Mataram Kingdom

Medang i Bhumi Mataram
732–1006
The Medang Kingdom during the Central Java and Eastern Java periods
Capital		Central Java: Mdaη i Bhumi Mataram (precisely unknown, suggested somewhere in Prambanan Plain), later moved to Mamrati and Poh Pitu East Java: Mdaη i Tamwlang and Mdaη i Watugaluh (near modern Jombang), later moved to Mdaη i Wwatan (near modern Madiun)
Languages		Old Javanese, Sanskrit
Religion		Kejawen, Hinduism, Buddhism, Animism
Government		Monarchy
Raja
•	732–760	Sri Sanjaya
•	985–1006	Dharmawangsa
History
•	Sanjaya established the kingdom (Canggal inscription)	732
•	Dharmawangsa defeat to Wurawari and Srivijaya	1006
Currency		Masa and Tahil (native gold and silver coins)
Preceded by Succeeded by Kalingga Sunda Kingdom Kahuripan

East Java: Mdaη i Tamwlang and Mdaη i Watugaluh (near modern Jombang), later moved to Mdaη i Wwatan (near modern Madiun)

The Medang or Mataram Kingdom was a Javanese Hindu–Buddhist kingdom that flourished between the 8th and 10th centuries. It was based in Central Java, and later in East Java. Established by King Sanjaya, the kingdom was ruled by the Sailendra dynasty.

During most of its history, the kingdom seems to rely heavily on agricultural pursuit, especially extensive rice farming, and later also benefited from the maritime trade. According to foreign sources and archaeological findings, the kingdom seems to be well populated and quite prosperous. The kingdom had developed a complex society, they had a well developed culture and had achieved a degree of sophistication and refined civilisation.

In the period between the late 8th century to the mid-9th century, the kingdom saw the blossoming of classical Javanese art and architecture, testified by the rapid growth of temple construction dotted the landscape of its heartland in Mataram (Kedu and Kewu Plain). The most notable temples constructed in Medang Mataram are Kalasan, Sewu, Borobudur and Prambanan temples. By 850, the kingdom had become the dominant power in Java and later of its history, was a serious rival to the hegemonic Srivijaya Empire.

In the early 19th century, the discovery of numerous ruins of great monuments – such as Borobudur, Sewu and Prambanan – dominated the landscape of Kedu and Kewu Plain in Yogyakarta and Central Java, has caught the attention of some historians and scholars in colonial Dutch East Indies. This has spurred the archaeological studies to uncover the history of this ancient civilisation.