. In the astronomical treatise called Kitab Ramal, that is an adaptation of the work of “Shaykh Shaddādiyya of Yaman,” a colophon states that the writing was “completed on Friday in the month of Ṣafar, 1175 Hijra” (or September 1761 AD), as requested by “the Crown Prince of the abode of Palembang” (Bod. Malay d.1: 18). Given the style of the colophon with rhymed verses and its layout, the handwriting, the patronage, and the similar date of completion—perhaps a Friday in Safar was considered an auspicious time, it is likely that this was written by Kemas Fakhruddin too. Other works by Kemas Fakhruddin, such as PNRI ML 75, attest to the patronage relationship between the scribe and the ruling family in manuscript production. For this treatise, Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin himself commissioned the Malay translation of the Arabic original with the same scribe. Fakhruddin states (PNRI ML 75: vi.b) that,

Sahibul kitab Paduka Sri Sultan
Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin ibn Sultan
Mahmud Badaruddin Palimban
Yang termasyhur beroleh kesempurnaan.

The owner of the kitab is His Majesty
Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin son of Sultan
Mahmud Badaruddin Palembang
who is reputable with excellency.

Dari karena itulah kerja ini
menyuruh hamba menyurat kitab ini
yang bernama Kitāb Khawāṣṣ al-Qurʾāni
kepada Kiyai Mas Fakhruddini.

From that this task came
an order to write this book
called
Kitāb Khawāṣṣ al-Qurʾān
to me Kiyai Mas Fakhruddin.

  • 42 Only codices are included in this statistical breakdown, which comprise 65% of the total surviving (...)

45Kemas Fakhruddin’s style of colophon uses syair in religious and technical treatises, as well as historical literature. Crossing the boundaries of genre—defined by form and content, e.g. rhymed poem, prosaic romance, expository religious treatise—appears to have been common in the royal manuscripts of Palembang. A close observation sheds light on the interaction between genres. MS Gabelentz 52, for example, consists of the Arabic devotional text Dalāʾil al-khayrāt, a collection of prayers, and tales related to the benefit one could obtain from reading the religious texts above. Some of Raden Abdul Aziz’s multiple-text manuscripts bring together religious treatises and the syair form (e.g. App. II, no. 135). Although we can categorise the royal manuscripts based on genres, we should consider their fluidity, and the dynamic interaction of genres within a single manuscript. Nevertheless, it is useful to consider the genre breakdown of the reconstructed collection, which is as follows:42

Chart 1 – Genre breakdown of the Palembang royal manuscripts.

Chart 1 – Genre breakdown of the Palembang royal manuscripts.

46This majority of religious treatises (kitab), 62%, confirms the new mapping that Annabel Gallop draws of manuscripts in insular Southeast Asia (Gallop 2020). This map asserts the importance of Islamic scholarship in manuscript production and the prominent role of ulama. While this may be expected in the context of an Islamic learning centre, the dominance of kitab appears to be the case in the royal collection of Palembang as well. This is even clearer if we include in it the 3% of Qur’an and 7% of technical treatises such as astronomy and divination, which all derive from the Islamic intellectual tradition. Even so, 72% overall is relatively low in the larger context of manuscript collections in insular Southeast Asia which survive in situ: “over ninety percent of manuscripts digitised by the EAP in Indonesia are Islamic in content” (Gallop 2020: 100). This dominance of kitab also seems to be the case of the collection of the libraries of Pangeran Jafar of Selangor and La Ode Zaenu of Buton respectively (Gallop 2025; Peacock 2023). This may be because of the relatively high numbers of literary texts in the Palembang royal collection, some of which came from Dutch scholars and officials such as Gramberg and van de Beele. Furthermore, the life of the royal court would have included literature; we have seen that the sultan and princes composed poems, and that they were aficionados of Malay and Javanese literature including wayang and syair texts. Leisure activities like listening to the gamelan orchestra, wayang, and syair recitation, and enjoying Javanese literature were the privileges of the ruling class of Palembang, distinguishing it from the rest of the population in the town.

  • 43 For more on interlinear translation in a didactic context with a case study of Palembang, see Ianko (...)

47As the ruling elites spoke Javanese in daily life, they also wrote and sent letters in Javanese for state affairs. Using Javanese as a marker of the aristocratic group, the ruling class of Palembang employed it in the statecraft and literature, such as moralistic text Niti Praja (RAS Raffles Java 31), as well as Panji and wayang stories (PNRI KBG 185, RAS Raffles Java 28 and 29). The familiarity of Javanese script, which developed its own local style, was indicated through the insertion of notes written in Javanese into a number of manuscripts written in Jawi and Arabic. Likewise, notes in Jawi are added to Javanese manuscripts, such as in Kitab Brama and Misa Cankramo (RAS Raffles Java 41). Another peculiar example is a legal text written in Arabic with Javanese interlinear translation, al-Muqadimma al- Ḥaḍramiyya, written in the Pegon scriptmodified Arabic for Javanese language (SOAS MS 12145). A few interlinear translations, Arabic with horizontally hanging Malay translation word-by-word, indicate the manuscript’s pedagogical purposes and the attempt to deliver Arabic texts to readers with no Arabic proficiency or to teach them the language while reading it with translation.43 Kemas Fakhruddin always clarified in the colophon of his Malay translation of the Arabic works that his aim was to provide understandable work for the beginner (mubtadi). When we situate this statement in the whole collection, it implies several groups of readers: those who read Malay texts including Malay translation of Arabic kitab, those who read Arabic texts with Malay or Javanese interlinear translation word-by-word or parallel translation paragraph-by-paragraph, and those who are able to read Arabic texts. Below is the proportion of texts by language in the royal collection, in which Malay (65 manuscripts) and Arabic (45) form the largest groups.

Chart 2 – Language grouping of the Palembang royal manuscripts.

Chart 2 – Language grouping of the Palembang royal manuscripts.
  • 44 Thanks to Zacky Khairul Umam for raising this issue when leading a discussion in the masterclass in (...)
  • 45 This occurs twice in the corpus of the Malay concordance project (MCP), both in the Palembang Krato (...)
  • 46 Only one occurred in the MCP’s corpus, which is from the Carita Bangka text, still associated with (...)
  • 47 This word occurred only two times in the MCP’s corpus, one of which is from the Palembang copy of S (...)
  • 48 Of 20 locations where this word occurred in the MCP’s corpus, 16 are from the Palembang Kraton Syai (...)

48The main point we can infer from this chart is the dynamic interaction and interrelation between languages in the royal manuscripts. It was the interactions between languages that allowed words from other languages to be adopted and localised. An example is the localised spelling of Arabic, such as w-k-f, instead of w-q-f for waqf (gift/donation) in the ownership statement of Kitāb al-ḥikam (Fig. 8).44 When we observe Malay literature in the royal collection, linguistic features that reflect a Palembang local register with substantial numbers of Javanese loanwords and Minang-Bengkulu spellings can support this claim. A comparative survey is useful to see the use of typically Palembang Malay across the Kraton manuscripts, such as the peculiar words isykal,45 kedengan46 (with), and pentingan.47 The adaptation of Javanese words largely used across the Palembang Kraton texts include berangta48 (love), walang (sad), lelewa (behaviour); and the nasalisation in verb formation by adding the prefix “ng” to root words such as ngiring (to escort/accompany), ngambil (to take), ngibur (to amuse), and ngarang (to compose/write up). Comparison of the kraton texts reveals that these words are in common use in the literary composition from the Palembang royal court (e.g. Cod. Or. 1896). Attention to the adaptation of Javanese words helps to identify a manuscript’s provenance. For example, the letters p-t-ng are read “pětang” (evening) in the edition of Syair Sinyor Kosta (Teeuw et al. 2004: 226, see q. 499), instead of “pětěng” (Jav. gloomy/dark), which makes more sense in the context of the quatrain: cannons firing in the naval battle between Sinyor Kosta and Cengku Kwitang smoke the air, making it dark. This has nothing to do with the time of the day. Below is my transcription and translation of the quatrain (Cod. Or. 1895: 73).

Asap bedil berkabutan,

sangat pĕtĕng di lautan,

bunyi meriam bersahutan,

kapal tidak kelihatan.

gun-smoke fogs the air,

it’s gloomy at sea,

cannons sound alternately,

ships are not visible.

49The influence of the Minang-Bengkulu spelling such as the words rabah (lie down), dakat (close), daras (swift/heavy), randang (meat curry), and berandam (to soak) are obvious in Jawi as the phoneme “a” in the first syllable is represented by alif. Ulrich Kratz (2006), who retained this kind of spelling in editing the letters sent to John Marsden by his mistress in Bengkulu, helps to uncover this linguistic feature, which is an essential means of locating the geographical origin of the manuscript. Whereas in the edition of Syair Sinyor Kosta, Teeuw et al. (2004) changes the phoneme “a” into “ě” (pepet), making them read rěbah, děkat, děras, rěndang, and berěndam. While this change appears very small and the original spelling would have been still understandable by modern readers familiar with the Indonesian language, it has removed the marker of a local linguistic variety.

50The above properties—linguistic to historical, literary to paratextual—describe the royal collection. They show the efficacy of studying manuscripts as a collection and serve as a basis to reconstruct Palembang’s intellectual tradition in the 17th to 19th centuries.

Tracing the intellectual culture and textual heritage of Palembang

51The question ‘where’ has led this investigation to follow the trajectory of the royal manuscripts of Palembang. It is that question that brings a spatial aspect to this study, tracing them back from their dispersed locations today to their place of origins in the Palembang palace library in the past. Traversing time, space, and society, the material, textual, and paratextual elements of the manuscripts are witnesses. They provide evidence of the changes of ownership and valuation of the manuscripts by various individuals as well as institutions, uncovering the social life of these objects (cf. Appadurai 2006). The manuscripts that once belonged to the royal family members of Palembang were displaced, looted, sold, and presented as war booty, commodities, and gifts from one person or institution to another. The manuscripts’ social lives reveal the social structure and values imbued to them at a certain time by a certain society, illuminating their changing contexts. Through considering all these factors in the case study of the Palembang royal library, this research brings new findings on the impacts of colonialism on manuscript culture in island Southeast Asia.

52The main contribution of this study is that it is the first to uncover unidentified royal manuscripts of Palembang and reconstruct the whole collection, advancing our understanding of the royal manuscripts from the earlier works by Drewes (1977) and Iskandar (1986). In addition, the study innovates methodologically by combining fieldwork and archival research, examining several institutional collections in Europe and Indonesia and private collections in Palembang, of both digitised manuscripts and the physical books. The reconstructed collection of the Palembang royal library also provides more insights not only on the impacts of colonial destruction (cf. Tol 1993), but also the roles of individual aristocrats in shaping manuscript collections (cf. Gallop 2025, Peacock 2022) and as patrons of literary production. With 144 items combining codex and document, the royal collection offers a basis for an overview of the intellectual culture of Palembang from the 17th to the 19th centuries.

53The Javanese manuscripts of Palembang indicate the influence of Javanese literary tradition in Sumatra, serving as a link to the Javanese origins of the ruling dynasty. Being instrumental in class-making and statecraft, Javanese writing practice produced important works of Javanese literature. With a number of Javanese words, Palembang Malay in literary works from the royal collection has its own unique characteristics. At the same time, the collection also implies an engagement with the literary works known in the Malay-speaking world. For example, the Palembang copy of Syair Sinyor Kosta attests to the connection of Palembang with other literary centres as well as having its own local distinctiveness that sets it apart from the other copies made in Penang and Riau. Malay was the language of Islamic scholarship in Palembang, as evidenced by the Malay translations of Arabic works that were produced there. The copying and translating of Arabic works serve as a witness to an established Islamic scholarly tradition, locating Palembang in the map of the Islamic world.

54This reconstruction of the royal library is the textual heritage of Palembang, where most of the manuscripts are little known, even to the descendants of the royal family. Speaking at an online public seminar in 2021, “Peluang pulang naskah Palembang” [Opportunity for the return of Palembang manuscripts], Sultan Fauwaz Diradja admitted that he knew very little about the royal manuscripts kept in Europe and hoped to learn more about it.49 While local cultural activists stimulate public discourse by drawing attention to the allegedly looted manuscripts from Palembang, Sultan Fauwaz has responded more cautiously. This seemingly hesitant approach may be related to the dual sultanship in the sultanate’s revival since 2007 to this day, which Sultan Iskandar emerged as a contender, and hence, any claim to be heir of the kingdom is contested. Meanwhile, cultural artefacts from Palembang were not among the 288 objects returned to Indonesia from the Netherlands in 2024, which are all from Bali and Lombok (Binswanger 2024). These dissonant voices represent the difficulty of dealing with such an issue. How then to deal with this heritage and colonial legacy? This article invites us to ask such questions about the reconstructed library and to reflect on how the legacy of colonialism may be dealt with, both in scholarship and in related practical fields.

Acknowledgement

55This article is based on my postdoctoral research project at SOAS University of London (2022–2025) as part of the Leverhulme Trust-funded Mapping Sumatra’s Manuscript Cultures. I sincerely appreciate Ahmad Subhan for his assistance, and Kemas Andi Syarifuddin, Sultan Fauwaz Diradja, Sultan Iskandar, Ahmad Syukri al-Habsyi, and Said Alwi Assegaf for their warm welcome and access to their manuscripts during my field research in Palembang. My gratitude also goes to several institutions including SOAS Library, Royal Asiatic Society (Edward Weech), Bodleian Libraries, British Library, Leiden University Library and Scaliger Institute (Marije Plomp, Sanne Hansler, the Special Collection team, and Kasper van Ommen), and Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia. This article was first presented at the “Colonialism and Manuscript Libraries of Island Southeast Asia” workshop at SOAS in May 2023. Thanks to all participants for their comments. I am deeply grateful to Mulaika Hijjas and Annabel Gallop for their constructive feedback on earlier versions of this paper, and to Jessica Rahardjo for help with the Palembang Arabic manuscripts. All mistakes and errors remain my own responsibility.

Appendix I – Tentative Chronological List of Palembang Rulers

56Chiefs under Majapahit overlordship

57including Ario Damar/Ario Dilah [1450s-1480s]

58| |

59Chiefs under Demak-Pajang and Mataram overlordship

60Pangeran Sido ing Lautan

61[1547-1552]

62|

63Ki Gede ing Suro Tuo

64[1552-1573]

65|

66Ki Gede ing Suro Mudo

67[1573-1590]

68|

69Ki Mas Adipati

70[1590-1595]

71|

72Pangeran Made ing Suko

73[1595-1629]

74|

75Pangeran Made Alit

76[1629-1630]

77|

78Pangeran Sido ing Puro

79[1630-1639]

80|

81Pangeran Sido ing Kenayan

82[1639-1650]

83|

84Pangeran Sido ing Pasarean

85[1651-1652]

86|

87Pangeran Sido ing Rajek

88[1652-1659]

89|

90Palembang as independent state

91The same king with different names:

92Ki Mas Hindi [1662-1675]

93From 1675, using the title ʽsultanʼ.

94From 1681, using different honorific titles:

95Sultan Jamaluddin [1681-1690]

96Sultan Abdurrahman [1690-1706]

97|

98Sultan Muhammad Mansur

99[1706-1714]

100|

101Internal conflict among Sultan Mansur’s sons: Pangeran Purbaya, Sultan Anom, and Pangeran Jayo Wikramo. Sultan Mansur appointed his brother as Sultan Agung Komaruddin to make peace. Pangeran Purbaya was killed a few days after coronation. With Dutch help, the sitting Sultan Anom was dethroned and outcasted by Pangeran Jayo Wikramo.

