The bedrooms on the third and fourth floors of House of Tugu Jakarta are named with a nod to the intriguing history of Peranakan culture. The Nyonya Besar (translated as ‘Grand Madam’) Suites on the third floor honor the first wives, the dignified ‘ladies of the house,’ whose role were high up within the house hierarchy. Nonya Besar was usually highly respected (or feared) by the household staff, as they possessed much power in the house, and their opinion mattered greatly to the husbands. 

Meanwhile, the Concubine Suites on the fourth floor offer a playful glimpse into a bygone era when wealthy Peranakan men often lived complex lives with multiple relationships, with the wives and concubines sometimes living in peace with each other in the same house complex…… or sometimes not so much in peace, vying competitively for the attention of their shared man.