A huge boulder stands majestically at the mouth of the Singapore River, welcoming traders.



The inscription on the boulder is undecipherable. It's written in Kawi, a script used predominantly by the Malay Archipelago before the arrival of Islam.

In fact, legend has it, it was the same boulder lifted by the great Badang, Southeast Asia's version of Hercules, in a test of strength between a competitor from India.

This was 1,000 years ago and Singapore was not what it is today. It was possibly connected with the Indian Chola dynasty.

The Singapore Stone. IMAGE: National Museum of Singapore.

Australian researcher Dr Iain Sinclair believes that the Lion City is possibly even more older than what many believe: 700 years old. And the answers lie in the Singapore Stone.



During a conference at the Singapore Indian Heritage Centre, the researcher made known of his shocking discovery.

At the urging of Singapore Indian Heritage Centre's Nalina Gopal, Dr Sinclair said he had deciphered the Singapore Stone which had been a source of mystery for many on the island.

The stone was blown up by the British in 1843 to make way for the widening of passage for boats to travel into the island. One of the fragments was not thrown and was kept secured.

IMAGE: National Heritage Board / Facebook.

The sandstone slab caught the eye of Singapore's founding father, Sir Stamford Raffles. Since then, numerous scholars, academics, and historians had attempted to decipher the inscribed text but without any success.



Until Dr Sinclair that is. The researcher had connected with Gopal during his seminar on the Chola invasion of the Malay Archipelago who assisted him in the process.

Gopal herself was born in Chennai, India, studied history the University of Madras before making Singapore her home in 2008. So to her, the discovery is "enlightening".

In case you wish to check out the Singapore Stone, it's located at the National Museum of Singapore. You won't miss it upon entry to the museum.

Cover image sourced from ResearchGate.