Title
Funeral hearse of Tan Jiak Kim
Year/Period
1917
Region
Singapore
Object Type
Material
Technique
Dimension
Object size: Estimated 417.5 x 325 x 163 cm
Accession No.
W-0860
Collection of
This funeral hearse with intricately carved decorations is one of a kind in Singapore. It was originally made for the funeral of the Peranakan Chinese merchant and philanthropist, Tan Jiak Kim, and used for his funeral in 1917. As this display illustrates, elaborate and noisy funeral processions for wealthy individuals were once a feature of public life. Interestingly, Tan Jiak Kim’s funeral was a well-attended but solemn affair, in line with the new ideas of Peranakan Chinese reformers such as Lim Boon Keng.