102[1714-1724]

103|

104Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I Jayo Wikramo

105[1724-1757]

106|

107Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin I Adi Kesumo

108[1758-1776]

109|

110Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin

111[1776-1804]

112|

113Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II

114[Apr. 1804-May 1812]

115[Jul-Aug 1813]

116[Jun. 1818-Dec. 1819]

117|

118Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II

119[May 1812-Jul. 1813]

120[Aug. 1813-Jun. 1818]

121|

122Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin III Pangeran Ratu

123[Dec. 1819-Jul. 1821]

124|

125Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin IV Prabu Anom

126[Jul. 1821-Oct. 1825]

127Sources: Roo de la Faille (2020 [1971]); UBL Or. 2276 C; Rahim (1998: 286–288); PNRI Br. 157 III.

Appendix II – Palembang Kraton Manuscripts List

128Digitised versions of the majority of these entries will be available at http://naskahsumatra.org

SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies) Library [3 items]

129The three Palembang Kraton manuscripts at SOAS library are part of William Marsden’s Malay manuscript collection. They were donated by Marsden’s widow to King’s College London in 1835 and then transferred to SOAS in 1916 upon the establishment of the school (Mulaika 2022: 9; Kratz 2006: 252).

1. MS 11505 Futūḥ al-Shām measures 20.5 × 15.5 cm, of English paper, in total 211 folios bound with reddish-brown and leather-wrapped stiff paper cover with stamped ornamentation. Folio 1r bears a note “From Sultan of Palembang’s palace 28th April 1812” signed by W.F.W. Owen. This manuscript contains a Malay translation of a part of the Arabic version of Mukhtaṣar Futūḥ al-Shām, which recounts the story of the conquest of Syria by the Muslims in the expedition led by Abū ʿUbayda ibn al-Jarrāḥ, during the rule of the caliph ʿUmar b. al-Khaṭṭāb. This translation was completed in the month of Ṣafar 1183 AH (June 1769 AD) by Kemas Fakhruddin upon the order of Pangeran Ratu of Palembang ibn Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin (f. 211r), who then became Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin (r. 1776–1804). Related sources include Drewes (1977: 199); Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop (2014: 155–156); Mulaika (2022). Consult the digitised manuscript: https://digital.soas.ac.uk/​MY00000001/​00001.

2. MS 12145 Masāʾil al-taʿlīm, also known as al-Muqadimma al-Ḥaḍramiyya, or Mukhtaṣar Bā Faḍl has the same reddish-brown leather cover with stamped ornamentation as MS 11505, but like MS 12225, it has an envelope flap. Formed of 122 folios of European paper, the manuscript measures 20.5 × 16 cm. It contains Arabic text with interlinear Javanese translation, which ends on f. 115r. This fiqh text begins with ṭahāra and ends with arkān al-ḥajj. The manuscript is similar to Berlin MS Ahlwardt no. 4601 titled al-Taʿlīm. See the digitised manuscript: https://digital.soas.ac.uk/​MY00000002/​00001.

3. MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn is formed of 177 folios of the same English paper with the same binding and size as MS 11505; f. 177v bears a mark of ownership: “Alamat kitab Susuhunan Ahmad,” (i.e. Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin I). The copying was completed in 1188 AH/1774 AD by a scribe named Ṭaha ibn Khaṭīb ʿAbd al-Muʾmin al-Muḥtāj. The writing is laid out as a text block measuring about 3/5 of the page, positioned on the right-hand side (recto) and on the left-hand side (verso) of the page, leaving 2/5 part that might have been reserved for marginalia—though this space is blank. The text is written in five lines per page with large space left for interlinear translation. This manuscript consists of two parts. First is Umm al-Barāhīn of al-Sanūsī with interlinear Malay translation (ff. 1v–27v), comprising three fundamental arguments or rationale in Islamic philosophy to understand the existence of God, his properties, and the prophets. Following the three rationales—wājib, mustaḥīl, and jāʾiz—there are some explanations of twenty of God’s properties known in Malay as sifat dua puluh. The second part of the manuscript is ff. 28v–117r, comprising an anonymous commentary in Arabic with an incomplete Malay interlinear translation running from ff. 28v to 37r. Consult the digitised manuscript partially available here: https://digital.soas.ac.uk/​MY00000003/​00001.

RAS (Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland) Library [32 items]

130The Javanese manuscripts in the Raffles’ collection at RAS were presented to the society by Lady Sophia Raffles on 16 January 1830. Some of the manuscripts have finger marks on the pages, indicating use in their original context of Palembang. The rest, that appear to be clean copies, have similar palaeographic features indicating Palembang provenance, which is a particular style of locally developed Javanese script, unusual to those familiar with the Javanese script developed in Java. The binding style of the manuscripts suggests that they might have been rebound in England.

4. Raffles Java 14 Caritanira Askandar Dul Karnen, consists of 293 p., English paper ‘GR’ 26 × 20 cm. This manuscript is written in Javanese script with a particular style associated with the royal court of Palembang (cf. RAS Raffles Java 19, 28, 29, 30, 31, 41). The first two pages are decorated in a gilt floral pattern. The text contains the story of Alexander the Great. The first episode recounts the meeting of Alexander with flies as big as mountains (cf. Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2014: 79; Gallop forthcoming).

5. Raffles Java 19 Dewa Mĕndu is made of European paper ‘LVG’ 26 × 20.5 cm, 175 p. The manuscript contains an incomplete Javanese translation of the popular romantic Malay narrative entitled Hikayat Dewa Mandu, and is dated i sakala warsa ning anulis, putra tanayeng tres ing narya (1191 AH /1777 AD [?]). This is probably a copy of a Palembang Kraton manuscript made for Raffles, judging from its clean pages. The f. 1v after end paper bears a title in Jawi, reading “Ini surat Dewa Mandu.” (cf. Drewes 1977: 199; Rahardjo 2018: 16; Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2004: 79); microfilm in Leiden For. A 19 (2). See the digitised manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-19-dewa-mendu/​

6. Raffles Java 28 Wayang Purwa measures 26.5 × 20.5 cm and is made of European paper with ‘LVG’ watermark, 323 p. These wayang stories consist of three parts: pp. 1–96 starts with Gatotkaca (A); pp. 105–312 begins with Sri Darmawangsa (B); and pp. 312–323 begins with Kresna (C). Each part was completed with different dates that are a hundred years apart, which are presumably the dates of the manuscripts from which they were copied. Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop (2014: 81) suggest that it is dated either 1691–1693 AH /1765–1767 AD or 1191–1193 AH /1777–1779 AD. A mark of ownership written in Jawi on p. 104 may support this dating. It indicates the owner, namely Pangeran Ratu (who then became Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II), reading “Bahwa ini alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, tamat.” See the digitised manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-28-wayang-purwa/​

7. Raffles Java 29 Wayang Gĕḍog, 173 pages of European paper ‘LVG’, 26 × 20 cm, bound with stiff paper cover, the same as Java 19, 28, 30, and 31. The opening pages appear on ff. 3v–4r where the page numbering in pencil starts. There is no illumination on these pages but the text runs in seven lines, forming a square shape approximately 8 × 8 cm. The text runs in 15 lines on pp. 3–172 and five lines on the last page (p. 173). The text begins with kang anyitreng tulis Purwa Kantja pralampita. Sri Bauwarna is mentioned at the beginning (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2014: 81; cf. Drewes 1977: 199). See the digitised manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-29-wayang-gedog/​

8. Raffles Java 30 Rama Kawi measures 26.6 × 21 cm, 231 p. European paper ‘LVG’ and same binding as the other Raffles Java manuscripts. On f. 4r, a note written in Jawi reads “Ini surat Ratu Rama.” f. 7v and f. 8r are the opening pages with a rectangular frame (appr. 8 × 10 cm) within which the text is written in Javanese script (7 lines). The page numbering (pp. 1–2) in pencil starts on these pages. On pp. 3–232, the text is written in 15 lines. On the last page (p. 233), the text runs in 5 lines. Rawana appears in the beginning. The manuscript is dated i sakala warseng nyitra guna lur kaswareng bumi, or 1730 Saka/1808 AD (cf. Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2014: 81; Drewes 1977: 199). See the digitised manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-30-rama-kawi/​

9. Raffles Java 31 Niti Praja (Kawi), 167 p., Dutch paper ‘VOC’, ‘J H & Zoon’, and measures 26 × 18.6 cm with the same binding as other Raffles Java manuscripts. This manuscript contains seventeen moralistic texts of varying length written by different copyists. Ff. 3v–4r are the opening pages and the page numbering in pencil starts (pp. 1–2) on the top corners. On the pp. 5–6, the text running in 7 lines, forms a square shape with inner and outer lines. From each side of the square a triangle is drawn, altogether shaping a diamond form. This form is within a square frame. On the pp. 7–166, the text runs in 15 lines and 7 lines on the last page (p. 167) (cf. Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2014: 81–82; Drewes 1977: 199). See the digitised manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-31-niti-praja-kawi/​

10. Raffles Java 41 Kitab Brama and Misa Cankramo consists of two unrelated parts. First is, as noted on the flyleaf, Kitab Brama and Misa Cankramo (pp. 1–69); and another part is a Malay text on astrology written in Jawi (pp. 70–79). The manuscript measures 21.5 × 13 cm, European paper, 79 p., and is bound in the same style of European binding as other Raffles Java manuscripts. On the pp. 1–60 the text is written horizontally, in parallel with the length of the paper, which may recall the layout of writing on palm leaves (Rahardjo 2018: 14). On the f. 4r, a note reads “Presented to the ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY by Lady Raffles Jan 16, 1830.” The opening pages (ff. 4v–5r) are illuminated with floral motif in the red, blue, yellow, gold, green, and dark green (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2014: 83; Drewes 1977: 199). See the manuscript: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-41-kitab-brama-and-misa-cankramo/​

131Several Javanese letters from some local chiefs in Palembang to their sultan might have been acquired from the royal library during the British attack in 1812 and then came to Raffles. See the digitised letters: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​ras-raffles-java-50-javanese-letters-including-to-the-sultan-of-palembang/​

11. Javanese 50 A, written in Palembang-style Javanese script, from Tumenggung Kartanagara to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin of Palembang concerning a meeting with the jendral [i.e. Governor-General] to deliver a letter from the sultan. Written on both sides of a single sheet of European paper: ‘HVH’, 40 × 22 cm. In the original envelope with seals (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve, and Gallop 2004: 84).

12. Javanese 50 B, written in Palembang-style Javanese script, from Pun Sastradinata and Pun Tribratangunu to the Sultan of Palembang concerning a meeting with the Governor-General to deliver a letter from the Sultan. A single sheet of European paper: ‘IVH’, ‘IV’, 53.5 × 42.5 cm (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve, and Gallop 2004: 84).

13. Javanese 50 C, written in Palembang-style Javanese script, from Kangjeng raka Pangeran Natawijaya to his kang rayi Kangjeng Pangeran Ratu of Palembang, acknowledging the receipt of a letter sent to Jambi. Single sheet of European paper: ‘KH’, 39.5 × 25 cm. Seal of Pangeran Natawijaya in upper left-hand corner (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve, and Gallop 2004: 84).

132A number of Malay letters from Malay sultans, Dutch and English generals were sent to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin between the 1770s and the 1780s. These letters “were probably captured there [in Palembang] in 1812 AD; the whole collection may have come from Raffles” (Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop 2004: 155). As Ricklefs, Voorhoeve and Gallop (2004: 153–155) noted, some Malay letters from the VOC are said—according to Dutch notes on their envelopes—to have Dutch copies enclosed. However, this is not the case for Malay 142 G, H, J, K, N, O, P, Q, and R. Consult the letters here: https://royalasiaticcollections.org/​mm_malay_142a_1-letter-from-the-lieutenant-governor-of-penang-to-the-raja-of-trengganu/​.

14. Malay 142 C. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin of Palembang, year 1781. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 171 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

15. Malay 142 D. Malay letter from Admiral J.P. van Braam to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 4 July 1784. Explaining the Dutch attack on Raja Haji for having taken up arms against the VOC. One sheet of Dutch paper: ‘J Honig & Zoonen’, 45.5 × 27.5 cm. Seal and signature of van Braam in upper left-hand corner. Yellow silk envelope.

16. Malay 142 E. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 4 December 1783. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 50 × 28.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope, together with F.

17. Malay 142 F. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 16 December 1783. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 50 × 28.5 cm. In the same yellow silk envelope as E. Dutch copy in T below.

18. Malay 142 G. Malay letter, from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 15 September 1783. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Three sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 48.5 × 28.5 cm, 41.5 × 28.5 cm, 46.5 × 28.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

19. Malay 142 H. Malay letter, from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 30 July 1784. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Three sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 47.5 × 28 cm, 45 × 28 cm, 47.5 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

20. Malay 142 I. Malay letter, from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, August 1778. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Two sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border (originally pasted together as one sheet), 39.5 × 33 cm, 40.5 × 33 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

21. Malay 142 J. Malay letter from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 3 June 1780. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 50 × 28.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

22. Malay 142 K. Malay letter from Governor-General W. A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 22 June 1784. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Two sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border (originally pasted together as one sheet), 47.5 × 28 cm, 25 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

23. Malay 142 L. Malay letter from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 24 October 1777. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 43.5 × 33 cm. The left-hand edge is damaged. Yellow silk envelope.

24. Malay 142 M. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 16 August 1782. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 90 × 27.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

25. Malay 142 N. Malay letter from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 7 May 1779. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 49 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

26. Malay 142 O. Malay letter from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 14 September 1779. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 50 × 28.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

27. Malay 142 P. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 9 April 1782. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 48.5 × 27.5 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

28. Malay 142 Q. Malay letter, as above, 30 April 1785. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Two sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border (originally pasted together as one sheet), 46.5 × 28 cm, 45.5 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

29. Malay 142 R. Malay letter, as above, 16 September 1785. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. Two sheets of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 48.5 × 28 cm. Yellow silk envelope.

30. Malay 142 S. Malay letter from Governor-General Reynier de Klerck and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 17 June 1778. Damaged seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 43.5 × 33 cm.

31. Malay 142 T. Dutch letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 16 December 1783. The Malay copy can be found in F above.

32. Malay 142 U. Malay letter from Governor-General W.A. Alting and Council of the Indies in Batavia to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 10 September 1782. Seal of VOC in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of paper with gilt flowers and floral border, 50 × 28 cm.

33. Malay 142 V. Malay letter from Sultan Abdul Jalil Rahmat Shah ibn Sultan Muhammad Shah to the Sultan of Palembang, 1181 AH [1767 AD], asking for assistance and gunpowder. Seal in upper right-hand corner. One sheet of European paper: ‘LVG’, 41 × 26 cm. Another copy in the Malay 142 Y.

34. Malay 142 AA. Malay letter from Admiral J.P. van Braam to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, 16 May 1784/1198 AH. One f. Dutch paper: ‘J Honig & Zoonen’, 37.5 × 23 cm. Red lacquer seal.

35. Malay 142 HH. Malay letter from Pangeran Dipaningrat (apparently then at Muarakayung, Sukadana [W. Borneo]), an uncle of the Sultan of Palembang, to Pangeran Ratu of Palembang. Apparently Dipaningrat was ordered by the Sultan of Palembang to set up an administration of Sukadana in accordance with the wishes of a tuan besar [a European official] in Mampawah, who said it should if necessary be done by force. Not being in good communication with the (pretender) Sultan of Sukadana because of a previous affront, Dipaningrat therefore asked Pangeran Ratu for the help of a Sayyid ʿAydarūs and of Pangeran Kusumadilaga and Pangeran Kusumadinata. He did not come to Palembang himself because the people of Muarakayung would not let him go. One sheet of European paper: ‘SCK’, 42.5 × 27.5 cm.

