SEMARANG TOUR
LAWANG SEWU (1000 Doors)
The name Lawang Sewu is from Javanese it means "Thousand Doors". The name comes from its design, with numerous doors and arcs. The building has about 600 large windows.
The complex consists of several buildings, two main ones named A and B and two smaller ones named C and D, on Pemuda Street. The l-shaped A building faces the Tugu Muda roundabout. There are two identical towers on A building, which were originally used to store water, each with a capacity of 7,000 litres (1,800 US gal). The building features large stained-glass windows and a grand staircase in the center. There was also once an underground tunnel connecting A building to several other sites in the city, including the governor's mansion and the harbour.
The B building is located behind A building. It is three stories in height, with the first two floors consisting of offices and the third holding a ballroom. The building, with high, large windows, also has a basement floor that is kept partially flooded to serve to cool the building through evaporation.
In front of A building stands a monument to five employees killed during the Indonesian War of Independence.
HISTORY
Lawang Sewu was designed by Cosman Citroen, from the firm of J.F. Klinkhamer and B.J. Quendag. It was designed in New Indies Style, an academically-accepted term for Dutch Rationalism in the Indies. Similar with Dutch Rationalism, the style is the result of the attempt to develop new solutions to integrate traditional precedents (classicism) with new technological possibilities. It can be described as a transitional style between Traditionalists and the Modernists, and was strongly influenced by the design of Berlage.
Lawang Sewu was designed by Cosman Citroen, from the firm of J.F. Klinkhamer and B.J. Quendag. It was designed in New Indies Style, an academically-accepted term for Dutch Rationalism in the Indies. Similar with Dutch Rationalism, the style is the result of the attempt to develop new solutions to integrate traditional precedents (classicism) with new technological possibilities. It can be described as a transitional style between Traditionalists and the Modernists, and was strongly influenced by the design of Berlage.
Construction began in 1904 with A building, which was completed in 1907. The rest of the complex was finished in 1919. It was initially used by the Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij, the first railway company in the Dutch East Indies.
After the Japanese invaded Indonesia in 1942, the Japanese army took over Lawang Sewu. The basement of B building was turned into a prison, with several executions taking place there. When Semarang was retaken by the Dutch in the battle of Semarang in October 1945, the Dutch forces used the tunnel leading into A building to sneak into the city. A battle ensued, with numerous Indonesian fighters dying. Five employees working there were also killed.
After the war, the Indonesian army took over the complex. It was later returned to the national railway company. In 1992 it was declared a Cultural Property of Indonesia.
URBAN LEGEND
Lawang Sewu is said to be haunted, with many tourists visiting to see the ghosts. Among the ghosts reported to inhabit the establishment are a Dutchwoman who committed suicide inside and "headless ghouls".
So please don't hesitate and please feel free to contact me.
Call/WhatsApp +62 857 2215 6455 or +62 81 2279 2724
Always possible to discuss for your tour itinerary.
widya hirmawan as wawan | +6285722156456 | +628122792724 | jogjadriverteam@gmail.com
Lawang Sewu is said to be haunted, with many tourists visiting to see the ghosts. Among the ghosts reported to inhabit the establishment are a Dutchwoman who committed suicide inside and "headless ghouls".
So please don't hesitate and please feel free to contact me.
Call/WhatsApp +62 857 2215 6455 or +62 81 2279 2724
Always possible to discuss for your tour itinerary.
widya hirmawan as wawan | +6285722156456 | +628122792724 | jogjadriverteam@gmail.com