Treasure Hunting Malaysia - Part 2

Right, so hot on the heels of the first instalment - so much so that I haven't actually done any treasure hunting as yet - is the next lot of interesting and compelling information I have found on looking for old stuff, coins etc, here in Malaysia. It actually came to me on a platform I have not used in years, but apparently is still providing solid information to people on the topics that interest them - Pinterest.

I was seeking out maps of old Malaysia and old KL in particular. And in my Google search came a reference to a Pinterest search. Not sure how that all works, but ultimately I'm glad it did. Because now I get notified whenever anyone pins an historic map. Albeit most of these may be in other places in the world, but in any event, I enjoy looking at them, and once in a while, one that suits my treasure hunting aspirations might just show up.

The next few pics show various old maps of the KL area, and in different scales. All show a few spots that look interesting - buildings, schools, parks, barracks, etc. Particularly interesting are things like Lake Garden, which has obviously been around a long time!

 skyscrapercity.com

etsy.com

i654.photobucket.com

If we're still here once I am employed or financial again, I'll be printing some A3 or even maybe up to A0 copies of these, to cut into sections and put on my clipboard for some fieldwork. The missus actually green-lighted me to buy a basic metal detector the other day, so I can take the kids out for something other than classroom work. I'm not yet convinced about that, but we'll see. 

I have recently subscribed to Pinterest again, as that's where these maps all seem to come from. There are some wonderful examples of colonial era maps, both here and elsewhere. But what makes the above maps special is the detail of the various parts of the city. Most of the old maps are on country-scale, so not much good for localised treasure hunting. I got a pin suggestion for Old Subang Airport today - the international airport for KL before KLIA. It is still in use, so I'd probably find it difficult to do any detecting there. Still, it prompted another question - as it opened in 1961, where was KL's airport before then? Likely it has been re-developed, but if any of it - particularly the areas where passengers would be - is still open ground, it would be a bloody interesting place to have a look. I'm going to see what I can find out.....

Footnote: So further to the above, talking to the missus' dad, he tells me that prior to 1961, the KL airport was an old British airport at Sungai Besi, called Sempang Airport. Even after it was no longer used an the international airport, it was still kept operational for recreational aircraft, and as an air force base. ALAS, this all changed in 2018, when it was closed. I believe it is now being redeveloped. So I am tempted to jump in the car sometime and go have a look. Diggers and such turning over the soil? Who knows what they might uncover! I need to go check it out before the opportunity is lost forever..... Watch this space! Below is a photo of the airport in amongst the suburban sprawl - wow, I bet there are a lot of stories of this place.