Stamford House, Singapore
Encyclopedia
Stamford House is a historic building located at the corner of the junction of Stamford Road
and Hill Street
, in the Downtown Core
of Singapore
. Originally known as Oranje Building (sometimes spelled Oranjie), it currently houses a shopping mall
.
, retail
firm Whiteaway Laidlaw & Co. Paul called the building Oranje Building, and Whiteaway Laidlaw carried out their business there until 1910.
Because of a shortage of hotel
rooms, Raffles Hotel
took over the top two floors of Oranje Building as an annex for a number of years. In 1933, Seth's daughter Theodara Van Hein renovated
the building and converted to become the Oranje Hotel. Before the Japanese Occupation of Singapore
in February 1942, a number of survivors of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse
were housed in the Oranje Hotel.
During the Japanese Occupation, the building continued to be used by the Japanese forces as a hotel. After World War II
, the hotel rooms were rent
ed out and ground floor of the building used as shops.
In 1963, the building changed hands and was sold to Basco Enterprises Private Limited. It refurbished the building and renamed the building as Stamford House. Together with the adjacent Shaw Building, which housed the Capitol Theatre
, the Stamford House was once a main shopping centre in Singapore.
In 1984, the Stamford House, together with the Shaw Building, was acquired by the Urban Redevelopment Authority
, which imposed planning restrictions to preserve the building. In May 1991, a decision was made to forgo preserving the similarly rustic four-storey Eu Court and conserve Stamford House instead as the latter had more potential for commercial
purposes. Despite protests by the public, Eu Court was demolished in 1992 for road widening with the aim of easing future traffic congestion
on Hill Street. Today, a new building, Stamford Court, is sited on a portion of the site of the former Eu Court building.
The S$13 million conservation
project for Stamford House was undertaken by the main contractor
Batae Engineering, and took three years. The Stamford House was re-opened as a furniture
and furnishings centre on 28 March 1995. The shopping mall has a rentable space of 3,350 square metres (36,000 square feet) over three floors, and was managed by Pidemco Land (now CapitaLand
).
for Raffles Hotel, Goodwood Park Hotel
and other significant buildings in Singapore. The building is architecturally well-related to its environs, including the adjacent Capitol Theatre and the MPH Building on Stamford Road.
The Stamford House is a variation of the Venetian
Renaissance
architectural style
that was popular in commercial buildings in the Victorian
period. It has an appealing, romantic
architectural composition with its curved central pediment
and two triangular ones at either end. With its Adamesque-like moulding
s and elaborate ornamental devices, the three-storey Stamford House is typical of the High Victoria
n phase. The building has an arcade
which allows natural light
to enter. It mainly housed offices, with shops on the ground floor opening on to a five foot way
.
work between 1991 and 1994. A frieze
of intricate floral plaster
on the façade
was found beneath another layer of plain plaster, for which no historical records were found. Solid granite
columns were uncovered from under layers of plaster at the main entrance. The solid pillars were carved from a single huge slab of granite. Exquisitely-wrought cast iron
grille
s, in the same intricate floral design as the frieze, were revealed after years of being covered by bland shop signs. The missing pieces were restored by a Malaysian craftsman
.
Though the walls of Stamford House were in a good condition, 50% of the plasterwork
and cornice
s were damaged. Most of the wooden floor boards in the building were rotten and had to be replaced with chengai (Balanscarpus heimii), a tropical hardwood
. New doors in the original style had to be made. All originals were photographed meticulously before work began. Modern services
had to be added sensitively, so that wiring and the air conditioning
vents do not jar with the original architecture.
New additions were introduced to maintain the old-world ambience of the building. These include brass
lamps from Italy
, ground flooring done in the original marble
, a hydraulic lift
with brass doors and chengai timber covering for the new concrete floors. Decorative features were also added internally to reflect the rich facade: naked steel
I-beam
s were clad in plaster, and the old outhouse, a wing which contained only toilet
s, was turned into an attached wing for shops and services. A modern skylight allows sunlight to illuminate the building's interior. The corner store was turned into an external foyer
where people can walk in from both sides of the road. As there were no records of the building's interior decor, the contractors had to uncover clues and make decisions on colour, pattern and size, sometimes based on straw poll
s taken from passers-by.
The main contractor Batae Engineering employed the preferred top-down approach, from the roof down to the floor, for Stamford House's restoration.
Stamford Road
Stamford Road is a one-way road in Singapore within the planning areas of Downtown Core and Museum. The road continues after the traffic light junction of Nicoll Highway, Esplanade Drive and Raffles Avenue towards Orchard Road. It then ends at the junction of Fort Canning Road, Bencoolen Street...
and Hill Street
Hill Street
Hill Street is a street in the downtown of Singapore starting from Eu Tong Sen Street and ending at Stamford Road, where the road becomes Victoria Street...
