In early June, scores of people gathered in the area of an old building  belonging to the late Sastromardjono in Samen hamlet, Sumbermulyo,  Yogyakarta.The  impressive joglo that Eny Maryani had built in the compound of her home  in Bantul, Yogyakarta. The joglo was built using the materials  collected from two damaged joglo from Wonosari and Kulonprogo. 

After performing a brief prayer together, people filed into the joglo  (traditional Javanese building or home with a high, A-framed roof) and  went to work removing its beams and roof tiles one by one.     In less than a day, the whole building had been completely pulled down  and the pieces transported by truck to an unknown destination.     This joglo, which was built in 1818 and was once used as a base  for guerrillas during the war against the Dutch colonial powers in  1948, has now disappeared. All that remains is the building''s  foundation.    

Prior to its demolition, it had been neglected for three years and was  in a state of disrepair as nobody was appointed as its caretaker. It had  been vacant ever since its owner had died.     When a massive earthquake devastated the area two years ago, the main  house collapsed. A bulldozer was used to clear away dangerous debris. At  that time, only the front building, or pendapa, remained  intact.     Many people from outside the area visited the site and made offers to  buy it. Unfortunately, their offers did not meet the amount asked by the  heirs. ', '   Traditionally, joglo was the term used to refer to the roof  shape of a traditional Javanese house. The term is now used to describe  the Javanese-style homes that have such roofs and in particular, a pendapa.     

The pulling down of the old building owned by Sastromardjono is just one  example of the removal of a joglo from where it originally  stood. Currently hundreds of others have been sold by their owners while  others, which were damaged by the earthquake, have yet to be repaired.     

In Yogyakarta, they were being torn down, hauled off and sold long  before the earthquake hit in 2006. However, the business has flourished  since then as many of them were damaged by the quake and reduced to  piles of scrap wood.     In village after village, brokers in search of old joglos have  been visiting owners who have been unable to finance their repairs.    

The law of the market guarantees that economic value will trump these  buildings'' historical value. As a result, many in and around Yogyakarta  have been sold for next to nothing even though they have historical  value.    

A joglo belonging to the late Kahar Muzakir, one of the  signatories of the Jakarta Charter, for example, has also disappeared.  This building, located in Kotagede, Yogyakarta, was sold for around Rp  10 million. Another one in Panggungharjo, which according to local  residents was once used as the base for Komaruddin, a freedom fighter,  has also been sold.    

Data compiled by Yayasan Krantil, a non-profit organization concerned  with the conservation of joglos, shows that in Kotagede 25 were  sold in the year after the quake.    

"We cannot prohibit people from selling their property. The only way to  reduce the interest to sell joglos is to educate the owners so  they will refrain from selling," said M. Natsir, chairman of Yayasan  Krantil.    

"If we had the funding, we would buy the buildings and erect them  somewhere else."    

Researcher and local architect Wina Kartikawati said there were 4158 joglos  in Yogyakarta in 2003. Five percent of these were built after 1970.  However, in the next three years the number in Yogyakarta shrank by  about 20 percent.     Wina said the materials from demolished ones were used in the  construction of new joglos.    

"Indeed, recently modern joglos have been built, some not even  made of wood," she said.    

Harjiman, a local joglo broker from Patalan, Jetis, Bantul,  said his business, which he began in the 1980s, had been flourishing  since the earthquake.     In the past six months, he said, he had sold 11.    

"At present I have about 16 ready to sell. I have received down payments  from six prospective buyers."    

Prawoto, also a joglo businessman, said most of the buildings  he had purchased have cost less than Rp 20 million. When asked how he  could buy one at such a low price, he said he was only interested in the  beams, which he sold to be used as raw materials in the construction of  new buildings, furniture and handicrafts.    

"This wood is of better quality as it has passed the test of time and is  choice wood similar to teak, nangka or sawo. New  timber is very expensive," Prawoto said.     Not all joglo buyers are in the business, though. Eny Maryani  purchased two joglos, one from Wonosari and another from  Kulonprogo a year after her house collapsed from the earthquake. She  then had her own imposing joglo built in Jebugan, Yogyakarta,  using their materials.    

The government has yet to develop an effective means to minimize the  flourishing business. Some have been named heritage sites and therefore  fall under the protection of the law.    

However, according to Wina Kartikawati, a regulation or a law cannot  protect a building owned by an individual, let alone one which has no  significant historical value.    

"It is indeed difficult to minimize the interest in buying and selling  them ... this may be construed as violating other people''s rights.    

"However, if these transactions are allowed to continue, we will lose  our Javanese architectural and cultural legacy," said Wina, who is also  the coordinator of Saka Peni, a non-government organization in Imogiri,  Bantul, which focuses on joglo-related matters.

--(Source: The Jakarta Post)