The Pettah, a part of the city of Colombo, Sri Lanka was a highly residential area in colonial times and is now a bustling commercial hub. The word Pettah is an Anglo-Indian word indicating a suburb outside a fort and is derived from the Tamil word pettai. The Sinhala Pita Kotuwa means the same. In colonial times Pettah was a residential area and it still retains some of the Colonial influences. In the heart of Pettah and on Prince Street, the Colombo Dutch Museum showcases the Dutch era and is a must see on the itinerary of visitors in Colombo. In Colombo, city hotel options are plenty as they cater to many budgets and if you’re looking for comfortable accommodation around the city, hotels such as Cinnamon Red Colombo are a great choice.
The Colombo Dutch Museum was built by a Dutch Governor named Thomas Van Rhee (1692 – 1697) as his official residence. It has also served many purposes including a teacher training center, an orphanage, military hospital, police training center and army barracks. In1932 it became the Pettah Post Office. It was the residence of Count August Carl Frederick Von Raznow from 1759 to 1844. During heavy monsoon rains, in 1971 an exterior wall of the building collapsed and it was abandoned. The planned demolishment of the building was opposed by the Royal Asiatic Society and the Dutch Burgher Union and it was decided to restore the building as a Museum showcasing the Dutch era. The Museum was opened to the public in 1982.
The two storied, high roofed, colonnaded house resembles a 17 century Dutch urban residence. Classical columns hold up a red tiled roof. It has a central court yard with fruit trees and a well. The building’s exterior has wood shuttered windows at two levels and a Latin biblical inscription is carved over the entrance. Dutch furniture, clothes, coins, ceramics, glassware and kitchen utensils, gun powder horns, documents, weapons and many other artefacts of the Dutch era are showcased providing an in depth insight to that era on this island.
Intrigued by history, art and food, Lavinia Woolf is a writer who is passionate about the extraordinary and writes of the exhilarating and enchanting.