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 It was originally made for the funeral of the Peranakan Chinese merchant and philanthropist, Tan Jiak Kim, and used for his funeral in 1917.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.
