Former Tao Nan School (now Asian Civilisations Museum I), former Ministry of Labour Building and Maghain Aboth Synagogue were gazetted for preservation as national monuments by the Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB) on 27 February 1998. (Please refer to Annex A for historical and architectural information on the buildings).

2 To date, 37 historic buildings have been gazetted as national monuments by the Board. (Please see Annex B). 19 of them are religious buildings, 12 are civic/institutional buildings, while 6 are commercial buildings.

3 In addition to the three newly gazetted buildings, the Minister for Information and the Arts has approved for preservation the Central Fire Station Building, and a number of structures in the former Nanyang University (Nantah), i.e. Library and Administration Building (now Chinese Heritage Centre), the Nantah Memorial and the Nantah Arch. These structures will be gazetted after technical surveys are completed.

4 All gazetted monuments are installed with plaques highlighting their historical significance. Preservation guidelines are also drawn up for each monument to ensure that the preservation and restoration works on a gazetted national monument are undertaken in a proper and systematic manner.

For more information, please contact:

Dr Phang Lai Tee, Executive Secretary

Tel: 332 7963

Fax: 339 0782

ISSUED BY: PRESERVATION OF MONUMENTS BOARD

Date: 28 February 1998

39 Armenian Street

Established in 1906 by the Hokkien community, it was the first modern Chinese school in Singapore to accept students from different dialect groups. It was the first Chinese school in the Straits Settlements to effect the change of language of instruction from dialect to Mandarin. Lee Kong Chian, one of Singapore’s great philanthropists and patrons of education, was a student of the school. Prominent personalities such as Tan Kah Kee and Pan Shou were also involved in the management of the school at different times.

Built in 1910-12, the building is designed in the style of the late period of the Renaissance in France. The style is characterised by a move away from the classical grandeur of the preceding period, towards a relative intimacy of effect, most evident in the planning of domestic buildings and interior decoration. The repetitive arrangement and modular co-ordination in the Classical Orders is a significant feature of this building. It is the only historical building with two hexagonal side wings similar to the main building of Raffles Hotel.

Havelock Road

The site was previously occupied by the Chinese Protectorate, and later, the Ministry of Labour. The Protectorate was first established in 1877. It took charge of Chinese labour and dealt with the welfare of the immigrants and coolies, and their social problems, such as prostitution, poverty, secret societies and gambling. It was first housed in a shophouse in North Canal Road. It moved to Havelock Road to larger premises in 1886. These were demolished around 1930 and the present building was erected. The building was occupied later by the Ministry of Labour till 1990.

The PWD architect H. Stallwood designed the current building in the style of the High Renaissance in 1928. The High Renaissance influence is significantly expressed in the minimal utilisation of the Roman decorative systems. The windows are designed with steel patterned frames. The fenestration of the 3-storey building is expressed vertically as a whole in columns aesthetically positioned in an orderly manner.

24 Waterloo Street

As early as 1831, Jews, mainly merchants from Iraq and Iran, had arrived in Singapore for trade and a number of them settled in Singapore. The Maghain Aboth Synagogue was built in 1878 by the Jewish community and is the oldest surviving Jewish synagogue in Singapore. The design is influenced by the architectural style of the Late Renaissance in Britain. The building carries a series of palladian arcades and pedestals in a repetitive manner. The doorways are decorated with arches with classical keystone element. The walls are rusticated.

The PMB was formed in 1971 with the enactment of the Preservation of Monuments Act on 29 January 1971. Its main objective is to preserve monuments of historic, traditional, archaeological, architectural, or artistic interest. To date, it has gazetted the following structures as national monuments.