22°17′01″N 114°08′24″E / 22.283564°N 114.139976°E The Tang Chi Ngong Building (Chinese: 鄧志昂樓) is a building of the University of Hong Kong. It is located on the main campus near Pok Fu Lam Road in Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It opened in 1931 and currently houses the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole. The exterior of the building became a declared monument in 1995.
History
editThe idea to establish a school of Chinese was proposed in the inter-war period. Construction of the premises began in 1929 following a donation from Tang Chi-ngong, father of the philanthropist Sir Tang Shiu-kin, after whom the building was named. [1][2]
The building was opened by Sir William Peel, Governor of Hong Kong, in 1931 and since then further donations have been received for the endowment of teaching Chinese language and literature. The building has been used for other purposes since the 1970s but the name remained unchanged. It housed the Centre of Asian Studies till 2012 and now houses the Jao Tsung-I Petite Ecole.[1][2]
Architecture
editThis three-storey flat-roofed building is of Neo-classical style and surfaced with Shanghai plaster. The exterior of the building became a declared monument in 1995.[1]
The Building is unique for the use of the letter "V" in place of the letter "U" as in "Vniversity", reflecting a practice common for Latin stone inscriptions in the 1920s and 1930s. The word "vniversity" appears on the stone arch, façade, as well as on the stone tablet marking the building's foundation date.[2]
Gallery
edit-
The building is built on-top of an artificial platform -
Paifang (stone arch) at the entrance on Bonham Road
References
edit- ^ a b c "Declared Monuments in the University of Hong Kong" (PDF). Antiques and Monuments Office.
- ^ a b c hkuadmin. "Tang Chi Ngong Building". HKU Heritage Fund. Retrieved 2024-08-31.