 | |
| Location | Nanyang University |
|---|---|
| Designer | Koh Tiang Thai |
| Builder | Ng Keng Siang |
| Type | Tower |
| Inauguration date | 30 March 1958 |
| Dedicated to | Donors to Nanyang University |
The Nanyang University Memorial is a memorial donated by Koh Tiang Thai [1] [2] and revealed by Sir William Goode and Tan Lark Sye, on 30 March 1958. It is located at the center of Yunnan Garden in Nanyang University. [3]
Nanyang University was Southeast Asia’s first ever Chinese language university and Singapore’s second ever university, a turning point for the region. [4] [5]
Ng Keng Siang was a prolific architect who built most of the structures relating to the University, including the Monument. [6]
The memorial is designed in Chinese National style. [7] It is capped with a double-tiered Chinese roof, siting on an octagonal base [8] with steps from the four directions. [4] [5]
It was donated by Koh Tiang Thai, was built in 1956 [9] by Ng Keng Siang [10] and revealed on 30 March 1958 to signal the end of the first construction period of former Nanyang University in 1955. [4] It also serves to honor the donors that funded the university building, who primarily were common people. [5]
Unveiled by then governor of Singapore, William Goode and Singaporean businessman Tan Lark Sye in a ceremony with more than 100 guests [11] and 50.000 onlookers. [4] It was gazetted as a single national monument along with the University Library and Administration Building and the nearby Gateway Arch in 1998. [12] [13] [14]
It was restored as part of the Yunnan Garden Rejuvenation Project by STX Landscape, a restoring company, in 2021. [15]
The National Heritage Board of Singapore tasked the Finbarr Fallon Creative Office, a photographic studio, with documenting the Monument and Yunnan Garden as a whole. [16]
The National Library Board of Singapore's archives contain various photographs from diverse timeframes and architectural blueprints of the monument. [1] [2] [3] [7]
