Sunday, June 17, 2012

Remaining Old House at Sompok Lama Street (part-1)




Sompok Lama Street is about 400 hundred long street within a 'T-junction' against M.T. Haryono Street. This is one of remaining old street in Semarang have originally planned by Thomas Karsten and became part of Dutch Colonial old city master plan. 

There are some colonial old houses are still found here. One of the house is situated at Sompok Lama Street No.21. Nowadays, this house is found as a house that painted in blue colors. The house building is nicely setback at about 15 meters from the street, it creates a nice and spacious courtyard in front of the house. A strong symmetrical composition is directly recognized where a kind of long covered verandah is placed in-between two block of rooms within attics at the right and left-end side of the house.


Based on Semarang Government official website, the architectural design style of the house is described as European Romanticism Style with strong influence of renaissance style. This is could be recognized by the existence of the attic window within arch shape and also the elaboration of external wall corners with stone cladings.

The existence of wooden roof fascia within its rich ornamental details are described as obvious influence of the local Javanese design. Combination of clay roof, wooden louvered windows and doors are actually makes this house appears in colonial-tropical style.