In the modern theatre of global diplomacy, power is no longer measured solely by naval tonnage or military force. Beyond physical strength, soft power and cultural influence in other countries are indicators of a country’s presence on the world stage.
One of the most leveraged currencies for shaping this identity and narrative is cultural heritage.
For Southeast Asian nations, history is a tool for soft power and national branding. Furthermore, the interconnected histories of these countries can also serve as a bridge between them.
No case study illustrates this more poignantly than the Belitung Shipwreck, a 9th-century (830 CE) “time capsule” that has become a masterclass in how sunken treasure becomes 21st-century statecraft, influencing not only countries in Southeast Asia but also as far away as China, Persia, and the Middle East.
A 1,100-Year-Old Global Highway
Discovered in 1998 off Belitung Island, Indonesia, the wreck was an Arab dhow, the first of its kind ever found according to UNESCO’s Silk Roads Programme.
Its hull, stitched together with coconut fibre rather than iron nails, carried over 60,000 artefacts, including mass-produced Chinese Tang Dynasty ceramics and exquisite gold and silver vessels, as documented in Michael Flecker’s 2001 archaeological study.
It also contained Persian green bowls, resin, metals, and spices.
This find provided the first physical evidence of a direct maritime trade route between the Abbasid Caliphate in Arabia and the kingdoms of Persia and China.
These artefacts prove that 1,100 years ago, the Indonesian archipelago was already an essential fulcrum of strategic trade routes, including the “Silk Road of the Sea”.
This discovery is one of the best-preserved and most intact shipwrecks ever discovered, providing a narrative that serves as a modern identity for the countries involved.
The Geopolitics of a Name
In archaeology, unknown shipwrecks are traditionally named after their location to honour their geographical context; examples include Antikythera (Greece) and Uluburun (Turkey).
A prime example is the Rosetta Stone, currently housed in the British Museum in London, which takes its name from the Egyptian town of Rashid (Rosetta), where it was found in 1799.
However, in Singapore’s Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM), the Belitung find is predominantly displayed as the “Tang Shipwreck”.
By naming the vessel after its cargo (China) rather than its discovery site (Indonesia), the narrative shifts.
It sidelines Indonesia's narrative as a maritime country at the centre of sea trade. Instead, it becomes a “Global Trade” story, aligning perfectly with Singapore’s identity as a timeless hub of international commerce.
Shaping Historical Narratives the Singapore Way
This is not Singapore’s first exercise in strategic rebranding, especially in historical narrative.
The transformation of Pulau Blakang Mati (meaning “Island of Death from Behind”) into Sentosa (”Peace and Tranquillity”) in 1970 was a masterclass in moulding history for economic objectives.
By erasing the island’s grim military past and creating a “South Sea paradise,” Singapore successfully repositioned itself for the international tourism market. The island is now a centre of premium tourism and events, a far cry from its past and its scary name.
The same logic applies to the shipwreck. By securing the collection for $32 million in 2005 via the Estate of Khoo Teck Puat, Singapore took a calculated, massive reputational risk.
It bet that owning the physical objects mattered more than immediate archaeological approval.
This bold play eventually paid off.
As the controversy faded, Singapore was left with a world-class centrepiece of history and heritage that justifies its role not only as a “middleman” of history but as a permanent hub of maritime trade where diverse cultures have converged for centuries.
2001 UNESCO Convention as a Moral Compass
One of the international conventions or agreements governing treasures, shipwrecks, and other archaeological finds is the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, which looms large over this collection.
Built on a strict ban on commercial exploitation, the Convention argues that history should not be traded as a commodity. This ethical stance is the very reason the Smithsonian Institution in America cancelled plans to exhibit the collection back in 2011.
For Indonesia, the Convention is no longer a set of distant rules, but a strategic blueprint for the future.
Even if the Belitung sale was “legal” in 1998, the 2001 UNESCO standards provide Indonesia with the moral high ground to demand a shared narrative.
Indonesia’s current refusal to treat shipwrecks as “treasure” to be auctioned signals a maturing nation that values heritage as a non-renewable sovereign asset.
President Prabowo and the “Heritage as Sovereignty” Vision
Under the leadership of President Prabowo Subianto and Culture Minister Fadli Zon, Indonesia has entered a cultural revival and renaissance.
The recent repatriation of 828 cultural objects from the Netherlands, including the Singasari statues and the “Java Man” fossils, is evidence that Jakarta now views its heritage as diplomatic currency.
These successes counter the old “capacity argument” used to justify the original Belitung sale.
As Minister Fadli Zon aggressively pursues the return of Batak manuscripts from Germany, the message is clear: Indonesia is reclaiming its historical narrative as a pillar of national dignity and “National Culture Building and National Branding”.
Indonesia has demonstrated that it now has the institutional strength to manage its own treasures.
Shared Stewardship as Future Blueprint
The future lies in collaborative models.
Total repatriation, as with artefacts from the Netherlands, differs from the situation in Belitung, where several countries have direct ties to the shipwreck. Indonesia itself has an initiative in the village of Batu Itam (Belitung), where the Indonesian Heritage Agency and UNESCO are currently (2025-2026) empowering locals to build livelihoods from the shipwreck’s story.
Batu Itam could set a precedent, with the goal for 2026 not being a zero-sum battle for physical return but a move toward shared stewardship.
Through digital repatriation, using high-resolution 3D scans to create “virtual museums” in Indonesia, the collection can be “returned” narratively and visually without moving a single piece.
Singapore provided the staging and conservation, which it has proven excellent at, but the soul of the story remains anchored in Indonesian waters and villages.
By co-curating this legacy, both nations can prove that the sea is not a barrier that divides them, but a shared heritage that defines the future of ASEAN.
This strategy also aligns with Indonesia’s active policy: the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) and the Ministry of Culture have already prioritised digitising national cultural heritage, as seen in the effort to collect scattered Batak manuscripts (Pustaha).
By co-curating the Belitung collection digitally, Indonesia, Singapore, and other regional partners can prove that physical location is no longer a barrier to shared ownership.
Now Is the Time for Heritage Sovereignty
To Indonesians, the Belitung story should be seen as both a cautionary tale and a catalyst for change.
We must act quickly to modernise our heritage governance, ensuring that robust, comprehensive legal frameworks and world-class conservation facilities protect future discoveries.
Recent developments show that Jakarta is actively negotiating the return of the Pucangan Inscription from India (taken during the Raffles era) and the Sangguran Inscription from Scotland, and is also receiving smuggled Papuan artefacts returned directly by U.S. law enforcement.
Cultural heritage is not a luxury; it is a non-renewable resource of national identity.
The successful repatriations since 2024 demonstrate that we are ready to move beyond the sidelines of global archaeology.
By investing in “Digital Repatriation” and local heritage hubs like Batu Itam, we turn the tide from a history of loss to a future of leadership.
The Belitung Shipwreck is not just a collection of artefacts in a Singaporean museum, but it is a call for Indonesia to step forward as the rightful steward of its own maritime soul.
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Togi Prakoso, S.Sos., MPP, is a Policy Analyst at the Ministry of State Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia. He earned a Master's in Public Policy from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore. He is also a member of the National Association of Policy Analysts.
(QOB/ELS)