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Our Beautifully Restored Rumah Penghulu Abu Seman By Puan Sri Datin Susan Jalaludin, Intan Syaheeda Abu Bakar and Nurzaifullah Mansor
31 July 2007

Rumah Penghulu Abu Seman is the beautifully restored wooden Malay house in the gardens of Badan Warisan Malaysia (BWM). The house was discovered in Kedah, abandoned and overgrown with creepers, dismantled, transported to BWM in Kuala Lumpur and restored, with the respect and ceremony such a beautiful house deserves.

Since the opening in 19 November 1997, it has been a constant attraction for visitors, both overseas and local, and a wonderful educational tool for students. Our staff takes great pride guiding visitors through the house and explaining the features. The 40 minute tour is a journey back in time to the days of leisured village living. Visitors are introduced to BWM and learn the history of the house and its restoration. The overall structure of the house is explained and as the visitors move through the three sections, they are encouraged to relate the architecture and space to the local climatic conditions, the culture, the traditions and history of the Malay occupants. The decorations and artifacts also illustrate the day to day activities of women cooking, babies sleeping, children playing and men conducting business with the Penghulu. Following the tour, an optional 20 minute video explains in more detail the dismantling, relocation and restoration.

So popular is the tour that over 1200 visitors have been through the house since June 2006. Most of these are adults and families, often brought by word of mouth recommendation of those who have visited the house, but tourist agents and other publicity also attracts many visitors. A large number of students come, primary, secondary and tertiary, individually for their study, and in groups during educational programmes. Sometimes a whole form of up to about 120 students visits over three days on heritage education workshops. Our staff expertly manages groups from one to many, bus loads when a cruise ship is in Port Klang, or when associations plan outings for their members.

Foreign visitors are fascinated by the culture and tradition and the influence of the climate and how the use of space has evolved to accommodate all these aspects. One of the most frequent concerns of foreigners is the location of the bathroom facilities. School students are usually captivated by the old artifacts seldom seen now, such as the typewriter, old camera, traditional games and cooking equipment, while the interest of tertiary students is generally more technical. Malay visitors are frequently nostalgic, remembering the village house of their parents or grandparents, while perhaps not as ornate, still employing the same architectural principles. Non-Malay Malaysians enjoy comparing cultural differences and often learn something new. It is rewarding and satisfying to BWM that the response to the tour is consistently positive.

Any member who has not yet made a tour of Rumah Penghulu Abu Seman is encouraged to participate in this very satisfying experience, bring family, friends, neighbours.

Finding the Rumah Penghulu

By Datin Waveney Jenkins

We drove north – Ng Aiwah who had just agreed to join the Badan secretariat as financial manager, and I with very vague directions of how to find our way off the highway.

It was certainly no point looking out for a beautiful old house, even one looking rather neglected. When we reached Parit Buntar and found the alleged location we could see no sign of any house, just a totally overgrown patch of belukar.

We were led round the back, down a narrow path, and had to force our way through creepers and waist high lalang, breaking off branches and suddenly – there it was.

Green with damp and mould, branches forcing their way through the windows and the roof, creepers entwined everywhere – you could only see that it was a house from about 2-3 yards away.

Most of the floor was rotten, so exploring the house was rather tricky – but it took us no time at all to realize the importance and beauty of the carvings that had survived virtually intact through so much neglect. We also noticed with relief that there was a large pile of spare roof tiles under the house – as much of the roof had been badly damaged by branches falling on it.

For more information of the restoration and relocation of the Rumah Penghulu, please click here

EXTENDED: “Warisan Kertas 2” - Exhibition and Sale of Books, Maps, and Ephemera on Malaya and Borneo By Popular Picture History Resources

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News & Announcements

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Walls Come Tumbling Down, History Bypassed
Would this decision to demolish have been made were the building to have been the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad? Both these buildings were built at the same time, and the design credited to the same engineer, C E Spooner. And yet one is retained, despite having had extensive changes made to its interior, while the other has largely retained its original form. While it may be too late to save Pudu Jail, Badan Warisan hopes that the awareness raised by this will strengthen the resolve members of the public to be conscious of how fragile our heritage is and to speak up for its protection, conservation and preservation.

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Notes from Council
It was an historic moment for Badan Warisan Malaysia when, at approximately 1p.m. on Saturday 4 July 2009, our President, YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji bin Abdul Hamid signed a lease agreement for the management of Suffolk House with YAB Mr Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of Penang, witnessed by about 40 people including the State Secretary YBhg Datuk Zainal Rahim Seman members of the State Ex-Co, the Penang Heritage Trust and Friends of the Botanical Gardens, as well as members of the press and media.

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MERDEKA STADIUM RESTORATION RECEIVES AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FROM UNESCO
Badan Warisan Malaysia congratulates the Merdeka Heritage Trust and Permodalan National Berhad on winning the Award of Excellence for the 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation for the restoration of Stadium Merdeka. We also delighted that the restoration of Suffolk House in Penang received the Award of Distinction. Congratulations to Arkitek LLA Sdn Bhd, HSBC and the State Government of Penang.

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PENANG HERITAGE TRUST AND BADAN WARISAN MALAYSIA ON THE SUCCESSFUL INSCRIPTION OF MELAKA & GEORGE TOWN AS A SERIAL WORLD HERITAGE SITE
BWM is honoured to have played a part in the country’s achievement. During the last 10 years, we have had to add our weight and experience to actively support the efforts to promote the nomination. Last year we authored the World Heritage Site Management Plan (WHSMP) for George Town which was formulated on behalf of the Penang State Government. This plan formed part of the nomination dossier which was submitted to the World Heritage Centre. A WHSMP is a prerequisite for listing.

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Buletin Warisan September - November 2006
Notes from Council - In the past few months, some members and friends of heritage have commented that they would like to know more about the sorts of heritage issues which concern Badan Warisan Malaysia, and how the Council responds to them. This is especially so for those who do not often come to the Heritage Centre nor participate in activities which have been organized for members. To address this, a note on a selection of issues which are raised at Council will be presented in the Buletin Warisan for your greater understanding and appreciation of the efforts by Council towards promoting the conservation and preservation of Malaysia’s built heritage. In this edition, I am focusing on the most recent campaign for Bok House.

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Terengganu's Rich Heritage
In June 2005 a rather mixed gathering of people from the arts, the media, the adventure travel business, photographers and film makers were assembled at the salubrious Sutra Beach Resort north of Kuala Terengganu courtesy of DiGi Telecommunications for a celebration of some aspects of the state’s rich cultural heritage. The primary focus of the occasion was DiGi’s “Amazing Malaysians” contribution to its corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the individual concerned was none other than the renowned architect and conservationist, member of Badan Warisan YM Raja Dato’ Kamarul Bahrin Shah.

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Report on the Fundraising Dinner 6 December 2007 by Puan Sri Datin Amar Elizabeth Moggie
Malaysians are generous and some donations came from companies we least expected. BWM’s tax exempt status is a great incentive to donors and we were encouraged by people who genuinely supported our cause. We received 3 Platinum donations (4 including Sime Darby), 9 Gold donations, 23 Bronze donations and numerous Warisan donations. Even though some donors did not want to attend the dinner, all 62 tables were filled.

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TOWN PLANNING AND CONSERVATION: WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?
In the preservation of the streetscape or heritage enclaves, we should take a new course – leasing the properties for long periods, instead of selling them outright. The biding process should be open to investors in the country and abroad. The period suggested is a 50-year lease, and the government needs to ensure that these properties are protected when the lease term expires, and this needs to happen before anything is signed. We should not sign away our architectural jewels.

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