Monday, December 16, 2013

Bank Negara Muzium - Gallery

I recently visited the Bank Negara Muzium (Bank Negara Museum) with the Muzium Negara Volunteers.  I am reminded all the time of the surprises Malaysia has to offer.  Bank Negara Malaysia Museum and Art Gallery is located at the Sasana Kijang complex a short walk up Jalan Dato Onn, a quiet tree lined street near the Bank Negara KTM train station.  Near by are memorials to former prime ministers: Tunku Adudl Rahman, and Hussien Onn.

Now about the Muzium.   The muzium has 4 continuing galleries: An Art Gallery displaying the art collection of the Bank Negara on a rotating basis, A Numismatics Gallery, An Economics Gallery, an Islamic Finance Gallery, a Children's Gallery, and a Gallery for temporary exhibitions.  I went to the Museum for a temporary exhibit on Maps and Malaysia.
I must confess that I am a map freak.  So much so that Liz has been known to throw away all maps collected for a road trip at the first stop, and declare the trip as a map free vacation.  Nonetheless, I continue with my obsession with maps. 

The first map displayed was a replica of a 15th century map based on one created by Ptolemy.


Ptolemy described the Peninsula of Malay as the source of the world's gold.  And described the Island of Borneo as the home of Satyrs, describing what we know as orangutans and other apes living there. Maps in the 14th and 15th century vary greatly in what they display of Southeast Asia.  To Europeans, the area was basically unknown.



European maps of Southeast Asia began to represent our known geography with the Dutch.  Java, Sumatra, and the Indonesian island change began to be fully described.  The northern and western coasts of New Holland (Australia) were described but the east coast of New Holland was connected to New Guinea.  

As mapping technology progressed, maps became more accurate.  Maps became more accurate as the inland portions of the peninsula were explored.  With colonizations maps began to display the resources to be exploited (coal, coconut, petroleum, rubber, pepper, timber, etc.)  Little cultural information was displayed.

With the British came modern surveying, and recording of land ownership.  This may have been previously done by the various Sultanates and kingdoms of peninsular Malaya, but written records are lacking.

The exhibit also displays the changes in the technology of surveying.  Surveying instruments are displayed, as well as modern GPS devices to determine geographic coordinates.

The exhibit showed the ethnocentric bias of mapping.   Almost all of the maps were those showing the world view of European explorers.  There were no maps showing the Malay view of the world, nor were there maps showing the Chinese or Tamil views of the world.  Both the Chinese and the Indian Tamils were great traders and must have had maps.  I was sorry that these viewpoints were not included in the exhibit.

Our gracious guide.



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