A prince is greeted by a creature with a red body, black head and white breast on the shores of Temasek; a little boy defends his village from a ghastly attack of swordfish with his quick wit.

These iconic folktales, passed down through generations of Singaporeans, are just some of the many in the Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals), the earliest known literary work which mentions Singapore, then known as Singapura.

Rare pages from a handwritten copy of the text will be on display at the Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) as part of its exhibition, Seekor Singa, Seorang Putera & Sebingkai Cermin: Reflecting & Refracting Singapura, from tomorrow till June 21 next year.

The exhibition will reveal lesser-known histories of Singapore's indigenous Malay communities from more than 700 years ago through the narratives of artefacts, folktales and other art forms.

There will also be installations such as a multimedia retelling of the legend of Bukit Merah, complete with the Sultan of Singapura having a WhatsApp conversation with his advisers, designed by students from Nanyang Polytechnic's School of Interactive & Digital Media in collaboration with local artist Speak Cryptic.

Younger children can learn more about historical characters such as Wah Hakim, the 15-year-old Orang Laut who witnessed Sir Stamford Raffles' arrival; or play in a cosy corner designed to look like a traditional Malay house at the MHC's first installation of a multisensory children's space, aptly named Adventures in Nusantara, the Malay archipelago.

The exhibition will be launched in conjunction with Malay CultureFest 2019, a three-week-long programme celebrating traditional Malay art forms and exploring their cross-cultural influences. The festival will run from today to Nov 2.