Merlion
04-18-2007, 04:13 AM
I suppose this is to attract tourist dollars. Sumatra is one of the larger Indonesian islands. It is next to Malaysia and Singapore. Northern Sumatra was very badly hit by the Dec 2005 tsunami.
World’s Tallest Statue (http://www.indonesiamatters.com/1227/worlds-tallest-statue/)
April 18th, 2007,... Plans to build the (almost) tallest statue in the world have North Sumatra on the brink of religious war.
The regent of Tapanuli Tengah (Tapteng), in North Sumatra, Mr Tuani Lumban Tobing, plans to erect a statue of Noah, of Noah’s Ark fame, (referred to as the prophet Nuh/Noh by Muslims), as part of a hotel development project in the area. The hotel is going to be built in the shape of a boat, hence the Noah statue to accompany it.
The Noah statue will be built to a height of 80 metres [260 ft], which some claim will make it the tallest statue in the world [1] (although the builders will need to add another 20+ metres, as the Ushiku Amida Buddha statue near Tokyo is said to be 100 metres high [2]).
The regent hopes the hotel and its interesting statue will become a tourist attraction. The hotel and tourist complex will cost 450 billion rupiah [about $50m] to build, with Balinese investors being the prime movers in the project, on 835 hectares in Bukit Anugrah Bonan Dolok, Sitahuis, Tapteng, and will have 150 rooms, possibly with views of the giant Noah statue, which has been designed by a Balinese artist, Nyoman Nuarta.
Construction begins, in a nationalist spirit, on or near August 17th 2007, the first stone to be laid by president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.....
World’s Tallest Statue (http://www.indonesiamatters.com/1227/worlds-tallest-statue/)
April 18th, 2007,... Plans to build the (almost) tallest statue in the world have North Sumatra on the brink of religious war.
The regent of Tapanuli Tengah (Tapteng), in North Sumatra, Mr Tuani Lumban Tobing, plans to erect a statue of Noah, of Noah’s Ark fame, (referred to as the prophet Nuh/Noh by Muslims), as part of a hotel development project in the area. The hotel is going to be built in the shape of a boat, hence the Noah statue to accompany it.
The Noah statue will be built to a height of 80 metres [260 ft], which some claim will make it the tallest statue in the world [1] (although the builders will need to add another 20+ metres, as the Ushiku Amida Buddha statue near Tokyo is said to be 100 metres high [2]).
The regent hopes the hotel and its interesting statue will become a tourist attraction. The hotel and tourist complex will cost 450 billion rupiah [about $50m] to build, with Balinese investors being the prime movers in the project, on 835 hectares in Bukit Anugrah Bonan Dolok, Sitahuis, Tapteng, and will have 150 rooms, possibly with views of the giant Noah statue, which has been designed by a Balinese artist, Nyoman Nuarta.
Construction begins, in a nationalist spirit, on or near August 17th 2007, the first stone to be laid by president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.....