Malaysian Post

The 4th item in this series from NST Series The Old & The New

A unique blend of styles

ONE of the first things you notice about Masjid Kampung Kling in Malacca is its roof.

Instead of a traditional dome, its roof is three-tiered, with distinctly curved eaves that are definitely Oriental in nature.

Built in 1748 during the Dutch occupation, it is one of the oldest mosques in the country.

Located in Malacca’s busy Jalan Tukang Emas, the mosque is one of the must-visit places in the city.

Another interesting architectural feature is the minaret, which was built entirely of masonry in contrast to the timber mosque building. Some people think it looks like a Chinese pagoda.

Chinese ceramic tiles adorn the roof, the floor and the lower walls of the mosque.

Then there are the European touches like the rendered plaster on the internal masonry walls, and the Portuguese and British glazed tiles on the walls of the main prayer hall.

The different styles found in this mosque here speak of the many influences in early Malacca, which was a major trading port from the 14th to the 18th century.

In 1868, a high wall was built to protect the mosque and its minaret from the street.

Today, not much seems to have changed except for the cars which have replaced the rickshaws (above picture taken in the early 1930s) on the street.

Another interesting writeup in the NST series on The Old & The New

As pretty as a picture

IT’S red so it has to be part of the famous Stadhuys right? Wrong!

This building, which is next to the Stadhuys, was built by the British in 1931.

And everybody knows the Stadhuys is Dutch and built in the 1650s.

The site though was originally occupied by Dutch homes, but when the British came, they built some administrative buildings in their place.

This red building in Jalan Laksamana was originally the General Post Office (above picture taken in the 1950s), but it is now the Malacca Art Gallery.

From the NST series on The Old & The New

Looks the same after 279 years

DRIVING past this mosque in Malacca, you may not realise that it is actually 279 years old. In fact, Masjid Kampung Hulu is the oldest functioning mosque in Malaysia in its original location (at the corner of Jalan Masjid Kampung Hulu and Jalan Masjid).

Interestingly, the mosque was commissioned by the Dutch as part of their multi-religious policy.

Before them, the Portuguese had ordered the destruction of all signs of non-Christian establishments.

This included the tearing down of Malacca’s first mosque.

And true to its multi-cultural intent, the style of the mosque has the characteristics of a Javanese mosque with its three layers of flared pyramidal roofs.

But unlike traditional Javanese mosques, Masjid Kampung Hulu does not have timber walls. Instead, they are made of stone and brick.

Also, like other mosques found in Malacca, you will find Chinese ornamentation like the crown-like pinnacle surmounting the roofs, ceramic roof and floor tiles from the Qing Dynasty and the stone minaret with its pagoda-like form.

Another distinctive feature of Masjid Kampong Hulu is its use of carved sea stones lining the inside of the dome.

The two pictures, taken 70 years apart, show a mosque that seems to have remained largely unchanged, except maybe for the kind of traffic it sees these days.

Spent last weekend at A Famosa, a well known resort in Malacca, courtesy of my employer.

This resort has 4 Theme Parks namely Cowboy Town, Outdoor Theme Park, Water World and Animal World. Besides the theme parks, there are other recreational facilities available like, Fishing, Archery, Go Kart, Horse Riding, Paintball War Games and Microlight Flying.

We had dinner in Cowboy Town and were greeted at the entrance by a company of dancing cowboys and cowgirls.

Dinner was of course a buffet affair and after dinner showtime!

The show started off with a fiery hot Red Indian Show.

This was followed by an Animal Parade and parade of dancers, lighted “floats” and other costumed characters.

During the parade some of the staff were offering the audience the opportunity of having their pictures taken with an albino python, a tiger cub and a parrot. The service is free, if you do not want the photograph. If you want to keep the photo as a momento of your visit, it will cost you up to RM21 for the photo (It comes together with a preprinted folder).

The show of course ended with a bang, a couple of minutes worth of fireworks display!

More info : www.afamosa.com

I’ve always maintained that there is Cash in Trash and this article proves I’m right!

River dirt yields rich pickings

By : Jason Gerald John and Norfaisal Jahuri

Portuguese and Dutch era coins that Raffiee Mohd Najeer and his friends have dug up.

MALACCA: They are four men, growing RM500 richer by the day from the things they sell.

Things they have neither bought nor made, but scavenged.

They call themselves treasure hunters. The real McCoy.

And the treasures they seek are real enough: Old coins, bits and pieces of porcelain and other antiquities from the era of the Malacca sultanate as well as the Portuguese, Dutch and British colonial period.

Their raiding ground is a spot on the river bank of the Sungai Melaka near Jalan Kilang where a 30m-high pile of river dirt has accumulated, courtesy of the contractors beautifying the river.

Unlike the archaeologists and tomb raiders shown on TV, the four men, led by Raffiee Mohd Najeer, 37, are armed only with ladles and their method is drama-free. For the past few days, Raffiee and his friends have been climbing the mound of dirt to comb for treasure.

“Rain or shine, we are here. We saw the pile of sedimentation and decided to try our luck. We did not expect to hit jackpot,” said Raffiee.

“The first coin we found was from the sultanate era. The coin was well-preserved; the writings on it still visible. We sold it to an unknown collector.

“Since then, we have discovered coins from the Portuguese era, about 500 years old, and also those used by the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie or VOC in old-spelling Dutch), which are about 400 years old.”

The VOC was established in 1602, when the states-general of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia.

It was the first multinational corporation in the world and the first company to issue stock. It remained an important trading concern for almost two centuries until it became bankrupt and was formally dissolved in 1800.

“There are also unique coins the size of our 50-sen coin, but with a hole in the middle. Each has Arabic words inscribed, which I am unable to decipher,” Raffiee said.

He and his friends also collect old metal pieces and other antiques, which they sell to interested buyers.