There are three

palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

s in

Seri Menanti Seri Menanti (Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Soghi Monanti'') is a town, a mukim and a state assembly constituency in Kuala Pilah District, in central Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It is the royal capital of the state of Negeri Sembilan and houses t ...

, the royal capital of

Negeri Sembilan Negeri Sembilan (, Negeri Sembilan Malay: ''Nogoghi Sombilan'', ''Nismilan'') is a state in Malaysia which lies on the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. It borders Selangor on the north, Pahang in the east, and Malacca and Johor to the s ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. * Istana Besar * Istana Lama * Istana Tasik

Istana Besar

The Istana Besar, is the primary palace of the

Yang Di-Pertuan Besar In Malay, Yang di-Pertuan Besar, literally ''"He Who Is Made Chief Ruler"'', is a title given to the head of state in segments of the Malay Archipelago. In Malaysia # Also known as Yamtuan Besar, it is the title of the elected monarch of the stat ...

. It was built and completed in 1932, and officiated by Tuanku Muhammad ibni Almarhum Tuanku Antah who moved there after it was completed. The Istana Besar complex has extensive facilities to support the residence of the Yang Di-Pertuan Besar. In the main building, there is a grand hall, waiting and audience rooms, residential apartments spread over three floors. In the adjacent building, there is a throne room (Balairung Seri) where formal ceremonies are held which includes investitures, oath of allegiance / appointment ceremonies and where large congregational prayers are held. The main Banquet Hall, which was constructed almost seventy years later, can house approximately two thousand people. The current Yang Di-Pertuan Besar is

Tuanku Muhriz Tuanku Muhriz ibni Almarhum Tuanku Munawir (born 14 January 1948) is the eleventh Yang di-Pertuan Besar (Grand Ruler) of Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Early life Tunku Muhriz is the only son out of six children of the late Tuanku Munawir ibni A ...

. There are also offices, facilities and general quarters for palace officials and staff.

Istana Lama

The Istana Lama Seri Menanti, is one of the famous landmarks in

Kuala Pilah District The Kuala Pilah District is a district in central Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Its seat is the town of Kuala Pilah. Kuala Pilah District borders Jelebu District to the north, Jempol District to the east, Tampin District to the southwest and Remb ...

is made in part of ''chengal'' (Penak) wood (''

Neobalanocarpus ''Neobalanocarpus'' is a monotypic genus of plants in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The single species, ''Neobalanocarpus heimii'', is a tropical hardwood tree. Common names for the tree and its wood products include ''chengal'', ''chan ta khien'' ...

'') and iron wood or ''belian'' wood (''

Eusideroxylon zwageri ''Eusideroxylon zwageri'' is a rare timber tree native to the Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines region. It is known colloquially in English as Bornean ironwood, billian, or ulin. Distribution It is native to Brunei; Flores, Java, Kali ...

'') and held together using only wooden pegs. The palace took six years to build and was completed in 1908 at a cost of $45,000.00 at that time. The design has subtle hints of Minangkabau architecture, has five levels rising to a height of sixty seven feet or approximately twenty meters high and has ninety nine columns to support the main structure. Four of the main columns of sixty seven feet are the Chengal timber that came from Bukit Pergai, Jelebu and is the central feature of the structure which holds up the apex of the palace, namely the Treasury Room. The Istana Lama was a replacement for Istana Pulih which was burned down by British soldiers. The drawings and plans for Istana Lama was detailed by Mr. Woodford (Public Works Department) based on the designs provided by two local craftsmen, Kahar and Taib. This palace was used until 1932 after which the Yang Di-Pertuan Besar moved to Istana Besar. The significance of the ninety nine columns is meant to represent the ninety nine officers of the palace (Hulubalang), while the four columns at the center is signify the four senior officials of the palace (Orang Empat Istana). The design of Istana Lama was expected to represent the ideals of familyhood, education, heritage and culture, and the historical bond with the Minangkabau kingdom of Pagaruyung. Istana Lama was used as a religious school between 1959 and 1964, and was unoccupied until 1992. The Istana Lama has been designated as a national heritage site and was converted into a Royal Museum on July 14 1992, with the consent of and officiated by Tuanku Ja'afar the Yang Di-Pertuan Besar at the time. It is currently closed to the public to facilitate repairs and upgrading works which is expected to be completed in 2020. The palace has been assigned as building number 115 by the JKR.

Istana Tasik

Istana Tasik or Lake Palace is located at the entrance to Istana Besar on the left, next to a small

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

. It is quite small, has basic amenities and is used occasionally when required.

Heritage

In February 2009, the Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal announced that the Istana Lama is among ten historical structures in Malaysia gazetted as a national heritage, along with

Victoria Institution The Victoria Institution is the oldest secondary school in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is a memorial school, so-called because it was partly funded by public subscription intended for the erection of a permanent memorial to commemorate the Golden ...

in Kuala Lumpur and The Stadthuys in Malacca.

References

External links

Tourism Malaysia - Seri Menanti Museum

Lembaga Muzium Negeri Sembilan

Majlis Daerah Kuala Pilah - Istana lama

Istana Lama Seri Menanti - National Archives Department
{{coord, 2, 41, 54, N, 102, 09, 33, E, region:MY-05_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Royal residences in Malaysia Palaces in Malaysia Kuala Pilah District Buildings and structures in Negeri Sembilan Museums in Negeri Sembilan Tourist attractions in Negeri Sembilan Official residences of Malaysian state leaders