Indonesia has a rich historical legacy from Dutch colonial rule, including Chinatowns in several cities. The heritage shophouses in these Chinatowns, which define their historical identity, have faced significant challenges over the past few decades due to rapid urban development. Although several studies have examined the characteristics of architectural façades through field observations, urban development has altered and destroyed a significant part of them, making it difficult to determine authenticity, as seen in Makassar City. Therefore, this study aimed to identify their authentic characteristics and patterns by analyzing historical photographs and comparing them with previous studies, using 46 heritage shophouse façades in Makassar’s Chinatown as the sample. It was found that they display a mix of Western, traditional Chinese, and local cultural influences, organized into four basic patterns, grouped into eleven categories. Three typologies were identified: Early, First Transitional, and Second Transitional. In terms of decorative styles, they belong to the Early and Indische Empire styles. However, this study is limited to the façades and relies on the availability of photographs. It suggests that this method can help describe their authentic façades and serve as a reference for stakeholders in preserving the several remaining structures amid strong urban development pressures.
Raditya et al. (Fri,) studied this question.