British Library [2 items]

133Two letters from the Dutch VOC and T.S. Raffles’ agent in Melaka addressed to Palembang sultans may stem from the collection of letters above, having been acquired from the royal library of Palembang by the British and going to India Office Library in London through Raffles. They ended up in the British Library as detailed below.

36. Eur D 742/1, ff. 58 Ar-Br. Malay letter from the Governor of VOC Reynier de Klerck to Sultan Mahmud Bahauddin in Palembang, dated 15 August 1780. See the transcription and the English translation of this letter in Ahmat Adam (2009: 235–241).

37. Eur D 742/1, f. 56r-57v. Malay letter from Raden Muhammad to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin, dated 9 Dhū al-Ḥijja 1225/5 January 1811. See the transcription and the English translation of this letter in Ahmat Adam (2009: 249–253).

Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford [1 item]

38. MS Malay d.1 Collection of divination texts, including Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman. Has a beautiful light brown stiff paper cover with gold stamped ornamentation, bound in the same style with an envelope flap as SOAS MS 12145. With Dutch paper ‘VOC’, ‘J H & Zoon’, the manuscript measures 16.6 × 20.3 cm. The content of this manuscript consists of astronomical data and calculation with tables and charts (ff. 11v–14r); dates on which the sun enters the sign of the zodiac (f. 14v); and the Arabic work of divination “kitab ramal” entitled Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman by “Shaykh Shaddādiyya namanya negeri Yaman tempat kediamannya” or Ibn Shaddād al-Ḥimyarī (ff. 18r–74r), comprising circle diagrams and tables with the Arabic and Malay words. Meanwhile most of the folios are blank (ff. 74v–162). On the f. 18r, the anonymous scribe states that he worked on this writing in 1187 AH/1761 AD, “daripada suruh ibn al-Sultani, Pangeran Ratu negeri Palimbani” implying on the commission by Pangeran Ratu of Palembang (who then became Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin). The manuscript was presumably part of the collection of William Marsden but was subsequently acquired by Dr William Curran. The Bodleian Library acquired the manuscript through the sale of Dr Curran’s library at the auction house Puttick & Simpson on 20 May 1892 at the price £2.6.2.

GS (General Secretariat of the Netherlands Indies Government) [15 items]

134After Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin’s defeat by the Dutch in 1821, Palembang became the seat of Dutch representative. Having been appointed as a Dutch Commissioner (November 1821–December 1823), van Sevenhoven hunted for the sultan’s treasures and confiscated 55 manuscripts and sent them to the General Secretariat in Batavia. This added to the collection at the Secretariat, numbering 91 volumes (Voorhoeve 1980). Van der Tuuk summarised 32 out of 91 manuscripts written in his notebooks (now UBL Cod. Or. 3300 and 3301), of which 22 came from the Palembang Kraton. Of these 22 manuscripts, seven were transferred to the Batavia Society and are now kept at PNRI, and the remaining 15 volumes, no longer extant, are detailed below.

39. GS 3 Hidāyāt al-ḥabīb fi-l-targhīb wa-l-tarḥīb was a copy of work by Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī and once belonged to Raden Bangka (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 261–264; cf. Iskandar 1986: 68). This manuscript was made of European paper, “two-fingers thick”, and was “shabby and worm-eaten” (Voorhoeve 1980: 72).

40. GS 4 Kitāb al-ḥikam and Fatḥ al-raḥmān belonged to Susuhunan Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 260–261) who was known as Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin I. This manuscript was made of European paper, “one-finger thick”, and consisted of two texts (Voorhoeve 1980: 72). First was a Malay translation of Ibn ʿAṭāʾillāh’s Kitāb al-ḥikam. Second was Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī’s commentary on Raslān al-Dimashqī’s Risāla fī ’l-tawḥīd, entitled Fatḥ al-raḥmān (Drewes 1977: 205).

41. GS 5 Al-Durr al-naẓīm was a Malay translation of the Arabic work by Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Suhayl al-Jawzī ibn al-Khashshāb (Drewes 1977: 205). This manuscript was owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 258–259); made of European paper, “three-fingers thick” (Voorhoeve 1980: 72).

42. GS 7 The Sanusi creed was a “one-finger thick” manuscript made of European paper (Voorhoeve 1980: 72). It belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 271–272).

43. GS 9 ʿUddat al-ḥiṣn al-ḥaṣīn was a Malay translation of the work by Ibn al-Jazarī (d. 833 AH/1429 AD) and once belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Ratu Muhammad Bahauddin (Drewes 1977: 206, UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 265–271).

44. GS 10 was a Malay translation of the work entitled Shams al-āfāq fī ʿilm al-ḥurūf wa-l-awfāq by al-Bisṭāmī (d. 858 AH /1454 AD) (Drewes 1977: 206, Voorhoeve 1980: 72). However, van der Tuuk and Iskandar listed it as Asrār al-ḥurūf, owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 265, Iskandar 1986: 68).

45. GS 11 Muḥammad b. Usāma’s notes had an ownership note reading “alamat kitab Mas Ayu Ilir daripada Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin” (Iskandar 1986:68, UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 272v).

46. GS 13 consisted of three texts by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī (Drewes 1977: 206), namely a) Daqāʾiq al-ḥurūf published by A.H. Johns (1955: 55–73, 138–58); b) Aghmaḍ al-masāʾil, partly found in the MS GS 18; and c) Kifāyat al-muḥtājīn, whose synopsis can be found in Rinkes’ thesis (1909: 39–42, as cited in Drewes 1977: 206). The owner of the manuscript was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin (UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 19–21; cf. Iskandar 1986: 69).

47. GS 17 Sayr al-sālikīn was a work by ʿAbd al-Ṣamad al-Palimbānī (UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 1–13, Drewes 1977: 206, Iskandar 1986: 69, Voorhoeve 1980: 73).

48. GS 23 Surat bintang or Hisab bintang (Voorhoeve 1980: 73) was once in the possession of “Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin ibn Sultan Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin ibn Sultan Mahmud al-Mansur ibn Sultan Susuhunan Abdurrahman” (Iskandar 1986: 69: cf. Drewes 1977: 206, UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 54–60).

49. GS 24 was a copy of Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī’s Asrār al-insān and once belonged to Pangeran Arya Muhammad Zainuddin ibn Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (Drewes 1977: 206, Voorhoeve 1980: 73, Iskandar 1986: 69, UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 22–24).

50. GS 34 was a copy of ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī’s ʿUmdat al-muḥtājīn; was copied from the BnF Mal. Pol. 104 housed in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris (Drewes 1977: 207). It stemmed from Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin’s collection shipped by van Sevenhoven to Batavia in 1822 (Drewes 1977: 207, Voorhoeve 1980: 74, UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 238–240).

51. GS 39 Durrat al-farāʾiḍ bi-sharḥ al-ʿaqāʾid was a copy of a work by Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī (Drewes 1977: 207). This manuscript was owned by Pangeran Jayakrama walad Pangeran Ratu (UBL Cod. Or. 3300, pp. 256–257), measuring “65 double pages” made of European paper (Voorhoeve 1980: 74).

52. GS 40 Hikayat Nabi Musa consisted of 80 double pages made of Chinese paper, and was copied by a certain Abdulkadir (Voorhoeve 1980: 74). The owner of the manuscript was mentioned in a note as “Pangeran Jayakrama walad Pangeran Ratu” (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 254–255).

53. GS 44 was a Malay translation of Sabīl al-hidāya wa-l-rashād by a sayyid from Terim, Aḥmad b. al-Ḥasan b. Abdallāh al-Ḥaddād (Drewes 1977: 207), and once belonged to “Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Bahauddinˮ (Iskandar 1986: 69, UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 60–68). Drewes (1977: 207) states that PNRI W 42 is probably a copy of it, and the Leiden S.H. 98 is a copy of W 42.

PNRI (Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia) [22 items]

135Another tranche of the Palembang Kraton manuscripts to Batavia came through the Khatib Imam of Palembang, Kiagus Haji Abdul Malik, who presented four Arabic works to the Batavia Society in 1875 (Drewes 1977: 201–202; Iskandar 1986: 60–70). These manuscripts entered the collection of the Batavia Society and are listed in van Ronkel (1913) under the numbers 55, 106, 157, and 296. They remained in the society’s museum collection until it became the library of Museum Pusat in Jakarta, and were transferred to Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia (PNRI). They are now categorised as Arabic manuscripts (A 160–163).

54. A 160 Anwār al-tanzīl wa-asrār al-taʾwīl was previously part of the Batavia Society’s manuscript collection, BG CLX (van Ronkel 1913: 17; Drewes 1977: 202; Iskandar 1986: 70). It has 355 pages and is an incomplete copy of al-Bayḍāwī’s commentary on the Qur’an (cf. Behrend 1998: 7). A note ascribes its ownership to “Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.” See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=934856

55. A 161 Idrāk al-ḥaqīqa fī takhrīj aḥādīth al-ṭarīqa was listed as BG CLXI (van Ronkel 1913: 61–62; Iskandar 1986: 70). This is the work by ʿAlī b. Ḥasan b. Ṣadaqa al-Miṣrī written in 1640, containing a 403-page survey of the tradition mentioned in al-Ṭarīqa al-Muḥammadiyya, a collection of sermons and homilies by Turkish preacher and scholar Meḥmed b. Pīr ʿAlī Birgivī (or Birgili) (Drewes 1977: 202; cf. Behrend 1998: 7). A note states that this manuscript was owned by “Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin,” but another note states “Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Husin Dhiauddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin” as the owner.

56. A 162 ʿUmdat al-murīd li-Jawharat al-tawḥīd is dated 1060 AH /1650 AD and is a copy of Burhan al-Dīn Ibrāhīm al-Laqqānī’s own commentary on his Jawharat al-tawḥīd. This Palembang manuscript was copied a few decades after the death of the author in 1041 AH / 1631 AD. The manuscript copy consists of 819 pages and was previously part of the Batavia Society’s collection, numbered BG CLXII (van Ronkel 1913: 90, Drewes 1977: 202, Iskandar 1986: 70, Behrend 1998: 7). An ownership statement states: “kitab ʿUmdat al-murīd milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Muhammad Bahauddin,” while another ascribes it to Sri Susuhunan Ratu Husin Dhiauddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=935255

57. A 163 Kitāb al-adhkār li-l-Nawawī wa-hilyat al-abrār contains guidance on devotional practice and conduct according to the sunnah. This is a copy of the work by Imām Yaḥyā b. Sharaf al-Nawawī (d. 676 AH / 1278 AD), who is a renowned author for his works including Minhāj al-ṭālibīn and Kitab al-arbaʿīn. This manuscript, consisting of 1,014 pages, was part of the Batavia Society’s manuscript collection and was listed under BG CLXIII (van Ronkel 1913: 177: Drewes 1977: 202; Iskandar 1986: 70; Behrend 1998: 7). Ownership statements contradict one another; while one states “kitab al-Adhkār milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin”, another says that this is “kitab Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin.” See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=935258

136Some other manuscripts came to the Batavia Society through a Dutch Commissioner in Palembang. The commissioner is not mentioned by name, though he was probably a member of the society. These four Javanese manuscripts are of Palembang origin and were once in the collection of the society’s library. They are currently kept at the Indonesian National Library, PNRI, listed as CS 104 and KBG 182, 185, 187.

58. CS 104 Jayalěngkara Wulang (Sunyawibawa) consists of 106 pages and was once in the possession of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. The summary of the content of this manuscript is reviewed by Poerbatjaraka (1950: 17–25, as cited in Drewes 1977: 202). One manuscript in Brandes’ collection at PNRI, Br. 76, titled Jayalengkara Sunyawibawa is a copy of this manuscript, made when it was at the Batavia Society in the 1890s (Behrend 1998: 71). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=287102

59. KBG 182 Amir Hamzah/Menak contains parts of the Javanese Menak stories. According to Poerbatjaraka (1940: 36–38, as cited in Drewes 1977: 203), its use of the Javanese language is “very attractive” and of a high standard from a poetic viewpoint. “The story begins with the siege of Selan and ends with Umarmaya sneaking into bivouac of Jobin” (Drewes 1977: 203). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=602925

60. KBG 185 Panji Palembang once belonged to a Palembang prince, Pangeran Adi Menggala (later Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II), who ordered it to be copied in 1723 Saka / 1801 AD (Drewes 1977: 203). The content of this manuscript was reviewed by Poerbatjaraka, who identified its language as East Javanese and described the text as “the most perfect specimen of all the Panji stories known to him” (in Drewes 1977: 203). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=55967

61. KBG 187 Amir Hamzah/Menak. This manuscript is almost identical to BG Jav 182 although the script and the spelling of this manuscript seem older than that manuscript (Drewes 1997: 203). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=602659

137The other Palembang Kraton manuscripts at PNRI are 7 volumes that were part of the 55 manuscripts sent by van Sevenhoven to the Department of Native Affairs at the General Secretariat (GS) of the Netherlands Indies Government. These volumes are part of the 22 Palembang royal manuscripts inspected and summarised by van der Tuuk (UBL Cod. Or. 3300 and 3301), and listed by Voorhoeve (1980), namely PNRI A 206, ML 75, 119, 120, 121.

62. A 206 Al-Durr al-manẓūm fī bayān al-sirr al-maktūm, also called qasīda and ascribed to al-Ghazālī, once belonged to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, and came to the General Secretariat numbered GS 37 as listed by van der Tuuk (UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 46–50). This 120-page manuscript was then transferred to the collection of the Batavia Society, categorised as an Arabic manuscript numbered BG Ar. CCVI (van Ronkel 1913: 495; Drewes 1977: 204, Voorhoeve 1980: 74). It is under this number that the manuscript entered the PNRI collection. See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=935303

63. ML 75 Khawāṣṣ al-Qurʾan al-ʿazīm, previously GS 12, is Kemas Fakhruddin’s Malay translation of the Arabic work by Aḥmad b. Muḥammad al-Tamīmī, transferred to Batavia Society under BG Mal. 75 (Voorhoeve 1980: 72; van Ronkel 1909: 359–370). This 343-page manuscript belonged to “Sultan Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin ibn Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin Palimban” (UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 24–36). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=430240

64. ML 117 Kitāb al-fawāʾid was previously GS 46 and once belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II. This was not part of van der Tuuk’s list of manuscripts at General Secretariat as it had already been transferred to the Batavia Society and renumbered BG Mal.  117 (Voorhoeve 1980: 74; cf. van Ronkel 1909: 389–390). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=567425

65. ML 118 Ṣirāṭ al-mustaqīm, a work of fiqh in Malay by Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī. This manuscript was copied in 1167 AH / 1753 AD and was owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (cf. Drewes 1977: 204). A note on f. 1r reads: “Alamat kitab Ṣirāṭ al-mustaqīm milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin [...]”. Formerly GS 51, this manuscript was sent to the Batavia Society and renumbered BG Mal. 118 (Voorhoeve 1980: 75; van Ronkel 1909: 375–376). It was then transferred to PNRI, numbered ML 118 (Behrend 1998: 282). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=567426

66. ML 119 Jawāhir al-ʿulūm fī kashf al-maʿlūm, European paper, 19 × 15 cm, 230 p., is a copy of the work by Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī, and once belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (Iskandar 1986: 69, UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 36–41). This was previously GS 14, which was sent to the Batavia Society numbered Mal. 4, then became Mal. 119 (Voorhoeve 1980: 73; van Ronkel 1909: 404). The manuscript was transferred to the PNRI and renumbered to ML 119 (Behrend 1998: 282).

