CONSERVATION

The 2-storey Post and Telegraph Office in Taiping was built by the British administration in 1885 in Victorian architecture and was significant as the first building in Malaya that used the telegraph line as a means of telecommunication. The restoration work has successfully given a new lease of life to an otherwise neglected building by turning it into a public building as a Telegraph Museum. 

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A postcard photo dated 1908 that showed only a small portion of the building was the ONLY image of the original design that became a key reference during the design work.

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Initiated by Yayasan TM, a charitable trust established by Telekom Malaysia, who is the custodian of this building, this restoration project began in early 2015. Upon getting the necessary approvals from the local authorities, work on site commenced in August 2016 and successfully completed a year later.
 
The restoration works includes:

a) Reinstatement of the original form of Dutch hip roof.

b) Replacement of the corrugated asbestos sheet at the main roofing with Marseille clay roof tiles

c) Desalination of the masonry walls at the ground floor and the application of damp proof membrane at the base of the wall.

d) Restoration of brick archways on all the 4 facades on the ground floor

e) Restoration of all plaster coping on building facades

f) Reinstatement of timber panel casement windows at first floor level.

g) Restoration to the original timber floor boards and timber staircase and balustrades.

h) Removal of suspended ceiling (non-original element) at first floor and restoring the original timber strip ceiling.

i) Maintaining the period architecture of Victorian era within the building compound and immediate surrounding in the usage of wrought-iron fencing and the design selection for other street furniture and fittings.