Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home, Malacca

Reception Hall, Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home (2 May, 2009)


Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home (GPS: 2.1961, 102.24537) is a historic building along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock in Malacca. The double-storey house has a covered porch over the five-foot way. The double-leaf timber door is flanked by a couple of windows with shutters.

My wife and I visited Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home with some friends from the Penang Heritage Trust. We were shown around by Miss Tan Siok Choo, Tun Tan's granddaughter. This opulent mansion which has been with the Tan family since the late 19th century, and in which Siok Choo grew up, offers a glimpse of the lifestyle of the Baba Nyonya of Malacca during their golden era, continuing with the various family patriach's engagement with local politics.

360° View of Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home on Google Maps Street View

Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home is on the Map of Malacca

Tan Cheng Lock's ancestral home was purchased by his grandfather, Tan Choon Bock, in 1875. Choon Bock is himself a third generation to make Malacca his home; his grandfather Tan Hay Kwan was the first generation who had arrived in Malacca in the later half of the 18th century, somewhere between 1771 and 1775.

While the exact date of construction of this house is not fully known, based on the title deed which dates to 1799, we suppose that the house was built in the 18th century, when the Dutch was still the administrator of Malacca.

As with many of the houses along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, or Heeren Street, as it was formerly known, the frontage of this property is quite narrow. This is because property taxes back then is based on width of property facing the street, a practise that is also employed in other cities including Penang and Singapore. Although of modest width, the house is long, and has quite a number of compartments sequenced one after the other.

Immediately behind the front door is the Reception Hall. This is where the images of patron deities are installed at the altar table. A scroll with the image of the deified 3rd century warlord Guan Gong (SC: 关公, TC: 關公) hangs over the table. Chinese blackwood chairs embedded with mother-of-pearl ornamentations, and marble backs and seats, line the walls on both sides. Hanging over these chairs are Chinese paintings and calligraphy scrolls.

Wall scrolls, Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home (2 May, 2009)


Behind the reception hall is the second chamber, or jee33lok1. This appears to be a family sitting area, for it has a round table as its centrepiece. From here, doors lead to the central courtyard.

Wall scrolls, Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home (2 May, 2009)


The central courtyard is flanked by open passageways on either sides. The walls are cluttered with photos from different periods of the family's illustrious history. I see the famous portrait of Tun Tan Cheng Lock. Blinds offer some shade for these photos against harsh sunlight.

Framed photographs on the wall at Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home (2 May, 2009)


The airwell at the central courtyard (2 May, 2009)


Continuing from the central courtyard is the filial remembrance hall.

View from the Filial Remembrance Hall towards the central courtyard (2 May, 2009)


Wall of the Filial Remembrance Hall (2 May, 2009)


There is another altar at this hall. At the top of it is the portrait of Lee Chye Neo, wife of Tan Hay Kwan and matriach of the Tan clan. She was already living in Malacca when Tan Hay Kwan arrived from China.

Lee Chye Neo's portrait hanging over the family altar table (2 May, 2009)


Paintings of Tun Tan Cheng Lock (2 May, 2009)


We next went upstairs to tour the rooms there. I found the furnishing upstairs to be utilitarian and functional rather than opulent. As with the chambers downstairs, there is also a sitting area upstairs. From the style of the furniture ("modern" perhaps), I suppose the rooms have not be re-furnished for decades. They are probably intentionally left as it was, to preserve the actual furniture used by Tun Tan Cheng Lock and his son Tun Tan Siew Sin.

Upstairs sitting room, Tun Tan Cheng Lock's House (2 May, 2009)


Dressing table, Tan Cheng Lock's ancestral house (2 May, 2009)


Timothy Tye with Tan Siok Choo (2 May, 2009)

Tun Tan Cheng Lock's Ancestral Home is on the Map of Malacca

References

Discover Malacca; list of Historic Buildings in Malacca and Historic Buildings in Malaysia

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Songs about Penang

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