Raden Saleh's pavilion now a cherished home

Somewhere in the tranquil hills of Saxony close to the Czech border, between cow pastures and old vineyards, stands a monument as unique as the development of German-Indonesian friendship.

The Blaues Hdusel (Blue little house), built by Major Friedrich Anton Serre in 1848 to honor Raden Saleh, the so-called founder of modern Indonesian painting.

About a 30-minute-walk from the old knight's estate of Maxen suddenly appears a small dome with a half-moon on its peak, standing out amid the lushly green hills.

Its bluish zinc metal plate shimmers in the sun. No wonder that this place inspired Robert Schumann to compose and fairy tale writer Hans-Christian Andersen to make a sketch.

"Ehre Gott und liebe den Menschen" (Honor God and love mankind) says the writing in old Javanese and German over the entrance door of the mosque-like building.

"Is this how Germans at the end of the 19th century imagined Javanese houses?" asked an Indonesian visitor who accidentally came across the building.

The current owner is Jutta Tronicke, a journalist from Dresden who wanted to retire to this idyllic site, where little disturbs the view over the Czech border save for some wanderers curious about the unusual architecture.

"Since the Raden Saleh exhibition opened at the museum at Maxen, there are twice as many visitors as usual," Tronicke said.

In 1970, the then dilapidated pavilion was renovated by a private owner, who used it as a weekend house. In 1995, Tronicke read an advertisement about the home and fell immediately in love with it.

She rebuilt the outside of the Blue Hdusel in its original form and put on a new dome. The equipment inside, however, is still reminiscent of the socialist era of Eastern Germany.

"I really wanted to restore everything after the original plans, but have yet to find a sponsor for that," she said.

The original dome of the Chiosk, as a garden house in the oriental style was called at that time, was painted with blue and golden stars. Some believe that it was actually built as a prayer room for the Javanese guest.

Tronicke believes in another theory.

"Every artist staying for some time at Major Serre's house in Maxen said goodbye with an individual artistic work. Maybe the plans for this pavilion were the farewell present of Raden Saleh."

-- Christina Schott