 Acheen Street Mosque
Also
known as Mesjid Melayu, the mosque was built on land donated by Syed Sheriff
Tengku Syed Hussain Aidid an Arab merchant-prince who came from Acheh in
Sumatra. The vernacular style mosque from 1808 remains basically unmodified
except for the Moorish arcade added at the turn of the cencury.
The mosque features a small
window halfway up the minaret, which is said to have originally been a hole
made by a cannonball fired during the 1867 triad riots. The minaret was struck
by lightning in 1997, and the mosque was recently restored with French technical
assistance. The compound houses around the mosque are part of the mid-19th
century Arab village. Click here for full story.
Cheong
Fatt
Tze
 The breathtaking indigo of its
exterior walls harmonizing perfectly with the cerulean blue of the sky behind
it might seem to some to be 'feng shui perfection.' The observation is not
far from the truth, because indeed many other feng shui symbols are to be
found meticulously incorporated into the architecture of this courtyard mansion,
if you know where to look.
Built by Cheong Fatt Tze
in the 1880s, the stately mansion (located in present day Leith Street) was
built by master craftsmen from China using building materials imported from
the West. Tour guides will be pleased to tell you about the building's 38
rooms, five granite-paved courtyards, seven staircases and 220 windows.
The mansion fell from grace
a few years after the passing of its owner and was for a while even used
as a tenement house.It wasn't until 1990 when a group of heritage
preservationists rushed to its rescue. Ten years later, restoration of the
Cheong Fatt Tze mansion deservedly won the UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Award
2000. Click here for full story.
 Fort
Cornwallis
This
star-shaped fort was built at the site where Francis Light and his crew landed
in 1786. Star-shaped forts were popular at the time especially for small
scale works. The original purpose of the fort was to defend the harbour
entrances. In 1977, the Malaysian Government listed the fort under the
Antiquities Act 1976 for the purposes of conservation and preservation.
In March 2000, the Malaysian
Government through the Department of Museums and Antiquity granted a total
sum of RM1.9 million for the restoration project of the Fort Cornwallis.
Restoration was completed in March 2001. Today, an open-air ampitheatre,
history gallery and a handicraft and souvenir centre occupies the interior.
Click here for full story.
 Goddess
of Mercy Temple
Also
called the Kwan Yin Teng, it is one of the oldest Chinese temples in Penang.
Built in 1801 by early immigrant settlers from China, the building is decorated
with intricately crafted dragons and a pair of stone sculptured lions which
are said to be its guardians. Undoubtedly the most popular Chinese temple
in Penang, the Kuan Yin Teng, is flocked by pilgrims and followers all year
round, particularly on the first and fifteenth day of each lunar month.
There is a lovely square
where puppet shows and Chinese operas are staged on the Goddess of Mercy's
feast days. The square is always a centre of bustling activity, and there
is an octagonal well in one corner, which was once a public well for the
Chinese community.
 Kapitan
Keling Mosque
Built
in the early 19th century, it was named after the Indian Muslim merchant
Caudeer Mohudeen, who was also the Kapitan Keling (headman). It is the most
prominent historic mosque in Penang and features a dome-shaped minaret reflecting
Moorish Islamic influence. The Kapitan Keling Mosque is the place of worship
of the Indian Muslim community who have lived and worked around the mosque
for over two hundred years.
Unlike modern mosques which
are mainly frequented on Fridays, the Kapitan Keling Mosque is used by woshippers
five times a day, seven days a week.
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here to for full story
 Kek
Lok Si Temple
(Temple of Supreme Bliss)
This magnificent
110 year-old temple stands majestically on a 'feng-shui perfect' hill in
Air Itam. Construction of the temple started in 1893, but it was only in
1930 that the Pagoda of Rama VI, named after the Thai king who laid the
foundation stone, but better known as the Pagoda of 10,000 Buddhas, was
completed. This pagoda combines a Chinese octagonal base with a middle tier
of Thai design, and a Burmese crown, reflecting the temple's embrace of both
Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism.
The latest addition to
the temple complex is the 30.2m bronze statue of the Avalokitesvara –
Goddess of Mercy or Kuan Yin - on the hillside above the pagoda. This RM70m
statue was completed and open to the public at the end of 2002.
Steps leading to the temple
are lined with souvenir shops selling a mishmash of goods ranging from clothes
and preserved fruits to curios and joke items. Within the temple grounds
are a vegetarian restaurant, tortoise pond, prayer halls, awe-inspiring deities,
sleeping quarters and gardens. Click here for full
story
 Khoo
Kongsi
The famous Khoo Kongsi
is the grandest clan temple in the country. It is also the city's greatest
historic attraction.The clan temple has retained its authentic historic setting,
which includes an association building, a traditional theatre and the late
19th century rowhouses for clan members, all clustered around a granite-paved
square.
The forefathers of the
Khoo family who emigrated from South China built it as a clan-house for members
of the Khoo family in 1851. It was burnt down in 1894, allegedly struck by
lightning, and the Chinese believed that it was due to its resemblance to
the Emperor's palace, which provoked the gods. A scaled-down version was
later built in 1902 and completed in 1906. Even so, the complex boasts a
magnificent hall embellished with intricate carvings and richly ornamented
beams of the finest wood bearing the mark of master craftsmen from China.
The clan temple is dedicated
to the clan's patron deities and also houses a collection of ancestral tablets.
Chinese opera is still staged at the theatre during the seventh lunar month.
 Mahamariamman
Temple
Built
in 1833, the temple features fascinating sculptures of the Hindu goddess
Mariamman in her many incarnations. The complexity of Hindu mythology is
reflected in gopuram (sculpture), which is over 23 feet high and features
38 statues of gods and goddesses and four swans, over the entrance. Housed
within its ornately decorated interior is the priceless statue of the Goddess
Mariamman, who is taken out in a decorated wooden chariot on a tour of Little
India during the Navarithri festival.
Located in the heart of
Little India, the street surface at the entrance is usually painted with
a traditional kolam (pattern made with rice flour) diagram.
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for full story
Nagore
Shrine
Constructed
in the early 1880s, the Nagore Shrine is a memorial to Syed Shahul Hamid,
the famous 13th century Muslim Saint Nagore, the most celebrated saint of
South India.
The Shrine was founded
by the Mericans from Tamilnadu. This is the earliest Indian Muslim shrine
in Penang which survives in its original condition. The tradition of the
city saint was brought to Penang by the Tamil Muslim traders. Feast days
are still observed with flag-raising and distribution of food, and faithful
devotees may be seen visiting the shrine to seek favours on Thursdays.
 St.
George's Church
This stately church was
named after the patron saint of England. Built with convict labour in 1818,
it is one of the oldest landmarks in the city of George Town, and the oldest
Anglican Church in Malaysia. The building was designed by Captain Robert
Smith, a military engineer whose oil paintings of early Penang can be seen
in the Penang Museum.
A memorial in the form
of a Greek temple with a marble slab dedicated to Captain Francis Light,
stands in the grounds of the St. George's Church.
 Wat
Chaiya Mangkalaram
One of the world's longest
reclining Buddhas (33 meters) resides within this Thai-styled temple which
was founded in 1845. The temple was built on a piece of land given by Queen
Victoria to four women trustees as a gesture of goodwill to boost trading
relations with Thailand. The guardian dragon and statue at the entrance are
both ostentatious and spectacular.
Just across the street
from Wat Chaiya Mangkalaram is another spectular temple called Dharmikara
Burmese Buddhist Temple, built in 1805. A pair of elephants (sacred beasts
in Buddhism) guard the entrance while within a bodhi tree and wishing pond
greets the visitor.
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for full story |