67. ML 120 Kitāb al-mukhtaṣar, European paper ‘Pro Patria’, 31 × 20 cm. It was previously GS 20, transferred to the Batavia Society, numbered BG Mal. 120 (Voorhoeve 1980: 73). The manuscript contains a summary of the work on Sufism by Raslān al-Dimashqī and Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī’s commentary on Raslān al-Dimashqī’s Risāla fī ’l-tawḥīd, entitled Fatḥ al-raḥmān (Voorhoeve 1980: 73; van Ronkel 1909: 432). This is a work by Kemas Fakhruddin, and the manuscript once belonged to Raden Kamaluddin ibn Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin (Iskandar 1986: 69, UBL Cod. Or. 3301: 21–22). After the transfer to PNRI, the manuscript is numbered ML 120. See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=578794

68. ML 121 Baḥr al-ʿajāʾib, European paper, 19.5 × 16 cm, 312 p. This work by Muḥammad b. al-Marḥūm Aḥmad al-Palimbānī is also known as Asrār al-ḥurūf (Voorhoeve 1980: 72). This manuscript was owned by “Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin” (UBL Cod. Or. 3300: 259–260). Previously numbered GS 6, it was sent to the Batavia Society and became BG. Mal. 121 (Voorhoeve 1980: 72), and is currently PNRI ML 121 (cf. van Ronkel 1909: 447).

138Several other manuscripts now kept at the PNRI originated from the Batavia Society, which acquired them in 1866 through its associate member Jan Simon Gerardus Gramberg. Gramberg had collected these manuscripts during his service in the colonial administration in Palembang in 1863. After Indonesian independence, Lembaga Kebudayaan acquired the Society’s collection in 1950, which was subsequently transferred to Museum Nasional in 1962. The Gramberg collection of the former Batavia Society came to the National Library in 1980 upon its establishment. The manuscripts below, namely ML 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, are from the Palembang Kraton.

69. ML 5 Hikayat Martalaya, European paper, ‘Concordia’, 20 × 32 cm, 136 p. The hikayat recounts the story of Raja Indra Bayu and his twin children, Indra Bayu and Dewi Indra Kumala Ratna. The authorship of this incomplete hikayat is attributed to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin, and its language suggests a Palembang origin (Drewes 1979: 226). This manuscript is described in the catalogues by van Ronkel (1909: 74–75) and Nurita et al. (2019: 5). Due to its poor condition, the manuscript is not accessible except for its microfilm copy, which has been digitised: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=441799.

70. ML 7 Syair kumbang dan melati, European paper, 16 × 20 cm, 23 p., is a narrative poem recounting a conversation between a bumblebee (kumbang) and a jasmine flower (melati). The text is incomplete, lacking an ending, and its author is unknown (Drewes 1977: 200). See van Ronkel (1909: 351–352) for a summary. The illuminated opening pages and the handwriting style are similar to those of Syair Sinyor Kosta (UBL Cod. Or. 1895) and Syair Mambang Jauhari (UBL Cod. Or. 1896), suggesting a common origin. This type of syair is not uncommon in the Palembang Kraton (e.g. Syair kembang air mawar and Syair nuri). For another copy, see PNRI W 239. Consult the digital copy: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=441801

71. ML 8 Syair nuri, European paper, 16 × 21 cm, 56 p., was previously BG Mal 8 (van Ronkel 1909: 353–354). The syair recounts the story between a sea bird (simbangan) and a parrot (nuri). It begins when the simbangan flies over a town and encounters the nuri. Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin is mentioned as the author of this narrative poem. An edition of this syair was published by Yusmari Yusuf (1976).

72. ML 9 Syair patut delapan, European paper, 15 × 21 cm, 10 p., is an incomplete didactic poem on Islamic teachings and a reflection on the events that led to the defeat of the Palembang Sultanate. It mentions Pangeran Panembahan Bupati (brother of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin) as its author. The manuscript was copied in 1866. The first quatrain reads: “Awal tersurat satu rencana, tamsil ibarat kaku tak kena, peri darurat gundah gulana; pengibur ghairat fakir yang hina.” The content was summarised by van Ronkel (1913: 357). Other related sources are Drewes (1977: 201) and Nurita et al. (2019: 9). See the digitised manuscript: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=441803.

73. ML 10 Syair kembang air mawar, European paper, ‘Concordia’, 14 × 18 cm, 36 p., contains a narrative poem recounting the story of a birdʼs love for a rose. The authorship of the text is attributed to Pangeran Panembahan Bupati (Drewes 1977: 201; Iskandar 1996: 432–433). Another copy of this syair is held in Leiden among the manuscripts of a Banten sheikh, having entered the library through Snouck Hurgronje. It is catalogued as UBL Cod. Or. 5641, pp. 2v–11r (Syair bunga air mawar). A slightly different version is UBL Kl. 175 (18v–28r) (Syair bunga air mawar). The Klinkert manuscript was owned by a certain Ibrahim in Tanjung Pinang, Riau, and was a copy made by himself, commencing on 17 Jumādā al-Awwal 1255 AH / 26 July 1865. See the digitised copy of ML 10: https://khastara.perpusnas.go.id/​koleksi-digital/​detail/​?catId=441804

74. ML 11 Sejarah Palembang, 21 × 17 cm, 116 p., was previously in the Batavia Society’s collection, BG 11, and is recorded in the Society’s minutes of 1 February 1866 (van Ronkel 1909: 264). A note reads: “disuruh cari oleh Sri Rama”, and the manuscript is said to be a “Palembang Legend” (ibid.). Access to the manuscript is restricted due to its poor condition, so we can only rely on van Ronkelʼs description.

75. ML 22 Pantun Sultan Badruddin, 60 × 11 cm, was acquired by the Batavia Society from Palembang, recorded in the Society’s minutes of 30 October 1866, and numbered BG 22 (1909: 356). It is said to have gone missing at PNRI and cannot be found in the most recent catalogue by Nurita et al. (2019). However, it was previously catalogued by van Ronkel (1909: 356), Drewes (1977: 201), and Behrend (1998: 280, 563).

UB Leipzig (Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig/Leipzig University Library) [1 item]

76. MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt measures 18.6 × 11.4 cm, with text block measuring 11.2 × 5.8 cm, written in 11 lines (1v–102r) and 13 lines (106v–456r) per page. It is bound in a stiff cover of reddish-brown colour, decorated with gold-stamped ornamentation. The manuscript consists of two parts: a) an Arabic work, Dalāʾil al-khayrāt wa-shawāriq al-anwār fī dhikr al-ṣalāh ʿalā al-nabī al-mukhtār by Muḥammad b. Sulaymān al-Jazūlī (pp. 1v–102r); and b) a collection of ṣalawāt and prayers in Arabic with commentary in Malay (pp. 106v–456r). There are illustrations of Mecca (15v) and Medina (16r). Page 1r bears an owner’s mark that reads “alamat Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.” As this mark indicates, the manuscript belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II until 1822 and may have come into the possession of Philippus Roorda van Eysinga between 1822 to 1831 during his appointment in Palembang. Upon his return to Holland in 1830, Roorda van Eysinga gave this manuscript to Hendrik Arent Hamaker in January 1831. It remained in Hamaker’s collection until it was transferred to Hans Conon von der Gabelentz in 1843 (for more details, see Wiessmüller 2012). The manuscript was then presented to the Leipzig University Library. Consult the digitised manuscript: https://www.qalamos.net/​receive/​DE15Book_manuscript_00012173

BnF (Bibliothèque nationale de France / National Library of France, Paris) [1 item]

77. Mal. Pol. 104 ʿUmdat al-muḥtājīn, European paper, 20 × 13.5 cm, 138 p., is a treatise by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī on mysticism. This 18th century manuscript once belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin of Palembang and his wife, called “Mas Ayu Ratu” (Voorhoeve 1973: 61). The manuscripts PNRI W 41 and UBL Cod. Or. 1930 are copies of Mal. Pol. 104, probably made in Batavia after it arrived at the General Secretariat. Mal. Pol. 104 was likely brought by Roorda van Eysinga, who then took it with him when he returned to the Netherlands. It was subsequently transferred to Paris (cf. Drewes 1977: 207). See the digitised manuscript: https://gallica.bnf.fr/​ark:/12148/​btv1b10088027v/​f70.item

UBL (Universiteitsbibliotheek Leiden / Leiden University Library) [20 items]

139Several trajectories brought Palembang Kraton manuscripts to the Leiden University Library, involving both local intermediaries and Dutch officials. Through these channels, manuscripts came into the hands of Dutch scholars such as van der Tuuk, Snouck Hurgronje, and Roorda van Eysinga.

78. Cod. Or. 1895 Syair Sinyor Kosta, Dutch paper, ‘Eendracht’ ‘VDL’, 19.5 × 15.5 cm, 296 p., is one of several copies of a story about a European merchant in the Malay world who falls in love with the concubine of a Chinese man. Studies of a number of manuscript and lithographed copies have identified four recensions of the Sinyor Kosta story (Teeuw et al. 2004). In this copy originating from Palembang, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin is mentioned as the author. In terms of its codicological features—paper, binding, text layout, illumination, and handwriting—this manuscript is similar to Cod. Or. 1896 (see below), suggesting the same scribe, and period of production (cf. Juynboll 1899: 20; van Ronkel 1909: 350; 1921: 76; Drewes 1977: 215; Braginsky 1994; Iskandar 1999: 42). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:2078001.

79. Cod. Or. 1896 Syair Raja Mambang Jauhari, Dutch paper, ‘Eendracht’ ‘VDL’, 19.5 × 15.5 cm, 296 p., recounts a story of love and war of Raja Mambang Jauhari, who falls in love with and abducts Putri Kesuma Indra. She, however, is betrothed to Dewa Syah Peri, who in retaliation kidnaps Mambang Jauhari’s sister, Putri Puspa Indra. After two battles between Raja Mambang Jauhari and Dewa Syah Peri, Betara Guru intervenes to mediate peace between them. The syair is attributed to Pangeran Panembahan Palembang. The physical characteristics of this manuscript are similar to those of Cod. Or. 1895 (above). Both manuscripts came to Leiden through the former Governor-General Baron Sloet van de Beele (1861–1866), who donated them in 1867 after his return to the Netherlands. The watermark of the paper indicates that it was produced in 1862; hence, the copy was very likely made between 1862 and 1866 based on the original that is most probably of the royal origin, either by or at the request of Pangeran Panembahan Bupati, who remained in Palembang (cf. Pijnappel 1870: 152; Juynboll 1899: 20–22; Iskandar 1999: 42; Wieringa 1998: 150–152). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:2038807.

80. Cod. Or. 2283 Hikayat Cekel Waneng Pati once belonged to Pangeran Purba, who was the grandson of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. A mark of ownership on the inside cover mentions Dinayu Bupati ibn [sic] Pangeran Purba ibn Panembahan ibn Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin as the owner. The text contains a Panji story, but the beginning and the ending are missing; the beginning of the story corresponds to the story on p. 25 of Cod. Or. 1709 Hikayat Cekel Waneng Pati (cf. Juynboll 1899: 67–73; Drewes 1977: 209; Iskandar 1999: 98; Wieringa 1998: 457). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264981.

81. Cod. Or. 2284 Hikayat Cekel Waneng Pati is the same as Cod. Or. 2283 in terms of paper, size, and owner. Both were donated by the former Resident of Bangka in 1878, Charles Matthieu George Arinus Marinus Ecoma Verstege, to Leiden University Library (for more about Verstege, see Krauss 2005: 81). Further investigation is needed into how these manuscripts came to Resident Verstege (cf. Juynboll 1899: 73–76; Iskandar 1999: 98; Wieringa 1998: 457–459). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266305.

82. Cod. Or. 3375 Syair Ken Tambuhan, European blue wove paper, ‘1852’, 19 × 16 cm. This manuscript is from van der Tuuk’s collection in Leiden. The text contains a Panji story. The copying was finished on “tiga puluh hari bulan [30] Rabī‘al Awwal” in “seribu lapan ratus ada lebihnya, enam puluh dua...[1862] tahun Wilanda [...]” (that is 30 Rabī‘al Awwal 1279 AH /25 September 1862) in Baturaja, based on a manuscript from Muara Dua (f. 131v). A note in pencil on the last page mentions a “susu[hu]nan tuan...yang di Palembang adanya”. Another note in pencil (f. 136v) reads “Ini Sa‘ir Ken Tambuhan Nyonyah Eng Tia yang punya”. An ownership note on the flyleaf states that this manuscript was once owned by “Nonah Eng Tia” and later by Encik Sinjung (Yinjung) of Kampung t-u-r-n-y-k in 1872–1873 (cf. Iskandar 1999: 177; Teeuw 1966; Juynboll 1899: 5; Wieringa 2007: 334–335). See the digital copy: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:2044545.

83. Cod. Or. 5641 Syair Bunga Air Mawar was composed by Pangeran Panembahan Bupati and its language shows typical features of the Palembang dialect. The writing commenced on 14 Jumādā al-Awwal 1255 AH / 26 July 1839. The manuscript entered the Leiden University Library through Snouck Hurgronje, who acquired it from a Banten sheikh. Other known copies of the syair include PNRI ML 10 and UBL Kl. 175 [pp. 18v–28r] (cf. van Ronkel 1909: 353; 1921: 92; Drewes 1977: 201; Iskandar 1999: 209–210). See the digital copy: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264151.

84. Cod. Or. 6315 Collective volume of mystical treatises, Dutch paper, ‘Vrijheid with I BEERENS, lion rampant and J HONIG & ZOONEN’, 24 × 19 cm, 17 lines per page, 79 f., fine writing in Malay and Arabic, oriental cardboard binding, written by a Javanese from Mataram. The text consists of 4 parts: a) mystical treatise of the Naqshbandiyya order (ff. 2v–67r); b) Risālat al-asrār or Ilmu rahasia (ff. 67v–74v); c) Risālat al-insān al-ʿāqil al-bāligh (ff. 74v–77r); d) Risāla fī bayān al-silsila (ff. 77v–78v), a genealogy of teachers of the author starting from the Prophet Muhammad and ending with Haji Muhammad Zumharira (the author’s teacher). Note on f. 2r: the manuscript was gifted to Leiden by I.J. Kramers, who acquired it during the attack on Palembang, 22 November 1824. The same page bears the seal of Prabu Anom ibn [Susuhunan Husin Diauddin] of Palembang 1228 AH /1813 AD (cf. Iskandar 1986: 71; 1999: 324). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264808.

85. Cod. Or. 6317 Amulet scroll. The scroll contains amulets with diagrams of mohor nubuat (‘Seal of Prophethood’), raqm, etc. Once owned by Prabu Anom. European laid paper, 404 × 8 cm, undated, fine writing with coloured diagrams. Donated by J. Slagter (cf. van Ronkel 1912; 1915; Iskandar 1986: 71; 1999: 325). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264782.

86. Cod. Or. 6672 Al-Durr al-manẓūm fī sirr al-ʿaẓīm. This manuscript was written by Muhammad ibn Kemas Haji Ahmad Palembang on the request of Pangeran Sutanandita ibn Susuhunan Husin Diauddin (then Sultan Ahmad Najmuddin II). European laid paper, 21 × 17 cm, 17 lines per page, fine writing, and finished on 27 June 1833 (8 Ṣafar 1249 AH). This was donated to the Leiden University Library by van Ronkel (Iskandar 1999: 357). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264509.

