The Straits Chinese House

The Straits Chinese House
Author: Peter Lee
Publisher: Didier Millet,Csi
Total Pages: 132
Release: 2006
Genre: History
ISBN:

The Straits Chinese or Peranakan community is perhaps one of the oldest overseas Chinese communities in history, having established itself in the Malay archipelago as early as the seventeenth century.

Peranakan Chinese Home

Peranakan Chinese Home
Author: Ronald G. Knapp
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Total Pages: 486
Release: 2013-03-10
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 1462911854

Discover the rarified Peranakan (native-born Chinese of Southeast Asia) aesthetics that are today highly sought-after for their beauty: distinctive furniture and ceramics, textiles and jewelry, and many other art objects. Peranakan Chinese Home displays these extraordinary objects, visible markers of a highly developed culture. The broad range of beautiful objects which the Peranakan Chinese created and enjoyed in their daily lives is astounding. Each chapter in The Peranakan Chinese Home focuses on a different area and presents objects used or found in those spaces. Each piece is described in the context of their utility as household objects, as part of periodic celebrations to mark the Chinese New Year and other holidays, or in important life passage rituals relating to ancestor worship, birth, marriage, mourning and burial. The meaning of the rich symbolic and ornamental motifs found on the objects is discussed in detail and key differences are highlighted between Peranakan objects and similar ones found in China. A fascinating mix of Chinese, European and Southeast Asian influences, the distinctly Peranakan identity of a people and their culture is beautifully portrayed through objects and archival photographs in this lovely and exotic book.

Chinese Houses

Chinese Houses
Author: Ronald G. Knapp
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Total Pages: 650
Release: 2012-05-01
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 1462906680

Winner of ForeWord Magazine's Architecture "Book of the Year" Award! Exquisite examples of traditional dwellings are scattered throughout modern-day China. Chinese Houses focuses on 20 well-preserved traditional Chinese homes, presenting examples from a range of rural and metropolitan areas throughout China. The photographs of each are accompanied by extensive background information and historical content. An introductory essay examines the different types of Chinese homes and provides an overview of the rich regional variety of Chinese dwelling forms. It also provides insights into little-known design concepts that emphasize the flexibility, adaptability, and versatility of traditional building forms and the work of traditional craftsmen. Richly illustrated with photographs, woodblock prints, historic images, and line drawings, Chinese Houses portrays an architectural tradition of amazing range and resilience.

A Peranakan Legacy

A Peranakan Legacy
Author: Peter Wee
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2011-11-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 9814677531

A Peranakan Legacy captures the rich heritage of a fast disappearing way of life and put on record many traditions and practices which were previously handed only down from generation to generation. The term ‘Baba’ is used to refer to the Straits-born Chinese or Peranakans. The Babas boast a unique culture and way of life that is an amalgamation of Chinese and Malay customs and etiquette. Their culture is perhaps best captured in the beautiful clothing, stunning jewellery, pretty porcelain and other artefacts used in daily living. Girls were taught, from a young age, how to cook a variety of elaborate meals as well as crafts such as beading and embroidery. The result is a rich legacy of splendid kebayas (embroidered blouses), beadwork and various other items. Through lavish, full-colour photographs of Peranakan artefacts and clothing, this book explains the origins of the various customs and traditions. While some customs are still practiced today, other more complicated ones have disappeared as modern babas adapted to contemporary lifestyles which are deemed more convenient and practical.

NUS Baba House

NUS Baba House
Author: Foo Su Ling
Publisher: Didier Millet,Csi
Total Pages: 144
Release: 2017-06-06
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 9789814385626

This illustrated guidebook to the ancestral home of a Straits Chinese family in Singapore, now preserved as a museum, also provides insights into the colourful domestic life of members of this community.

Peranakan Chinese Porcelain

Peranakan Chinese Porcelain
Author: Kee Ming-Yuet
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Total Pages: 716
Release: 2012-05-29
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 1462906931

With over 800 unique photographs, this Chinese art book is a feast for the eyes. Produced exclusively for wealthy Chinese communities along the Strait of Malacca in the 19th and early 20th centuries, Peranakan Chinese porcelain is enjoying a resurgence of interest among collectors. Straits-born Chinese, or Peranakans, in Penang, Malacca and Singapore, used this ornate and colorful enamelware on festive occasions such as weddings, birthdays, anniversaries and Chinese New Year. Peranakan Chinese Porcelain is richly illustrated and includes key information on reign marks and factory marks. In-depth discussion of the motifs, colors, forms and functions of Peranakan Chinese ceramics makes this an invaluable reference. Supporting photographs and text introduce related aspects of Peranakan culture including architecture, dress, cuisine and customs, making Peranakan Chinese Porcelain a wonderful contribution to the history of the Straits Chinese.

Nyonya Kebaya

Nyonya Kebaya
Author: Datin Seri
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Total Pages: 423
Release: 2012-06-26
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 1462906915

This longtime Malaysian fashion icon was originally a long, straight, Arab-inspired top of plain woven cotton. The Nyonyas, the women of the early Peranakan community, gradually transformed it into a shapely, embroidered, translucent blouse, fastened with a set of chained brooches and worn with a matching hand-drawn batik sarong. Sheer, romantic, alluring, yet sedate, the designs of Nyonya kebaya crosses several generations and cultures. This book showcases the collection of Datin Seri Endon Mahmood, wife of the Prime Minister of Malaysia.