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Mercado, Zet John A. Prof. Neilson A.

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BSA 1-2 Assignment in

Readings in Philippine History

The Laguna Copper Plate

Origins of the Inscription on the Laguna Copperplate


The inscription on the surviving copperplate is in itself intriguing, and has provided enough material for scholars to analyze.
For instance, the type of script used in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription has been identified as the so-called ‘Early Kawi
Script,’ a writing system that originated in the Indonesian island of Java, and was used across much of maritime Southeast
Asia during the 10th century AD.
In fact, this script is said to have been derived from the Pallava script, which has its origins in India. As for the language of
the inscription, it has been found to be heavily influenced linguistically by Sanskrit, Old Malay, and Old Javanese. Both the
type script, and the language of the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, therefore, shows that this area was not actually
isolated from the rest of Southeast Asia, as had been previously assumed.

How was it discovered?


On that day in 1989, a man in the concrete business was dredging sand at the mouth of the Lumbang River near Laguna
de Ba’y when he uncovered a blackened roll of metal. Usually he would just throw away such junk, as it tended to get
jammed in his equipment, but when he unfurled the roll he saw that it was a sheet of copper with strange writing on it,
about the size of a magazine.
He offered the copper sheet to one of the antiques dealers in the area who bought it for next to nothing. The dealer, in
turn, tried to sell it for a profit but when he found no buyers, he eventually sold it to the Philippine National Museum for
just 2000 pesos, where it was assigned to Alfredo E. Evangelista, head of its Anthropology Department.

The inscription is on a thin copper plate measuring less than 20 × 30 cm (8 × 12 inches) in size with words directly embossed
onto the plate. It differs in manufacture from Javanese scrolls of the period, which had the words inscribed onto a heated,
softened scroll of metal.

Inscribed on it is the Saka era date of the year Siyaka 822, month of Waisaka, the fourth day of the waning moon, which
corresponds to Monday, 21 April 900 CE in the Gregorian calendar. The writing system used is the Kawi Script, while the
language is a variety of Old Malay, and contains numerous loanwords from Sanskrit and a few non-Malay vocabulary
elements whose origin may be Old Javanese. Some contend it is between Old Tagalog and Old Javanese. The document
states that it releases its bearers, the children of Namwaran, from a debt in gold amounting to 1 kati and 8 suwarnas (865
grams).
A year later, Antoon Postma noted that the inscription was similar to the ancient Indonesian script of Kawi. Postma
translated the script and found the document dated itself to the Saka year 822, an old Hindu calendar date which
approximately corresponds to 900 A.D.This meant that the document pre-dated the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521
and is from about the same time as the mention of Philippines in the official Chinese Sung History for the year 1972.

In 1990, Antoon Postma, a Dutch expert in ancient Philippine scripts and Mangyan writing, and a long-time resident of the
Philippines, translated the document that came to be known as the Laguna Copperplate Inscription (LCI). When he saw
that the writing looked similar to the ancient Indonesian script called Kavi, and that the document bore a date from the
ancient Sanskrit calendar, he enlisted the help of fellow Dutchman, Dr. Johann de Casparis, whose area of expertise was
ancient Indonesia. Casparis confirmed that the script and the words used in the Laguna document were exactly the same
as those that were used on the island Java at the time stated in the document, which was the year 822, in the old Hindu
calendar or the year 900 C.E. (Common Era) on our calendar.

In spite of the similarities to Javanese documents, the copper plate had some peculiarities that led scholars to believe that
it was not from the island of Java. First: the LCI did not mention the king of Java at that time, King Balitung. It was the
custom at that time to always mention the name of the king in official documents. Second: the language used in the
document was not only Sanskrit. It was a mixture of Sanskrit, Old Javanese, Old Malay and Old Tagalog. And third: the
method of writing was different. At that time in Java the characters were impressed into heated copper, but the characters
on the Laguna plate seemed to have been hammered into cold copper.

In his examination, Postma learned that the inscription was a pardon from the Chief of Tondo that erased the debt of a
man named Namwaran. His debt was one kati and eight suwarna, or about 926.4 grams of gold. Today in 2006, this is
equal to about $18,600 Canadian.

