Identification of Landmarks in the Historic District of Banda Hilir, Melaka, Malaysia

Abstract

Landmark is one of the key elements that shape the image and identity of historic cities. It is evident that new and unfit developments have diluted the dominance of landmarks in Banda Hilir, Melaka. This paper examines visitors’ identification of landmarks in the historic district of the city and its influence on their imageability. The study adopted mental mapping technique to gather images regarded as landmarks and its corresponding characteristics. Results from the study indicate that visitors identified both buildings and open spaces as landmarks. Size, façade, colour and scale of buildings and structures influence their identifications. This study denotes the importance of landmarks in preserving the image and identity of Banda Hilir as a world heritage site, despite the addition of new structures. Keywords: landmark; historic city, imageability, place identity, Banda Hilir eISSN 2398-4279 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia