Krakatau: The Tale of Lampung Submerged (Syair Lampung Karam)

Krakatau: The Tale of Lampung Submerged is a translation from Syair Lampung Karam—the only surviving account of the Krakatau eruption in August 1883 written by an indigenous eyewitness, Muhammad Saleh. The massive volcanic eruptions destroyed two-thirds of the island of Krakatau, in the Sunda Strait between Sumatra and Java. It was the day the world exploded. A tsunami wreaked havoc in the region, causing countless deaths, and shock waves were recorded around the world. Ash from the eruption affected global weather patterns for years. Since that time Krakatau has been the subject of more than 1,000 reports and publications, both scholarly and literary but this syair is the only surviving account of the event written by an indigenous eyewitness, which has only now, after 130 years, found its way into English translation.