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Koentje3000
Koentje3000
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Masjid Jamek & Merdeka Square

  • May 3, 2006
  • Rated 4 of 5 by Koentje3000 from Hamme, Belgium
Masjid Jamek & Merdeka Square

Right at the confluent of the Klang and Gombak rivers lies one of its most interesting places, the Masjid Jamek or Friday Mosque, named after the Muslim holy day. It was built on the location where Kuala Lumpur was founded and on the place of an old Malay cemetery. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century in a Moorish style. It used to be the town's main mosque before the huge Masjid Negara (National Mosque) was built at the south side of the Lake Gardens. The building consists of a central prayer hall, topped with three white domes. The central dome was rebuilt after it collapsed in 1990. On a regular day, there will only be a few people around to say their prayers, but on Friday the whole prayer hall and the nearby streets fill with people. This is a sight not to be missed when you are in KL that day.Masjid Jamek is within walking distance from that other major Moorish-style building, the Sultan Abdul Samad building on the huge Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square). This beautiful building was designed by the same architect as Masjid Jamek, namely Arthur Benison Hubback, and built in 1897. It was named after the then sultan of Selangor, the Malaysian state surrounding Kuala Lumpur. The building, topped by a copper dome, used to house the Supreme Court, later named the Federal Court, and the Court of Appeal. After the move of these courts to Malaysia's administrative capital Putrajaya, it currently houses the Commercial Division of the High Court of Malaya.The Dataran Merdeka Square in front of the building used to be the cricket field of the Selangor Club. It was here that Malaysian independence was declared in 1957. An eye-catcher on the square is the huge flag post, one of the largest in the world. Apart from the Sultan Abdul Samad building there are a few other interesting buildings on the square, the National History Museum, the neo-Gothic St. Mary's cathedral and of course the Tudor-style Royal Selangor Club Complex.The easiest way to reach Masjid Jamek is by LRT train. The Masjid Jamek station is a major junction in the LRT system. Masjid Jamek is also on walking distance from the Bangkok Bank bus stand, one of KL's main bus stands.

From journal The Modern Capital of Malaysia

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