Chinese, East Jakarta, Jakarta, Museum

Chinese Peranakan Museum

The Chinese Peranakan Museum [Museum Peranakan Tionghoa] is one of the many museums located within the Taman Mini Indonesia Indah compound in East Jakarta. The museum occupies the same building as Cheng Ho Museum, with no clear dividing mark between the two.

What can be distinguished among the two museums are only the type of collections on display where the Peranakan Tionghoa Museum exhibits a broader and more general range of objects and information about the Chinese descendants who came and exist in Indonesia than just those related to Admiral Cheng Ho.

The Peranakan Tionghoa Museum is established in a 680 m2 building with a mixture of Chinese, Dutch and Malay architectural styles. The saddle-shaped roof of the building is characteristic of the roof of a Chinese house, and the open garden inside the house is a characteristic of Chinese peranakan buildings in Indonesia.

museum pernakanan tionghoa tmii

Lanterns, large coins and a pair of barongsay that looked rather dull were placed near the entrance to the Chinese Peranakan Museum. The lion dance is a donation from the Kong Ha Hong Barongsai Association of the Huang - Kong Hu clan which was given to celebrate the commemoration of Indonesian Independence Day on August 17, 2014. In the center of the kepeng, which more resembles a pan, is a picture of the Garuda Pancasila.

Photographs of old Chinese-style buildings can be seen at several points in the museum, which was quite interesting among other collections. The Chinese Peranakan Museum is managed by the Indonesian Chinese Culture Sustainable Foundation (YLBTI), a non-profit association founded by Chinese descendants who are concerned about the preservation of Chinese cultural arts in Indonesia.


The term of peranakan first appeared in the 18th century, when the Dutch colonial government used the term to describe immigrants from China who had blended and acculturated with the local culture. They mostly came from the southern part of Hokkien Province (Fujian). The term peranakan was also used at that time to distinguish between Chinese Muslims and those who were not.

museum pernakanan tionghoa tmii

Poster with a photo gives a brief description of the Chinese Peranakan Museum. The museum stores and displays photos and artifacts that are traces of history and the role contributed by people of Chinese descent who emigrated and settled in Indonesia, as well as the acculturation of Chinese culture with other ethnic cultures in Indonesia. Apart from permanent exhibitions, the museum also organizes periodic exhibitions, demonstrations of customs and holidays for the Chinese people.

Later, the word peranakan was used more broadly to describe all Chinese descendants in Indonesia regardless of religion. The Chinese peranakan gradually developed a distinctive culture, the result of a mixture of Javanese, Sundanese and other ethnic and national cultures in Indonesia. In daily life, Chinese peranakans generally speak the local language and accent fluently, just like the local people.

There are many simple posters at the TMII Chinese Peranakan Museum in Jakarta. One of them contained a photo of the grave and information about Souw Beng Kong who lived from 1580 to 1644. Apart from being a translator, he served as an advisor to Chinese customs, as a witness in court, played a role in building irrigation systems, canals, and transforming swamps into markets, settlements and offices. His grave can be found at Gg Truna, Jl Pangeran Jayakarta.

Another poster tells the story of Nie Hu Kong's experience in the Angke Incident in 1740. As a protest against the high tax increase and heavy sanctions on the Chinese population issued by VOC Governor Adriaan Valckenier, there was an act of defiance and attacks by the Chinese army against several of VOC's posts, such as at Jatinegara, Tanah Abang, Bekasi and Tangerang. Ultimately, on 8 October 1740 they attacked VOC Fortress in Batavia.

In retaliation, on 9 October 1740 Lieutenant Gustaaf Willem van Imhoff and the Dutch Navy launched a major offensive using artillery to kill all Chinese in Batavia, including those being hospitalized and imprisoned. Houses were destroyed with cannons and burned, including Nie Hu Kong's. He was tortured by hanging, drilled his leg bones, then dumped and died in Ambon. It is estimated that around 10,000 Chinese peranakan were killed in this massacre, and thousands more fled to various areas in Java.


Posters on display at the Tionghoa Peranakan Museum generally try to raise historical facts about the role of a number of figures of Chinese descent that occurred before the time of the national movement, as well as their role during the national movement and the independence war, up to the New Order era until now.

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In addition to photo documentation, there are also collections that show the role of Chinese peranakan in culture and art, such as examples of Peranakan Batik motifs which enrich the variety of Indonesian batik motifs, Kebaya Nyonya which is popular with various groups including the Dutch, and a statue of Fu Lu Shou which symbolizes "Happiness", "Prosperity" and "Long Life". There are also a number of statues and ancient ceramics from the Tang Dynasty and other dynasties in China.


The address of the Chinese Peranakan Museum is in Taman Budaya Tionghoa Indonesia, Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, Ceger, Cipayung, Jakarta Timur. GPS Location : -6.3051519, 106.9037211, Waze. Open : 09.00 - 16.00. Close on Monday and holidays. Ticket : Free. TMII entrance (3 year and older) Rp10.000, car Rp10.000, Bus Rp 30.000, motorcycle Rp6.000, bicyle Rp1.000.

, seorang pejalan musiman dan penyuka sejarah. Penduduk Jakarta yang sedang tinggal di Cikarang Utara. Diperbarui: January 21, 2021.

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