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'Book of the Marvels of the World' (French: <i>Livre des Merveilles du Monde</i>) or 'Description of the World' (<i>Devisement du Monde</i>), in Italian <i>Il Milione</i> ('The Million') or <i>Oriente Poliano</i> and in English commonly called 'The Travels of Marco Polo', is a 13th-century travelogue.<br/><br/> It was recorded by Rustichello da Pisa from stories told by Marco Polo, describing Polo's travels through Asia between 1276 and 1291, and his experiences at the court of Kublai Khan.
Styrax benzoin is a species of tree native to Sumatra in Indonesia. Common names for the tree include gum benjamin tree, loban (in Arabic), kemenyan (in Indonesia and Malaysia), onycha, and Sumatra benzoin tree.<br/><br/> Benzoin resin, a dried exudation from pierced bark, is currently produced from various Styrax species native to Sumatra, Java, and Thailand. Commonly traded are the resins of S. tonkinensis (Siam benzoin), S. benzoin (Sumatra benzoin), and S. benzoides. The name 'benzoin' is probably derived from Arabic lubān jāwī (لبان جاوي, 'Javan frankincense'); compare the obsolete terms 'gum benjamin' and 'benjoin'. This incidentally shows that the Arabs were aware of the origin of these resins, and that by the late Middle Ages at latest international trade in them was probably of major importance.
This four-armed, golden statue of Avalokitesvara, the Buddhist 'Goddess of Mercy', was discovered at Rataukapastuo in Jambi, east-central Sumatra. A stronghold of Vajrayana Buddhism in pre-Islamic Sumatra, Srivijaya attracted pilgrims and scholars from other parts of Asia. These included the Chinese monk Yijing, who made several lengthy visits to Sumatra on his way to study at Nalanda University in India in 671 and 695, and the 11th century Bengali Buddhist scholar Atisha, who played a major role in the development of Vajrayana Buddhism in Tibet. Yijing reports that the kingdom was home to more than a thousand Buddhist scholars; it was in Srivijaya that he wrote his memoir of Buddhism during his own lifetime.
The Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus) is a tailless, arboreal, black furred gibbon native to the forests of Malaysia, Thailand, and Sumatra. The largest of the lesser apes, the Siamang can be twice the size of other gibbons, reaching 1 m in height, and weighing up to 14 kg.
Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. It is thought to have been in Aceh where Islam was first established in Southeast Asia. In the early 17th century the Sultanate of Aceh was the most wealthy, powerful and cultivated state in the Malacca Straits region. Aceh province now has the highest proportion of Muslims in Indonesia and has regional levels of Sharia law.<br/><br/> Aceh has a history of political independence and fierce resistance to control by outsiders, including the former Dutch colonists and the Indonesian government. Aceh has substantial natural resources, including oil and natural gas—some estimates put Aceh gas reserves as being the largest in the world.
Watercolour by the German scientist and traveller Ernst Haeckel, c.1882. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
Photograph by Ernst Haeckel, early 20th century. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
This illustration was published in the journal of Captain Wybrant Warwijck of the Dutch East Indies Company in 1604. Female guards and bodyguards were common in the court of Iskandar Muda, the 12th Sultan of Aceh (c. 1583 - 1636). He created an elite guard consisting of 3,000 women.<br/><br/> Aceh is located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. It is thought to have been in Aceh where Islam was first established in Southeast Asia. In the early 17th century the Sultanate of Aceh was the most wealthy, powerful and cultivated state in the Malacca Straits region. Aceh province now has the highest proportion of Muslims in Indonesia and has regional levels of Sharia law.<br/><br/> Aceh has a history of political independence and fierce resistance to control by outsiders, including the former Dutch colonists and the Indonesian government. Aceh has substantial natural resources, including oil and natural gas—some estimates put Aceh gas reserves as being the largest in the world.
Watercolour by the German scientist and traveller Ernst Haeckel, c.1882. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
This illuminated book made of tree bark is a pustaha, written in the script of the Batak people of Northern Sumatra. Pustahas were books describing magical practices, and were intended for use only by Batak spiritual leaders and their disciples. This pustaha describes forms of protection against evil.
