Haw Par Villa

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Haw Par Villa
Previously known as Tiger Balm Garden
Haw Par Villa logo.png
Haw Par Villa 48, Nov 06.JPG
Location262 Pasir Panjang Road, Singapore 118628
StatusOperating
Opened1937;87 years ago (1937)
Owner Singapore Tourism Board
Operated byJourneys Pte Ltd
(since 2015)
Theme Chinese folklore
Area8.5 ha (21 acres)
Website Official website
Coordinates 01°17′03″N103°46′56″E / 1.28417°N 103.78222°E / 1.28417; 103.78222

Haw Par Villa (Chinese :虎豹別墅; pinyin :Hǔ Bào Biéshù; Pe̍h-ōe-jī :hó͘ pà pia̍t-sú) is a theme park located along Pasir Panjang Road in Singapore. The park contains over 1,000 statues and 150 giant dioramas depicting scenes from Chinese Literature, folklore, legends, history, and statuary of key Chinese religions, Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism. During the 1970s and 1980s, the park was a major local attraction; it is estimated that the park then welcomed at least 1 million annual visitors, [1] and is considered as part of Singapore's cultural heritage. [2] As of 2018, under the park's management firm, Journeys Pte Ltd, efforts to revitalise the park are ongoing with the holding of themed events [3] and the planning and construction of ancillary museums. [4]

Contents

History

Memorial dedicated to the Aw brothers' parents. Haw Par Villa 15, Dec 14.jpg
Memorial dedicated to the Aw brothers' parents.

Burmese-Chinese brothers Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par, the developers of Tiger Balm, moved their business from Burma to Singapore in 1926. The site, which is in front of a small hill and faces the Singapore Strait, was deemed suitable based on considerations of feng shui, [2] and was purchased in 1935. On the site, a Har Par Villa was being built for the next two years. [5] The villa was designed by Ho Kwong Yew and was of Art Deco architecture. [5] [6] The villa was bombed by the Japanese during the World War II, [7] and was subsequently occupied by them. [6] After the war ended, the villa was demolished. [6] Between 1937 and his death in 1954 (when the garden was declared public property, and turned into a park), Boon Haw commissioned statues and dioramas in the garden that served to teach traditional Chinese values. [2]

Interior of the Ten Courts of Hell Chinese Court of Hell.jpg
Interior of the Ten Courts of Hell

In the 1950s and 1960s, before the advent of television and shopping malls, the park was a popular recreational destination for Singaporean families. [2] Many Singaporean adults, in a 1995 survey, reported memories of visiting the park as a child and learning about Chinese folk history and morality. [2]

Entrance to the "Ten Courts of Hell" attraction at Haw Par Villa. The Ox-Headed (right) and Horse-Faced (left) Hell Guards stand guard at the entrance . Haw Par Villa 7, Dec 14.jpg
Entrance to the "Ten Courts of Hell" attraction at Haw Par Villa. The Ox-Headed (right) and Horse-Faced (left) Hell Guards stand guard at the entrance .

In the 1980s, in a bid to restore Singapore's "oriental mystique", Singapore Tourism Board saw to the redevelopment of the park (along with Chinatown and Little India). [2] In 1986, the International Theme Parks Pte Ltd, announced an investment of $30 million to modernise the themed park. This company was a joint venture formed by Fraser & Neave and Times Publishing, and had invested in the latest animatronics and technology to enhance the attractions in the hope to create an 'oriental Disneyland', a theme park meeting Western technology with Eastern mythology. [8]

In 1988, Singapore Tourism Board took charge of the Tiger Balm Gardens and renamed it "Haw Par Villa Dragon World". The Haw Par in the park's name is based on the Aw brothers' personal names—Haw and Par, which mean "tiger" and "leopard" respectively. The dioramas and statues were restored, while plays, acrobatic displays, and puppet shows were organised and held there. The management imposed entrance fees but the high fees discouraged visitors, so the management incurred a loss of S$31.5 million over 10 years. The park management made a profit during its first year of operations after renovations in 1994, broke even in 1995, but started incurring losses over the next three years and was forced to provide free entries in 1998. In March 2001, the Singapore Tourism Board renamed it "Tiger Balm Gardens". [9] The park is now open every day from 9 am to 10 pm (with last entry at 9:30 pm) and admission is free. The Hell's Museum requires an admission fee of SGD20 for adults and SGD10 for children.

