The unique architecture of Penang Blue House

#February Good Places 2025
The former residence of Zhang Bishi, also known as the Blue House, is the former residence of Zhang Bishi, a businessman in China during the late Qing Dynasty. It is the most precious building in George Town, the capital of Penang, and has been awarded the UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage and Monument Protection Award! The owner, Zhang Bishi, was a self-made Hakka, a Qing Dynasty diplomat who became the richest man in Southeast Asia at the time by trade, with assets even higher than the annual income of the Qing Dynasty treasury.
It was built in 1904 and covers an area of ​​more than 3,000 square meters in Chinese style, but contains British-made floor tile glass windows and cast iron railings and pillars. Chan Kin-po, Mrs. Chan Kin-po, who lives in the Blue House, married 70-year-old Mrs. Cheung at the age of 17. The love story is particularly exciting.
There are 38 rooms and 5 courtyards in Zhang Bishi's ancient house, with both Chinese-style exquisite wood carvings and clear porcelain cut-and-stick, as well as Western-style courtyard buildings, a perfect combination of Chinese and Western styles! The former residence is usually open for limited tours and offers 16 rooms, which retain traditional Chinese décor and modern air conditioning and bathroom facilities!
After settling in Penang, this and characteristic mansion is covered, using a large number of European iron columns and parquet tiles incorporating Chinese carvings, and was selected as a filming location for Indochina, Crazy Asian Rich and several films

Post by Neuhaus | Feb 27, 2025