tales of 3 cities, malacca

1. TALES OF THREE CITIES
THEORIZING COLONIAL URBANISM IN MALACCA

2. OVERVIEW

3. ST. PAUL’S
CIVIC ZONE
RESIDENTIAL &
COMMERCIAL ZONE

4. JALAN TUN TAN CHENG LOCK
(HEEREN STREET)
JALAN HANG JEBAT
(JONKER STREET)
JALAN TUKANG EMAS/BESI/TOKONG
(HARMONY STREET)
JALAN PANTAI
(KAMPONG PANTAI STREET)

5. JALAN TUKANG EMAS/BESI/TOKONG
(HARMONY STREET)

6. JALAN TOKONG (TEMPLE
ROAD)
JALAN TUKANG BESI (BLACKSMITH ROAD)
JALAN TUKANG EMAS (GOLDSMITH ROAD)
HARMONY ROAD

7. ST. PAUL’S
CIVIC ZONERESIDENTIAL &
COMMERCIAL ZONE
SURPRISEDHIERARCHY
DEMOGRAPHIC
SURBURBS
ZONE

8. JALAN TUN TAN CHENG LOCK
(HEEREN STREET)
JALAN HANG JEBAT
(JONKER STREET)
KAMPUNG BELANDA

9. FIRSTBRUGWALSTREET
(LORONGHANGJEBAT)
JALAN TUKANG EMAS/BESI/TOKONG
(HARMONY STREET)
KAMPONG CHINA

10. THIRDBRUGWALSTREET
(JALANHANGLEKIU)
SECONDBRUGWALSTREET
(JALANHANGKASTURI)
KAMPONG KLING

11. JALAN TUN TAN CHENG LOCK
(HEEREN STREET)
JALAN HANG JEBAT
(JONKER STREET)
JALAN TUKANG EMAS/BESI/TOKONG
(HARMONY STREET)
JALAN PANTAI
(KAMPONG PANTAI STREET)

12. GEOGRAPHY
AXIALDOMINANCE

13. ST. PAUL’S CIVIC ZONE
Seat of governing bodies
since foundation until
independence.
Commanding position
facing river mouth and
defensive position
surrounded by marshes.
Formerly known as Bukit
Melaka, seat of power of
Sultans
Portuguese fortress
(Fortaleza de Malacca)
built in 1511. Separation
of racial composition by
portuguese supporters.
Renamed to St. Paul’s
Hill by the Dutch due to
conversion into Protestant
church.

14. MORPHOLOGY
Fishing Village City

15. MORPHOLOGY

16. CONFIGURATION
ORGANICDIFFUSAL
Course Grain
Fine Grain

17. DEFORMED GRIDCONFIGURATION
ORGANICDIFFUSAL

18. VOID
SOLID& VOID
ORGANICDIFFUSAL

19. LINEAR
POINT
TYPOLOGY
ORGANICDIFFUSAL

20. F
U
N
C
T
I
O
N
/
U
S
A
G
E
Two-stories shophouses where
locals conduct their business at
the ground floor and reside on
the top floor
Lack of five foot continuous
walkway creates privacy, thus
shophouses have been
converted into residential
Street is famous for
craftsman's, artisans and
blacksmiths, multi-culturally
rich and religious.

21. + JALAN TUKANG EMAS (GOLDSMITH
ROAD)
JALAN TUKANG BESI (BLACKSMITH ROAD) + JALAN TOKONG (TEMPLE ROAD)
BLACKSMITH CRAFTSMAN CARPENTRY

22. CHENG HOON
TENG TEMPLE
XIANG LIN SI
TEMPLE
TAMIL
METHODIST
CHURCH
KWAN YIN TONG
KG KLING
MOSQUE
ST FRANCIS
XAVIER CHURCH
SRI POYYATHA
VINAYAGAR MOORTHI
TEMPLE
TYPOLOGY
DISORDEREDLINEARITY

23. PRIVATE
SPACE
PUBLIC
SPACE
SPATIAL AREA
DISORDEREDLINEARLITY

24. SHOP AREA
Place of business. Located at the
ground floor facing shopfront.
AIR WELL
Providing ventilation and a substitution
of the open courtyard concept used in
China.
REAR COURT & SERVICE AREA
Toilets, kitchen and the back alley are
connected through a rear court behind
the shop area after the air well.
LIVING SPACES
Where families or owners stay. Generally
located on the top floor or behind the shop
area, depending on configuration.
ANCESTRAL/PRAYING AREA
Found in Chinese owned shophouses.
Ceremonies of the dead are performed or
the location of the family altar. Located
after the air well so the spirit of the
deceased can be called during praying.
SITTING ROOM
Transition between public and private
spaces. Guests are greeted and received
here. Can also be used as a living room.
CONFIGURATION LAYOUT

