Image size: 97.6 x 55.0 cm 97.8 x 54.8 cm
This piece of calligraphy, exalting the wisdom and knowledge of elderly people, is drawn from Yuanshi shifan《袁氏世范》 (translated variously as “Codes of Conduct for the Yuan Clan” and “Master Yuan’s Precepts for Social Life”). Yuanshi shifan was a 12th-century treatise authored by the Southern Song scholar-official Yuan Cai 袁采 and served as a manual of ethical behaviour.The calligraphy is written in running script by Tan Hengfu 谭恒甫, a late Qing dynasty scholar who hailed from the Xinhui district of Jiangmen in Guangdong, China. Tan emigrated to Singapore with his family in 1927 and taught calligraphy at Yeung Ching School in Club Street. He subsequently established his own private school, You Heng Xuexiao 有恒学校 in his residence at Upper Hokkien Street, where he taught Classical Chinese texts and calligraphy. Tan was a much sought-after calligrapher who was approached by members of the Chinese community to write signboards and plaques for shops, clan associations and other buildings. Unfortunately, many of his works have been lost over time. The most widely known, extant example of his writing are the characters Tian Yan Da Wu Tai “天演大舞台” gracing the external façade of The Majestic (former Majestic Theatre) at Eu Tong Sen Street.
