Sampoerna museum a spark of inspiration

Sampoerna museum a spark of inspiration

Omar Prihandono, Contributor, Surabaya

Smoking is good for you.

While the title of the book by Dr. William T. Whitby will
surely raise the shackles of antismoking activists, the board of
directors of cigarette giant HM Sampoerna seem to be validating
the statement by having themselves photographed at their desks,
puffing away.

Pictures of them, as well as Whitby's provocative book, are
among hundreds of tobacco-related products and memorabilia from
the company's years in business that are displayed at the House
of Sampoerna, a two-story modern museum that would be heaven on
earth for the world's increasingly harried smokers.

Tucked amid a rather dense residential area in Surabaya, East
Java, the House of Sampoerna was originally an old colonial
mansion, built in 1858 and later owned by Liem Seeng Tee, founder
of the cigarette company. He was known in the neighborhood for
his generosity, inviting the community to celebrate Chinese New
Year or Javanese traditional festivities in the mansion's
spacious front yard.

After his death, the left wing of the mansion became the
residence of his children, but the center part was renovated in
2003 by the third generation and turned into arguably the most
luxurious museum in the country (also on site are an art gallery
and a cafe).

Forget those dusty and deserted museums you visited back in
school, and sadly remain so today.

The moment you open the front door of House of Sampoerna --
after passing under four huge doric columns that are plastered to
resemble Sampoerna's popular Dji Sam Soe cigarettes -- you are
greeted by the sweet scent of cloves and tobacco, not to mention
a small fountain with its soothing sound of splattering water.
Gone is museum-phobia, replaced by the curiosity to roam through
the free-of-charge museum in its entirety.

Check out an item in front part of House of Sampoerna and you
will get a clear message that the family museum tries to showcase
everything that has made them among the big players in the
cigarette business in Asia. A replica of a small, humble bamboo
hut, complete with sacks of various crops and traditional snacks
in small containers, tells visitors that Seeng Tee started as a
traditional vendor selling daily commodities before entering the
cigarette business in 1913.

At the side of the hut is an old bicycle that Seeng Tee used
to sell his cigarettes, in addition to offering the hand-rolled
cigarettes to train passengers setting off from Surabaya to
Jakarta.

A few meters is a black cigarette-paper printing machine that
must have been a new fangled gadget at the beginning of the 20th
century. Next to it is an antique wooden cupboard full of
cigarette brands, exclusively produced for the foreign market by
Sampoerna.

Design-wise, House of Sampoerna is obviously meant to be
visitor-friendly, despite being in an old house located behind a
prison. The museum's designer -- an American who is a long-time
favorite of the family -- provides much light to highlight the
collections, and maximizes the use of walls to hang items ranging
from samples of tobacco, Sampoerna's colorful print ads to
pictures of public figures, including Sultan Hamengkubuwono X,
who daily fill their lungs with the smoke of their favorite
Sampoerna products.

All are there for visitors to admire and observe at no
expense.

The second floor is home to the core of the 500m2 museum. A
huge glass-window provides a spectacular view of around 100
female workers hand-rolling cigarettes at the back of the museum
which functions as a cigarette factory. Each week, a worker with
the most perfect rolling will be promoted upstairs to demonstrate
her skills.

However, bear in mind that since this is a family museum,
chances are that you will bump into some very personal items and
memorabilia that may leave you frowning. These include granny's
kebaya encim (Chinese-style traditional blouse), daddy's old
cabinet or a series of faded black and white pictures of a family
vacation in Switzerland in 1952.

Still, they do not detract from the overall pleasure of
visiting the museum. Looking at the collection of the House of
Sampoerna is actually like looking at how hard-working people
toiled their way to success in the past.

It's a tale told with attention to detail, as related by
Savitri, a 32-year-old visitor.

"At first I didn't want to go to the toilet because I fear
it'll be smelly," she said, apparently remembering experiences
from previous museum visits. "You know what? It's damn clean!".

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House of Sampoerna
Jl. Taman Sampoerna No. 6
Surabaya, East Java
Museum open 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.; cafe and art gallery 9 a.m. to 10
p.m. Sunday to Thursday, and 9 a.m. to noon Friday and Saturday.
To see factory workers, arrive before 2:30 p.m.
Tel. 031-353-9000
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