, in the Downtown Core
Downtown Core
The Downtown Core is a 266-hectare urban planning area in the south of the city-state of Singapore. The Downtown Core surrounds the mouth of the Singapore River and southeastern portion of its watershed, and is part of the Central Area, Singapore's central business district...
of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. Originally known as Oranje Building (sometimes spelled Oranjie), it currently houses a shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
.
History
The building was built by Regent Alfred John Bidwell (1869–1918) of [Swan and Maclaren] in 1904, for Seth Paul a Singapore citizen of American extraction, for his tenantLeasehold estate
A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord....
, retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
firm Whiteaway Laidlaw & Co. Paul called the building Oranje Building, and Whiteaway Laidlaw carried out their business there until 1910.
Because of a shortage of hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
rooms, Raffles Hotel
Raffles Hotel
Raffles Hotel is a colonial-style hotel in Singapore, and one of the world's most famous hotels. The hotel was established by the famous Armenian Sarkies Brothers. Opened in 1887, it was named after Singapore's founder Sir Stamford Raffles. Managed by Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, it is...
took over the top two floors of Oranje Building as an annex for a number of years. In 1933, Seth's daughter Theodara Van Hein renovated
Renovation
Renovation is the process of improving a structure. Two prominent types of renovations are commercial and residential.-Process:The process of a renovation, however complex, can usually be broken down into several processes...
the building and converted to become the Oranje Hotel. Before the Japanese Occupation of Singapore
Japanese Occupation of Singapore
The Japanese occupation of Singapore in World War II occurred between about 1942 and 1945 after the fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942. Military forces of the Empire of Japan occupied Singapore after defeating the combined Australian, British, Indian and Malayan garrison in the Battle of Singapore...
in February 1942, a number of survivors of the Prince of Wales and the Repulse
HMS Repulse (1916)
HMS Repulse was a Renown-class battlecruiser of the Royal Navy built during the First World War. She was originally laid down as an improved version of the s. Her construction was suspended on the outbreak of war on the grounds she would not be ready in a timely manner...
were housed in the Oranje Hotel.
During the Japanese Occupation, the building continued to be used by the Japanese forces as a hotel. After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the hotel rooms were rent
Renting
Renting is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for all property charges regularly incurred by the ownership from landowners...
ed out and ground floor of the building used as shops.
In 1963, the building changed hands and was sold to Basco Enterprises Private Limited. It refurbished the building and renamed the building as Stamford House. Together with the adjacent Shaw Building, which housed the Capitol Theatre
Capitol Building, Singapore
The Capitol Building is a historic building at the junction of North Bridge Road and Stamford Road in the Downtown Core of Singapore.-History:...
, the Stamford House was once a main shopping centre in Singapore.
Urban Redevelopment Authority
The Urban Redevelopment Authority is the national urban planning authority of Singapore, and a statutory board under the Ministry of National Development of the Singapore Government.-Mission:The authority was established on 1 April 1974, and is of especially critical importance to the city-state,...
, which imposed planning restrictions to preserve the building. In May 1991, a decision was made to forgo preserving the similarly rustic four-storey Eu Court and conserve Stamford House instead as the latter had more potential for commercial
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
purposes. Despite protests by the public, Eu Court was demolished in 1992 for road widening with the aim of easing future traffic congestion
Traffic congestion
Traffic congestion is a condition on road networks that occurs as use increases, and is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. The most common example is the physical use of roads by vehicles. When traffic demand is great enough that the interaction...
on Hill Street. Today, a new building, Stamford Court, is sited on a portion of the site of the former Eu Court building.
The S$13 million conservation
Architectural conservation
Architectural conservation describes the process through which the material, historical, and design integrity of mankind's built heritage are prolonged through carefully planned interventions. The individual engaged in this pursuit is known as an architectural conservator...
project for Stamford House was undertaken by the main contractor
General contractor
A general contractor is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and communication of information to involved parties throughout the course of a building project.-Description:...
Batae Engineering, and took three years. The Stamford House was re-opened as a furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
and furnishings centre on 28 March 1995. The shopping mall has a rentable space of 3,350 square metres (36,000 square feet) over three floors, and was managed by Pidemco Land (now CapitaLand
CapitaLand
CapitaLand Limited is the result of a merger in the year 2000 of then DBS Land and Pidemco Land. It is one of Asia's largest real estate companies. Headquartered and listed in Singapore, the company's core businesses are real estate development, hospitality and real estate financial services...
).
Architecture
The Stamford House was designed by RAJ Bidwell, who was also the architectArchitect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
for Raffles Hotel, Goodwood Park Hotel
Goodwood Park Hotel
The Goodwood Park Hotel is a 235-room hotel in Singapore. It is located at Scotts Road in the Orchard Planning Area, within the Central Area in Singapore's central business district....
and other significant buildings in Singapore. The building is architecturally well-related to its environs, including the adjacent Capitol Theatre and the MPH Building on Stamford Road.
