This postcard shows an aerial view of the old civic quarters of the city centre on the north bank of the Singapore River and the Central Business District (CBD) on the south bank. Prominent landmarks situated on the north bank include: the Empress Place Building (left), erected in 1865 and initially referred to as Government Offices before it gained its new moniker after the public square in front of it was named after Queen Victoria in 1907; and the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall (second from left), originally known as the Town Hall and the Victoria Memorial Hall when the two structures were completed in 1861 and 1905 respectively. Notable buildings found in the CBD area include (from left to right): the 44-storey Standard Chartered Bank Building, which was officially opened in 1984 to house the bank’s headquarters; the 47-storey Raffles Tower owned by Singapore Land that was completed in 1982 and renamed Shell Tower after its main tenant; the 30-storey United Overseas Bank (UOB) Building, which was the tallest landmark in the city centre when it was erected in 1974; and the 52-storey Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) Centre, which was the highest building in the CBD when it was completed in 1976.
