Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall
Xinhai Revolution and life of Sun Yat-sen | |
Website | www |
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Designated | 28 October 1994 |
Reference no. | 33 |
Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall | |
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Hanyu Pinyin | Sūn Zhōngshān Gùjū |
The Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, also known as Wan Qing Yuan, and formerly as the Sun Yat Sen Villa, is a two-story colonial style villa in
Located at 12 Tai Gin Road off Ah Hood Road in Balestier, the villa occupies an area of approximately 3,120 square metres (33,600 sq ft) and played a crucial role in the 1911
History
The villa was designed in 1900 and built in 1901 by Boey Chuan Poh (梅春輔; 1874-1926), a businessman who owned the newspaper Union Times. The villa was rumoured to be a home for his mistress Bin Chan, hence it was called "Bin Chan House". In 1902, Boey sold the villa for $10,800 to Lim Ah Siang (林亞相; 1866-1925), the towkay of a timber business in Johor and Singapore and the leader of the Teochew secret society Ngee Heng Kongsi.[1] The building was constructed in a classical colonial style, featuring ornate arched windows and doors, eaves decorated with floral patterns, and movable louvred windows.
In 1905, rubber magnate Teo Eng Hock (張永福; 1872–1957) bought the villa for his mother, Tan Poh Neo, as a place of retirement and renamed it "Wan Qing Yuan".
After Teo sold the villa in 1912, the villa changed ownership multiple times until it was purchased in 1937 by six Chinese leading businessmen in Singapore: Lee Kong Chian (李光前; 1893–1967), Tan Ean Kiam (陳延謙; 1881–1943), Lee Chin Tian (李振殿), Chew Hean Swee (周獻瑞; 1884–1960), Lee Choon Seng (李俊承; 1888—1966) and Yeo Kiat Tiow (楊吉兆). In the following year, they donated the villa to the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce (SCCCI).[1] After the establishment of the Republic of China, the Nationalist government funded the refurbishment of the villa and converted it into a memorial hall in 1940. At the same time, they gathered information and artefacts related to Sun Yat Sen from overseas Chinese communities and opened the hall to the public.
During the
On 28 October 1994, the
Current status
The villa currently houses a collection of nearly 400 artefacts, including calligraphy works, photographs, old books, paintings and sculptures, spread throughout the five galleries in two levels. The villa is redecorated in the style of an old
Highlights
- A two-metre tall bronze wall mural which spans 60 metres to the back of the building and depicts Singapore's history from the 1840s to the 1940s. It was sculpted by artists from China between 1999 and early 2005 at a cost of around S$1 million.[citation needed] It depicts scenes of Singapore as a fishing village in the 1840s and the Sook Ching massacre in 1942.
- Bronze statues scattered around the garden, including those of persons who helped Sun Yat Sen in the Xinhai Revolution. There is a one-metre tall sculpture of Sun Yat Sen seated on a chair, which was presented by the Chinese government in 1937. More bronze sculptures of Sun Yat Sen line the hallway leading to the museum's entrance.
- Oil and watercolour paintings and calligraphy works by Singaporean and Chinese artists, such as painter Liu Kang, Buddhist monk and renowned calligrapher, Venerable Song Nian (松年法師), and Cultural Medallion-winning artists Ong Kim Seng and Tan Swie Hian. These are found in the galleries on the second level.
- Photograph of Sun Yat Sen and members of the Tongmenghui's Singapore branch, taken at Wan Qing Yuan around 1906.
- Nanyang and the Founding of the Republic, the Memoir of Teo Eng Hock, a book by Teo Eng Hock, providing a detailed record of the Tongmenghui's activities in Southeast Asia.
- Wan Qing Yuan and the Chinese Revolution, a recollection by Tan Chor Lam, a book printed in the 1940s, containing records of the Tongmenghui's activities in Singapore.
- A work of Chinese calligraphy, bearing the Chinese characters bo ai (博愛; "universal love"), presented by Sun Yat Sen to Teo Eng Hock's nephew, Teo Beng Wan.
- Seal belonging to Tan Chor Lam, engraved with the Chinese characters jie ai guo yuan (結愛國緣; "love for country and fellow countrymen").
See also
- Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum
- Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall
- Sun Yat Sen Memorial House
- Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park
References
- ^ a b c d "Former Sun Yat Sen Villa". Remember Singapore. 12 May 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
- ^ Hermes (3 November 2016). "Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall: Villa in Balestier with a place in China's history | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ Chan, Rachel (17 July 2010). "'This is common ancestry'". The Straits Times. pp. A45.
- ^ Dr Sun & 1911 Revolution: Teo Eng Hock (1871–1957) Archived 26 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "SPEECH BY SENIOR MINISTER LEE KUAN YEW AT THE OPENING OF THE SUN YAT SEN NANYANG MEMORIAL HALL, MONDAY, 12 NOVEMBER 2001". 12 November 2001. Retrieved 14 August 2019 – via National Archives of Singapore.
- ^ ISBN 978-981-4675-42-0.
- ^ Ong, Cheryl (18 November 2013). "Hiap Hoe officially unveils Zhongshan Park mixed development". The Straits Times. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
- ISSN 2345-7759.
- The Straits Times, "House of history", 29 December 2005