Between March 2006 and March 2012, the S$7.8 million Hua Song Museum, which focused on the Chinese diaspora, operated within the park. [1]

In 2014, artists Chun Kai Qun, Chun Kaifeng and Elizabeth Gan, under the curatorial platform Latent Spaces, staged four exhibitions in the theme park's unused spaces. Their first exhibition, Nameless Forms, featured the works by the Chun twins, Darren Tesar, Sai Hua Kuan and collective Yunrubin, which respond to the place's defunct exhibition halls, idle pavilions and the materials that were left behind. [10]

In October 2020, Haw Par Villa was closed for renovations and reopened on 1 July 2021. It was originally to be reopened on 31 March 2021 but was delayed due to park operator, Journeys, needing more time to "further enhance its offerings". [11] Haw Par Villa has been opened since 1 July 2023 after extension restoration works and has welcomed guests internationally ever since. [12]

Attractions

Chinese-style Paifang after main entrance. Haw Par Villa Paifang.jpg
Chinese-style Paifang after main entrance.

The best-known attraction in Haw Par Villa is the Ten Courts of Hell, which features gruesome depictions of Hell in Chinese mythology and in Buddhism. This attraction used to be set inside a 60-metre-long trail of a Chinese dragon but the dragon has been demolished, so the attraction is now covered by grey stone walls. After closure for renovations in 2020, the attraction was upgraded to be fully air-conditioned and the centerpiece of a 3,800 sqm Hell's Museum complex. While the park reopened in July 2021, the attraction reopened on 28 October. [13]

Other major attractions include dioramas of scenes from Journey to the West , Fengshen Bang , The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars , Legend of the White Snake , Romance of the Three Kingdoms ; statues of mythological figures such as the Laughing Buddha and Guanyin, and historical personages such as Jiang Ziya, Su Wu and Lin Zexu; the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, and others. There are also monuments dedicated to the Aw brothers and their parents.

In October 2021, the management of Haw Par Villa, Journeys Pte Ltd, launched Hell's Museum - a museum focused on death and the afterlife. [14] Hell's Museum combines education and entertainment. It covers perspectives and insights on death and the afterlife across various religions, cultures, and civilisations – the result of humanity's quest over 300,000 years to seek answers to the big questions in life, questions such as “Where did we come from?” “What happens to us when we die?” and “What is the purpose of our existence?” In August 2023, Hell's Museum [15] and Haw Par Villa [16] was awarded Tripadvisor's Travellers’ Choice Winner. The award is only awarded to the top 10% of Tripadvisor's attractions worldwide.

There are multiple honesty boxes in the park, including one for turtle food at the turtle pond priced at S$1 per packet. Joss sticks are 10 cents each and can be found at many major statues. Buggies can be found near the turtle pond, but have not been in used for some time. An amphitheatre can be found further inside the park.

Cafés at the Tiger Balm Gardens include The Sixth Milestone Cafe, located beside the turtle pond and Art Journey, a now-closed gelato cafe. There is also a chinese restaurant located on the west side of the complex, as well as the Asian Civilisation Museum which will open in 2025.

The east section of the park has been closed for some time. These include a larger amphitheatre, a building, a small park, and an elevated prayer pavilion.