25. Total of 6 places of
worship along the
street.
Public spaces for
spiritual and praying
Fusion of cultures and
ethnicities since the
founding of Melaka
Design retains identity
but forms are adapted
to local culture.
Scale and continuity
Multi ethnic
community that lived
in harmony
PLACES OF WORSHIP

26. STREET CONNECTION
DISORDEREDLINEARLITY
HEEREN STREET
High Wealth Residence
JONKER STREET
Busniess Street /
Medium Wealth
HARMONY STREET
Community Centric

27. Known today as Jalan
Tun Tan Cheng LockSTREET COMPARISON WITH HEEREN STREET
Street of choice for
the wealthy Dutch &
Baba Nyonyas
Street is famous for
orament heavy and
decorated facades
Social divide between
streets, where it is
ruled by the rich
Narrow width
shophouses to reduce
tax income.
Large walkways and
spacious long interior

28. STREET COMPARISON WITH JONKER STREET
Home to servants of the
Dutch masters & noblemen
during the Dutch period
Busniesses belonging to the
wealthy Babas and Bibiks
are established here
Busiest street as it directly
connects with the town hall
across the river
Home to many commercial
activities, especially
antiques, crafts & artworks.

29. MALACCA

30. CHENG HOON TENG
TEMPLE(1645)
KAMPUNG KLING
MOSQUE(1872)
SRI POYYATHA VINAYAGAR
MOORTHI(1781)
LINEAR TYPOLOGY
RE-OCCURINGNODE

31. • Built to cater to the village of Keling people,
Indian Muslims that married locals and a
response to the unwelcoming locals and nearby
mosque
• Sino-Eclectic Style, three-tiered roof with a
pagoda style minarets and Chinese fusion style.
• Square plan with an enclosed prayer area filled
with ornamentation
• Chinese Muslim merchants & mixed Muslims as
main patrons.
KAMPUNG KLING

32. • Built in 1645 by the Chinese migrant community and served as an administrative
centre and the court of justice of the surrounding community
• Conforms to the principles of Feng Shui and influenced by the Guangdong and
Fujian architectural styles. Heavy use of ornamentation such as relief images and
sculpture to depicting scenes from the Three Kingdoms.
• Complex comprises of outer prayer pavilion, main temple hall and surrounded by
auxiliary buildings which houses the offices and quarters.
• Central progression of importance from the main temple hall which is dedicated to
Kwan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy; Goddess Ma Choe Po, Guardian of the Fisherman
and several other deities such as the Guardian of Well-Being, Justice and Welfare.
CHENG HOON TEMPLE

33. • Built in 1781 and one of the oldest Hindu
temple in Malaysia, it is dedicated to the Lord
Vinayagar, the family as well as the deity, Lord
Murga.
• The façade are painted bright yellow and the
temple has Dutch influence such as the roof
and the columns as it was built during the
Dutch era.
• It continues to be the main focal point for the
Hindu community around as festivals are
usually performed here.
SRI POYATHA MOORTHI TEMPLE

34. - The deflected & curving nature of the streets
create sense of enclosure townscape effect
- The public realm is defined by the religious
building along the street while the private
realm is by the shophouses.
- The visual experiences affected by:
~ facade design
~ building’s height
PUBLIC REALM
RE-OCCURINGNODE

35. - The height of the shophouses are almost similar
along the street or relatively taller than the
religious building.
- The hierarchy of height between the
shophouses and temple creates a sense of
enclosure to the street and in contrast, a
welcoming feeling to the religious building
PRIVATE REALM
RE-OCCURINGNODE

36. - For the religious buildings, they always have a
setback distance from main road for gathering
purpose and the entrance is very welcoming.
RE-OCCURINGNODE
CONTACT POINT
SPACES
CREATED FOR
PUBLIC ACCESS
GATHERING
ZONE

37. RE-OCCURINGNODE
MOVEMENT PATTERN
- The pedestrian movement pattern
is very free along the street
because of all the small streets
that connect the main street like
Jonker street and Jalan Tukang
Besi
- During the colonial period, traders
and locals would mingle in the
streets, visiting the shophouses for
commerce, thus causing the street
to be very busy and congested.
- This is because Malacca is a
trading port while Jalan Tukang
Emas is the heart of Malaccan
trade.
- During the Dutch period,
urban structures had become
more organised and had a
better road system.
- The road systems become
the draft line for building
constructions.

