REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MUSIRAWAS - Two cultural heritage relics, a gold-plated elephant statue and a Tunggul Wulung spear, kept in the Musirawas Culture and Tourism Office in South Sumatra Province have gone missing.

"The two relics, especially the Tunggul Wulung spear, are mysteriously missing. We still dont know about their whereabouts," Head of Culture Division of the Culture and Tourism Office of Musirawas District Hamam Santoso, said on Thursday.

The two relics were found during the construction of an irrigation channel in the 40s at a former Dutch colonial office building in the G1-Mataram Village of Tugumulyo Subdistrict of Musirawas District. According to the relics caretaker, the artifacts were believed to have the power of disappearing and returning to at their original place at their own will, stated Santoso.

However, the responsibility of finding the missing historical artifacts has now been entrusted to the authorities at the office. An investigation by the Culture and Tourism Office showed no signs of theft from the boxes in which the relics were kept.

The boxes had not been tampered with and were found locked, with even the fabric covers seemingly untouched, the investigation reported. The authorities have requested anybody finding the artifacts to return them to the Musirawas office.

Earlier in September, four golden artifacts from the ancient Mataram had gone missing from the National Museum of Central Jakarta. The missing artifacts included a dragon-shaped plaque, a scripted crescent-shaped plaque, a Harihara plaque and a small golden box.

The artifacts were first discovered in the ruins of the Jalatunda ancient royal kingdom bath and in the Penanggungan Temple in Mojokerto, East Java. The recent case of the missing artifacts have exposed the weak security and surveillance arrangements in the national museum that has now urged the government to conduct an inspection and find ways to protect national treasures. 

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