The Karo, or Karonese, are the indigenous people of the Karo Plateau in North Sumatra. They belong linguistically to the Batak people but often consider themselves as separate. They speak the Batak Karo language.
Watercolour by the German scientist and traveller Ernst Haeckel, c.1882. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
Islamic law, or Sharia, has been in effect in Aceh in some form or another since the 16th century.<br/><br/> The Islamic penalty for theft is the amputation of a limb, and the punishment is repeated on other limbs for successive thefts of property worth more than a gram of gold.
Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of ethnic groups found in North Sumatra, Indonesia. The term is used to include the Toba, Karo, Pakpak, Simalungun, Angkola and Mandailing, each of which are distinct but related groups with distinct, albeit related, languages and customs (adat). Occasionally it is also used to include the Alas people of Central/Southern Aceh, but usually only as relates to language groups. In North Sumatra, Toba people typically assert their identity as 'Batak', while other 'Bataks' may explicitly reject that label, preferring instead to identify as specifically 'Simalungun', 'Karo', etc.
Photography by Ernst Haeckel, early 20th century. Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
Banda Aceh’s Grand Mosque was built around the 12th century, but was burnt down during the Aceh War (1873-1904). It was rebuilt by the Dutch as a gesture of reconciliation in 1880 before hostilities broke out once more.<br/><br/> The Dutch East India Company, or VOC, was a chartered company granted a monopoly by the Dutch government to carry out colonial activities in Asia. It was the first multinational corporation in the world and the first company to issue stock. It was also arguably the world's first megacorporation, possessing quasi-governmental powers, including the ability to wage war, imprison and execute convicts, negotiate treaties, coin money and establish colonies. The VOC was set up in 1602 to gain a foothold in the East Indies (Indonesia) for the Dutch in the lucrative spice trade, which until that point was dominated by the Portuguese. Between 1602 and 1796, the VOC sent almost a million Europeans to work in the Asia trade on 4,785 ships, and netted more than 2.5 million tons of Asian trade goods.
Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of ethnic groups found in North Sumatra, Indonesia. The term is used to include the Toba, Karo, Pakpak, Simalungun, Angkola and Mandailing, each of which are distinct but related groups with distinct, albeit related, languages and customs (adat). Occasionally it is also used to include the Alas people of Central/Southern Aceh, but usually only as relates to language groups. In North Sumatra, Toba people typically assert their identity as 'Batak', while other 'Bataks' may explicitly reject that label, preferring instead to identify as specifically 'Simalungun', 'Karo', etc.
Cornelis de Houtman (1565—99), brother of Frederick de Houtman, was a Dutch explorer who discovered a new sea route from Europe to Indonesia which helped start the Dutch spice trade. At the time, the Portuguese Empire held a monopoly on the spice trade, and the voyage was a symbolic victory for the Dutch.<br/><br/> However, the voyage itself was a disaster, beset with mutiny, killings and scurvy. De Houtman managed to insult and alienate almost everyone he met on the way. He was refused spices after insulting the Sultan of Banten on Java, then he allowed his men to rape and plunder on Madura. He managed to buy only a few pots of peppercorns on Bali; then in 1599, in Aceh in Sumatra, he insulted the sultan, setting off a sea battle in which he himself was killed.
Watercolour by the German scientist and traveller Ernst Haeckel, c.1882.Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel (February 16, 1834 – August 9, 1919), also written von Haeckel, was an eminent German biologist, naturalist, philosopher, physician, professor and artist who discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including anthropogeny, ecology, phylum, phylogeny, and the kingdom Protista. Haeckel promoted and popularized Charles Darwin's work in Germany.
Group of Karo warriors photographed by Feilberg who explored the Karo region in 1870. The photographs of Feilberg are the oldest taken of the Karo. The Karo, or Karonese, are the indigenous people of the Karo Plateau in North Sumatra. They belong linguistically to the Batak people but often consider themselves as separate. They speak the Batak Karo language.
The Aceh War, also known as the Dutch War or the Infidel War (1873–1914), was an armed military conflict between the Sultanate of Aceh and the Netherlands which was triggered by discussions between representatives of Aceh and the United Kingdom in Singapore during early 1873.<br/><br/> The war was part of a series of conflicts in the late 19th century that consolidated Dutch rule over modern-day Indonesia.