Bustanussalatin Park characteristics as an image shaper of Banda Aceh City

Abstract

Imagery is a memory of an event that is re-conveyed through the traces of historical relics or collective memories of society. Bustanussalatin Park is currently a small part of Ghairah Park, which was built by Sultan Iskandar Tsani during the Sultanate of Aceh. Bustanussalatin Park has an area of 2.18 ha which is smaller than before due to the physical development of the city at that time by the Dutch colonial. This paper aims to identify and analyze garden elements (hardscape and softscape) in Bustanussalatin Park and explore public perceptions regarding the characteristics of the current Bustanussalatin park. This study contains public perceptions of the history, extrinsic, and ecological aspects of Bustanussalatin Park as a green open space in providing design recommendations by the image of Banda Aceh City as the city center of the past Islamic empire. The approach of study in the form of qualitative architectural history study is descriptive chronologically. The results show two important things: a) the historical value of the park has not been a major consideration; b) most of the community still wants the presence of Acehnese plant elements, in addition to presenting the needs of public play facilities for now. Recommendations bustanussalatin park design in shaping the image of the city of Banda Aceh by presenting a variety of typical plants of Aceh by the function of the park in the form of protective plants (Jeumpa), directing plants and plants for aesthetics.