Tamansari, which means “Beautiful Garden” or could be “Parfumed Garden”. it was developed from an early medieval motte-and-bailey and surrounded by water, so that Tamansari also well known as “Tamansari Water Castle”.

The building which has combination of Java Traditional Architecture, Mongolia Architecture and Portuguese Architecture (Europe Baroque Style), was built in 1758 as a pleasure palace complex for Sultan Hamengku Buwono I, the Kingdom of Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

All of building’s wall was made of Bligon. Bligon was a kind of cement which compound of sand, limestone and crushing brick ( 1:1:2 ). Bligon is weaker then cement at all. But there was no cement material at that moment. Tamansari Water Castle complex consist of some sub buildings. The 59-building compound included a mosque, meditation chambers, swimming pools, kenanga island and a series of 18 water gardens and pavilions surrounded by ornamental lakes.

Unfortunally, The palace complex fell out of use following an earthquake in 1867, which destroyed several buildings and drained the famous water features and Over time, squatters began to inhabit the site, living among the deserted pavilions and building homes in the former lakebeds. In 2004, Tamansari was one of the most endangered Sites in world. According to that situation, in 2004, Renovation was started by Regional Government of Yogyakarta which collaborated with Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation of Portugal and World Monument Fund (WMF).

Tamansari Water Castle is a popular tourist destination in Yogyakarta, because of its convenient location to the city center. The only way to get around Tamansari Water Castle is by walking, which makes the place more enjoyable and gives more opportunities to enjoy the various tropical vegetations, local community houses, and batik galleries.