Friday, July 2, 2010
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Sultan Abu Bakar-Sultan Iskandar converted into the museum,which was opened to the public on May 11th,1991.
-It has an extensive display of rare artefacts and treasures collected by and belonging to the Royal family.
-One can see the furniture that was used by the Sultan and his family.
-It has an extensive collection of works of art owned by the Royal family.
Royal Gallery
-A huge picture gallery which has pictures and portraits of past and present kings and queens.
-Medals,decorations and royal documents were displayed in the museum's picture gallery.
-Huge collection of the king's personal records and memorabilia.
-'Throne Room' where a large number of banquets,ceremonies,festivals and royal parties were held.
-Huge collection of crystalware,silverware,sold and silver ornaments and beautiful vases in the other rooms.
silverwares gallery
-Traditional Malaysian weapons can be found in the 'Weaponary Gallery'.
Weaponary Gallery
-Coin collection and trophies can also be found in the museum.
More Pictures :
OIL PALM AT MALAYSIA!
The oil palms (Elaeis) comprise two species of the Arecaceae, or palm family. They are used in commercial agriculture in the production of palm oil. The generic name is derived from the Greek for oil, elaion, while the species name refers to its country of origin. Mature trees are single-stemmed, and grow to 20 m tall. The leaves are pinnate, and reach between 3-5 m long. A young tree produces about 30 leaves a year. Established trees over 10 years produce about 20 leaves a year. The flowers are produced in dense clusters; each individual flower is small, with three sepals and three petals. The palm fruit takes five to six months to mature from pollination to maturity. The palm fruit is reddish, about the size of a large plum and grows in large bunches. Each fruit is made up of oily, fleshy outer layer (the pericarp), with a single seed (the palm kernel), also rich in oil. Unlike other relatives, the oil palm trees do not produce offshoots; propagation is by sowing the seeds. Before the Second World War, selection work had started in the Deli dura population in Malaya. Pollen was imported from Africa, and DxT and DxP crosses were made. Segregation of fruit forms in crosses made in the 1950s was often incorrect. In the absence of a good marker gene, there was no way of knowing whether control of pollination was adequate. In 1995, Malaysia was the world's largest producer with 51% of world production. Since the days when the 'guineesis' was first introduced by the British, Indian laborers were brought in to work the estates. It was there that Hindu beliefs mixed with the local Malay culture and started the usage of palm seeds by traditional healers suffixed with tok 'bomoh' or 'pawang' in the local language. It was found that every bunch of palm fruit usually bears a single 'illustrious' seed which looks like a shiny black pearl called 'sbatmi' in Tamil and 'shakti' in Malay. These are used as accessories by the 'bomoh' and 'pawang' in the mixed ritual for peace with nature as these are believed to contain mystical healing properties, and those wearing it are blessed by nature. Modern usage has seen more common people keeping these as a charm/fashion item to feel at peace, owing to its use by celebrities. It must be noted that all palm seeds contain acid and these sbatmi are no different and should be handled with care. Sbatmi lost some popularity when it was used in a grisly ritual by Mona Fandey in 1993.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Layang layang museum
The trip to Malaysia, Layang-layang Museum was a great and memorable experience for me. Layang-layang museum was located at the Pasir Gudang Recreational Park, Bukit Layang-layang is the official site for the annual Pasir Gudang International Kite Festival hundreds and thousands of visitors and kite enthusiasts from all over the world.
Pasir Gudang Kite Museum is the first of its king in Malaysia. It is built as an appreciation towards the contribution of the Malaysian and the International kite flyers. Opening it's door for the first tme in February 2002 during the 7th Pasir Gudang Kite Festival.
Housing a collection of more than 200 kites which once roam the skies of Bukit ayang-layag as well as hundreds of the traditional kite heritage of Malaysian known as wau. It also houses a collection of Ceramic Vases.
Museum's information floor by floor :
- International kite museum
- International kite exhibition
- Souvenir festival
In Malaysia, another definition for "Layang-layang" is "wau". Much was said about origi of the word "wau", while most reliable is that it derives from Thai vocabulary which means kites. Wau Bulan consist of three different sections comprising the head and neck which represent the uppe section of the wau, the chest and the waist represent the middle section of the wau whereas the hand and feet relate to the bottom section of the wau.
Wau Kucing is identified more for its synonymous existence with Malaysian Airlines System(MAS). The airline corparate logo based on Wau Kucing, which is said to have originated from Kelantan when it was first introduced in 1967.
The 'hummer' is also use to frighten away evil spirits and to forecast the following day's weather. The floral and plant motif of the 'sobek' carving on Wau Kucing are decorated in the same way with other traditional Malay wau which is incorporated the flower and plants motifs.
The name Wau Jala Budi is derived from a leaf found in Kedah called the 'budi' leaf. The tail of the wau is similar to the 'budi' leaf and the word 'java' (net) refers to the structure of the tail of the Wau Jala Budi. However, the basic shape and designs is inspired by the shape of a woman;s body. it is view from the back whereas the women is extended followed by the body, towards the waist and the bottom.
Wau Merak is believed to have originated from Sulawesi. Indonesia and is flown mainly by the Bugis people. It is mainly flown by them after the paddy harvesting season. 