The document mentioned a few towns that still exist today: Tundun, which is now Tondo in Metro Manila and three towns
in Bulakan; Pailah or Paila, Puliran or Pulilan, and Binwangan. A town in Agusan del Norte on Mindanao called Dewata or
Diwata also appears in the text. Diwata is near Butuan, which has been a rich source of ancient artefacts. A place called
Medang was mentioned, too, which is possibly Medan in Sumatra, Indonesia. Also, the name of Namwaran’s son was
given as Bukah, a name that may have some relation to the town of Gatbuka in Bulakan. Gat is a title similar to “Sir” for a
knight.

The LCI in English

In 1994 Hector Santos asked me to write a Filipino translation of the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. I wrote two. The
first was based on his English translation. The second was based on his glossary, called the LCI Dictionary, and on my
own research. It closely followed the word order of the original document. My latest translation (which can be seen in
the Filipino version this article) changed the sentence structure to make it more readable. Here is my rough English
translation of that Filipino version.
Long Live! Year of Siyaka 822, month of Waisaka, according to astronomy. The fourth day of the waning moon, Monday. On
this occasion, Lady Angkatan, and her brother whose name is Buka, the children of the Honourable Namwaran, were
awarded a document of complete pardon from the Commander in Chief of Tundun, represented by the Lord Minister of
Pailah, Jayadewa.

By this order, through the scribe, the Honourable Namwaran has been forgiven of all and is released from his debts and
arrears of 1 katî and 8 suwarna before the Honourable Lord Minister of Puliran, Ka Sumuran by the authority of the Lord
Minister of Pailah.

Because of his faithful service as a subject of the Chief, the Honourable and widely renowned Lord Minister of Binwangan
recognized all the living relatives of Namwaran who were claimed by the Chief of Dewata, represented by the Chief of
Medang.

Yes, therefore the living descendants of the Honourable Namwaran are forgiven, indeed, of any and all debts of the
Honourable Namwaran to the Chief of Dewata.

This, in any case, shall declare to whomever henceforth that on some future day should there be a man who claims that no
release from the debt of the Honourable...

(2014, 10). Laguna Copper Plate StudyMode.com. Retrieved 10, 2014, from https://www.studymode.com/essays/Laguna-
Copper-Plate-60094683.html
The Boxer Codex

Boxer Codex is a manuscript written circa 1595 which contains illustrations of Filipinos at the time of their initial contact
with the Spanish. Aside from a description of and historical allusions to the Philippines and various other Far Eastern
countries, it also contains seventy-five colored drawings of the inhabitants of these regions and their distinctive costumes.
Fifteen illustrations deal with Filipinos.

It is believed that the original owner of the manuscript was Luis Pérez das Mariñas, son of Governor General Gómez Pérez
das Mariñas, who was killed in 1593 by the Sangleys (Chinese living in the Philippines). Luis succeeded his father in office
as Governor General of the Philippines. Since Spanish colonial governors were required to supply written reports on the
territotries they governed, it is likely that the manuscript was written under the orders of the governor.

The manuscript’s earliest known owner was Lord Ilchester. The codex was among what remained in his collection when
his estate, Holland House in London, suffered a direct hit during an air raid 1942. The manuscript was auctioned in 1947
and came into the possession of Prof. Charles R. Boxer, an authority on the Far East. It is now owned by the Lilly Library at
Indiana University.

The Boxer Codex depicts the Tagalogs, Visayans, Zambals, Cagayanons and Negritos of the Philippines in vivid colors.
Except for the Chinese, however, its illustrations of inhabitants of neighboring countries are odd looking. This suggests
that the artist did not actually visit the places mentioned from the text, but drew from imagination. Boxer notes that the
descriptions of these countries are not original. The account of China, for example, was largely based on the narrative of
Fray Martin de Rada. The technique of the paintings suggests that artist may have been Chinese, as does the use of Chinese
paper, ink and paints.
The Bisayans are accustomed to paint their
bodies with some very elegant tattoos. They
do this with iron or brass rods, the points of
which are heated on fire. These are done in
the manner illuminations, paintings all parts
of the body, such as the chest, the stomach,
legs, arms, shoulders, hands, and muscles,
and among some, the posteriors.

