Described by many as the finest Chinese clan or association house in Malaysia, Penang Khoo Kongsi or Khoo Clan House was built in 1851 by the their forefathers. In early 17th century, many Chinese emigrated from South China to Penang for greener pasture and Khoo Clan House offered an avenue to support and serve the members of Khoo family.

Located at Cannon Square, Khoo Kongsi is accessible from three entrances, the rear entrance which connects to Beach Street, Armenian Street serves as side entrance and Cannon Street which happens to be the main entrance until today. It is common that one can easily miss the main entrance owing to its dull appearance apart from an alley crowning with a black plaque and gold wordings that read 'Leong San Tong Khoo Kongsi' which literally means 'Dragon Mountain Hall Khoo Clan House'.

According to history, after Khoo clan acquired the land of Cannon Square in 1851, a bungalow located at the site was converted into ancestor worship temple. Later, this clan temple was reconstructed with grand architecture in 1894. In less than a month, it was burnt down as the Chinese believed the granduer of this ancestral temple which resembling Emperor's Palace had provoked God's anger. As a result, a scaled-down version was completed in 1906 boasting Chinese craftsmanship and still a masterpiece.

As you walk into the quiet alley from main entrance, both sides are occupied by rows of pre-war terrace houses. The far right corner house is the spot to get an entrance ticket. Oh..this is just the beginning. Indeed this jewel of Penang was built up of reasonably huge compound and thus some called it as Khoo Complex instead.


The pivotal building is Leong San Tong which is decorated with mythical beings on roof-top and a protruding courtyard at its facade. A grand staircase from courtyard leads to upstairs that features intricate stone carving along front corridor. Stands out as the most attractive spot on the granite-paved compound, Leong San Tong is covered with fishing net to prevent birds from entering and make nest inside the building and destroy the original architecture.

In fact Leong San Tong is a two-story building made up from three main sections on the upstairs. The middle hall that reads 'Leong San Tong' in Chinese character is the prayer pavilion. The wooden beams here are rich ornamented and beautifully carved. Mural drawings were painted on the rear corridor wall share great Chinese literature, lifestyle and culture. One of them is featuring 'The Eight Immortals' which is considered as auspicious.

Move to the left hall (of the middle hall), Ee Kok Tong is a smaller hall displaying the ancestral tablets. The right section is Tua Pek Kong hall as this deity is on the altar and the walls were hung with the Khoo family's education achievements.

Sadly, the downstairs of Leong San Tong building is no longer open to public. It used to be a mini museum for Khoo family whereby genealogical poem or chart was shared. From Chinese middle name, one can trace back their generation sequence.
Right opposite Leong San Tong, there is a majestic opera stage which I heard is still holding opera stage show during 7th Chinese Lunar month.

Visiting hours: Open daily from 9 am to 5 pm
Entrance fee: RM5 per adult
Website: http://www.khookongsi.com.my/
Direction: 

JavaScript must be enabled in order for you to use Google Maps.
However, it seems JavaScript is either disabled or not supported by your browser.
To view Google Maps, enable JavaScript by changing your browser options, and then try again.