87. Cod. Or. 7283 Collection of divination texts and incantations, including Shumūs al-anwār wa-kunūz al-asrār. This manuscript contains a collection of works, including: a) a Malay translation of Ibn al-Hājj al-Tilimsānī’s work on mystical calculations and diagrams, comprising 30 bab; b) Works on divination; c) Fahrasa (a); d) Do‘a; e) Postscript by Muhammad Mujib Kelanah; f) the beginning of an unknown work. European paper, ‘Horn with N PANNEKOEK and I FURNESS’ and the year ‘1789’. 22 × 18 cm, 15 lines per p., 352 f. Fine writing, paper corroded in places by acid ink, illuminated oriental leather binding. Owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin; bought by Fakir Abdul-Mujib Muhammad Zabidi from Abdur-Rahman bin Aud, through Ahmad b. Muhammad Ba Kathir on 2 Dhū al-Ḥijja 1264 AH / 29 October 1848 (cf. van Ronkel 1921: 156–157; Iskandar 1999: 400–401). This manuscript is part of the Snouck Hurgronje bequest. See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4265588

140Some documents and letters were sent to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin and Susuhunan Husin Dhiauddin. These letters were most probably received by the nobles and kept in the kraton collection before eventually becoming part of the Roorda van Eysinga collection.

88. Or. 2178 II-2 Announcement to the people and the priyayi of Palembang about the appointment of a new assistant (khadam) as the chief of governance (following the agreement with the Dutch) to replace the one the Dutch appointed. The announcement was made by Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin on 11 Dhū al-Ḥijja 1238 AH (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 265–267). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266633.

89. Or. 2178 II-9. A piagem sent by the Dutch Resident of Palembang. The document appears to be a form to be filled out, dated 1823 (compare with piagem in Jawi made by the Dutch Resident, replacing the old model written in Javanese script on metal) (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 267). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266637.

90. Or. 2178 II 10 & 11. Letter from the Mayor General of Palembang to Husin Dhiauddin. Both numbered documents form a letter: No. 11 is the continuation of No. 10 (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 267). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266625 and http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266627.

91. Or. 2178 II-12. Letter/notification to appoint Husin Diauddin as Susuhunan and his son as Sultan of Palembang (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 269). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266629.

92. Or. 2178 II-17. Letter conveying news from van der Capellen (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 269). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266631.

93. Or. 2178 II-22. Letter from the Dutch Commissary to Susuhunan Husin Diauddin and Sultan of Palembang, dated 1821 (cf. Iskandar 1999: 80; Wieringa 1998: 272). See the digitised manuscript: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4266635.

141Other letters come from Thomas Stamford Raffles in Melaka and were addressed to the Sultan of Palembang and village chiefs. Letters A and B are addressed to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin, with letter C directed to the chiefs at Kampung Sungsang. The letters are numbered in pencil, but the numbering is inconsistent and unclear. It is therefore useful to cross-reference them with Iskandar’s catalogue and John Bastin’s transliterations. See the digitised letters A, B, C, and D here: http://hdl.handle.net/​1887.1/​item:4264478.

94. D Or. 270 A. Letter from Thomas Stamford Raffles to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. The letter is numbered I in pencil on the bottom right-hand side. It is entry 1727 A in Iskandar (1999: 833) and transliterated by Bastin (1954: 84–85). Heading: Qawluhu al-ḥaqq. The red seal is illegible, and next to it, to the left, is Raffles’ signature. 27 lines in Jawi. In this letter, Raffles urges the Sultan to side with the British against the Dutch in Palembang. Raffles states, “maka hendaklah sahabat beta pukul buang sekali2” [lines 14–15]. He further stresses that if the Sultan encounters difficulty in driving the Dutch out of Palembang, he should write to Raffles for assistance so that “boleh buang orang Belanda” [line 20]. The letter closes with “maka diperbuat surat pada delapan hari bulan Dhū al-Qaʿda pada hari Khamis sanat 1225 [5 Dec. 1810] tahun jim tamat.”

95. D Or. 270 B. Letter from Thomas Stamford Raffles to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. The letter is numbered II on the bottom right-hand side. It is entry 1727 B in Iskandar (1999: 833) and transliterated by Bastin (1954: 86–87). Heading: three lines. Red seal and signature of Raffles. 33 lines in Jawi. There is damage along the folded sections of the letter, including the final line of its content. The year is no longer legible.

96. D Or. 270 C. Letter from Thomas Stamford Raffles to chiefs at a kampung in Sungsang. The letter is numbered III in pencil on the top left-hand side and I on the bottom right-hand side. It is entry 1727 C in Iskandar (1999: 833), and transliterated by Bastin (1954: 87–88). The red seal is illegible, and next to it is Raffles’ signature as the header. 19 lines in Jawi. The letter came from Raffles in Melaka, addressed to “orang besar2 atau datuk2 dan penghulu sekalipun [=sekalian] yang duduk di Kuala Palembang Kampung Sungsang” [lines 6–7]. Raffles informs the chiefs that the letter is being dispatched along with three warships. Having heard about the presence of the Dutch fleet, he intends to drive the Dutch ships away and urges the Malay chiefs to remain calm. The letter closes with “maka termaktub [t-r-m-l-t-w-b] surat ini kepada tujuh belas hari bulan Dhū al-Hijja pada tahun sanat 122[?].”

97. D Or. 270 D. Letter from Thomas Stamford Raffles to Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin. The letter is numbered IV with pencil on the bottom right-hand side. It is entry 1727 D in Iskandar (1999: 833). Some lines are illegible due to damage, and the handwriting differs from that of the above three letters. This is a letter from Raffles—now Lieutenant Governor-General of the West and South Coasts of Sumatra at Bencoolen—addressed to “Paduka Sri Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin.” It serves as a reply to the Sultan’s earlier letter requesting assistance “supaya boleh tahankan di atas tahta kerajaan Negeri Palembang” [lines 8–9]. In response, Raffles sent a representative, “Kapitan Tsaman” [line 10]. The letter also serves to introduce Kapitan Tsaman, who presented it to Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin. This letter was written on 17 Shaʿbān 1233 AH / 21 June 1818.

98. CB 146. Undang-Undang Palembang, Dutch paper, 27.5 × 41 cm, 68 + 76 p. The manuscript is part of Collection Berg (CB) at Leiden University Library. It consists of 2 parts. Part I is written in Palembang Javanese script and includes some texts, such as law marking the dignity of royal court (pp. 1–5); sangkala and years of Palembang court events (pp. 6–7); notes on five gamelan orchestras belonging to the court (p. 8); undang-undang Palembang dated 1699 AJ /1188 AH (1773 AD); list of districts and desa and their obligations to the court (pp. 13–15); piagem given by sultan to district heads (pp. 15–42); list of names of royal servants (pp. 43–50); list of names of people called kanca pun kukuh and kanca belonging to royal officers (pp. 51–68). Part II (76 p.) is a romanised copy provided by Sugiarto (Pigeaud 1967: 784–785).

DBP (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka) Library, Kuala Lumpur [1 item]

99. MS 264 Syair Mambang, Dutch paper, ‘Concordia res parvae crescunt’, 21 × 17 cm, 325 p., 16 lines per page. This manuscript is another copy of Syair Mambang Jauhari, though its relation to other known copies (PNRI W 264, UBL Cod. Or. 1896, 1943, 1955, and Kl. 137) has yet to be determined. The cover and binding style of this manuscript closely resemble those of UBL Cod. Or. 1896, suggesting that it was locally produced in Palembang. This may be a copy of the original manuscript from the Palembang palace library. The copying began on 17 Ramaḍān 1258 AH / 11 October 1842, and was completed on 16 Rabīʿ al-Ākhir 1259 AH /16 May 1843.

Manuscripts remaining in Palembang

142Although many manuscripts were dispersed, many others survived colonial collecting and have been preserved by nobles, Islamic scholars, their descendants, and residents of Palembang. The following are the manuscripts held by private owners and public institutions.

143Kemas Andi Syarifuddin [3 items]

100. Collective volume of various texts. 20 × 16.5 cm, 116 p. This manuscript on Sufism and fiqh, according to the owner, contains three texts including Risalah ilmu tauhid in Part 1 (pp. 1–45), Sayr wa-sulūk by Kemas Fakhruddin in Part 2 (pp. 46–83) and Kashf al-kirām by Muḥammad Zayn b. al-Faqīh Jalāl al-Dīn al-Āshī in Part 3 (pp. 90–108). Pp. 84–89 and 109–116 are blank. Written in Malay and Arabic, this manuscript is dated 2 Rajab 1267 AH (3 May 1851). The binding is in good condition. Some pages are damaged due to ink corrosion and are no longer legible. This manuscript was originally owned by “Pangeran Citra Dikramo ibn Pangeran Arya ibn Sultan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin fi balad Palembang dār al-salām.” Kemas Andi Syarifuddin explained that this manuscript was passed down to Pangeran Citra’s son, Raden Abdul Aziz, who then passed it down to Haji Ali ibn Haji Said, and finally came to his possession.

101. DS 05 03 Kitāb al-ḥikam. European paper, ‘VDL’, 21 × 15.5 × 1.2 cm, 110 p., 19 lines per page written in Malay and Arabic. The manuscript is bound in light-brown leather. It is a work on Sufism by Ibn Ata‘illah. The text, as a whole, is legible. A statement of ownership reads, “Kitab wakaf Raden Muhammad Zain ibn Raden Isma‘il ibn Almarhum Pangeran Nata Wikrama ibn Almarhum Paduka Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin Palembang, Kampung 16 Ilir adanya.” (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 249–250). See the digitised copy: https://www.hmmlcloud.org/​dreamsea/​detail.php?msid=597.

102. Kitab mukhtaṣar. European paper, 16 × 11 × 1.7 cm, 140 p. The back cover is missing. This manuscript contains a work on Sufism and theology by Raslān al-Dimashqī (see no. 67, PNRI ML 120). Written in Malay and Arabic, the manuscript is dated 27 Dhū al-Ḥijja 1272 AH / 29 August 1856. Folio 1 bears an ownership mark, reading “Alamat kitab Raden Santri.”

144Masagus Aminuddin [1 item]

103. Umm al-barāhīn. 32.8 × 21 cm, 152 p. Good condition and legible. The text contains a work authored by Muḥammad b. Yūsuf al-Sanūsī (see no. 3, SOAS MS 12225), and a commentary on it by Muḥammad Zayn b. al-Faqīh Jalāl al-Dīn al-Shāfi‘ī al-Āshī. This manuscript is written in Arabic and Malay and has marginal notes by an anonymous author that explain the main text (for further discussion on the manuscript’s content, see Iankovskaia 2024: 229–234). An ownership mark says: “Hādhā al-kitāb Masayu Amliha s-y-f-w-t yang empunya ini. Habis menyurat kepada 30 bulan Dhū al-Qaʿda hari Jumat kepada sanat 1259.” See the digitised copy: https://www.hmmlcloud.org/​dreamsea/​detail.php?msid=1624.

145Ahmad Syukri al-Habsyi [2 items]

104. Kitāb al-maḥabba wa-l-shawq wa-l-uns wa-l-riḍā, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, crescent and star on crown watermark, 20.5 × 15.5 × 3.4 cm, 299 p., 17 lines per page. The manuscript is generally not in good condition but remains legible, except for f. 1 which is damaged and perforated with holes. The last quarter of the book is damaged by numerous insect holes. This is a copy of part of al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, on the devotion to God and its characteristics. The manuscript was completed in 1104 AH / 1693 AD. It is bound in reddish-brown leather decorated with stamped floral motifs. Notes on f. 1 include the volume number “36” written above the title and a statement of ownership, which seems to have been added long after the completion of the manuscript. The statement, in Malay, says that the book was owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I, then passed down to Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin, and subsequently to Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. A later note in Arabic, dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889, indicates that the next owner was Sālim b. Saʿīd, who bought the manuscript from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh.

105. Kitāb al-tawba, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, crescent and star on crown watermark, 20.5 × 15.5 × 2.3 cm. 260 p., 17 lines per page. The front cover is missing, but the text is legible. The manuscript is bound in reddish-brown leather with stamped floral motifs. Some insect holes are found, and the final section of the book shows signs of mould. This is a copy of part of al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, on repentance (volume number 31). The colophon indicates that the copy was completed in 1104 AH / 1693 AD. The original owner, according to a statement of ownership, was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I (f. 1r). This ownership statement appears to have been added later, as it also records the transfer of ownership to successive rulers, Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin and subsequently Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. On the same page (f. 1r) that also functions as a title page, another note on the top left-hand side seems to have also been added at a later date, stating the ownership of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. On the bottom left of the same page, a note in Arabic dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889, records that the next owner was Sālim b. Saʿīd, who acquired the book from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh.

146Said Alwi Assegaf [3 items]

147In a house inherited from his parents-in-law, Said Alwi Assegaf keeps several manuscripts in a room that once served as the classroom of Said Ahmad al-Habsyi. Among Ahmad al-Habsyi’s collection are three manuscripts originating from the royal library of Palembang, as follows:

106. Collective volume of various texts: Irshād al-murīd by ʿAbd al-Salām b. Ibrāhīm al-Mālikī al-Laqqānī; Catatan sejarah Sultan Badaruddin; and Kashf al-asrār al-muḥarrara al-kāmila. European paper, ‘Pro Patria & Garden of Holland with Britannia-like maid’, 20 × 16 cm, 366 p., 15 lines per page. The manuscript is in poor condition; the paper has become fragile due to ink corrosion, and some sections are torn and perforated by holes. Many portions of the manuscript are now illegible. The contents concern theological subjects (e.g. the first text is a commentary on Jawharat al-tawhīḍ, a didactic poem on Ashʿarī theology written by Ibrāhīm al-Laqqānī), and one section consists of notes on the history of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. The manuscript was written in Malay and Arabic, completed on 23 Rabīʿ al-Ākhir 1187 AH / 14 July 1773, originally owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 119–121).

107. Mirʾāt al-ṭullāb. European paper, ‘HC & Zoonen’, 19 × 16 cm, 478 p., 21 lines per page. This manuscript is damaged, some parts are torn apart due to corrosion by ink, and hence, illegible. This is a copy of a Malay work of fiqh by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī, titled Mirʾāt al-ṭullāb. Mirʾāt al-ṭullāb was written by al-Singkilī for judges (kadi) as a guide, which covers topics such as commercial, criminal, matrimonial, and inheritance law. The work was aimed to be a “supplement to Ṣirāṭ al-mustaqīm”, al-Rānīrī’s previous work of jurisprudence that “was still in use at the court” of the Aceh Sultanate (Rahardjo 2024: 243). There is no indication of the date of copying, but the original owner was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 83–84).

108. Hāshiyat al-taḥrīr. European paper, ‘Foal Sehaya’, 16.5 × 21.3 cm, 444 p., 25 lines per page. This manuscript is currently missing from the collection of Said Alwi Assegaf, although it was previously catalogued by Ikram. This book on Arabic grammar discusses several topics such as mabnī, tashbīh, and istiʿāra. The text goes on to discuss five categories of actions in Islamic jurisprudence, namely wājib, sunna, ḥarām, mubāḥ, and makrūh. The final part of the book explains aspects of Arabic grammar, including fiʿl al-amr (maṭlūb) and fiʿl al-nahy (ghayr maṭlūb). There is no indication of the author, copyist, or date of copying, but the original owner of the manuscript was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 73–75).