38. - The 5 foot walkways along the
shophouses act as a LINKAGE and
this affect the pedestrian movement
of the street
- But in some cases, the extended
party walls of shophouses built
during dutch period block the
walkway
-The houses are categorised into 2
categories, which is:
(a)Mid-18th Century and earlier
(b)After Mid-18th Century
RE-OCCURINGNODE
INTRICACY OF FACADE
After Mid-18th Century
- shaded five-foot-ways
Mid-18th Century and earlier
- The five foot way is not
connected to the adjacent
buildings therefore this type of
buildings have PRIVATE
entrance porch.

39. - Areas formerly exclusively populated by the Dutch burgers (Heren and Jonkerstreet) became the
homes of the Chinese reflecting a shift from an ethnic orientation to one in which wealth was the main
criterion. Thus, the majority of the wealthy population of the town, irrespective of their ethnic origin,
resided on two important streets, Heren and Jonkerstreets.
- The houses here were built from bricks and roofed with tiles. Due to the hazard of fire
which had burnt down many of the houses in the town area, in the mid seventeenth
century, the Dutch administration enforced regulations on the building of houses in the
towns.
- Dutch ordained that no new buildings were to be built. This meant that the Chinese had to buy existing
building built by the Dutch and adapted them to their needs.

40. TAXATION
Dutch taxation system started after
the defeat of Portuguese by the
Dutch VOC and the Johor Malay
allies in 1641.
Taxation rights by the Dutch include the
collection of waterway tolls, and the
opportunity to contract trade monopolies
on key commodities such as tin and
pepper.
The taxpayers for Dutch VOC tax
farming practices include traders,
townspeople of various ethnic
groups and local Malay farmers

41. TRADING ACTIVITIES
SMALL SETTLEMENTS &
AGRICULTURE
CULTIVATION
BUSINESS ACTIVITIES

42. Taxes were charged on the hinterland, areas in
some Malacca territory which mostly covered
by forest and jungle.
These areas consist of a few settlements that
were loosely governed by Dutch government
and left to be care by their landowners.
Landowners then have to collect the taxes from
the Penghulu and payed them to the Dutch
government.
ADMINISTRATION OF HINTERLAND

43. Tax Farm Average Percentage
(%)
Custom 60.3
Sea and River Fish 7.4
Chinese poll tax 5
Weigh-house 4.2
Opium or distiling liquor 6.7
Shopholder 3.4
Sirih or betel leaves 3
Chinese gambling 2.2
Others 7.8

44. BRITISH TAXATION SYSTEM
Revenue farming is a tax system used during the British
colonization where British government auctioned to private
individuals the right to commercial monopoly over excisable
commodities.
Revenue was farmed from a range of commercial activities
such as trades for liquor and opium, pawn shops, prostitution
and gambling.

45. LAND RENT REVENUE
The British government imposed
a tax system which is called the
land rent revenue system.
Land were owned by noble
families which they rented to
tenant cultivators to cultivate the
land.
The tax system requires tenant
cultivators to pay 10% tithe
based on the gross produce
cultivated from the land and also
pay via in kind to labours.
Land rent revenue system was
preferable to taxes on
properties, business profits or
wages of labour.

46. - During British colonization, shop houses have narrow street frontages where they were
taxed according to their street frontage plot width rather than their total area.
- Different shop houses have different street frontages width.
- The reason of it was British government wanted to create an economic motivation to
build long and narrow shop houses.
SHOPHOUSE TAXATION SYSTEM

47. In the late 14th century, Malacca as a small fishing village grew rapidly to a large port and emporium. The
wealth of Malacca drew attention from strong European countries, largely driven by capitalism. The colonial
period of Malacca lasted from early 16th to mid-20th century. The city has witnessed the changing fate of
European powers, whose legacies have been intricately woven into its urban form.
FACADE TYPOLOGY

48. STREET SECTION

49. Architectural elements results of
dutch colonization, Private entry
porch, dutch bricks, symmetrical
design.
DUTCH STYLEHARMONIOUSSTREETSCAPE
FACADE TYPOLOGY

50. The early form is built to the
street edge with recessed
ground floor forming a
pedestrian walkway, generally
simple in detail and relatively
low in scale,The façade is a
means of filling the space
between the two end walls.
EARLY SHOPHOUSE STYLEHARMONIOUSSTREETSCAPE
FACADE TYPOLOGY

51. Influx of Chinese labour from South China to work in Perak
tin mines. Chinese architectural details and building
materials are built by Chinese masons to bear on the
cityscape. Fundamental elements-courtyard, colour fashion
SOUTHERN CHINA STYLEHARMONIOUSSTREETSCAPE
FACADE TYPOLOGY

