Apendhapa orpandhapa (Javanese: ꦥꦼꦤ꧀ꦝꦥ or ꦥꦤ꧀ꦝꦥ, Indonesian spelling:pendapa, nonstandard spelling:pendopo orpěndåpå) is a fundamental element ofJavanesearchitecture unique in the southern central part of Java;[1] a largepavilion-like structure built oncolumns. Either square or rectangular inplan, it is open on all sides and provides shelter from the sun and rain, but allows breeze and indirect light. The wordpendhapa is cognate to theSanskrit wordmandapa ("hall").[citation needed]
TheDutch writer,Multatuli, in hiscolonial reformist novel,Max Havelaar, described thependhapa thus: "After a broad-brimmed hat, an umbrella, or a hollow tree, a 'pendoppo' [sic] is certainly the most simple representation of the idea 'roof'."[2]
Derived from ancient Javanese architectural elements, pendhapa are common ritual spaces primarily intended for ceremonies and also for purposes such as receiving guests in the compounds of wealthy Javanese and even as cottage industry work spaces. Pendhapa is constructed as a stand-alone structure or, attached to a walled inner structure (dalem), may form the front part of atraditional Javanese house (omah).
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The oldest surviving images of ancient Javan vernacular architecture appear inBorobudur reliefs, among others the stepped roof typependhapa. They once sheltered the institutions of ancient Javanese kingdoms, such as law courts, clergy, and palaces, and for public appearances of the king and his ministers. In the 9th centuryRatu Boko complex near Prambanan, there is traces of square elevated stone bases withumpaks, and stones with holes to put wooden pillars on it. Similar structures also can be found in 14th centuryTrowulan dated fromMajapahit era, where square brick bases withumpak stones suggest that somependopos once stood there. Because the pillars and the roof were made from wooden organic material, no trace of thependhapa roof remains. Thependhapa with faithful Majapahit brick-base style can be found in 16th-century Kraton Kasepuhan,Cirebon, as well as 17th-centuryKota Gede,Yogyakarta. This evidence suggests that the design has not changed much for over a millennium.
They remain fundamental components of Javanesekraton ('palaces'), with European influences often being incorporated since the 18th century. The majority ofpendhapa are constructed fromtimber butmasonry versions are in existence such as in theKraton Kanoman inCirebon. Wealthy modern day home builders, in attempting to design homes that draw on traditional Javanese experience of space, have dismantled, transported and re-assembledpendhapa to form modern-traditional hybrid homes. The pendhapa is used as a batik making place for women.[3]
