Gua Tambun rediscovered

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IPOH: Gua Tambun may have 3,000-year-old cave drawings of humans and prancing deers but some Malaysians are now only “rediscovering” the cave here. 

Since May, business consultant Cae Hiew, 29, has been spending his Sunday mornings guiding the public to the almost hidden cave. 

ARTISTIC EXPRESSION: Hematite drawings of deers, believed to be at least 3,000 years old, can be seen on the wall of Gua Tambun in Ipoh.

Located just 8km from the city centre here, Gua Tambun is believed to be one of the caves in Malaysia with hematite (iron oxide) drawings.  

The exterior wall, exposed to the elements, boasts reddish drawings of human figures, a pregnant deer, a dugong, a tortoise and sketches resembling fish, arrows and an octopus. 

Ipoh-born Hiew, who recently returned home after working overseas for nine years, said he had been unaware of Gua Tambun until a Dutch friend told him about it in Shanghai. 

“When I came back, it took me a long time to find this cave. Surprisingly, very few people know how to get to Gua Tambun. 

“I love Ipoh and my aim is to promote the cave since Visit Malaysia Year 2007 is approaching,” he said while leading a group of 48 people yesterday. 

At the site, Hiew related that a soldier named R.L. Rawlings had stumbled across the cave drawings in 1959. 

Besides the drawings, participants could examine seashells and bits of coral reef scattered along the floor, reminiscent of a time when the area had been underwater. 

“The drawings also look exactly like the ones from Australia and Papua New Guinea, leading me to wonder if our lands were all connected once,” said Hiew. 

He has so far brought some 200 people to tour the cave. 

“I just wish something could be done to preserve the drawings as they are all fading away from exposure,” he added. 

FASCINATING: Visitors looking at the cavedrawings on the wall of Gua Tambun on Sunday.

Secondary school teacher Tham Yak Poo, 63, who visited Gua Tambun for the first time, said: “I live in Ipoh and I teach history; I felt that if I did not see the cave just once I would be ashamed!”  

His friend, civil engineer Yee Tet Shun, 68, added that the authorities should look into maintaining the area and making it safe and accessible to the public. 

As a senior citizen, he found it difficult to climb the steep concrete stairs leading up to the cave wall. 

A check showed that the concrete steps were overgrown with weeds and leaves and that a signboard put up by the Museums Department had also been defaced. 

Those interested in visiting Gua Tambun can meet Hiew at the Makro Hypermarket parking lot here at 10am every Sunday. Hiew can be contacted at 012-511 8116.