General view of Statue Square in August 2013. The large building overlooking the square is the HSBC Building (fourth design), completed in 1985.Statue Square in the 1910s, with HSBC building (second design). The old City Hall is hidden by the Legislative Council Building.Statue Square in the 1930s, looking south toward the HSBC building (third design, built in 1935). The canopy of Queen Victoria's statue is visible.Statue Square in 1955. Prince's Building (first generation) and Queen's Building are visible on the right.Statue Square façade of the Legislative Council Building in June 2013.Statue Square is a rendezvous for numerous Filipino maids in Hong Kong on Sundays.
The square was built at the end of the nineteenth century on land reclaimed by the Praya Reclamation Scheme. The idea of a square of statues dedicated to royalty was conceived by Sir Catchick Paul Chater.[1] Initially named "Royal Square", it gradually became known as "Statue Square", as it originally contained the statue of Queen Victoria,[2][3] in commemoration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 1887. The statue of the Queen should have been made not in bronze but in marble, an error that was not discovered until the bronze statue was almost completed.[1][2] It was officially unveiled at the centre of the square on 28 May 1896, the day officially appointed for the celebration of the 77th birthday of the Queen.[4]
After the war, some of the statues were brought back to Hong Kong. Sir Thomas Jackson's now stands roughly in the middle of the square, facing the Court of Final Appeal Building. Queen Victoria's statue was placed in Victoria Park,[2] and the two HSBC lions returned to the front of the HSBC building. The bronze statue of George V, also removed by the Japanese, was lost and never replaced after the war.[2]
Since the 1980s, it has been a tradition for thousands of Filipinadomestic workers to congregate in and around Statue Square every Sunday, their usual rest day of the week. A parallel tradition has since been developed in Victoria Park for Indonesian domestic helpers in Hong Kong.[9]
Surrounding buildings
South
The HSBC Hong Kong headquarters building is located along the southern side of the square, across Des Voeux Road Central. The site was previously occupied by the old City Hall (built 1869, demolished 1933) and smaller earlier generations of the HSBC Hong Kong headquarters building.
Several buildings with names reminiscent of British royalty were built on the western side of the square. Prince's Building and Queen's Building were built directly along the square (southern section and northern section respectively), while the others were built further west.
Prince's Building 1904–1963, replaced by the current Prince's Building (1965)
St George's Building (聖佐治大廈) 1904–1966, home to Millington Limited[citation needed] and replaced by the current St. George's Building office tower (1969)
Alexandra Building (亞歷山大行) 1904–1950, named for Princess of Wales, later Queen Alexandra, replaced by modernist Alexandra Building (1952–1974) and now Alexandra House (歷山大廈) (1976)
Today, the only freestanding statue on the Square is the statue of Sir Thomas Jackson. Additionally, a 2.7 m high blind-folded statue of Themis, the Greek Goddess of Justice and Law, stands on top of the pediment of the Court of Final Appeal Building,[10] and is facing the Square. The statues that have been historically on display on the square include:
Statue of Queen Victoria. Unveiled on 28 May 1896. Taken by the Japanese during World War II and returned to Hong Kong in 1952. It is now in Victoria Park.
Statue of Mary of Teck, Princess of Wales and future Queen Mary. Bronze statue created by George Edward Wade.[1] Donated by Hormusjee Naorojee Mody as "a genuine token of the loyalty and esteem of the Parsis for their King and Queen".[17] Unveiled on 25 November 1909. It was removed during the Japanese occupation.[15][18]
Statue of Sir Henry May, 15th Governor of Hong Kong. Unveiled on 3 May 1923.[12]
The HSBC World War I memorial statue, "Fame". Unveiled on 24 May 1923.[19]
In addition, statues of royalty and colonial administrators located outside of Statue Square included:
Statue of Sir Arthur Kennedy, in the Botanical Gardens (picture). Erected by public subscription following his death at sea in 1883,[20] it was unveiled in November 1887 by the newly arrived Governor William Des Vœux and stood "above the second terrace looking down on the fountain".[21] It was removed during the Japanese occupation, and never recovered.[22]
^Wiltshire, Trea. [First published 1987] (republished & reduced2003). Old Hong Kong – Volume One. Central, Hong Kong: FormAsia Books Ltd. Page 8. ISBN962-7283-59-2
^K. E. Shaw, George Gray Thomson (1973). The Straits of Malacca, in relation to the problems of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. University Education Press. p. 192.
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