So after a month of clinical posting at Penang which ended last Friday, we took a drive down to Ipoh on the next day itself for a food trip and also to pay a lil visit to the ruins of Kellie's Castle. This unfinished castle was the brainchild of William Kellie Smith, a Scottish rubber tycoon during the late 19th Century. Located in Batu Gajah, the castle though commonly referred to as Kellie's Castle, is often spoken of as Kellie's Folly. It was meant to be a home away from home for him. The construction of this Scottish, Moorish and Indian architecture began in 1915. He brought in 70 craftsmen from Madras India. All the bricks and marble were imported from India too. Included in the plan for the 6 storey tower was Malaya's first elevator, an indoor tennis court and a rooftop courtyard for entertaining. However, it came to an abrupt halt with Kellie's sudden death in 1926 due to pneumonia.
(Source:Wikipedia)
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| The castle is open daily from 8:30am-6:30pm |
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| Smith's mansion is accessible from the main road through a bridge running across a stream |
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| It is believed that this corridor is haunted. There have been reported sightings of ghostly apparitions wandering around here. Perhaps it is William Smith's spirit returning to see if the building has been finished, creepy much! |
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| The ruins of Kellas House at the back of Kellie's Castle. |
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| Only a few walls remain, held up by iron beams to prevent further collapse. |
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| This is suppose to be the lift shaft for the "1st Bucket Lift in Malaya"- unfortunately it did not materialise as William succumbed in Lisbon, Portugal in Dec 1926 on his way to collect the lift. |
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| The rooftop |
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| Meet Hilda, Jihyen, Jieyi, Kiwi and Yukiko on the top of Kellie's Castle |
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| Red Bricks |
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| Somehow she looks spooky over there, haha! |
It is believe that there's a tunnel which leads to the temple has yet to be discovered. Curiosity Strikes! Hmm.. I wonder where it is?
Admission fee:
Foreign Tourist: RM5.00
Local Tourist: RM4.00
Primary / Secondary Students: RM3.00
O.K.U / < 6 years old: Free Admission
6 comments:
amazing. last time i went, outside still nothing and its foc :O
Undergroud tunnel perhaps? :P Lol quite a numbers photos of me HEH paisehhh lah.
the only castle in malaysia! u all shud go at night! =p
Aww such a nice place for shooting :3 next time I should go there
Wow so nice! Never heard of it before haha
Oh wow, they made it so much nicer now! I was there few years back, it didn't have the huge KELLIES CASTLE white words in front
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