HOUSE OF NEGERI SEMBILAN

A sign put up right in front of the next building clearly reads Rumah Negeri Sembilan. I guess there should be some elaborations on that or at least a more descriptive title like "Rumah Tradisional Melayu Negeri Sembilan" which will help people like me understand better. A row of cannons line up in front of this wooden structure but they were not part of the actual house's lawn decorative items. Of course, most people preferred trees and flower plants to metal cannons to be on their front yard. So, where these cannons came from? These real iron cannons were the ones used to defend Malacca against its invading enemies, the Portuguese in 1511. Meriam and Lela were two of the more famous types of cannons used in the battle by those Malay warriors

This traditional Negeri Sembilan house was originally finished in 1921 and from many angles looks similar to the Ampang Tinggi Palace that we've just visited. On both buildings, there were strong influences from the Minangkabau architecture. The most visible proof of this is the use of wide rooftop and roof edges that are slightly bent upward on both sides. This old house also exhibits 16 main pillars supporting the base of the structure, thus such houses are also known as Rumah Tiang 16. In contrast to Malacca's traditional houses, Negeri's old houses have simple wooden staircases instead of stones. What makes this house really stands out is the usage of carved panels, mostly at the front part of the building.

We were lucky there were only a few other visitors who happened to be visiting the Cultural Park at that moment. Since the traditional house is very old and less maintained than the Ampang Tinggi Palace, the authority put up a sign to limit visitors to 12 people onto the house at any one time. Once inside the house, I was a little disappointed with the substandard maintenance work done for such a heritage piece, although it's just a house replica.

Similar tone of dissatisfaction was also expressed by another visitor I met up with. The wooden floor seemed to be very dusty. At one corner of the Serambi, some junks which were supposed to be put in storeroom were found lying around the area. And there is no sign of steep staircase up to the attic, especially a word of cautions to children.

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