Malay Heritage Centre

The Malay Heritage Centre (Malay: Taman Warisan Melayu) is a cultural centre and museum in Singapore that showcases the culture, heritage and history of Malay Singaporeans Located at Sultan Gate in Kampong Glam, the 8,000 square meter (86,000 sq ft) centre was launched on 27 November 2004.

The building was once the Istana Kampong Glam (or the Sultan's Palace), and was part of a larger original compound that led to the Beach Road frontage. Sultan Gate has been known as such since the 1950s. The Malay Heritage Foundation, formed on 28 July 1999, embarked on a major restoration project of the Istana Kampong Glam that year. The building reopened as the Malay Heritage Centre in 2004 after construction works were completed.

On the grounds of the Malay Heritage Centre are Gelam trees, a replica of a Bugis prahu boat, the Pinisi, and information markers on the history of the Bugis people and their trade. The centre itself preserves and showcases Malay culture and heritage in Singapore through historic artefacts, multimedia and diorama displays, and exhibits.

The centre also organizes Malay cultural programmes and workshops. Before 2008 these, together with other fund-raising activities, contributed two-thirds of the centre's operational costs. In 2008, the Government of Singapore announced that it would provide full funding of S$1.7 million a year to the Centre, instead of just the one-third funding provided in previous years. The funding, and additional aid from the National Heritage Board, is expected to give the centre a boost to become a museum of international standard, and create opportunities for it to work with other top regional museums in Indonesia and Malaysia.

In August 2011 the Malay Heritage Centre was closed for extensive renovations. It reopened on 1 September 2012.

Today

Exhibitions (See link for current exhibitions)

‘Pusåkå: Heritage and Culture of the Javanese in Singapore’ is a collaborative effort between the Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) and the Javanese Association of Singapore (JAS) to trace the social and cultural history of the Javanese who settled in Singapore as well as to showcase the ways by which they have maintained their cultural identity and heritage.

The first part of the exhibition focuses on aspects of material culture associated with Javanese performing arts such as dance, song, music, instruments, costumes and props while the second part of the exhibition outlines the history of Javanese migration and settlement in Singapore and showcases how various Javanese families preserve their own pusåkå (heirloom or legacy).

The exhibition features a diverse range of artefacts contributed by the Singapore-Javanese community, including a number of family heirlooms which have been passed down from one generation to the next.

Travelling Exhibition | Malay Pioneers Series: Merchants & Philanthropists; This exhibition, the first installment of the Malay Pioneers Series produced by the Malay Heritage Centre, introduces six notable traders from the different ethnic communities of the Nusantara (Malay Archipelago) who chose to settle here and build their businesses. These individuals also invested in community development initiatives that became a hallmark of their lives in Singapore.

The museum offers guided tours and many activity programs (See link)

Phone: +65 6391 0450                           

Open: 10am-6pm

Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_Heritage_Centre

http://malayheritage.org.sg/en/about-us/introduction