52. Inspired by classical motifs first developed in european and
us in 1920s, characterized by streamline, geometrical design,
materials such as glass and steel
ART DECO STYLEHARMONIOUSSTREETSCAPE
FACADE TYPOLOGY

53. Reflect the skills of migrant builders & craftsmen from Southern China, Representatives of more peasant
southern Chinese temple
CHENG HOON TEMPLE

54. Simplification of culture & customs , distinct from south indian temple, which have a complex Dravidian
Architecture in Pallava style
SRI POYATHA MOORTHI TEMPLE

55. Harmonious Streetscape
As none of the old shophouses were demolished for
development, the culmination of styles across time
presented by a series of facades that deliver its cultural
diversity. However, even though the styles may vary, they
still conform to the basic design of a shophouse. Thus,
creating a harmonious streetscape.
Axial Dominance
The dominance of St. Paul's Hill, being the governmental
zone is obvious with the geographical advantages over the
general flat land of the residential and commercial zone.
Two zones separated by the Malacca River being the axis.
Organic Diffusal
The predominant area of St. Paul's Civic Zone sprawls and
diffuses into the linear yet organic grid of the city.
Suggesting the natural growth of population throughout the
transition of a fishing village to the city in the colonial period.
Hidden Backalley
The perimeter block typology gave rise to prominent
row-house facades, creating intimate linear spaces both at
the front and back. The suprising contrast between the
front and back’s streetscape is influenced by the width of
the road and space usage.
Disordered Linearity
Although the shophouses are arranged in a linear order
and the streets are grouped based on their social order and
jobs, no two shophouses are the same internally or
externally. Each shophouses are designed in their own
styles during that period and to their function, making each
of the shophouses look like it was randomly and disorderly.
This random and chaotic facade along with the order of the
streets creates a pleasing sight yet able to express the
identity of the place.

56. Urban Linkage
The area contains the common boundaries of two bodies,
spaces or phases. It also termed as the interconnection
between two system. As the building connections between
buildings. From the street planning it define the linkage for
human access is the 5 foot walkway that provided in front
every facade. The wide pedestrian street and the alley path
which not only restrict for human but others to access as
well to bring up the urban usage.
Transparent Interioirity/Exteriority
The use of five footways is common in most of the streets of
Malacca. The width of the five foot way increases the level of
interaction between the pedestrian and the house owner.
Thereby, the use of five footway in the streets of Malacca
provides a sense of transparency between inside and
outside.
.
Spatial Redefinition
The diffusion of form,movement pattern fills up the spaces
which gives the spaces for users to infill their own intention
to the space,privatize, personalize and redefining the new
means of space which means uniquely to them.Different
styles and religions of the buildings along the melaka street
spread and diffuse through every spaces ,giving new
characteristics to particular spaces,redefining the new
spaces.
Surprising Hierarchy
During the colonial time the streets are arranged in
hierarchy order based on the social and job of the
people.This gives uniqueness and different characteristics
to each streets according to their linear typology which
evokes surprises when experiencing the different culture
and activities across the streets.

57. Re-occuring Node
The existence of the religious buildings like Cheng Hoon
Teng Temple, Kampung Kling Mosque and Sri Poyyatha
Vinayagar Moorthi Temple along the street since colonial
period become a very significant features for the street. They
naturally defined the public and private realm along the
street. People don't gather there just for a specific day or
because of specific event, to visit there has become a
routine for them. So not just the functions itself generate the
public realm, its about what it meant for the people there.
Inter-generational interaction
The road is narrow in Melaka, so that the car would drive
carefully, hence the road is safe for children to play around,
for elderly to walked safely, for tourist to enjoy travel in
Melaka. People walking on the streets can experience the
interaction beyond generation, create sense of a
togetherness.
.
Adaptive Facades
In a short period of times,Malacca had been authorized by
different host,each of them has it's own character and
identity & influence Malacca into multi cultural heritage,
make a impressing conversion and gave a huge impact to
Malacca.
Social Segregation
During the colonial era of the Dutch and British, shop
houses of Malacca were taxed accordingly to their street
frontage plot width rather than their total area. Besides that,
trading products and services were taxed differently by the
colonial government. The zoning of Malacca at that time
was divided according to different zones such as business
and trading activities, agriculture and commercial activities.
This shows that there is a segregation in different kinds of
social status and social activities.

58. Outstanding Universal Value
The buildings reflect a mixture of influences which have
created a uniqueness in architecture, culture and townscape
without parallel anywhere in Southeast Asia. In particular,
the range of shophouses and townhouses are exceptional in
the inherent qualities from the layering of stages of
development of each building type, originating from the
Dutch or Portuguese periods.
.