The group of islands located in the Asia-Pacific coral triangles also offered experience to see the blacksmiths working in their workshops in Tukang Besi Island.
The blacksmiths were preserving one of the inheritances of the Indonesian national hero Pattimura.
The pieces of iron were burnt into red and a worker forged the smoldering metal with his hammers. The smith, Maharudin, told me to be stay a bit away from the work.
Noises of hammering activities were enliven the place where around 200 workshops were operating in Binongko Island, one of the islands in Wakatobi, South East Sulawesi.
Binongko became one of my destinations during my travel with the World Wide Funds for Nature (WWF) Indonesia. The marine ecosystem in the area of Wakatobi National Park was indeed extraordinary. The place deserves its status of the World Heritage which was awarded in 2005.
In a week, I sailed around Wakatobi Islands on a ship named Menami. The ship was used by WWF-Indonesia to monitor the coral reefs and fishes conditions in Wakatobi waters. The ship has a size of 24 meters length and 6 meters width.
A kitchen was located in the rear side next to two bathrooms with closet. The upper part was the navigating room and meeting room. Dark cloud accompanied our journey to Binongko Island and the rain fell lightly.
The sun was bright when we anchored at the harbor of Binongko Island. The steep reefs and weeds welcomed us.
According to historians, La Rabu Mbaru, people in Binongko showed their dedication to Buton Kingdom by forging iron into weapons for the king’s army. The smith skills were inherited to the next generations.
The forging skill of Binongko people is believed to be inherited by Captain Waloindi, which was known as Pattimura (Thomas Matulessy) in Ambon.
The remains of the old fortress defense Buton kingdom I can still see at the dock Binongko. The walls surrounding the magnitude of coastal stretches, even where the cannon is still there.
The ruins of old defense forts of Buton were still seen in Binongko harbor. The huge walls were still extending around the coast, even the cannon places were still there.
Female smiths were also a common view in this Island. The 40-year-old Hikmawati was one of them. When I saw her, she was finishing the blade using a grinder.
Hikmawati and Muharudin bought the iron from Surabaya, East Java for Rp15,500 per kilograms. According to Muharudin, the smiths can forge up to one ton of irons in a day. The
price of finished knives in Binongko was relatively cheap.
“We sell them in the traditional market for Rp15,000 to 25,000 each,” said Himawati who said that she can get Rp100,000 in a week.
Hikmawati realized that her profession will not make her rich, but despite of that, she felt lucky and loved her job. She made her first knife when she was 10 years old.
As for Muharudin, the process of making the knife was a harmony. He believed that every detail of the process has its purpose to ensure the quality of the knife.
“In the process, there is an element of patience and thoroughness. This becomes the nature of Binongko people who are known for their patience although the land is rough,” said Muharudin.
There are three types of Binongko knives. The first is the small knives in size of kitchen knives. The second has a medium size which usually given to boys when they start to participate in tribal ceremonies. The third is the long one, which is useful for short-distance combat.
The number of the smiths has recently decreased because more people starting to turn into vendors. According to an official, the full-time smiths were only about 200 people from the total population of 5,000 people.
Source : Tempo
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