00:00 If only the stones discovered in Tiwi Albay could speak,
00:07 what would they say about our ancestors?
00:12 Because the stones have a written record.
00:16 In the vastness of the stones in this land in Tiwi Albay,
00:23 in this stone called Bato Balani,
00:26 the Silloni will be found.
00:28 At first glance, it seems like there's nothing special about it.
00:32 But when you look at it,
00:35 you'll notice that there are things that are attached to it.
00:40 Like dots, numbers, and symbols
00:44 that are said to be related to the ancient writings of our ancestors,
00:48 the Baibahin.
00:50 Why are these stones written?
00:52 Am I being curious?
00:54 And they also believe that those who are attached to the stones
00:58 have a record that there are hidden riches around them.
01:03 This is the shape of an arrow.
01:05 I got the coins from the parting.
01:08 The parting is here.
01:09 Because it's made of steel.
01:11 What are those who are attached to the stones?
01:24 In 2002,
01:25 when Leone accidentally discovered a stone
01:29 at the foot of Mount Malinaw.
01:32 This is the first stone I saw.
01:35 I didn't know anything about it.
01:36 I made a note of it.
01:39 Two weeks later,
01:41 in the upper part of the farm,
01:44 he discovered something new.
01:46 Why is there a note here?
01:48 I'm curious.
01:49 The second stone
01:51 has inscriptions that seem familiar to him,
01:54 like the numbers 1, 8, 9, and 8,
01:59 or 1898.
02:01 This doesn't seem to move.
02:02 There's a stand for you to stand on.
02:04 Leone also noticed
02:06 that the inscriptions on the stone below
02:08 seem to be lying down.
02:10 This looks like a city.
02:12 This is a shrine.
02:13 This is a liturgy.
02:15 This looks like a flower.
02:16 It's different.
02:18 It's written.
02:20 Leone didn't notice it
02:23 until his son, Fatima,
02:25 decided to do this school project.
02:28 It's really different.
02:29 This is Sir Darwin.
02:30 He's doing a project on our culture here in Tiwil.
02:33 We bought it.
02:34 When I first saw it,
02:35 I thought it wasn't real
02:37 because it's rare to find such stone inscriptions.
02:40 Teacher Darwin's doubt
02:42 was whether this is a possible sign
02:46 of stone inscriptions
02:48 found in their neighboring province,
02:51 Tikau Island in Masbate.
02:53 In 2011,
02:56 when a stone found
02:59 in a village
03:01 that, according to experts,
03:03 was probably made in the 17th century,
03:06 the stone is still visible.
03:08 The students even made a doormat
03:10 or shoe rack.
03:13 But because it's an important historical sign,
03:17 the stone is now on display
03:19 in the National Museum.
03:21 The Baybayin was a traditional writing style
03:24 of the Filipinos.
03:25 Before the colonizers arrived,
03:27 they used a lot of sounds
03:31 so it became an alphabet.
03:33 But there are stories here in Tiwi
03:35 that these stones
03:37 are not only important in history,
03:40 but also a reminder
03:42 of the wealth that was once in it.
03:45 It can also be connected to stories
03:47 from the past
03:48 because it's close to a place
03:50 where there's a saying
03:51 about a ship like this
03:53 that was once called "encantado".
03:55 The owner of almost 7 hectares of land
03:58 where the stone was found
04:00 that had been carved by Xavier
04:02 was also shocked by the imagination.
04:05 When I saw it,
04:07 it came to my mind
04:08 that it coordinates
04:10 where the treasure can be placed.
04:12 And it seems like
04:14 their stories are true.
04:17 The stories are true
04:19 because Leonie
04:20 was told that there are treasures
04:22 near the stone.
04:24 Even though it's a neighborhood,
04:26 there are also treasures.
04:27 What are the treasures
04:31 that they found?
04:32 In our team's investigation,
04:35 they discovered something.
04:37 Letter M, A,
04:39 and then,
04:40 this is like,
04:41 letter N, and then,
04:42 this is O.
04:43 It's like I'm reading a book.
04:45 Who is he?
04:46 And what is his connection
04:48 to the carved stone?
04:50 There are characters
04:51 that are definitely
04:52 like a pair.
04:53 Can these stones
04:57 teach
04:59 other treasures
05:01 around it?
05:02 It coordinates where
05:04 the treasure can be placed.
05:06 This is the shape of the sun.
05:08 I got this from a party.
05:11 It's gold.
05:12 It's 14-carat gold.
05:13 Let's just go ahead
05:16 and answer all of those
05:19 in our return.