The Stamford House is a variation of the Venetian
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
Renaissance
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance...
architectural style
Architectural style
Architectural styles classify architecture in terms of the use of form, techniques, materials, time period, region and other stylistic influences. It overlaps with, and emerges from the study of the evolution and history of architecture...
that was popular in commercial buildings in the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
period. It has an appealing, romantic
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
architectural composition with its curved central pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
and two triangular ones at either end. With its Adamesque-like moulding
Molding (decorative)
Molding or moulding is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster but may be made from plastic or reformed wood...
s and elaborate ornamental devices, the three-storey Stamford House is typical of the High Victoria
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
n phase. The building has an arcade
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
which allows natural light
Natural light
Natural light can mean:*Sunlight*Moonlight*Natural Light Beer a product made by Anheuser-Busch....
to enter. It mainly housed offices, with shops on the ground floor opening on to a five foot way
Five foot way
Five foot ways are pedestrian walkways indented into the ground floor of a building from the road, so that the overhanging upper floors can provide a cover to shield pedestrians from the sun and rain. This feature can be found in many shophouses all over the world, and also in some office...
.
Restoration
The Stamford House's characteristic gold tinted detailing was only revealed during restorationBuilding restoration
Building restoration describes a particular treatment approach and philosophy within the field of architectural conservation. According the U.S...
work between 1991 and 1994. A frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
of intricate floral plaster
Plaster
Plaster is a building material used for coating walls and ceilings. Plaster starts as a dry powder similar to mortar or cement and like those materials it is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens. Unlike mortar and cement, plaster remains quite soft after setting,...
on the façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
was found beneath another layer of plain plaster, for which no historical records were found. Solid granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
columns were uncovered from under layers of plaster at the main entrance. The solid pillars were carved from a single huge slab of granite. Exquisitely-wrought cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
grille
Grille
A grille or grill is an opening of several slits side by side in a wall or metal sheet or other barrier, usually to let air or water enter and/or leave but keep larger objects including people and animals in or out.-Spelling:In the United States, "grille" is used to differentiate the automotive...
s, in the same intricate floral design as the frieze, were revealed after years of being covered by bland shop signs. The missing pieces were restored by a Malaysian craftsman
Master craftsman
A master craftsman or master tradesman was a member of a guild. In the European guild system, only masters were allowed to be members of the guild....
.
Though the walls of Stamford House were in a good condition, 50% of the plasterwork
Plasterwork
Plasterwork refers to construction or ornamentation done with plaster, such as a layer of plaster on an interior wall or plaster decorative moldings on ceilings or walls. This is also sometimes called pargeting...
and cornice
Cornice
Cornice molding is generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns any building or furniture element: the cornice over a door or window, for instance, or the cornice around the edge of a pedestal. A simple cornice may be formed just with a crown molding.The function of the projecting...
s were damaged. Most of the wooden floor boards in the building were rotten and had to be replaced with chengai (Balanscarpus heimii), a tropical hardwood
Hardwood
Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees . It may also be used for those trees themselves: these are usually broad-leaved; in temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen.Hardwood contrasts with softwood...
. New doors in the original style had to be made. All originals were photographed meticulously before work began. Modern services
Penetrant
Penetrants, or penetrating items, are the mechanical, electrical or structural items that pass through an opening in a wall or floor, such as pipes, electrical conduits, ducting, cables and cable trays, or structural steel beams and columns...
had to be added sensitively, so that wiring and the air conditioning
Air conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
vents do not jar with the original architecture.
New additions were introduced to maintain the old-world ambience of the building. These include brass
Brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...
lamps from Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, ground flooring done in the original marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
, a hydraulic lift
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
with brass doors and chengai timber covering for the new concrete floors. Decorative features were also added internally to reflect the rich facade: naked steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
I-beam
I-beam
-beams, also known as H-beams, W-beams , rolled steel joist , or double-T are beams with an - or H-shaped cross-section. The horizontal elements of the "" are flanges, while the vertical element is the web...
s were clad in plaster, and the old outhouse, a wing which contained only toilet
Toilet
A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human excrement, often found in a small room referred to as a toilet/bathroom/lavatory...
s, was turned into an attached wing for shops and services. A modern skylight allows sunlight to illuminate the building's interior. The corner store was turned into an external foyer
Foyer
A foyer or lobby is a large, vast room or complex of rooms adjacent to the auditorium...
where people can walk in from both sides of the road. As there were no records of the building's interior decor, the contractors had to uncover clues and make decisions on colour, pattern and size, sometimes based on straw poll
Straw poll
A straw poll or straw vote is a vote with nonbinding results. Straw polls provide dialogue among movements within large groups, reflecting trends like organization and motivation...
s taken from passers-by.
The main contractor Batae Engineering employed the preferred top-down approach, from the roof down to the floor, for Stamford House's restoration.