Fire razes W. Sumatra`s Pagaruyung Palace

Padang, Indonesia - West Sumatra’s renowned Pagaruyung Palace in Tanah Datar regency was razed by a fire on Sunday that caused damage to the roof and rear walls. No casualties were reported.

Heir to the palace Puti Reno Raudha Thaib told The Jakarta Post on Sunday that she left the palace — named Rumah Tuan Gadih Pagaruyung Istano Si Linduang Bulan — at around 1 a.m. to sleep in a house located in front of the palace.

“I turned off all the lights,” she said. “I was asleep when someone yelled ‘fire’. I went outside and saw the fire was already burning the palace roof.”

She said she could not believe how fast the fire spread from the lower part of the rear wall all the way up to the gonjong (traditional pointed roof resembling buffalo horns).

“It’s unlikely that the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit. I’m waiting for the police investigation."

”This incident marks the third blaze at the palace since it moved to the location in 1550, the year that marked a shift in its role as the seat of a Buddhist kingdom into an Islamic caliphate.

It was rebuilt in 1750 but was then razed by fire in 1821 during the Padri War. It was rebuilt in 1869 by Gadih Puti Reno Sumpu.

But the palace was burned down a second time in 1961 and rebuilt by the royal family. Its latest incarnation was inaugurated in December 1989.

Raudha Thaib said she could not estimate the financial loss caused by the fire, adding that the palace heirlooms survived the fire as they were kept in the house in which she slept.

”But the tools for rituals, including accessories and food utensils, were lost in the fire,” she said.

She said a meeting would be held to decide any future reconstruction plans for the palace.

”Since this palace is our heritage from the Pagaruyung Kingdom, it will certainly be rebuilt.”

The fire will disappoint tourists who visit the Tanah Datar regency in the hopes of learning about the Pagaruyung Kingdom and to see traditional Minangkabau architecture.

In February 2007, the Basa Pagaruyung Palace, the largest Minangkabau structure and a replica of the Pagaruyung Palace burned down by the Dutch in 1804, was burned down after being struck by lightning. Reconstruction work is 91 percent complete.

Tanah Datar Culture and Tourism head Alfian Jamrah said many travel agencies redirected tourists to Si Linduang Bulan Palace, located about two kilometers, away after the Basa Pagaruyung Palace fire.

“We’ve lost another stunning Pagaruyung Kingdom palace.” (Syofiardi Bachyul Jb.)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com
Picture: http://forum.detik.com

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