Contemporary reception and outlook

In a 2014 study which reviewed 25 tourist guidebooks on Singapore, it was found that only the authors of one book chose to cover the park in detail. The study noted low tourist interest on the Internet, and low tourist foot traffic at the park. The study's authors also corroborated online travel reviews that some of the statues were in disrepair, and the park is ill-posed to compete with Singapore's newer tourist attractions. Haw Par Villa is, the authors note, "a treasured past, although one in danger of fading away with newer generations of tourists". [17]

Public transportation

The Circle line station, Haw Par Villa MRT station, located next to it, opened on 8 October 2011 along with the rest of Stage 5 of the Circle line. [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Tourism in Singapore is a major industry and contributor to the Singaporean economy. In 2019, 19,114,002 tourists visited the country, which was the highest recorded number of arrivals since independence in 1965. As of 2023, as tourist arrivals recovers from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were a total of 13,610,404 international tourists that have visited Singapore, which was more than twice the country's total population.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sentosa</span> Island of Singapore

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diorama</span> Three-dimensional full-size or miniature model

A diorama is a replica of a scene, typically a three-dimensional model either full-sized or miniature. Sometimes it is enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum. Dioramas are often built by hobbyists as part of related hobbies such as military vehicle modeling, miniature figure modeling, or aircraft modeling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haw Par Corporation</span> Singaporean company

Haw Par Corporation Limited is a Singaporean company involved in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, leisure products, property and investment. It is the company responsible for Tiger Balm branded liniment (ointment). Its brands also included Kwan Loong and it also owns and operates weekend and leisure time destinations such as oceanariums.

Haw Par may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger Balm</span> Heat rub used for pain relief

Tiger Balm is an analgesic heat rub manufactured and distributed by Singaporean company Haw Par Healthcare. It is used for external pain relief.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haw Par Villa MRT station</span> Mass Rapid Transit station in Singapore

Haw Par Villa MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station on the Circle line (CCL) in Queenstown, Singapore. Located underneath West Coast Highway and Pasir Panjang Road, the station serves the nearby Haw Par Villa, alongside the Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aw Boon Haw</span> Burmese Chinese businessman (1882-1954)

Aw Boon-Haw, OBE, was a Chinese entrepreneur and philanthropist best known as founder of Tiger Balm. He was a son of Hakka herbalist Aw Chu-Kin, with his ancestral home in Yongding County, Fujian, China.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger Balm Garden</span>

Tiger Balm Gardens are public gardens that existed or continue to exist in three East Asia locations. They are also known as Haw Par Villa gardens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger Balm Garden (Hong Kong)</span> Former public mansion and gardens in Hong Kong

Haw Par Mansion, better known for its public gardens known as Tiger Balm Garden or Aw Boon Haw Garden, was a mansion and gardens located at 15, Tai Hang Road, Tai Hang, Wan Chai District, Hong Kong. The Tiger Balm Garden was demolished for redevelopment in 2004. The Haw Par Mansion and its private garden have been preserved.

Aw Boon Par was an entrepreneur and philanthropist best known for introducing Tiger Balm.

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Aw Cheng ChyeS.P.M.J., B.B.M., O.St.J was a Singaporean millionaire, businessman, company director, philanthropist and son of businessman Aw Boon Par. Aw Cheng Chye himself was the chairman of Haw Par Brothers (Private) Limited and Haw Par Brothers International Limited until his sudden death on 22 August 1971 in Santiago de Chile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chung Khiaw Bank</span> Former Singaporean bank

Chung Khiaw Bank Limited was a Singaporean bank that was established by millionaire Aw Boon Haw and later became a subsidiary of United Overseas Bank after takeovers in 1971–72. Part of the shares of Chung Khiaw Bank was injected to a listed company Haw Par Brothers International in 1969 and was acquired by a domestic competitor United Overseas Bank (UOB) in 1971, after the parent company was takeover by Slater Walker. Chung Khiaw Bank merged with UOB in 1999.

