Medan - Standing on 4.5 hectares of land in the heart of North Sumatra’s capital Medan, Maimun Palace looks glorious with its domes, huge yellow and green pillars and white marble staircase. Tall palm trees and decorative shrubs surround the three-story building and green grass carpets the enormous front yard.
From the outside, the palace is as imposing as any royal building.
However, a different atmosphere greets people once they step inside the front doors.
The high adorned ceiling only serves to emphasize the room’s emptiness. Two bright yellow chairs sit on a slightly raised dais on the right side of the foyer, the thrones of the royal pair, while on the left, a small wooden table stands below several pictures of haughty-looking men bedecked in local fineries — the previous sultans of the Deli, the ethnic community of the area.
The reigning sultan, only 11 years of age, is nowhere to be seen. He lives on the other side of the archipelago, in the capital of South Sulawesi Province.
“He lives with his mother in Makassar,” said Tengku Mohar, a member of the royal family who lives on the ground floor of the palace. Mohar is also secretary of the Sultan Ma’mun Al-Rasyid Foundation, named after the sultan who built the palace in 1888, and is responsible for palace’s upkeep.
At the age of 8, Aria Mahmud Lamanjiji was installed as the 14th sultan of Deli in 2005, replacing his father, Sultan Deli Tito Otman Perkasa Alam, who died in a airplane accident in neighboring Aceh Province.
Since then, Aria has lived with his mother, Siska Mara Bintang, in her home province, Mohar said.
Mohar said that he and some other 30 other members of the royal family lived in the maze of rooms on the palace’s ground floor, struggling to maintain the building as the pride of the city.
“The local government only helps with some parts of the palace,” he said.
He and other relatives pay the monthly wages for 10 workers who clean and maintain the palace.
In a large meeting room in the palace, once the nerve center of the sultanate that ruled over this rich plantation region, only a few marble chairs and a matching table remain. Several Victorian-style chandeliers hang from the ceiling of the palace, which has 40 rooms and a dungeon.
The complex is a combination of European and Moorish architecture and decorations, accented by thick Malay gold-thread embroideries that hang from curtain railings and cover the chairs.
“This palace is unique,” Mohar said. “It has a sultan, some of his relatives still live here, but the government is not paying any attention to it.”
Showing off the few rooms open to the public, Mohar said that there was a simple reason why only several paintings and decorations were left on display.
“We’re afraid they may disappear, since we can’t afford to pay for high-security equipment,” he said.
Syarifuddin, who heads Medan’s tourism office, said that the government did not allocate sufficient funds in 2008 for the upkeep of what has been called “the icon of Medan.”
“In 2009, we have made the palace a priority,” he said.
The city’s annual Ramadan Fair takes place during the Muslim fasting month in Maimun Palace’s courtyard. Every year, dozens of stalls sell a variety of foods and local delicacies for people to consume once the day’s fast ends at sunset. Some stalls also sell clothes and souvenirs. Mohar said the palace receives no financial benefit from the event, except that the royal family is allowed to operate a stall for free.
Syarifuddin said Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik had asked him to turn the palace into a top tourism destination by next year. Putri Prameshwari
Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com (December 25, 2008)
From the outside, the palace is as imposing as any royal building.
However, a different atmosphere greets people once they step inside the front doors.
The high adorned ceiling only serves to emphasize the room’s emptiness. Two bright yellow chairs sit on a slightly raised dais on the right side of the foyer, the thrones of the royal pair, while on the left, a small wooden table stands below several pictures of haughty-looking men bedecked in local fineries — the previous sultans of the Deli, the ethnic community of the area.
The reigning sultan, only 11 years of age, is nowhere to be seen. He lives on the other side of the archipelago, in the capital of South Sulawesi Province.
“He lives with his mother in Makassar,” said Tengku Mohar, a member of the royal family who lives on the ground floor of the palace. Mohar is also secretary of the Sultan Ma’mun Al-Rasyid Foundation, named after the sultan who built the palace in 1888, and is responsible for palace’s upkeep.
At the age of 8, Aria Mahmud Lamanjiji was installed as the 14th sultan of Deli in 2005, replacing his father, Sultan Deli Tito Otman Perkasa Alam, who died in a airplane accident in neighboring Aceh Province.
Since then, Aria has lived with his mother, Siska Mara Bintang, in her home province, Mohar said.
Mohar said that he and some other 30 other members of the royal family lived in the maze of rooms on the palace’s ground floor, struggling to maintain the building as the pride of the city.
“The local government only helps with some parts of the palace,” he said.
He and other relatives pay the monthly wages for 10 workers who clean and maintain the palace.
In a large meeting room in the palace, once the nerve center of the sultanate that ruled over this rich plantation region, only a few marble chairs and a matching table remain. Several Victorian-style chandeliers hang from the ceiling of the palace, which has 40 rooms and a dungeon.
The complex is a combination of European and Moorish architecture and decorations, accented by thick Malay gold-thread embroideries that hang from curtain railings and cover the chairs.
“This palace is unique,” Mohar said. “It has a sultan, some of his relatives still live here, but the government is not paying any attention to it.”
Showing off the few rooms open to the public, Mohar said that there was a simple reason why only several paintings and decorations were left on display.
“We’re afraid they may disappear, since we can’t afford to pay for high-security equipment,” he said.
Syarifuddin, who heads Medan’s tourism office, said that the government did not allocate sufficient funds in 2008 for the upkeep of what has been called “the icon of Medan.”
“In 2009, we have made the palace a priority,” he said.
The city’s annual Ramadan Fair takes place during the Muslim fasting month in Maimun Palace’s courtyard. Every year, dozens of stalls sell a variety of foods and local delicacies for people to consume once the day’s fast ends at sunset. Some stalls also sell clothes and souvenirs. Mohar said the palace receives no financial benefit from the event, except that the royal family is allowed to operate a stall for free.
Syarifuddin said Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik had asked him to turn the palace into a top tourism destination by next year. Putri Prameshwari
Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com (December 25, 2008)
