The Perak Museum: Displaying Malaya in the Late Nineteenth Century

In 1883 the British Resident of Perak, Hugh Low, set up a museum in the state capital, Taiping. The colonial administration in Perak was just nine years old, and apart from tin mining little was known about the economic potential of the state. The museum housed artifacts gathered in the state and carried out scientific experiments as part of an effort to make Malaya self-sustaining and financially viable. Low and the museum’s curator, Leonard Wray Jnr, aspired to create a comprehensive collection that reflected Perak, and more broadly all of Malaya. Guided by the interests of the curator and the Resident, the museum developed an idiosyncratic collection that showcased Perak’s flora and fauna, it’s economic potential, and the local culture. Initially preoccupied with economic exploitation, the museum grew increasingly involved with documenting and preserving the state’s heritage.