The fragile heritage of the early mosques of South East Asia

Conservation architect Patricia Tusa Fels trains the spotlight on vernacular architecture of the early mosques of SE Asia and the danger of losing it to modernity in her book ‘Monsoon Mosques: Arrival of Islam and the Development of a Mosque Vernacular’

Patricia Tusa Fels waited out the pandemic working on the final edits of her book, Monsoon Mosques: Arrival of Islam and the Development of a Mosque Vernacular (₹1,416, 2021). As the health crisis engulfed the world, the conservation architect moved, in 2019, to Uzbekistan on a grant and later travelled to Italy. Earlier this year the book was published and released by Mapin Publishing. An in-depth study on a building style of the mosques of South East Asia — Malaysia, Java Sumatra and Indonesia, the book speaks of an architecture that responds to local climate and materials available. It is also peppered with fascinating tales of the early life and times of the countries.