National Monument (Monas), Jakarta

Near the entrance of the National Monument Park, stands an 8-ton bronze statue of Prince Diponegoro. The Prince is a famous Javanese warrior, who led his people against the Dutch colonials during his guerilla war in 1825-1830.

This magnificent statue was crafted by Italian sculptor Colbertado and was a gift from the Italian Government in 1965.

Monas, acronym from Monumen Nasional (National Monument). * see my travelogues about Koningsplein.
As a symbol of the Nations, which building at 1960’s. The design was simple, an obelisk from Italian marble, about 137 metres height with pure glittering ingot (gold) on the top. This design is reflecting the eternally flame -–symbol of our passion and optimism in facing the freedom as a Nation. At the bottom of the monument, we can find National Heritage Museum which contents our Sang Saka Merah Putih --first National flag, handmade by Mrs. Fatmawati --wife of President Soekarno at Independence Day, August 17th, 1945. And the recorded of President Soekarno's speechs, about 15 minutes. One of his famous words was “Jas Merah” acronym from “Jangan pernah Meninggalkan Sejarah” (means; to be a great Nations, please don’t ever leave our history. We can not reach this day, without passed the days before).

The National Monument or Monument Nasional (Monas)
The National Monument, or 'Monas' as it is popularly called, is one of the monuments built during the Sukarno era of fierce nationalism. It stands for the people's determination to achieve freedom and the crowning of their efforts in the Proclamation of Independence in August 1945. The 137-meter tall marble obelisk is topped with a flame coated with 35 kg. of gold. The base houses a historical museum and a hall for meditations. The monument is open to the public and upon request the lift can carry visitors to the top which offers a bird's eye view on the city and the sea.

The National Monument.
Has the best view in Jakarta. You can take the lift all the way up the top.
In the basement it also contains an interesting historical walk through of Indonesian history. Interesting because it is definetely an official Indonesian representation of events.

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Locals joke that Soekarno built this as a monument to his virility. The line was huge so I didn't go in though I enjoyed the walk around it.