Fuk Tak Chi Temple

Fuk Tak Chi Temple, located on Telok Ayer Street, is one of the oldest Chinese temple in Singapore. It was built in the 1820s by the Hakka and Cantonese communities and was devoted to the deity Tua Peh Kong. It was converted into a museum in 1998.

History
The temple's history began with Cantonese and Hakka immigrants installing a shrine of the deity Tua Peh Kong at the current site sometime between 1820 and 1824. The shrine was one of the first stops for immigrants coming from China. As soon as they arrived here, they first went to this shrine to offer their thanksgiving for their safe journey to Singapore. The shrine was initially housed in non-concrete structure, as it was a common practice in early times to build an initial wooden structure or a shed over a shrine first. As donations came in, the old structure was done away with and a temple in brick was finally built in 1825, followed by renovations in 1869 and redecoration work in 1887. The 1869 work of complete renovation of the temple was financed by the Hokkien community leader, Cheang Hong Lim.

Besides its religious functions, the Fuk Tak Chi temple also served as the headquarters for the Hakka and Cantonese communities here. In the early days, temples also doubled as welfare associations, a place where disputes were settled and were closely associated with clan associations and development of the community.

In 1994 the temple, in a dilapidated condition, closed its doors to the public and was handed over to the Urban Redevelopment Authority. The temple management moved to a shrine in Geylang. Subsequently it was redeveloped into a museum and re-opened to public on 19 November 1998. The museum, a conservation project under the National Heritage Board, is known as Fuk Tak Chi Museum. It is Singapore's first street museum.

Description
Being a conservation project, the original features of the building were retained. The 2,500 sq ft temple, laid in axial lines, though small has a well-proportioned single interior courtyard. Built on the shoreline, it initially faced the sea. With land reclamation, several buildings now separate the shoreline from the temple. The half-hip and half-gable roof decoration of the red and white temple makes for a rich hu lu presentation. The entrance gate and the space behind it are built in the style of a Chinese magistrate's court, to symbolise power and authority.

The main deity of the temple in the past was Tua Peh Kong (Hokkien), also called Dai Bak Kong in Cantonese or Da Bo Gong in Mandarin. A popular deity widely worshipped by the Chinese of various dialect groups, this god is usually depicted as a smiling old man with a white beard and is said to give protection against illness and danger.

Converted into a museum in 1998, the building no longer has a deity on the altar. Instead it features about 200 artefacts contributed by residents in Chinatown. It is now part of a heritage trail to help Singaporeans understand the life of early immigrants in Singapore. In a glass case, is a unique model depicting the streets and activities along the shoreline as it would be when these immigrants first arrived.

Variant names
Fuk Tak Shi temple, Fuk Tak Ch'i temple, Fu An Miao (Mandarin), Dai Bak Kong temple (Cantonese).



Author
Thulaja Naidu


References 
Byrne, B. G. (2002). Singapore: A walking tour (p. 28). Singapore: Times Editions.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 BYR)

Edwards, N. & Keys, P. (1996). Singapore: A guide to buildings, streets, places (p. 435). Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 EDW)

Lip, E. (1983). Chinese temple architecture in Singapore (pp.64-65). Singapore: Singapore University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 726.1951095957 LIP)

Uma Devi, G., et al. (2002). Singapore's 100 historic places (pp. 72-73). Singapore: Archipelago Press in association with National Heritage Board.
(Call no.: SING 959.57 SIN)

Historic Fuk Tak Chi temple to close. (1994, July 6). The Straits Times, Home, p. 21

Hoe, Irene. (1994, July 09). Only 15 visitors a day but what a history, what a friend. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 5.

Oon, Clarissa. (1998, November 19). No more termites, step in. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 3.

Thanksgiving stop. (1998, November 19). The Straits Times, Life!, p. 3.


Further Readings
Hong, Z. (1996, September 3). Temples are first base for the clans. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 12. 



The information in this article is valid as at 2002 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be 
an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Religious Buildings
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Civic and Administrative Buildings
Temples, Chinese--Singapore
Historic buildings--Singapore
Museums--Singapore
Arts>>Architecture>>Religious buildings
Arts>>Art museums, collections and exhibitions

Librarian Recommendations
>> Telok Ayer Street
>> Fuk Tak Chi museum entrance : general view
>> Cantonese community
>> Hakka community
>> Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum


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