PERAK MAN AND ARCHAEOLOGY MUSEUM-LENGGONG

ABOUT PERAK MAN AND ARCHAEOLOGY MUSEUM - LENGGONG

Perak Man, found in 1991, is the only complete human skeleton which has been found in Malaysia. The cave which was his final resting place is called Gua Gunung Runtuh and is situated in Bukit Kepala Gajah or Elephant's Head Hill in the Lenggong Valley in Ulu Perak. The skeleton has been dated at between 10-11,000 years old, which makes him a Stone Age man, from the Palaeolithic period. The skeleton was found by Prof. Zuraina Majid and her team from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).

It is believed Perak Man was an important member of his tribe judging by the way he was buried, in a foetal position, and accompanied by stone tools. He was about 157cm tall and probably aged between 40-50 when he died. He had an atrophied left hand and one figure was deformed. As well as the skeleton, remnants of tools and food such as shells and animal bones were found in the cave.

The Lenggong valley is one of Peninsular Malaysia's most important areas for archaeology, as excavations have revealed many traces of Malaysia's prehistory. The town of Lenggong is situated some 100 kilometres north of Ipoh on the Kuala Kangsar to Grik road. It is the site of the oldest known place of human activity in the Peninsula. Today it is still a rural area, with small kampungs surrounded by green vegetation and limestone hills. Lenggong can be likened to an open-air museum, and is home to legends, skeletons, cave drawings and precious finds such as jewellery, pottery, weapons and stone tools.

Gua Gunung Runtuh was probably used as a temporary camp when the people were out hunting, being well situated high up. In the same hill other caves have yielded archaeological remains such as stone tools and food remnants, but no more skeletons. The caves were probably used as temporary shelters as seasonal or hunting camps, whereas Gua Gunung Runtuh was lived in for longer periods.

Kota Tampan is the site of a prehistoric stone tool workshop, and has been dated at about 74,000 years old. This makes it older than the archaeological remains which have been found at Niah Cave in Sarawak, where one human skull has been dated at about 40,000 years old. But all these findings are still very young compared to those from Africa, where the predecessors of the human species originated about 3 - 5 million years ago.

There is the stylish Lenggong Archaeological Museum, also known as the Kota Tampan Archaeological Museum. The building site was chosen as it displays the reconstruction of the Kota Tampan excavation site and it is ideal to locate a museum in such an old palaeolithic-era archaeological area.

The museum exhibits artefacts excavated from the Kota Tampan area. They are housed in a large bright building and are divided into three categories covering the Kota Tampan Excavation Site Gallery, Lenggong Pre-Historic Gallery and the Human Civilization Gallery.

The Lenggong Valley has several sites of archaeological importance, such as Bukit Jawa at Kampung Geluk, and Kg. Temelong where stone tools dating back 100,000 years were found. The nearby Bukit Bunuh finds are more recent at 50,000 years! But the most fascinating and unique artefact is the 11,000-year old Perak Man skeleton. .  The Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah, officially opened it in July.2004. He paid special tribute to USM, particularly to Prof Datuk Dr Zuraina Majid and the Museums and Antiquities Department, for their untiring efforts in all their research.

The only unfortunate factor about the location of the museum is that it is "off the beaten track" and won't attract many casual passing visitors. Most visitors would need to know about it and make an effort to go. At Tasek Raban, 3km away from Kota Tampan where the museum is sited, a cluster of chalets costing RM2.2mil, are being built. This is a popular spot for fishing and water sports. 

NOTE; Included in our our itinerary for Raban Lake Retreat Tour package.