<i>Singapore Tiger Standard</i> Singaporean daily newspaper

The Singapore Standard, more commonly known as Singapore Tiger Standard or Tiger Standard, was a Singaporean newspaper published in English. The newspaper was founded by millionaire Aw Boon Haw, famous for his Tiger Balm and Star Newspapers. Singapore Standard was the sister newspaper of the English-language Hongkong Tiger Standard, as well as Sin Chew Jit Po of Singapore and Malaysia, published in Chinese. In 1959, shortly after the Colony of Singapore gained self-governance, publisher Sin Poh Amalgamated ended publication of Singapore Standard. It was reported that Aw Cheng Taik, a relative of Aw Boon Haw and former managing director of Singapore Standard, founded another "Tiger Newspaper" in August 1959 in Kuala Lumpur in the Federation of Malaya, which published in Chinese language. "Kuala Lumpur Tiger" ceased publication in 1961 due to financial difficulties. Singapore Standard, the Federation of Malaya edition was also published by the same press for nearby Federation of Malaya.

Aw family is the family member of Aw Chu Kin and his descendant. Aw Chu Kin started his business in Burma, which his two sons expanded it into a multi-national conglomerate that from Chinese medicines to newspaper, as well as bank, insurance and real estate. However, the family started to decline in the third generation, by the takeover of family-owned listed company Haw Par Brothers International in Singapore in 1971, which saw Sin Poh Amalgamated, Chung Khiaw Bank and Haw Par Brothers (Thailand) were spin-off from the listed company. Before the dismantle, the key position of the business empire was served by third-generation member and their spouse, which they were removed after the takeover. However, Sally Aw, granddaughter of Aw Chu Kin, remained as one of the influential media tycoon in Hong Kong in 1990s, until forced to sell her Sing Tao Holdings in 1999 due to financial difficulties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eng Aun Tong Building</span>

Eng Aun Tong Building, also known as Tiger Balm Medical Hall, is a historic building at the corner of Neil Road and Craig Road in Tanjong Pagar, Singapore. Completed in the 1920s, it served as the Tiger Balm factory for several decades.

References

  1. 1 2 Lin, Melissa (27 September 2015). "Haw Par Villa looks set for another makeover". The Straits Times. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Teo, Peggy; Yeoh, Brenda S.A. (1 January 1997). "Remaking local heritage for tourism". Annals of Tourism Research. 24 (1): 192–213. doi:10.1016/S0160-7383(96)00054-0. ISSN   0160-7383.
  3. ↑ Raguraman, Anjali (16 May 2016). "Haw Par Villa launches adventure game to attract young visitors". The Straits Times. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  4. ↑ Zaccheus, Melody (28 October 2017). "Peep into Haw Par Villa's death museum". The Straits Times. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  5. 1 2 "HOUSE-WARMING BY AW BROTHERS". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 "Why Tiger Balm is the secret behind this Singapore theme park" . The Independent. 7 September 2018. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  7. ↑ "Conservation Portal -". www.ura.gov.sg. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  8. ↑ "Haw Par Villa goes high-tech". The Straits Times. 30 April 1986. p. 16.
  9. ↑ "Tiger Balm Gardens". National Library Board. Archived from the original on 17 March 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
  10. ↑ Loh, Joleen (5 April 2014). "Enter the artist studio". MediaCorp. TODAY. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  11. ↑ "Haw Par Villa reopens with restored sculptures and fully air-conditioned 10 Courts of Hell". AsiaOne. 6 July 2021. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  12. ↑ Tan, Adeline (1 July 2021). "Haw Par Villa reopens after nine-month closure for upgrading works". MediaCorp. The Straits Times. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  13. ↑ Tan, Adeline (1 July 2021). "Haw Par Villa reopens after nine-month closure for upgrading works". The Straits Times. ISSN   0585-3923 . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  14. ↑ "Hell's Museum". Haw Par Villa. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  15. ↑ "HELL'S MUSEUM: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)". Tripadvisor. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  16. ↑ "HAW PAR VILLA: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)". Tripadvisor. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  17. ↑ Phua, Voon Chin; Miller, Joseph W (2014). "Gazing at Haw Par Villa: Cultural Tourism in Singapore" (PDF). Shima: The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures. 8 (2).
  18. ↑ "SPEECH BY MR RAYMOND LIM,MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT, AT THE VISIT TO KIM CHUAN DEPOT, 25 JANUARY 2008, 9.00 AM". www.nas.gov.sg. Retrieved 22 November 2022.

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