Malabar Muslim Jama-ath Mosque

Located at 471 Victoria Street, this mosque is the only one that is tiled blue in the whole of Singapore. This mosque is specially dedicated to Malabar Muslims. They hail from the South Indian state of Kerala.
Interestingly, the magnificent tiling was only completed in 1995, about 40 years after it started! It was opened only in 1963..apparently the mosque ran into cash flow problems. It was declared open on 24th January 1963 by Yang di-pertuan Negara Encik Yusof Bin Ishak.
The blue-tiled mosque, the only one on the island dedicated to Malabar Muslims from the South Indian state of Kerala. Because its walls are topped with a golden sphere, it is also famously known as the ‘Golden Dome Mosque’.


Information retrieved from:
http://www.timeoutsingapore.com/aroundtown/venues/religion/malabar-muslim-jamaah-mosque

Hajjah Fatimah Mosque

Hajjah Fatimah Mosque a.k.a. Fatimah Mosque, was built in 1846 along Java Road, in the Kampong Glam area. Hajjah Fatimah was a wealthy Malaccan-born businesswoman who traded in Singapore. The mosque was erected where she once lived, after her residence was ransacked and burnt twice (HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA).

The architectural style is a blend of ‘East meets West, heavily infused with Malaccan and european classical styles and it is well known for its uniquely designed minaret.

Timeline
1841-1853 : John Turnbull Thomson builds the minaret and ancillary buildings.
1845-1846 : Hajjah Fatimah commissions British architects to design the mosque. The work is carried out by FRENCH contractors and Malay labourers.
Pre-1870s : Hajjah Fatimah buried on the grounds.
Pre-1900 : Mausoleum for Hajjah Fatimah, her daughter and son-in-law is built.
1930 : Architects Chung and Wong design the new prayer hall which was rebuilt by Bossard Mopin, a FRENCH contractor, with the help of Malay artisans.

Looks like they LURVE everything French.

Lee Loy Hin Blacksmith Shop

Lee Loy Hin Blacksmith? Our group had no idea where this mysterious shop used to be. We walked up and down Sultan street umpteen times and had finally given up our search. We concluded that a nearby coffeeshop was what stood upon the once blacksmith shop.

It was only after I had conducted a search on the internet that I realised we were wrong. In fact, the blacksmith was once located at 39, Sultan Gate. And all that had remained of this blacksmith shop was charred ruins of a pre-war shop house. Reading up further about the shop had also informed me that the shop has been relocated to the Defu Industrial Park.



References

http://www.hsse.nie.edu.sg/staff/blackburnheritageSingaporetimelinekampongglam2003.html
http://www.kgba.org.sg/biz_sultangate.htm

Alsagoff Arab School

Founded in 1912 by..yes you guessed it, the ALSAGOFFS, a rich Arab family, the school was named for Syed Ahmad Alsagoff, a wealthy Arab merchant and philanthropist who was very influential in Singapore's early colonial days and who died in 1906. It is the oldest girls' school in Singapore, and was the island's first Muslim school. Focusing on religious schooling combined with subjects taught in mainstream schools, it is not surprising to note that most of its graduates go on to become religious teachers and leaders of madrasahs.

Sultan Mosque

This is the sultan mosque..built in 1826 with the assistance of the EIC’s donation of $3000. Sultan hussein proposed to build a mosque within the palace compound of Istana KG. We see don and tao jing listening intently as one of the mosque personnel attends to us. The present sultan mosque designed by denis sentry is in a saracenic style. Interesting to note that the 2 domes are made of glass bottles!

Pondok Java

Before it got demolished in 2004, the Pondok Java was located at the intersection of Kandahar Street and Pahang Street. Now what remains is an empty grass patch. It is marked out as number "4" on the map above.

2. What was it used for?
Originally, Pondok Java was used to house the early Javanese diaspora. It was also used as a drama house for entertainment.

Gedung Kuning @ 73 Sultan Gate

Gedung Kuning was formerly known as Rumah Bendahara before the late Haji Yusoff 'Tali Panggang' bought it in 1912. Bendahara in Malay meant "Chief Minister" and therefore it was home to Malay officials. The architecture of this building was fashioned after the Italian architect Andrea Palladio (1508 – 1580) designed Palladian-style houses in Italy. Two houses were built in this manner when the British came. One was built as the Sultan’s palace (Istana) and the other was built for the Chief Minister.

1. Who used to live in this house located at 73 Sultan Gate?
Its first occupant was to be Tengku Mahmud, heir to the Sultan's throne (Cornelius-Takahama, 1999). In 1912, a Malay businessman and philanthropist by the name of Haji Yusoff Bin Haji Mohamed Noor bought the Rumah Bendahara. Haji Yusoff was affectionately known as ‘Tali Panggang’ because of his trade as a belt merchant.

2. Why was the mansion painted yellow?
The mansion at 73 Sultan Gate only got its name, “Gedung Kuning” which means yellow mansion after 2003. It was painted yellow because yellow signified the royal colour of the Malays (Cornelius-Takahama, 1999).


References
1. http://www.gedungkuning.com/
2. http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_748_2004-12-24.html

Kubor Muslim Cemetery

As you can see from the pictures this plot of land is rather unkempt. And guess what! It was labeled as ‘Tombs of the Malayan Princes’ in J B Tassin’s 1836 map. So disrespectful. Princes are royalty! Also interesting to note that the stonemasons were Chinese, meaning to say that they were the ones who carved the words on the tombstones of the Malayan princes.

the surroundings..

One of the many information boards on the Bugis people

Gelam tree planted by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yaacob Imbrahim
Minister in charge of Muslim Affairs

Bugis Prahhu

The Bugis people fishes and possess many trading vessels

Sneak preview of the museum..

Score sheet and Record of the National Anthem

Movie set for 1957 Shaw Brothers film Bujang Lapok
Many Many Models and Artefacts

Exhibits of Malay boats

Exhibit of Orang Laut’s fishing boat

Malay Heritage Museum

A venue of Malay Culture appreciation and workshops

*George Coleman designed the new Istana in 1835.

Entrance facing Sultan gate, built in 1840

A hot spot for tourists and students

Standing on the site of Kampong Gelam

Malay Heritage Centre aka Istana Kampong Glam

Kris of various shape and sizes in the Malay Gallery shop

This shop sells traditional Malay handicraft, including Kris

Bussorah Street leads up to the Sultan Mosque. It is a popular tourist attraction as seen from the pictures. Many of the items on sale here are souvenirs for the tourists, which are exorbitantly priced.

Another view of the Pintu Pagar along Kandahar Street.

Shophouses Nos. 44-54 along Kandahar Street reflect the late shophouse style (1900-1940). Notice the swinging saloon doors? These are called Pintu Pagar and they are commonly found in front of the main doors of residential shophouses. They provide some privacy to the front hall from the public five foot way.

Kandahar street is named after the third largest city in Afghanistan, reflecting the Arabic influence in this area.

Textile shops such as the one above, perfumes shops and traditional handicrafts shops are common along Arab street.

Arab street was named after the Singapore Arab population during the colonial years. It was once owned by an Arab merchant, Syed Ali bin Mohamed Al Junied. The street names in this area reflect the names of the capital of Arabic countries, such as Muscat (capital of Oman) and Baghdad (capital of Iraq).

Our journey to Kampong Glam begins here, on a bright and sunny Friday afternoon.