Museum Negeri Sumatera Selatan, Balaputra Dewa [11 items]

148The royal manuscripts in this museum’s collection came from an antique shop in Palembang. They were all acquired on the same date, 5 March 2008, as confirmed by Samsuddin, a former curator and a member of the acquisition committee. The manuscripts are copies of parts of al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, which appear to be related to two manuscripts in Syukri al-Habsyi’s collection. Of the 12 manuscripts acquired by the museum, 11 are identified as Palembang royal manuscripts.

109. Kitāb al-khawf wa-l-rajāʾ, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 20.5 × 15 × 2 cm, 95 p., 17 lines per page. This manuscript is bound in a reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. The text is complete, although the manuscript has sustained minor damage, including holes along the margins throughout the book. The first two pages are partly illegible, except for the ownership statement and the volume number, “33”. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. The text touches upon the issues related to the fear of Allah and hope for His approval (riḍā). Several notes in Malay and Arabic on f. 1r and f. 1v record the manuscript’s ownership history. A note on f. 1r reads “Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin […]”, which suggests an addition after the bestowal of the susuhunan title on Mahmud Badaruddin II in 1819. Another note ascribes the ownership of the manuscript to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I stating the previous owner: “Ini milik al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin tamma” (f. 1v). These later additions document the transfer of the book through the royal lineage, tracing it back to the original owner, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I. The colophon on the last page of the manuscript confirms the identity of the first owner by recording the completion date of the copying as 1105 AH or 1693/1694 AD. A much later note in Arabic on f. 1v identifies a subsequent owner, Sālim b. Saʿīd, who acquired the manuscript from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh, dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889. Corresponding to the collection inherited by Ahmad Syukri al-Habsyi, this manuscript and several others in the Museum Balaputra Dewa (see below) were acquired from an antique shop named Palembang Bari by the museum in 2008 (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 52–53; EAP1454/2/1: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-1).

110. Kitāb kasr al-shahwatayn, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 23 × 15 × 1.6 cm, 62 p., 16 lines per page. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. There are several large holes in the first 10 leaves. The manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, on curbing two desires, shahwat al-baṭn and shahwat al-farj. The title page is on f. 2r, bearing the volume number “23” at the top and three notes in Malay and Arabic written around the triangle frame enclosing the title. The first note reads: “Ini milik al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.” The second note records the next owner in the royal lineage, stating: “Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin […]”, indicating that it was added after the title of susuhunan was bestowed in 1819. A third note documents a later transfer of ownership: Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh sold the book to Sālim b. Saʿīd on 2 Rajab 1306 /4 March 1889. The colophon confirms that the copying was completed in 1104 AH or 1692/3 AD (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 92–93; EAP1454/2/2: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-2).

111. Kitāb al-tafakkur wa-l-iʿtibār, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 21 × 15 × 1.4 cm, 117 pp., 17 lines per page. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. Several holes in the margin area pierce through the entire book. The first six leaves have a discoloured area in the shape of an envelope flap. Despite the damage, the manuscript remains largely legible. It is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, concerning meditation and contemplation. F. 3r is the title page with the volume number “39” and several ownership notes in Malay and Arabic written around the triangle frame of the title. The first note states: “Ini milik al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.” Another note follows: “Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin…”, which indicates the insertion of the note after the bestowal of the susuhunan title in 1819. As with the two previous manuscripts above, this manuscript came into the possession of Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh and later acquired by Sālim b. Saʿīd in Palembang, as recorded in the last note dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889. The colophon confirms that the copying was completed in 1104 AH or 1692/1693 AD (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 112–113; EAP1454/2/3: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-3).

112. Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 22.5 × 16 × 2 cm, 154 p., 16 lines per page. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. Several holes in the margin area pierce through the entire book. The first six leaves have a discoloured area in the shape of an envelope flap. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn on music and singing. F. 3r is the title page with the volume number “18” and several ownership notes in Malay and Arabic written around the triangle frame of the title. The first note explains that “Ini milik al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin tamma.” The second note records the next owner in the royal lineage, stating: “Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin […]”, indicating that it was added after the title of susuhunan was bestowed in 1819. As with the three manuscripts mentioned above, this one came into the possession of Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh and was later acquired by Sālim b. Saʿīd in Palembang, as recorded in the last note dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889. The colophon states that the copying was completed in 1103 AH or 1691/1692 AD (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 84–85; EAP1454/2/4: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-4).

113. Kitāb riyāḍat al-nafs wa-tahdhīb [al-]akhlāq, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 21.5 × 15 × 1.6 cm, 128 p., 16 lines per page. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. Some pages are damaged due to insects and discolouration. Several small holes perforate the entire book. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn concerning the disciplining of the soul and the refinement of morals. On f. 3r are the title, the volume number “22”, and two notes on ownership. The first note reads: “Ini milik al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.” The second note, dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889, concerns the transfer of ownership from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh to Sālim b. Saʿīd. The colophon states that the copying was completed in 1103 AH or 1691/1692 AD (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 88–89. EAP1454/2/5: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-5).

114. Kitāb dhamm al-kibr wa-l-ʿujb, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper, 22 × 17 × 2 cm, 176 p., 17 lines per page. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and stamped ornament. Several holes in the margin area pierce through the entire book. The first 12 leaves show holes and areas of discolouration in the shape of the envelope flap. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, condemning pride and conceit. On f. 3r is the title with the volume number “29” and three notes on ownership, asserting the original owner of the book, Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I (Jayo Wikramo), and the passing down of the manuscript through the royal lineage until Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II. Another note records the transfer of ownership from Sayyid Ḥusayn ʿUmar Balfaqīh to Sālim b. Saʿīd in Palembang, dated 2 Rajab 1306 AH /4 March 1889. The colophon records the date of the completion of the copying, 1104 AH or 1692/1693 AD (cf. Samsuddin et al. 2019: 90–91; EAP1454/2/6: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-2-6).

149Another five manuscripts in the museum collection are inaccessible and have not yet been digitised. The description below is based on the catalogue by Samsuddin et al. (2019), which provides information on their physical features, ownership notes, acquisition dates, along with several images. These details indicating textual and paratextual features are similar to those found in the six manuscripts described above.

115. Kitāb al-adhkār wa-l-fawāʾid, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper [?], 21 × 15 × 1.3 cm, 88 p., 17 lines per page. Several pages have been torn away, and others are no longer legible. Reddish-brown leather cover with stamped ornament. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn concerning invocations, which is volume number 9. The date 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889 might be when some notes were added to it on the flyleaf (Samsuddin et al. 2019: 48–49; Inventaris No. 07.04).

116. Asrār al-ṣalāt, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper [?], 25 × 16 × 2 cm, 208 p., 17 lines per page. The book is in fairly poor condition: several pages have been damaged by insects and others are no longer legible. Reddish-brown leather cover with stamped ornament. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn on the mysteries of prayer (volume number 4). The date 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889 is the same as the other Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn manuscripts (Samsudin 2019: 56–57; Inventaris No. 07.03).

117. Kitāb [asrār] al-zakāt, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper [?], 21 × 15 × 1.3 cm, 130 (?) p., 17–18 lines per page. The book is in fairly poor condition but most pages remain legible. This manuscript is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn on charity (volume number 5). The date of completion recorded in the colophon—1102 AH or 1690/1691 AD—appears accurate, as it is corroborated by other manuscripts in the same series and by the ownership statement, which identifies Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I as the original owner and Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II as the final inheritor. The ownership statement seems to have been added later and some notes on transfer of ownership through a purchase are dated 2 Rajab 1308 AH or 12 February 1891 (Samsuddin et al. 2019: 58–59; Inventaris No. 07.08).

118. Kitāb ādāb al-nikāḥ, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper [?], 22 × 16 × 1.8 cm, 124 p., 17 lines per page. The book is in fairly poor condition. It is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, discussing the proper conduct of marriage (volume number 12). It bears the date 2 Rajab 1306 AH / 4 March 1889, which likely marks the addition of notes at a later stage in the manuscript’s history. The manuscript is said to have been originally owned by Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I and inherited through the royal lineage to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II (Samsuddin et al. 2019: 60–61; Inventaris No. 07.09).

119. Kitāb dhamm al-dunyā, from Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Ottoman paper [?], 23.5 × 16 × 1.5 cm, 62 p., 17 lines per page. Some pages are no longer legible. It is a copy of a section from al-Ghazālī’s Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn on condemnation of the world (volume number 26). It has a note dated 6 Rajab 1306 AH / 8 March 1889 (Samsuddin et al. 2019: 86–87; Inventaris No. 07.10).

150Sultan Iskandar Mahmud Badaruddin [3 items]

120. Kitab Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī [and] Sharḥ Jāmiʿ al-ṣaghīr. 30.5 × 22 cm. The binding has come loose but the text, written in Arabic, remains legible. Reddish-brown leather cover with stamped ornament. This manuscript contains a collection of hadith by al-Bukhārī and a commentary (sharh) on it. The colophon records the date of copying, 23 Jumādā al-Awwal 1117 AH / 12 September 1705, and mentions a name “katabahu faqīr al-ḥaqīr aḍʿaf al-ʿibād Shaykh Karamullāh walad Shaykh Saʿdullāh b. Shaykh Aḥmad.” A statement of ownership declares the original owner of the book, stating that “this is the sign of the book of Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin […]”. The note must have been added after 1819 when the title of susuhunan was bestowed.

121. Tafsīr al-Baghawī. 32 × 22 × 6 cm. The front cover of the manuscript is damaged at the lower edge, although the binding remains intact. Reddish-brown leather cover with stamped ornament. The text, written in Arabic, is clear and legible. It contains a commentary on the Qur’an by Abū Muḥammad al-Ḥusayn b. Masʿūd al-Baghawī. The text begins on f. 2r. On the same page, at the upper left-hand corner is a statement of ownership: “alamat kitāb al-juzʾ al-thānī min tafsīr milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin […]”. This note is a later addition to the text.

122. Qur’an. European paper, 37 × 24 × 7 cm, watermark: lion with sword, HONIG J H & Z. Reddish-brown leather cover with an envelope flap and gold stamped ornament. The back cover has three large holes. The text is written in 15 lines per page, enclosed within a double-ruled frame. The opening two chapters are set within a simple black double frame, but faint lines on the left-hand page indicate unfinished plans for illumination. On the first page, a statement of ownership says: “al-ʿaẓīm, ini al-Quran milik Dinayu Rukayah ayahnya suda[h] kasihkan kepadanya tarikh 1248 kepada satu hari bulan Rabīʿ al-Awwal” [29 July 1832].

151Sultan Fauwaz Diradja/Mahmud Badaruddin IV [22 items]

123. Kitab doa dan salawat. European paper, 11 × 11 cm. The manuscript is in good condition and remains legible. It contains prayers written in Arabic and commentary in Malay on the benefits of reciting these prayers. At the beginning of the manuscript is an ownership note stating that it originally belonged to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin and was later passed down to Den Ayu Sheikha bt. Sultan Badaruddin. The manuscript was subsequently inherited by Syafei Prabu Diradja and later by Fauwaz Diradja (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 48–49).

124. Rukun Islam—titled by cataloguer based on its content (Ikram et al. 2004: 87). European paper, 21 × 15 cm, 79 p., 5 lines per page. The manuscript is in poor condition and lacks a cover. It was written by a “kiai penghulu orang m-t-a-r-d-r” (referring to a place). The text, written in Malay and Arabic, includes a discussion about the six articles of faith. Some notes on the last page record some dates related to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II: “Sanat 1281 sehari bulan Rajab [1 Rajab 1281 AH /30 November 1864] pada malam Ahad jam pukul sembilan masa itulah zahir Sri Paduka Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin”, and another, stating “Sanat 1264 pada empat belas hari bulan Safar hari Jumat pada bulan terbit matahari masa itulah dapat Sri Paduka Susuhunan Mahmud” (Ibid.). A note on the opening page ascribes the ownership of the manuscript to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II, stating “Alamat kitab Sri Paduka Sultan Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sri Paduka Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin fī balad Palembang dār al-salām, amīn” (Ibid.).

125. Collective volume of various texts. European paper ‘Man in the moon’, 17 × 12 cm. The manuscript contains: (1) Rukun sembahyang, pp. 1–25; (2) an untitled Malay syair, pp. 26–101; (3) another untitled Malay syair, pp. 102–132; (4) commentary of a work authored by Nūr al-Dīn al-Rānīrī, pp. 133–179; (5) commentary on ṭahāra, pp. 180–187; (6) a third untitled Malay syair, pp. 188–196. A note says that this manuscript was owned by Raden Abdul Aziz (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 88).

126. Catatan harian Raden Syarif [Diary of Raden Syarif]. European paper, 24.8 × 17.3 cm, 4 quires, 64 p., 21 lines per page. The manuscript lacks a cover but remains in good condition and is legible, with only minor insect holes. The original owner and author was Raden Syarif ibn Paduka Raden Haji Abdul al-Habib ibn Marhum Paduka Syarif ibn Haji Prabu Diradja Abdullah ibn Marhum Sri Paduka Sultan Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin [...] (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 133–4).

127. Calendar and catatan harian [diary]. European paper, watermark: Man in the Moon, 23.5 × 17 cm, 30 p., 35 lines per page. The manuscript is in poor condition, with fragile and discoloured paper, and lacks a cover. It contains a calendar as well as a personal, anonymous diary written in Malay. The calendar starts from the year 1902 and is presented in tabular form, listing the names of years, months, and days in both Roman and Arabic scripts. The diary records several important events related to the Sultanate of Palembang. Further research is required to identify the author of this manuscript (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 140).

128. Plan of Susuhunan Badaruddin II’s place of exile. European paper, no watermark, 73 × 54 cm, one sheet of paper. This is a copy of a map depicting the residence of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II during his exile in Ternate. It is in poor and fragile condition. Sultan Fauwaz explained that the original owner was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin and the original map was kept by his father, Muhammad Syafei Prabu Diradja (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 138–139).

129. Silsilah (Genealogy). European paper, watermark: ‘Scull & Schull [...] Carl Schleichd’, 110 × 76 cm, one sheet of paper. In good condition and legible. This is a genealogical chart of the descendants of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II, written in Malay (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 182).

130. Surat tarasul. Lithographed book, European paper, 20 × 15.5 cm, 48 p., 14 lines per page. Leather cover with stamped ornament. This book, printed in Singapore and dated 1274 AH / 1857 AD, is a manual of letter writing (surat tarasul). A note on the opening pages indicates ownership: “Ini surat terasul yang empunya Tuan Haji Mahmud b. Haji Abdul Muhammad.” Another note at the end mentions a change of ownership, stating that the book was given to “Raden Prabu Zainuddin [ibn] Abdul Habib Palimbani.” See the entry above (no. 126) for Raden Abdul Habib’s position in the royal genealogy of Palembang Sultanate.

131. Collective volume of various texts, including Hidāyat al-sālikīn. European paper, watermark: lion in medallion, 20 × 15.5 cm. The manuscript, written in Arabic and Malay, remains legible and is in good condition. The original owner of the manuscript is Raden Abdul Aziz. It contains three texts: (1) a Malay translation of an untitled text on Sufism, completed in Mecca on 5 Muḥarram 1192 AH [3 February 1778]. The date may be copied from the colophon of the original work; (2) a copy of Hidāyat al-sālikīn by ʿAbd al-Ṣamad al-Palimbānī, completed on 26 Jumādā al-Awwal 1287 AH [3 April 1870] by Muḥammad Maʿrūf b. Shaykh ʿAbdullāh al-Khaṭīb Palembang; [3] philosophy or ilmu hikmah (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 258–9).

