Unravelling the significance of Melaka’s mosque
MELAKA: No visitor to the Historic City of Melaka will be able to miss the charm of the unique architecture of its mosques that were built back in the 18th century.
The more familiar semi-spherical dome did not form the basis of mosque construction during that era in Melaka, which was then a prominent centre for the dissemination of Islam in Nusantara (now known as Southeast Asia).
Instead, the mosques featured the pyramidal three-tiered roof – also known as the meru roof – and pagoda-shaped minaret that clearly reflected Chinese architectural elements.
The fusion of cultures in the architecture can be attributed to the traders who sailed to Melaka from the west and east, including China, as it was also a busy trading centre then.
Melaka’s three oldest mosques, Masjid Kampung Hulu, Masjid Tengkera and Masjid Kampung Keling, serve as a testament to the existence of Chinese architectural influence in mosque construction in those days.
It is interesting to note that these mosques used ceramic tiles from China’s Ching Dynasty era, with the tiles in Masjid Kampung Hulu, for example, featuring carvings of natural elements.
Masjid Kampung Hulu imam Zawawi Md Hanafi, 47, told Bernama each layer of the 300-year-old mosque’s roof and building structure held its own significance.
“From the foundation of the mosque to the uppermost tier, each layer has its own meaning, with the ‘crown’ of the mosque being the symbolic element signifying the link between the mosque and the universe with the Creator,” he said.
He said the building structure of each of the doors leading to the prayer area reflected the five principles of Islam while the mosque’s six windows reflected the six principles of faith and its rostrum, the “One God”.
Zawawi said the mosque’s squareshaped base, three-tiered meru roof and four main pillars provide ample support for the “crown” above the structure.
The mosque faces the qiblah (the direction of the Kaaba in Makkah) and also has a place at the back where worshippers can perform their ablutions.
“The amazing thing about the ceramic tiles used to build the mosque’s roofing is that they have lasted a few hundred years and still remain sturdy,” Zawawi said.