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| 3460 Old shop houses in the heart of Chinatown and towering skyscrapers in the central business district at the background. |
Chinese Singaporeans constituted 76.2% of the country's citizens, making them the largest ethnic group in Singapore. Outside Greater China, Singapore is the only country in the world where people of Chinese descent constitute a majority of the population and are well represented in all levels of Singaporean society, politically and economically. Located within the Outram district in the Central Area, Chinatown is considerably less of an enclave than it once was. However, the precinct does retain significant historical and cultural significance.
The street architecture of Chinatown's buildings, the shophouses especially, combine different elements of baroque architecture and Victorian architecture and don't have a single classification. Many of them were built in the style of painted ladies, and have been restored in that fashion. These styles result in a variety of different colours of which pastel is most dominant. In 1843, when land titles were issued, the terraces in Pagoda Street (now with additions, mostly three-story) were born.
The architectural character of many of the terraces is much more Italianate in style than those of, for instance Emerald Hill or Petain Road. Windows often appear as mere slits with narrow timber jalousies (often with adjustable slats). Fanlights over the windows are usually quite decorative and the pilasters and balconies and even the plasterwork and colours seem to be Mediterranean in flavour.
The style was probably introduced by those early Chinese immigrants who had knowledge of the Portuguese architecture of Macau, Malacca and Goa. The Chettiars and Tamils from Southern India would also have been familiar with the European architecture there, although it is difficult to imagine how these people would have had a particularly strong influence on building in Chinatown.
About the stamps
The stamp is part of the series The 50th Anniversary of the National Service, designed by Leo Teck Chong and issued on March 13, 2017.
References
Chinatown, Singapore - Wikipedia
Sender: Pumipat
Sent from Singapore, on 03.03.2020
Photo: Albert Lam
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