Benteng Heritage Museum is housed in a traditional, vernacular Peranakan Chinese building.[3] Built in 1684, it is one of the oldest historic structures in Tangerang, and is within walking distance of the city's oldest temple, Boen Tek Bio.[3][4]
Heritage conservation
Prior to its conversion into a museum, the original building was very poorly maintained, and was occupied by local Benteng Chinese.[5][6] Believing that the building had significant historic and cultural value, a local entrepreneur, Udaya Halim, acquired the heritage property in 2009.[5] Halim grew up in Tangerang's historic Pasar Lama area, but moved with his family to Perth, Western Australia during the Asian economic crisis.[7]
He oversaw a careful restoration of the building, returning it to its original state.[5] The process took two years.[5] Additional Peranakan Chinese decorative elements, including a partition screen, were added to enhance the Chinese-Indonesian character of the new museum.[5] All the additional decoration was based on a thorough academic study of other structures from a similar period since no data existed regarding the museum's original appearance.[5]