Rare Garuda statue unearthed in ancient East Java hot spring

via Jakarta Post, 03 October 2019: A magnificent pre-Majapahit Garuda image is unearthed in East Java. The article is behind a paywall, but if you register as a Jakarta Post user you can access a number of articles per month for free.

A rare jaladwara (waterway segment) made of stone that resembles a Garuda and believed to date back to before the Majapahit era was found during an excavation of the ancient petirtaan (hot spring) in Sumberbeji village, Ngoro district, Jombang regency, East Java.

Discovered by the Trowulan Cultural Heritage Preservation Agency (BPCB) in East Java, the 80-centimeter-tall Garuda statue was found relatively intact and stuck to the walls of a hot spring that was being excavated by a BPCB Trowulan archaeology team for a period of 10 days since Sept. 9.

“This is the only ancient hot spring that has a Garuda statue as its jaladwara,” Wicaksono Dwi Nugroho, archaeologist and head of the excavation team, told The Jakarta Post on Sept. 18.

Source: Rare Garuda statue unearthed in ancient East Java hot spring – Art & Culture – The Jakarta Post