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Thematic: Geodiversity
- Hutaginjang Plateau YTT hydrothermaly-alteration; Hutaginjang
- Hutaginjang – Tapian Nauli, non-welded YTT plateau
- Tapian Nauli, Welded OTT
- Tapian Nauli Parking Area, Brecciated Lava
- Dolok Martumbur, Mesozoic meta-sandstones
Geological Aspects
Morphology of the Plateau and Caldera Rim Tufa Deposits Resulting from Eruptions 74,000 Years Ago. Landscape/natural landscape from which to view the beautiful rim of the caldera and can see the islands of Sibandang and Samosir and the caldera walls on the other side. Volcanic breccia with an andesite composition exposed in the Tapian Nauli area (Muara-Silangit), is a pre-caldera volcanic rock that is very rarely exposed. The background is a panorama of Lake Toba from the south.
Apart from that, heading to the Hutaginjang Geosite, you will pass through the Sijaba Hutaginjang Tourist Park (Dolok Saut Surungan Nature Reserve), the Dolok Saut-Surungan Nature Reserve covering an area of 39,000 hectares located in North Tapanuli (Decree of the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia Number: 923/Kpts/Um/12/82, December 27, 1982). The Dolok Surungan Wildlife Reserve was previously the Dolok Surungan Forest Area covering an area of 10,800 Ha and the Dolok Sihobun Forest Area covering an area of 13,000 Ha (Zelfbestuur Decree dated 25 June 1924 Number 50). Minister of Agriculture Decree No. 43/Kpts/Um/2/1974 designated the two areas (Dolok Surungan and Dolok Sihobun) as the Dolok Surungan Wildlife Reserve area. This area is the third largest conservation area after the Bukit Barisan Grand Forest Park (51,600 Ha).
The flora in this area are plants that live at an altitude of 1,000-2,173 m dml, such as anturmangan (Casuarina sp), mayang (Palaguium sp), haundolok (Eugenia sp), and medang (Manglietia sp). This place is also a habitat for wild animals such as deer, wild boars, Sumatran tigers, porcupines, eagles, gibbons and so on.
Biological Aspects
Around the Hutaginjang Geosite, there are candlenut trees which are a spice in almost all Batak dishes. The parts used are seeds which contain quite a lot of fat, as well as corn, coffee, and Salaon (Indigofera tinctoria) which is a plant whose sap is used to color dark blue and close to black on one of the traditional Batak cloths, namely ulos. Sona (Pterocarpus indicus) and Jabi-jabi (Ficus sp) are plants whose sap is used to dye red on one of the traditional Batak cloths, namely ulos. Apart from that, it has been a tradition for generations of people to eat buffalo for agricultural activities.
Cultural Aspects
In the traditional villages spread across the Toba Caldera UNESCO Global Geopark area, there are several traditional Batak traditional houses. Usually one house is occupied by more than one to four families (husband and wife and children). The traditional houses in this Huta are still in their original form and are estimated to be hundreds of years old, in accordance with developments over time, some of the materials, for example walls, pillars and roofs, have been replaced/refurbished because the original traditional houses have walls/floors made of wood without nails and roofs made of palm fiber. .
Batak house buildings stand on sturdy pillars so that there is a lower room called “bara” which is usually used for pet cages. This bara is surrounded by pillars supporting the house which are connected to each other by “ransang” which is a wooden plank without nails. The middle part of the Batak house has no rooms, the room is open but the use of the room floor has rules, among others, it is called ruma soding, ruma Suhut, etc. The upper part does not have a ceiling, only at the front and back of the upper part there is a room called “Parapara”. The parapara at the front is usually used to store traditional objects or is also a place for traditional musical instruments to be stored. It is said that it is also used as a safe place to peer into conditions that occur outside the house in the huta. The rear para-para is used as a place to store kitchen utensils and food supplies. The roof of a Batak house is cone-shaped with the rear end rising higher than the front end.
If you look from the outside, the front of the Batak traditional house is decorated with typical Batak carvings called Gorga which consist of 3 colors (white, red and black) which have their own meaning. There are also various typical ornaments, including ornaments called Gaja Dompak, Singa-singa, Pane Nabolon and Dila Paung. According to the parents, this ornament is believed to function to ward off evil spirits who want to enter the house and protect the occupants of the house from witchcraft interference or anything that causes bad things to the people in the Siallagan hut. Apart from that, there are also 4 ornaments symbolizing women’s breasts/breasts (Batak language: bagot or panusuan or situngkol bulusan). This ornament symbolizes fertility and wealth, usually placed in the house of a King or the house of a generous person, who likes to provide assistance to those in need.
Entering a traditional Batak house we have to go through the stairs which are placed in the middle and we have to be careful and duck so as not to trip over the wooden crossbars; This means that we as guests must be polite, courteous and respectful when approaching the owner of the house. This staircase usually consists of 3, 5 or 7 steps (in the past, the count was odd for the house of a respected person or the King’s house, while for the house of a servant or poor person). Inside the house (an open room without room dividers) there are everyday household items such as: Tataring (stove) and hudon tano (earthen pot) placed in the middle of the room as a place to cook food and drinks for the residents of the house or guests. Hassung (made from long and large bamboo) is used to hold and lift water from springs. The sapa (large plate) is made of wood as a place for food to be served to all family members. Solub (made from bamboo) as a place to store cooked food, or also as a tool for measuring rice. Other kitchen utensils usually consist of wood and stone such as rice spoons, small mortars and coasters.
Apart from these objects, there is a four-square object (like a tampi) which is made to hang at the back of the room, which used to function as a place for offerings to ask for blessings and protection from the spirits of the ancestors and the Almighty (mulajadi na bolon). Outside the house/yard, there are usually stone chairs to sit on, and also a mortar (losung) which is used to pound rice or rice to be eaten or made into flour (itak) as an ingredient for making traditional Batak food for traditional events or offerings, this food is called Itak Puti, Itak Gurgur and Nahinopingan/ Nahinindatni Andalu (ingredients consist of rice flour, palm sugar, coconut and salt to taste).
