Lore Lindu National Park holds more than 200.000 hectares of nature in the heart of Sulawesi on the Wallace line. The park covers three valleys, namely Bada, Besoa, and Napu.
Lore Lindu is named after the Lore plateau and Lake Lindu. In addition to Sulawesi’s illustrious flora and fauna, the three valleys also store remnants of a stunning megalithic civilization. Large stone sculptures, kalamba (stone jars), and various menhir stones are scattered throughout the valleys.
These megaliths are often carved, and 30 of them depict human / human-like forms. Very little is known about these statues. Experts still try to find answers to who made these stones, their function, and the exact age of the megalith civilization in Lore Lindu.
The megaliths of Bada Valley were first discovered in 1908. Although slightly more than a 100 years has passed since they were first uncovered, it seems that what we know about these objects is still very little. For example, it is not known for certain when these megaliths were made.
Some have speculated that these stones were carved about 5000 years ago. Yet others suggest that they were created at a more recent point of time, i.e. 1000 years ago. Others have also proposed that they are related to a culture that carved megaliths in Laos, Cambodia and other parts of Indonesia 2000 years ago.
Neither are the creators of these megaliths known. Although it has been suggested that they were made by a culture that created megaliths in other parts of Southeast Asia, it has also been pointed out that the megaliths in Bada Valley are unique, and therefore could have been made by an entirely different culture.
Until now, no one really knows which culture made them.