132. Qur’an. European paper, 21 × 14 cm, 604 p., 13 lines per page. Illuminated in gold, red, and blue with lotus and geometric motifs. The manuscript is in good and legible condition and was originally owned by Pangeran Bupati ibn Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. Two notes on p. 2 read: “Ini Paduka Pangeran Bupati b. Paduka Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin fī balad Palembang” and “Sudah diberikan Paduka Pangeran Prabu [...] kepada anaknya Raden Abdul al-Habib masa di Ternate,” indicating the passing of the manuscript to the owner’s descendant (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 162–163).

133. Tanbīh al-māshī. European paper, watermark: CAB PRO PATRIA, lion in medallion, 20.5 × 16.5 × 1.7 cm, 240 p., 21 lines per page. The final section is fragile, with holes and signs of damage. This manuscript is a copy of the work on waḥdat al-wujūd written in Arabic by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf al-Singkilī. The original owner was Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin.

134. Hukum nikah. European paper, 21.9 × 15.6 cm, 434 p. The text discusses various aspects of managing a household. It begins with the topic of marriage, outlining the duties of both husband and wife, and then addresses matters concerning divorce. The owner, stated at the beginning of the book, is Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin. See the digitised manuscript: https://www.hmmlcloud.org/​dreamsea/​detail.php?msid=1622

135. Qur’an. Lithographed book, European paper, watermark: S & S, 30 × 20.5 × 6 cm. Bound in reddish-brown leather in a style associated with Palembang. The first two pages are illuminated. This Qur’an is in very poor condition, with fragile paper and several torn leaves.

136. Astronomy/Divination. European paper, 32 × 20 cm, watermark: man and lion, Pro Patria. Reddish-brown leather cover with gold stamped ornament. The first page features a wheel diagram enclosed within a frame. Two rectangular panels, one at the top and one at the bottom, resemble a header and footer, each containing two lines of texts. The first line of each header and footer reads: “Hādhā dāʾirat asmāʾ al-khulafāʾ” and “inilah dāʾirat daripada segala nama khalifah.” The following pages contain similar wheel-shaped diagrams within frames, along with tables.

137. Silsilah [Genealogy]. One sheet of paper, 42 × 32 cm. The genealogy begins with the Prophet Muhammad and continues through many prominent figures in Islamic history. The names are written in circles connected by lines. At the end of the chart, a note reads: “Ini fasal sejarah turunnya Tuan Faqih Jalaluddin yang bemakam di Talang Sura kuburnya pada tahun hijrah seribu seratus enam puluh satu dan pada hari [illegible] yang kedua pulu[h] Jumādā al-Awwal jam pukul sembilan [...]”

138. Silsilah [Genealogy]. One sheet of paper, 200 × 30.5 cm. This is a relatively recent genealogical chart, which may have been copied from an older version and subsequently updated. It begins with “raja Palembang pertama” (“the first ruler of Palembang”), named “Sultan Jamaluddin Agung Pangeran Ratu”, and continues with numerous names enclosed in boxes connected by lines. It ends with the latest entry dated 1977. A note added after that in the upper left corner, states: “Sejarah ditulis pada tanggal satu Ramaḍān 1409”, or 7 April 1989.

139. Catatan harian Raden Abdul Habib [Diary of Raden Abdul Habib]. European paper, 23.5 × 17.5 cm, 28 p., 23 lines per page. Cardboard cover printed with a batik-style motif. This diary, written in Malay, is legible and in good condition. The notes record distant past events, starting with “Pada tahun dulapan ratus enam puluh [...] yang ke-duabelas hari bulan Rajab [...]” (12 Rajab 860 AH / 25 June 1456), and the second note reads: “Pada tahun dulapan ratus enam puluh dua dari pada tahun Hijrat...yang keenam hari bulan Syawal (6 Shawwal 862 AH / 26 August 1458). It was written by and originally belonged to “Raden Abdul Habib ibn Paduka Pangeran Prabu Diraja Abdullah ibn al-Marhum Sri Paduka Sultan Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin” (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 134–135). See digital images: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-3-5.

140. Catatan harian Raden Haji Abdul Habib [Diary of Raden Abdul Habib]. European paper, watermark: Man in the Moon; Cartiera De More Vitlore. 24.5 × 17.5 cm, 29 p., 22 lines per page. This manuscript is a diary of Raden Abdul Habib, recording events from the 1860s. It is in good condition and remains clearly legible (cf. Ikram et al. 2004: 135). See its digital images: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-3-1.

141. Catatan harian [diary]. A booklet measuring 21 × 14 cm, consisting of 44 p. of thin lined paper sewn together. The book is in good condition, and the text, written in Malay, remains legible. Originally owned by Raden Abdul Habib, it documents various events, with dated entries written in his own hand. See digitised manuscript: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-3-2.

142. Collective volume of various texts, including on ṭahāra (ritual purity) and prayers. The manuscript measures 17.5 × 12 cm, watermark: three crescents, 27 p. + 3 blank p., without cover. Written in 1343 AH (1924/1925 AD), this manuscript was owned by Raden Abdul Habib.

143. A manuscript of almanac containing tables called Kitab jadwal, Italian paper, ‘ANDREA GALVANI PORDENONE’, 23 × 16 cm, 38 p. + 6 blank p., 26 lines per page. The manuscript, written by Raden Abdul Habib in 1335 AH (1916/1917 AD), contains tables and diagrams on the calculation of days and years of Hijra.

144. Collective volume of various texts. Italian paper, ‘ANDREA GALVANI PORDENONE’, 32 p., 15 lines per page, in good condition despite a few holes in the paper. This manuscript, written in Malay and Arabic in Rajab 1331 AH /June 1913 AD, deals with topics in Islamic law and theology. It was originally owned by Raden Ayu Sabihah, as stated: “Kitab milik Raden Ayu Sabihah Cik Ayu binti Raden Haji Abdul Rahman Putra bin Raden Haji Abdul Habib [...]” (f. 1r). See the entry no. 126 above for Raden Abdul Habib’s position in the royal genealogy of the Palembang Sultanate. The text discusses various subjects, including the pillars of faith, worship, and prayers. Papers of the manuscript are sewn together with red and black threads to form a single quire, thin booklet. See the digitised manuscript: https://eap.bl.uk/​archive-file/​EAP1454-3-3.

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Bibliographie

Manuscripts cited

BL (British Library): Eur D742/1, ff. 58a.r–b.r

Bodleian Libraries: Malay d.1

EAP (Endangered Archives Programme): EAP 1454-2-6

UBL (Universiteitsbibliotheek Leiden): Cod. Or. 2276 C, Cod. Or. 1895, Cod. Or. 1896, Cod. Or. 2283, Cod. Or. 2284, Cod. Or. 3375, Cod. Or. 3300, Cod. Or. 3301, Cod. Or. 6315, Cod. Or. 6672, Cod. Or. 7283, D Or. 270 A

Leipzig (Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig): MS Gabelentz 52

PNRI (Perpustakaan Nasional Republik Indonesia): Br 157 III; KBG 185; A 162; ML 5, ML 9, ML 10, ML 75, ML 514, ML 515

RAS (Royal Asiatic Society): Malay 142 H, Raffles Java 28, Raffles Java 29, Raffles Java 31, Raffles Java 41

SOAS: MS 11505, MS 12225, MS 12145

SBB (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin): Schoemann V 48.

Publications

Ahmat Adam. 2009. Letters of sincerity: the Raffles collection of Malay letters 1780-1824. Kuala Lumpur: MBRAS.

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Bastin, J. 1954. “Palembang in 1811 and 1812 (Part II).ˮ Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 110(1), pp. 64–88.

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Brandes, J. 1891. “Nog eenige Javaansche Piagĕm uit het Mohammedaansche tijdvak: Afkomstig van Mataram, Bantĕn end Palembang (vervolg).ˮ Tijdschrift voor indische Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 34, pp. 605–623.

Brandes, J. 1896. Pararaton (Ken Arok): het boek der Koningen van Tumapel en van Majapahit. Batavia: Albrecht & Rusche.

Brandes, J. 1900. “Nog eenige Javaansche Piagĕm uit het Mohammedaansche tijdvak: afkomstig van Mataram, Bantĕn en Palembang (zesde vervolg).ˮ Tijdschrift voor indische Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 42, pp. 491–507.

Braginsky, Vladimir. 1994. “The gentleman in the pink hat, or the first Malay ‘film’: notes on Syair Silambari or Syair Sinyor Kosta.ˮ Indonesia Circle 22(63), pp. 174–182.

Casparis, J.G. de. 1980. “Some notes on the epigraphic heritage of Śrīvijaya.ˮ SPAFA Digest 3(2), pp. 29–34.

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Chambert-Loir, Henri. 1991. “Malay literature in the 19th century: The Fadli connection.ˮ In J.J. Ras & Stuart O. Robson (eds.), Variation, transformation, and meaning: studies on Indonesian literature in honour of A. Teeuw. Leiden: KITLV Press, pp. 87–114.

Cœdès, G. & Damais, L-Ch. 1989. Kedatuan Sriwijaya: penelitian tentang Sriwijaya. Jakarta: Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan.

Damais, Louis-Charles. 1995. Epigrafi dan sejarah Nusantara (pilihan karangan Louis-Charles Damais). Jakarta: Pusat Penelitian Arkeologi Nasional, École française d’Extrême-Orient.

Drewes, G.W.J. 1977. Directions for travellers on the mystic path. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff.

Edwards, Edward. 2009 [1864]. Libraries and founders of libraries. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Fogg, Kevin. 2015. “The standardisation of the Indonesian language and its consequences for Islamic communities.ˮ Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 46(1), pp. 86–110.

Gallop, Annabel Teh. 2025. “The library of an 18th century Malay bibliophile: Tengku Sayid Jafar, Panglima Besar of Selangor.ˮ In Olly Akkerman (ed.), Social codicology: the multiple lives of texts in Muslim societies. Leiden: Brill, pp. 199–258.

Gallop, Annabel Teh. 2020. “Shifting landscapes: remapping the writing traditions of Islamic Southeast Asia through digitisation.ˮ Humaniora 32(2), pp. 97–109.

Gallop, Annabel Teh. 2021. “Malay manuscripts in Johor.ˮ SEALG Newsletter 53, pp. 32–58.

Gallop, Annabel Teh. Forthcoming. “Malay and Indonesian manuscripts in the Royal Asiatic Society: the evolution of the collection.ˮ Journal of Royal Asiatic Society.

Gallop, Annabel Teh with Buck, Matthew. 2024. “Brunei guns in the royal artillery museum.ˮ In Christoph Bracks, Arndt Graf, & Patrick Keilbart (eds.), Towards the next 40 years of Southeast Asian studies in Frankfurt: festschrift in honour of Bernd Nothofer. Munich: Ludicium, pp. 83–119.

Graaf, H.J. de & Pigeaud, Th.G.Th. 1985. Kerajaan-kerajaan Islam di Jawa. Jakarta: Grafitipers (first ed., Martinus Nijhoff, 1974).

Heeres, J.E. 1907. Corpus diplomaticum Nederlando-Indicum I (1596–1650). ‘s-Gravenhage: Martinus Nijhoff.

Heeres, J.E. 1931. Corpus diplomaticum Nederlando-Indicum II (1650–1675). ‘s-Gravenhage: Martinus Nijhoff.

Heeres, J.E. 1934. Corpus diplomaticum Nederlando-Indicum III (1676–1691). ‘s-Gravenhage: Martinus Nijhoff.

Iankovskaia, Aglaia. 2024. “Reading Arabic in Sumatra: interlinear translation in didactic contexts.ˮ Indonesia and the Malay World 52(153), pp. 221–242.

Ikram, Achadiati et al. 2004. Katalog naskah Palembang [Catalogue of Palembang Manuscripts]. Tokyo: YANASSA & TUFS.

Iskandar, Teuku. 1986. “Palembang Kraton manuscripts.ˮ In C.M.S. Hellwig & S.O. Robson (eds.), A man of Indonesian letters: essays in honour of Professor A. Teeuw. Dordrecht: Foris.

Iskandar, Teuku. 1999. Catalogue of Malay, Minangkabau, and South Sumatran manuscripts in the Netherlands: volume One. Leiden: Documentatiebureau Islam-Christendom.

Izzuddin, Muhammad Haidar. 2024. Ulu manuscripts at the Leiden University Library. Jakarta: Perpusnas Press.

Johns, Anthony H. 1955. “Daḳāʾiḳ al-Ḥurūf by ʿAbd al-Raʾūf of Singkel.ˮ Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland 87, pp. 55–73, 139–158.

Juynboll, H.H. 1899. Catalogus van de Maleische en Sundaneesche handschriften der Leidsche Universiteits-Bibliotheek. Leiden: E.J. Brill.

Kratz, E. Ulrich. 1977. “Running a lending library in Palembang 1886 AD.ˮ Indonesia Circle 5(14), pp. 3–12.

Kratz, E. Ulrich. 1980. “A brief description of the ‘Malay’ Manuscripts of the ‘Overbeck collection’ at the Museum Pusat, Jakarta.ˮ Journal of the Malaysian Branch, Royal Asiatic Society 53(1), pp. 90–106.

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Krauss, Werner. 2005. “Chinese influence on early modern Indonesian art? Hou Qua: A Chinese painter in 19th century Java.ˮ Archipel 69, pp. 61–86.

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Peters, Jeroen. 1997. Kaum tuo-kaum mudo, perubahan religius di Palembang 1821-1942. Jakarta: INIS.

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Poerbatjaraka, R.M. Ngabei. 1940. Pandji-Verhalen Onderling Vergeleken. Bandoeng: A.C. Nix.

Poerbatjaraka, R.M. Ngabei, Petrus Voorhoeve & Christiaan Hooykaas. 1950. Indonesische handschriften. Bandung: A.C. Nix.

Proudfoot, Ian. 1995. “Early Muslim printing in Southeast Asia.ˮ Libri 45, pp. 216–223.

Pudjiastuti, Titik. 2006. “Looking at Palembang through its manuscripts.ˮ Indonesia and the Malay World 34(100), pp. 383–393.

Putten, Jan van der. 2003. “Dead letters: undeliverable Malay messages from the early 1870s.ˮ Indonesia and the Malay World 31(91), pp. 381–398.

Putten, Jan van der. 2022. “Customized manuscripts to shape a community of readers? Overbeck’s collection of rental manuscripts from Palembang (Indonesia).ˮ Manuscript cultures 19, pp. 183–194.

Raffles, Sophia. 1830. Memoir of the life and public services of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. London: John Murray.

Rahardjo, Jessica. 2018. The development of Islamic intellectual tradition at the Sultanate of Palembang (c. 1750–1825): The evidence of manuscripts. Extended essay (M.Phil in Islamic Art and Archaeology), University of Oxford.

Rahardjo, Jessica. 2024. The batu Aceh tombstone tradition: a vernacular Islamic funerary material culture in maritime Southeast Asia (15th - 19th centuries). PhD thesis, University of Oxford.

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Blogposts and newspaper articles

* Binswanger, Julia. 2024. The Netherlands has returned 288 Stolen Artefacts to Indonesia. Smithsonian Magazine https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-netherlands-returned-288-stolen-artifacts-to-indonesia-180985137/ Accessed 21 October 2025.

* Mulaika Hijjas. 2021. Where are all the Malay royal libraries?” Malay Heritage Centre https://www.malayheritage.gov.sg/en/publication/essays/where-are-all-the-malay-royal-libraries Accessed 21 October 2025.