A pair of gold-embellished Visayan Noble


couple. Woven gold adorned them in sashes
with ornate repousse buckles, cord weights.

Naturales Tagalos Noble couple. "The


women carry much gold jewelry because
they are richer than the Bisayans. Men and
women also wear many bracelets and chains
of gold in the arms. They are not used to
wearing them on the legs. Women likewise
wear around their necks golden chains like
the men do."

A pair of male and female hunters from Zambales.


"..if some close relative dies or is killed, they have
to kill other men to avenge the death of their
kinsman, and until mourning is done, they cut off
their hair at the back and in front, and they stop
eating rice, and promise not to do other things
until they have achieved their revenge."
The Boxer Codex, sometimes known as the Manila Manuscript, is a manuscript written on 1590, which contains
illustrations of ethnic groups in the Philippines, ethnic groups across Southeast Asia, East Asia, and Micronesia at the time
of their initial contact with the Spaniards with additional Taoist mythological deities and demons, and both real and
mythological birds and animals copied from popular Chinese texts and books in circulation at the time. Aside from a
description of, and historical allusions to what is now the Philippines and various other Far Eastern countries, the codex
also contains 97 hand-drawn color paintings and illustrations depicting peoples, birds and animals (both real and
mythological) of the Philippines, the Indonesian Archipelago, China and mainland Southeast Asia. It has been pointed out
more than once that the depictions of peoples from the Far East are the first ever created for European eyes. The first
illustration is an oblong fold-out, 74 are full-page colored illustrations and the remaining are arranged four to a page on
22 pages (with some of the quarters remaining blank). Most of the drawings appear to have been copied or adapted from
materials brought to the Philippines from China by Martin de Rada : the Shanghai Jing (The Classic of Mountains and Seas)
and books from the shenmo genre, which depict deities and demons. The remaining drawings represent individuals, often
a male and female pair, as inhabitants from tributaries of China with their distinctive costume; some of these have been
refashioned as warriors. The depictions of inhabitants from Chinese tributaries may have been copied from a pre-existing
source, drawn from memory or perhaps even drawn according to instruction given by Rada or one of the other Europeans
who visited China. At least fifteen illustrations deal with the inhabitants of the Philippine Archipelago.

Contents and provenance


The Boxer Codex depicts the Tagalogs, Visayans, Zambals, Cagayanes or possibly Ibanags, and Negritos of the Philippines
in vivid color. The technique of the paintings, as does the use of Chinese paper, ink, and paints, suggests that the unknown
artist may have been Chinese.
It is believed that the original owner of the manuscript was Luis Pérez Dasmariñas, son of Governor General Gómez Pérez
Dasmariñas, who was killed in 1593 by Sangleys or Chinese living in the Philippines. Luis succeeded his father in office as
Governor-General of the Philippines. Since Spanish colonial governors were required to submit written reports on the
territories they governed, it is likely that the manuscript was written under the orders of the governor.
The manuscript's earliest known modern owner was Lord Ilchester. The codex was among what remained in his collection
when his estate, Holland House in London, suffered from direct German shelling on September 27, 1940 during The Blitz.
The manuscript was auctioned in 1947 and came into the possession of Professor Charles Ralph Boxer, an authority on
the Far East, and after whom the document is named. It is now owned by the Lilly Library at Indiana University.

Alfredo R. Roces, et. al., eds., Boxer Codex in Filipino Heritage: the Making of a Nation, Philippines: Lahing Pilipino
Publishing, Inc., 1977, Vol. IV, p. 1003.

https://www.thevisualtraveler.net/2018/05/boxer-codex-this-is-what-16th-century.html

Roces, Alfredo R., ed. (1977), "Boxer Codex", Filipino Heritage: the Making of a Nation, IV, Philippines: Lahing
Pilipino Publishing, Inc.

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