Tracing the Melaka Sultanate Tradition in Early Colonial Melaka Municipality

Mustaffa, Fauzan; Abidin, Mohamad Izani Zainal; Othman, Muhammed Fauzi

doi:10.2991/978-2-494069-57-2_18

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…This approach aimed to identify any remnants of Melaka Sultanate structures, essentially using them as markers. Over the course of the research, the study identified a sequence and alignment of significant locations, such as the primary street passing through Bendahara village, the Sultanate bridge, and the Sultanate gate, based on historical texts [13] & [14]. In the second phase of the study, the focus shifted to creating an inventory with critical annotations.…”

Section: Table 1 a Simplified Framework Of Visual Anthropological Ana...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Uncovering the Geo-Location of the Grand Mosque of Melaka Sultanate

Mustaffa,

Baydoun,

Abidin

et al. 2023

ijmst

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Historical records make note of a magnificent stone-built mosque, renowned throughout the region, within the city of the Melaka Sultanate. According to these accounts, the mosque was said to have been dismantled after the 1511 war, and its stones were repurposed. Scholars have debated its likely form, ornamentation, and symbolism based on the visual precedents of mosques from that era. However, until now, there has been limited effort to pinpoint its exact location within the contemporary geographical context. This study represents a crucial step towards its objective of furnishing vital data for potential empirical investigations, using ground-penetrating scanning technology to explore the mosque's remains for the first time in over five centuries. The rationale for this research is rooted in the belief that a grand stone-built mosque would almost certainly have an extensive stone-built foundation, making its complete removal an exceedingly challenging task. This study employs two methods of analysis: i) Narrative analysis, which examines historical texts containing descriptive clues about the mosque's nature, location, and its significants. ii) Visual anthropological analysis, which investigates historical visuals pertaining to city planning during the colonial era. The latter phase of the investigation is centered on a singular objective: the identification of structures depicted in the municipal plans of Portuguese and Dutch Melaka, guided by the 'qibla test,' a geospatial mapping technique that scrutinizes the alignment between (i) structures in the municipal plans, (ii) satellite imagery of the location, and (iii) the qibla direction. This research has unveiled a corresponding structure in a relatively uncommon Dutch Melaka municipal plan. It comprises two square shapes that exhibit remarkable accuracy in alignment with the qibla: (i) a larger square site, conceivably representing the primary structure of the mosque, and (ii) a smaller square site, potentially indicative of the minaret. The identified geographical location corresponds to the parking lot of Melaka's History and Ethnography Museum. Nonetheless, it is important to acknowledge the limitations of this study, which include reliance on English translations for Portuguese ancient manuscripts, as well as the utilization of colonial Melaka municipal plans instead of those from the Sultanate period. Nevertheless, the study presents a compelling case for identifying the specific site of the historical mosque, which warrants further verification and reconstruction studies aimed at historical tourism, aligning with Sustainable Development Goals 8.9 and 11.4.

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Section: Table 1 a Simplified Framework Of Visual Anthropological Ana...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Uncovering the Geo-Location of the Grand Mosque of Melaka Sultanate

Mustaffa,

Baydoun,

Abidin

et al. 2023

ijmst

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…It is important to note that the Indian, Chinese and Javanese territories 1613 (which surround the Malay trading territory) were untouched during the 1511 war as they cooperated with Portuguese administration [14]. Therefore, the 3 cornered streets remain as the municipal grid in the tradition of the Melaka Sultanate era [10].…”

Section: Findings From Visual Anthropological Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

The Primary Gate of the Melaka Sultanate

Mustaffa,

Baydoun,

Abidin

et al. 2023

ijmst

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Based on the historical Malay, China and Arab textual account, there was a primary gate that marked the entrance to the royal compound of Melaka Sultanate before 1511. The primary gate was arguably among the most iconic construct and strategic to the Sultanate city, at security, socio-cultural, symbolic and aesthetic levels. However, no critical study has been conducted in tracing the form, position, and its relation to the municipality of the Sultanate Melaka City. This study employs narrative analysis framework to carefully investigate descriptive clues to provide the big picture on the primary gate of Melaka Sultanate in view of historical texts from Malay, China, and Arab; all of which were written within or close to the Sultanate period. The findings of the narrative analysis were compared to a collection of municipal plans from the Portuguese and Dutch Melaka eras. This reconstruction study also took precedence of an ancient Malay sultanate gate for the design process which can be seen carrying the tradition of Sultanate Melaka gate. The finding of the study suggests the form, position and orientation of the sultanate Melaka gate. The study also discusses and proposes the route which could possibly accommodate another 6 gates before reaching the sultanate Melaka palace. The study has limitations since it relies on English translation in dealing with ancient Portuguese texts. The long-term goal of this reconstruction study is to promote historical Melaka identity tourism, which is in line with SDGs 8.9 and 11.4.

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Tracing the Melaka Sultanate Tradition in Early Colonial Melaka Municipality

Cited by 2 publications

References 2 publications

Uncovering the Geo-Location of the Grand Mosque of Melaka Sultanate

Uncovering the Geo-Location of the Grand Mosque of Melaka Sultanate

The Primary Gate of the Melaka Sultanate

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