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Notes

1 Hij had eene vrij uitgestrekte bibliotheek.” All the translations to English are my own unless otherwise stated.

2 To get a sense of the perspective, we should contextualise van Sevenhoven’s view in the European context of modern libraries. After the advent of printing between 1465 and 1500 alone, some city libraries contained hundreds of volumes: Venice (2,835 books), Rome (925), Paris (751), Cologne (530). In 1737, when the Royal Library of Paris became public, it had housed 70,000 volumes. For more, see Edwards (2009 [1864]: 31–38).

3 The initiatives include those carried out by the Yayasan Naskah Nusantara (YANASSA) sponsored by the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS) in 2004, Digital Repository of Endangered and Affected Manuscripts in Southeast Asia (DREAMSEA) in 2022, and Endangered Archives Programme (EAP) in 2022.

4 This seems to be comparable to mosque libraries in the Islamic world (Taher 1992; BenAicha 1986).

5 For further examination of the demise of Malay manuscript tradition resulting from the western-oriented language policy in the standardisation of the Indonesian language and its impacts on the Muslim scholars, leaders, and communities, see Fogg (2015).

6 Some different versions of oral stories in Java recount that Ario Damar was father of Kusen, stepbrother of Palembang-origin Sultan of Demak, Raden Patah. Ario was also known as a hero from Palembang, joining Gajah Mada in the conquest of Bali, a son (Javanese version) or cousin (Balinese) of Majapahit’s king (de Graaf and Pigeaud 1985: 247). See part of this account in the Brandes’ edition of Pararaton (1896: 184).

7 For further discussion on some considerations of Śrīvijaya’s status as a kingdom, period, and inscriptions, consult Cœdès & Damais (1989: 1–123), Wolters (1970), de Casparis (1980), Kulke (2016). Some replicas of the stone inscriptions of Śrīvijaya are now exhibited in Palembang’s City Museum Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II, Provincial Museum Balaputra Dewa, and Taman Purbalaka Kerajaan Sriwijaya’s (TPKS) Museum.

8 Differing from the Mataram style developed in the royal courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta, the style of Palembang Javanese script may be close to that of the northern coast area of Java. Bernard Arps situated this tradition to be part of the pesisiran cultural networks (cited from a paper “Palembang dan Jaringan Sastra Pesisir pada Abad XVIII” presented by Bernard Arps at the seminar Pekan Pustaka Palembang, 21 Aug. 2025).

9 See the transcriptions of some piagĕm from Palembang by Brandes (1889: 567–601; 1891: 605–623; 1900: 491–507), which Damais’ study was built upon (1995: 203–205). The Jawi/Malay piagĕm was only issued by the Dutch colonial government after the elimination of the Palembang Sultanate in 1825 (e.g. SBB Schoemann V 48).

10 Attempts to disobey the treaty resulted in dispute and war, as happened in 1659, when the VOC burnt down the entire city of Palembang, dragging it to a renewed contract in 1662 (cf. Heeres 1931: 209–212).

11 Pada tiap-tiap tahun utusan Palembang pergi di Betawi mengantarkan timah dari tanah Bangka berapa banyak kompeni beli dengan harga delapan ringgit satu pikulnya dan tiada boleh orang-orang negeri Palembang berjual timah kepada yang lain daripada kompeni kalau ketahuan dibunuh oleh Sultan Palembang serta dirampas. Beberapa yang kedapatan orang dari Mentok dan orang Palembang dibunuh oleh Sultan Palembang sebab berjual timah kepada Inggris.”

12 Aman sentosa selama berdamai dengan kompeni dan rakyat seisi negeri dengan segala jajahan itu banyak beruntung sebab negeri sentosa segala dagang pun banyak masuk dari laut dan dari darat dan dari hulu karena raja Palembang pada zaman itu terlalu adil sentosa perintahnya merintahkan segala rakyat negeri dan sekalian dagang.”

13 Marga kept their old tradition of writing with the ulu script (surat ulu) on various supporting materials including bamboo, tree-bark, and buffalo horn. Currently, of many surviving materials of the ulu manuscripts, some have been exhibited in the provincial museum, Balaputra Dewa, and can be consulted in the catalogue by Samsuddin et al (2019: 6–35). For ulu manuscripts in Leiden, see Izzuddin (2024).

14 Some notes written in 1889 retrospectively ascribe the ownership over these old manuscripts to Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I Jayo Wikramo and seem to reflect his glory in the collective memory of Palembang instead of indicating their true initial owner.

15 See the watermark in the manuscript EAP 1454-2-6 against that of in the catalogue of watermarks by Mošin and Grozdanovic-Pajié (1963: 51).

16 maar wel Arabieren hebben om deze boeken gevraagd.”

17 Datanglah pula Komisaris membawa kapal perang masuk Palembang mendapatkan Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin minta perjanjian Negeri Palembang empat puluh laksa ringgit serta Komisaris menunjukkan surat keterangan Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin masa lagi Pangeran Jaya Wikrama minta pertolongan ke Betawi.”

18 The English translation cited here refers to that of provided by Ahmat Adam (2009: 236).

19 Other short terms are Jul.–Aug. 1813 and Jul. 1818–Dec. 1819, where Sultan Badaruddin II interrupted and alternated the reign of his brother, ruling as Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin II between April 1812 and June 1818.

20 Raffles’ letter to Sultan Badaruddin II, 5 Dec. 1810. English translation by Ahmat Adam (2009: 354).

21 Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s letter to Raffles, 5 May 1811 (ibid.: 263–264).

22 Ibid.

23 This episode is much disputed in the scholarship. Dutch-slanted interpretation of this correspondence accused Raffles of being responsible for the massacre of the Dutchmen and the employees in their trading post, given Raffles’ “promise” for independence and supply of weapons described in his letter dated 22 April 1811, seen by Baud (1853: 12–13) to have been enacted by Sultan Badaruddin II. Bastin (1953, 1954), however, disputed the direct link between Raffles’ invitation and the massacre, pointing to Sultan Badaruddin’s room to maneuver and the fact that the mass murder happened after the British invasion of Java.

24 For detailed accounts of the British military expedition in 1812, see Thorn (1815: 127–148), Woelders (1975: 7–13), and Wargadalem (2017: 63–85).

25 For more about the Dutch attacks on Palembang in 1819–1825, see Woelders (1975: 16–27) and Wargadalem (2017: 181–204, 210–220).

26 For more information about the manuscripts sent by Captain Owen to Marsden other than those of Palembang provenance, see Mulaika (2022: 24–31).

27 Using the conversion here: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/currency-converter/#currency-result

28 Annabel T. Gallop, pers. comm., 13 June 2024.

29Bahwa ini alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin. Tamat.”

30 Amal Sultan Ratu Ahmad Najamuddin fi balad Palembang dar al-salam sanat 1183.”

31 Despite Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II’s success in wars against the Dutch troops led by Herman Warner Muntinghe in 1819, he was defeated by Lieutenant Governor-General de Kock in 1821.

32 For more detailed accounts of the Palembang-Dutch war, see Woelders (1975: 16–27) and Wargadalem (2017: 181–204, 210–220).

33 Dan setengah demikian masa masuklah Komisaris ke Palembang meriksa di mana-mana tempat harta Susuhunan Mahmud Badaruddin yang di Ternate itu. Beberapa pangeran yang dibawa gawai dan Pangeran Bupati Panembahan pun ditutub di kapal perang tujuh bulan lamanya. Kampung dan rumahnya dibongkar oleh Komisaris.”

34 During my visits to Kemas Andi Syarifuddin in October–November 2023, he told me stories about his grandfather to explain the Dutch letters giving permits to all the Muslim religious activities but controlling them, applying curfew and registration of marriage. Kemas Haji Umar and his predecessors wrote the marriage registers and reported it to the Hoofdpenghulu. The manuscripts are now kept by Kemas Andi Syarifuddin.

35 To get a better sense of Gramberg’s collection of Palembang manuscripts, we should juxtapose these manuscripts with those kept at Leiden (Cod. Or. 2267 A–H), reflecting his interest in Malay literature, particularly syair and hikayat, legal texts (undang-undang), and royal genealogies. None of them is a religious treatise.

36 In de wetenschappen of fraaije letteren heeft men te Palembang nog zeer weinig vorderingen gemaakt; echter vindt men dichters en dichteressen, en onder de laatsten, die voor de vuist dichten of improviseren. Op de overwinning, door de Nederlanders, op Palembang, heb ik een zeer aardig gedicht ontvangen, dat vol vuur is en natuurlijke schilderingen bevat.” The phrase “very passionate” stands for the Dutch “vol vuur,” among other literal translations “full of fire” and “quite fiery.” Thanks to Dr Will Derks for help with the translation and consultation.

37 Temannya ini kitab satu bernama Fatḥ al-Ma‘ārīfa yang kedua namanya Kitab Shams al-Ma‘rīfah inda[h]2 dalamnya dengan Bahasa Arab dan Melayu, yaitu kitab segala raja2 empunya dia. Sebab maka bole[h] jatu[h] ke negeri Betawi, anaknya bawa keluar menyaru keliling negeri maka kedatangan maut atasnya. Itulah sebabnya ini kitab barangkali kompeni suda[h] dapat bersama2 harta Sultan Mahmud yang lain. Kemudian kompeni suda[h] jual barang2 Sultan Mahmud dilelang. Barangkali ini kitab suda[h] kena dilelang bersama2 barangya, wa’llahu a‘lam. Pada hari Ahad 2 dua hari bulan haji 1264 berbetulan dengan 29 Oktober 1848. Bahwa sesungguhnya saya Ahmad Bā Kathīr ada bawa ini kitab dari Abdul Rahman Audh suru[h] jual ini kitab suda[h] faqir Abdul Mujib Muhammad Zabidi beli dengan harga 18-rupiah tembaga bertanda tangan saya dibawa[h] ini kitab. Ahmad b. Muhammad Bā Kathīr.”

38 De Sultan Mahmoed Badaroedien was een geleerde, schreef uitmuntend fraai en bezat eene groote boekerij, waarop hij hogen prijs stelde. Er bestaat echter te Palembang belangstelling in Maleische geschriften, hetwelk mij bleek uit den ijver van eenen prins, die van mij een werk in die taal geleend hebbende, hetzelve geheel overschreef.”

39 Mang Win’s mother R.A. Galuh’s lineage goes back to Pangeran Adipati Banjar Kutomo, known as Raden Pilit or Pelet, whereas his father’s is from the line of Sultan Ahmad Najamuddin I. Both the pangeran and sultan are children of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I.

40 Kemas Andi Syarifuddin explained that Raden Santri was grandson of Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin I.

41 Dan adalah yang menyurat kitab ini, yang bernama Kiyai Mas Fakhruddini, dengan disuruh Pangeran Ratu ibni, Paduka Sri Sultan Ahmad Najamuddini.”

42 Only codices are included in this statistical breakdown, which comprise 65% of the total surviving material (letters form the remaining 35%).

43 For more on interlinear translation in a didactic context with a case study of Palembang, see Iankovskaia (2024: 229–234).

44 Thanks to Zacky Khairul Umam for raising this issue when leading a discussion in the masterclass in Palembang, organised by SOAS and UIN Raden Fatah in September 2024, and for answering my queries on some Arabic texts.

45 This occurs twice in the corpus of the Malay concordance project (MCP), both in the Palembang Kraton Syair Kembang Air Mawar (PNRI ML 10). The meaning is unclear, but the context shows an attempt to address a condition that is similar to masyghul (sad or depressed).

46 Only one occurred in the MCP’s corpus, which is from the Carita Bangka text, still associated with Palembang manuscript culture.

47 This word occurred only two times in the MCP’s corpus, one of which is from the Palembang copy of Syair Sinyor Kosta edited by Teeuw et al. (2004).

48 Of 20 locations where this word occurred in the MCP’s corpus, 16 are from the Palembang Kraton Syair Kumbang dan Melati, Syair Kembang Air Mawar, and Syair Sinyor Kosta. The other four are from Riau and Javanese manuscripts.

49 See the recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Scyvlp4q8bw?si=A9X6N6rQCvH5wytG

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Table des illustrations

Titre Fig. 1 – EAP 1454/2/4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd, 1103 AH / 1691-2 AD.
Crédits Source: Endangered Archives Programme 1454/2/4. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-1.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 302k
Titre Fig. 2 – Bodleian MS Malay d.1 Collection of divination texts, including Tuḥfat al-zaman fī ẓuruf ahl al-Yaman.
Crédits Source: Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS Malay d. 1. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-2.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 379k
Titre Fig. 3 – MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt. Source: Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52.
Crédits Creative Common license CC0 1.0.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-3.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 215k
Titre Fig. 4 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn.
Crédits Image courtesy of SOAS Library.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-4.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 300k
Titre Fig. 5 – SOAS MS 12225 Umm al-barāhīn: ‘Alamat kitab Susuhunan Ahmad.
Crédits Image courtesy of SOAS Library.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-5.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 52k
Titre Fig. 6 – RAS Raffles Java 28 Wayang Purwa, p. 104: Bahwa ini ‘alamat surat Sri Paduka Pangeran Ratu ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin, tamat.
Crédits Image courtesy of The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-6.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 68k
Titre Fig. 7 – Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52 Dalāʾil al-khayrāt: ‘Alamat Paduka Sri Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.
Crédits Source: Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig MS Gabelentz 52. Creative Common license CC0 1.0.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-7.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 34k
Titre Fig. 8 – Andi Syarifuddin’s Kitab Al-Ḥikam (DS 05 03): ‘Alamat kitab wakaf Raden Muhammad Zein ibn Raden Ismail ibn almarhum Pangeran Natawikrama ibn almarhum Paduka Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.
Crédits Source: Digital Repository of Endangered and Affected Manuscripts in Southeast Asia, DS 0005 00003. Creative Commons license CC BY-NC 4.0.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-8.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 48k
Titre Fig. 9 – EAP 1454-2-4 Kitāb [ādāb] al-samāʿ wa-l-wajd [1103 H (1691/2)].
Légende Note 1 (upper middle-left): Ini milik as-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin maka turun kepada Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin maka turun kepada Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin.Note 2 (lower middle-left): ‘Alamat kitab Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn milik Sri Paduka Susuhunan Ratu Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad Bahauddin ibn Susuhunan Ahmad Najamuddin ibn al-Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin ibn al-Sultan Muhammad al-Mansur ibn al-Sultan Susuhunan Abdul Rahman ibn al-Sultan Jamaluddin yang bertahta kerajaan di dalam Negeri Palembang Dar al-salam.Note 3 (middle right): Intaqala ilā milk Sālim b. Saʿīd Balajam isytarahu min q-r-a-j t-r-k-t al-Sayyid Huṣayn b. ʿUmar Balfaqīh fī balad Palembang tarikh 2 Rajab sanat 1306.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-9.jpg
Fichier image/jpeg, 84k
Titre Chart 1 – Genre breakdown of the Palembang royal manuscripts.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-10.png
Fichier image/png, 256k
Titre Chart 2 – Language grouping of the Palembang royal manuscripts.
URL http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/docannexe/image/8530/img-11.png
Fichier image/png, 67k
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Alan Darmawan, « Where are the Palembang Kraton manuscripts? Trajectories of a royal library »Archipel, 110 | 2025, 45-118.

Référence électronique

Alan Darmawan, « Where are the Palembang Kraton manuscripts? Trajectories of a royal library »Archipel [En ligne], 110 | 2025, mis en ligne le 05 janvier 2026, consulté le 13 février 2026. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/archipel/8530 ; DOI : https://doi.org/10.4000/15d9g

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Alan Darmawan

BRIN Indonesia; SOAS University of London, UK

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