05:21 Two stones
05:27 were found in Tiwi Albay
05:29 that have engraved
05:31 the belief of the people
05:33 not only the "Baybayin"
05:34 or the ancient writing
05:36 of our ancestors,
05:37 but the engraved here
05:40 are not just
05:40 a symbol
05:42 or a sign
05:43 of the treasures
05:45 that can be found
05:46 around it.
05:48 As a proof,
05:50 in 2018,
05:51 Leone was struck
05:53 by an old roof and glass
05:56 on the ground near the stone.
05:58 While their neighbor,
05:59 Paul,
06:00 in 2020,
06:02 was next to his farm,
06:04 he was struck by
06:05 these barriers.
06:06 This is the shape of the sun.
06:09 I got this from a party.
06:10 It's gold.
06:12 I got this from a party.
06:13 It's gold.
06:15 It's 14-carat gold.
06:16 We can't just die.
06:21 They need to coordinate with us.
06:23 We advise them
06:25 to be precocious
06:27 because the stones are unstable.
06:29 If there are treasures
06:30 that can be found,
06:33 the LGU will still be subject to it.
06:35 To find out
06:36 what the engraved stones
06:38 mean,
06:40 Professor and his fellow villagers,
06:41 Ray Ostria,
06:43 went to the site.
06:45 He first looked at the stones
06:48 at the bottom.
06:49 In the alphabet,
06:50 there's something like "U".
06:52 This one looks like "U",
06:54 but since there's a line
06:55 at the bottom,
06:56 it looks like "A".
06:58 It's like a wave.
06:59 There's nothing like that
07:00 in the village.
07:01 When you get here,
07:02 you'll see "IN".
07:04 Then "IN",
07:06 it's like something's happening.
07:07 [dramatic music]
07:11 He went to the next stone
07:14 at the top.
07:15 Are there characters
07:16 that are possibly "Bai-bai"?
07:17 [dramatic music]
07:20 There's nothing like that
07:21 at the bottom.
07:22 At first glance,
07:23 there are characters
07:25 that look like "Bai-bai".
07:27 Although,
07:27 if we look at the length
07:30 of the two stones,
07:31 there are characters
07:32 that are hard to read.
07:34 There are more characters
07:35 that we can't understand
07:36 than what we know.
07:37 Meanwhile,
07:38 Yoni also found out
07:41 who's the possible
07:43 symbol of the stone.
07:45 It's time to tell him
07:47 about the land's caretaker,
07:49 Mang Carlito.
07:51 Who wrote the stone?
07:52 The person who's in charge of it.
07:54 It looks like a strong person.
07:55 He made it.
07:56 His name is written on it.
07:57 [dramatic music]
08:03 But why 1898?
08:05 We don't know.
08:06 It's just a trial
08:07 to find out who's the "Bai-bai".
08:08 Meniano or Miniano
08:11 was a well-known
08:12 pandai in their barangay.
08:14 Our team
08:16 looked for his relatives.
08:18 Ma'am, do you know
08:19 Sir Meniano?
08:20 Meniano Credo?
08:22 Yes, ma'am.
08:23 I know him.
08:24 He lives down there.
08:26 I know him.
08:27 This is his son.
08:29 Nui Credo.
08:29 [dramatic music]
08:31 In San Pablo City, Laguna,
08:33 our team found
08:35 Meniano's son,
08:37 Nui.
08:38 I remember that
08:39 my father used to
08:40 carve stones.
08:41 He used to use it
08:43 as a tool.
08:44 Did your father like
08:44 to mark his land?
08:46 I saw it on the muhon,
08:47 on our land.
08:49 There's a person
08:50 who carved it.
08:50 What did he carve?
08:51 Sometimes, he writes his name
08:54 and his signature.
08:56 [dramatic music]
09:00 Maybe if we can prove
09:02 that it's not pre-colonial text,
09:05 it's okay if we can prove
09:07 that this stone is legit.
09:09 I hope it's taken care of.
09:11 If it's carbon dated,
09:12 you'll know how long it's been.
09:14 The good thing is
09:16 don't clean it.
09:18 Don't bother with it.
09:19 As is, if I can get the stone,
09:21 if it's really old,
09:22 it's a national treasure.
09:24 [dramatic music]
09:25 Even now,
09:27 it's not clear
09:28 what the importance of
09:30 the Monreal Stone
09:31 is.
09:32 The stones that are carved on the stone,
09:35 it's still a good opportunity
09:37 to continue to revive the interest
09:40 in the country.
09:41 It can be seen in other modern things.
09:45 It's a solid proof that even before we were
09:49 surrounded by the Spanish,
09:51 our ancestors had their own way of writing
09:54 and communicating.
09:57 [dramatic music]
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