Friday, July 1, 2011

Hang Kasturi Mausoleum

Hang Kasturi Mausoleum is located at Jonker Street. One might miss it on a very busy day when stalls are set in front of the pavement and obscuring the sight of the white arch which act as the main entrance to the tomb.

Hang Kasturi is one of the 5 great warrior brothers that include Hang Tuah, Hang Jebat, Hang Lekir and Hang Lekiu. The 5 brothers were great warrior during the reign of the Malacca Sultanate especially during the Sultan Mansur Shah (1456 - 1477) regime. The courage and strength of the five great warrior plus the wisdom of the Bendahara Tun Perak were legendary as they help the Malacca Sultanate to expand the Malacca Empire up as far as the Malay Archipelago and thus earned the respect of friends and foes.

In the Malay Annals, Hang Kasturi was set to be the traitor for killing his brother Hang Tuah without proper investigation. Hang Tuah who was hidden by the Prime Minister in Ulu Melaka took revenge by killing Hang Kasturi in such a big battle for being a traitor to the Sultanate. However, based on another story known by many people, Hang Jebat was the real traitor who finally died in the arm of Hang Tuah.

The structure of the tomb of Hang Kasturi was much influence by the art and architecture from India where there are openings to put candle lights around the tomb. This tomb is staggered unlike other tomb which is long and considered to be holy. The tomb has been gazetted as a historical site.

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