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Off the small Cannon street is one of George Town's main attractions. Through a rather inconspicuous gate, where one pays an entrance fee of 10 MYR one comes to a square with granite flagstones. In front is a very ornate temple in typical Chinese architecture with upturned eaves at the roof corners and a more than usual opulent decoration. At the front are two lions guarding the temple, also made from granite. On the sides are now boutique residences. The main sights here are the temple itself and an attached museum with interesting informations about the place. A 'Kongsi', a 'company' in the Hokkien dialect, which was prevalent among the Chinese of South East Asia, was meant to bind together people frome the same place and the same name. Here it was the Khoo from the village of Sin Kang in Fujian province, forming one of the 5 big clans in George Town. Arriving mainly in the 19th century they belong to a second wave of immigrants, which was called by the already established Peranakan slighty derogatory as 'Sinkeh'. Through the Kongsi the members of a clan were able to worship their patron deities and ancestors, to reminisce about their roots, but also to help each other out, to find work for new arrivals and to develop business contacts. With time the Khoo became wealthy merchants, not the least thanks to the 'bamboo network' of the Chinese in South East Asia. There were times, as during the Penang Riots 1867, when different clans were fighting each and then together the British, who managed to supress this revolt using Sepoys, Indian soldiers in the British Army. The British were suspicious of the so-called Chinese 'secret societies', but they soon made a difference between the benevolent Kongsi and the Hui, involved in illegal activities, from which the criminal Triads evolved.…
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Date of experience: November 2019
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A beautiful ornate clan temple in the heart of Georgetown. The intricate carvings on the temple walls and ceiling are sure to leave you spellbound.
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Date of experience: September 2020
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Khoo Kongsi is one of the most distinctive Chinese clan association in Malaysia. Khoo Kongsi is one of the Penang major historic attraction.
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Date of experience: November 2019
6 Helpful votes
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This is a fantastic, ornate clan house that is well worth the visit. My family and I arrived when all the tourist groups had either left or not arrived and it was EMPTY. We wandered around and it was literally just my family. We really enjoyed exploring it and reading up on the history. The building is STUNNING. The entry fee is very small and completely worth it. In my opinion, this is the best thing to see in Penang.…
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Date of experience: December 2019
1 Helpful vote
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We had the place to ourselves so had plenty of time to try and digest the myriad of paintings, statues, giltwork and historical information. Worth reading up before you visit.
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Date of experience: February 2020
1 Helpful vote
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