Holiday Ayo - The DKI Jakarta Culture Service through the Jakarta Maritime Museum opened the Batavia Zero Meridian Line (Point Zero) Exhibition Room to the public today, Thursday (7/6).

The inauguration of the exhibition space coincided with the 45th Anniversary of the Jakarta Maritime Museum.

Previously, the Head of the DKI Jakarta Culture Service, Iwan Henry Wardhana, said that there were several navigation collections regarding the Zero Line (Point Zero) of the Batavia Meridian along with a complete explanation of past shipping activities presented at the exhibition.

In addition, the opening of this exhibition space is also a reminder and dissemination of important information for Jakarta residents regarding shipping activities around the Sunda Kelapa port in the past.

"The presence of this exhibition space is proof to the public that the existence of shipping activities around the Sunda Kelapa port in the past was at the zero line (zero point) of the meridian," said Iwan as quoted from viva.co.id.

The hope, he said, is that this exhibition will serve as a reminder of history for the community, as well as provide benefits for the continuity of information about history in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, the Head of the Management Unit for the Jakarta Maritime Museum, Mis'ari said, the organization of this exhibition was aimed at straightening out the perceptions and narratives circulating in the community regarding the zero kilometer point as a reference for sailing time.

"People's understanding of the zero point or zero line as a reference for sailing time is at the zero kilometer monument in Yogyakarta and the zero kilometer point for Indonesia on Weh Island, Sabang, Aceh. In fact, the zero point or zero line at the Maritime Museum is a reference the right time to sail," said Mis'ari.

The zero line in question is zero longitude which was indispensable during the active period of trade in the Sunda Kelapa area at that time. Nevertheless, the Maritime Museum took the initiative to present more accurate information regarding the history of the zero line (zero point) of the meridian through this exhibition space.

For information, the zero line (zero point) of the meridian is at the Signal Tower which was built in 1839, which is currently located in the Maritime Museum area, namely at Pasar Ikan Street, Number 1.

The location of the building in the Menara Syahbandar area is above the former Bastion Culemborg or the fort as well as the defensive wall of the city of Batavia which was built around 1645, along with the construction of a wall around the city of Batavia on the west bank.