Pinang Peranakan Mansion
The Peranakan Chinese are descendants of Chinese traders who settled in Malacca and around the coastal areas of Java and Sumatra, as early as the 14th century. In the 19th century, the Peranakan Chinese were drawn to the bustling ports of Penang and Singapore. The community developed a distinctive culture and way of life as they adopted aspects of the local Malay, and later the colonial British, customs. Their influence is still felt in Penang today.
The Pinang Peranakan Mansion has been recreated to show the typical home of a rich Baba of a century ago (Peranakans are also known as Babas and Nyonyas.) With over 1,000 pieces of antiques and collectibles on display, the mansion offers a glimpse of their opulent lifestyle.
This particular house was built at the end of the 19th century by one of Penang’s famous personalities, Kapitan Cina Chung Keng Kwee. He was actually not a Baba himself, but his Chinese courtyard house was much like a typical large Baba home of the time. It is built in an eclectic style, incorporating Chinese carved-wood panels and English floor tiles and Scottish ironworks. This mix and match approach to architecture is typical of the Baba culture. It has been restored after falling into disrepair and now acts as a museum of the Peranakan culture.
Upstairs, three bridal chambers were decorated as they would have been in three different eras of Peranakan culture. This one was from the 1950s.
Glass display cases house displays of Nyonya jewellery. I was coveting those bracelets.
Downstairs there are two dining rooms – one decorated with European-styled teak furniture, Victorian ceramic figures and glass epergnes, meant for entertaining peers and European guests. The other dining room (below) had a more Asian aesthetic.
Outside a cool green courtyard lead to the kitchens and a family temple.
We couldn’t leave without The Impossible Princess adding to the ‘art installation’ in front of the mansion, which consists of the entry stickers attached to bamboo!
