The temple was buried by volcanic ash for centuries, rediscovered in 1733, partly restored
Prambanan Conservation — From 1733 Rediscovery to 2006 Earthquake
Prambanan's modern visitor experience is the result of nearly 90 years of conservation work. The temple was buried by volcanic ash in the 16th-17th centuries, partly rediscovered by a Dutch surveyor in 1733, formally documented in 1885, and substantially restored from 1937 to 1953. The 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake damaged several temples and triggered another conservation campaign. This guide is the clear factual conservation history.
Book your Prambanan entry ↗Burial and rediscovery (16th-19th century)
The Sailendra and Sanjaya dynasties of Central Java declined in the 10th-11th centuries; Prambanan was probably abandoned by the 11th century. By the 16th-17th centuries the temples were partly buried by ash from eruptions of nearby Mount Merapi. Vegetation overgrew the structures. Local Javanese knew of the ruins but considered them sacred and avoided them; the medieval kingdom's identity had been lost.
In 1733, Dutch surveyor C.A. Lons noted Prambanan in his maps of Java. The first formal European documentation was in 1885, when Dutch colonial archaeologist J. Groneman published illustrated descriptions. The temple was a ruin — the main shrines partially collapsed, scattered stone fragments throughout the complex, the surrounding 224 perwara temples almost entirely fallen.
The 1937-1953 reconstruction
Major restoration began in 1937 under the Dutch colonial archaeology service. The Shiva temple was the priority — the most important and the most fully collapsed. Restoration used the anastylosis method: original stone fragments were sorted, identified by their position from carving evidence, and reassembled into the original structure. Missing stones were left as gaps rather than replaced with modern material.
World War II interrupted the work; the Japanese occupation of Java (1942-1945) halted conservation. After Indonesian independence (1945), the Indonesian government continued the work. The Shiva temple was substantially complete by 1953, with the Brahma and Vishnu temples following over subsequent decades. The 224 perwara temples were never fully restored; most remain partial ruins. UNESCO inscribed Prambanan in 1991.
The 2006 earthquake and after
On 27 May 2006, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck the Yogyakarta region. The earthquake killed over 5,500 people and damaged thousands of buildings. At Prambanan, the main shrines were not seriously damaged thanks to the medieval Javanese earthquake-resistant construction (interlocking stone without mortar). However, several of the smaller subsidiary temples collapsed and required reconstruction.
Conservation work after 2006 focused on stabilising the damaged temples and seismic-strengthening the main shrines. Some of the reconstructed temples now include subtle seismic-bracing details invisible to visitors but designed to handle future earthquakes. The temple complex reopened to visitors after about 18 months of post-earthquake closure. Ongoing conservation continues; minor stone displacement is repaired annually.