Pekanbaru is one of the cities in Indonesia which has many track records of Malay culture. One of them you can see at the Siak Sri Indrapura Palace. The Siak Palace is a legacy of the Siak Sultanate which is said to have been one of the strongest sultanates on the Malay Peninsula.
Not only is it a beautiful architectural style, on the inside you can even admire historical objects from the Siak Sultanate. One of them is a traditional musical instrument called the comet, which is only two in the world, you know.
As one of the countries that were once controlled by kingdoms, it is not surprising that several historical heritage buildings in Indonesia are in the form of palaces.
One of these palaces is the Siak Sri Indrapura Palace in Riau, which is a palace building similar to a castle on the European continent.
The Siak Sri Indrapura Palace is a palace building from the Siak Sri Indrapura Sultanate as well as the residence of the Sultan of Siak since 1732. This palace is also known as the Asserayah Hasyimiah Palace or the East Sun Palace.
Visiting this palace, tourists can witness the magnificent architecture and combining styles from three cultures: European, Arabic, and Malay.
In addition, the Siak Sri Indrapura Palace was designed by German architecture. So, it is natural that the building style resembles a European castle.
The Siak Sri Indrapura Palace Complex itself is built on an area of 32,000 square meters. In this complex, there are 4 palaces, namely Siak Palace, Lima Palace, Panjang Palace, and Baroe Palace.
The Siak Palace itself is located in an area of 1,000 m2. This palace has two floors that can be explored. Entering the inside, travelers can see the palace walls decorated with French ceramics.
On the first floor, tourists can find 6 rooms that function as a guest waiting room, a guest of honor, a men’s room, a women’s guest room, a courtroom, and a party room.
Meanwhile, the upper floor has 9 rooms that were used as resting places for the Sultan and palace guests.
Apart from the rooms in the palace, tourists can also find 8 cannons scattered in the courtyard of the Siak Sri Indrapura Palace.
Then, there is also a small building that was once used as a temporary prison.
Various collections of the Siak Sri Indrapura Sultanate are still kept in this palace. Some of the collections include gilded thrones, duplicates of the royal crown, spears, umbrellas, bronze statues, and comet instruments.
The palace itself is located on the banks of the Siak River and can be reached either by land or by the river.
