Empress Place Building

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Sight Address : 1 Empress Place, Singapore 179555, Singapore (Downtown Core).Edit

Detail InformationEdit

The Empress Place Building (Chinese: 皇后坊大厦) is a historic building in Singapore, located on the north bank of the Singapore River in the Downtown Core, within the Central Area in Singapore’s central business district. The building is currently the second wing of the Asian Civilisations Museum. The other wing of the museum is located at the Old Tao Nan School building along Armenian Street.Located at the mouth of the Singapore River, the Empress Place Building’s imposing Neo-Palladian exterior with timber-louvred windows and pitched clay tile roofs caught the attention of immigrants and visitors sailing into Singapore harbour. A 1905 Singapore guidebook describes Government Offices and its neighbouring buildings thus: “Apart from the cities of India, there is, perhaps, no place in the East which boasts such a handsome group of [government] buildings as viewed from the sea.”Inside, the rooms are stately, with high ceilings, handsome Doric columns and exquisite plaster mouldings and cornices. Elegantly proportioned, the building is laid out symmetrically along a central axis.

Empress Place Building

HistoryEdit

During the colonial era, the Empress Place Building was known simply as Government Offices. The first civic buildings were planned here in Sir Stamford Raffles’ day. Originally intended to be a courthouse, the Empress Place Building instead became offices for the government departments located in the adjacent Maxwell’s House (later the old Parliament House).Maxwell’s House, designed by George Drumgoole Coleman, was a two-storey house built for a merchant, John Argyle Maxwell, in 1827. However, it was never occupied by him and it became a courthouse and lands office. Subsequently, it was converted to Government Offices and additions were made in 1839 and 1847.
Constructed in four phases from 1864 to 1920, Government Offices was built to provide much needed space for the growing colonial administration. The original section of the building was designed by colonial engineer J.F.A. McNair and built by convict labour between June 1864 and December 1867. This original section now forms the part of the building nearest to the old Parliament House.Yet another courthouse was built in 1865; this is now the core of the Government Offices. In 1873-1875, the old courthouse was extended towards the river and this is where the Supreme Court of the Colony held its sessions from 1875 until 1939 when the first Supreme Court was built. Maxwell’s original house became the Assembly House in 1954 after extensive renovations and reconstruction. The decision to build a new Town Hall was made in 1854; the building was completed in 1862.Government Offices that were housed included the Secretariat, Audit Office, Registration of Deeds Office, Land Office, Public Works and Medical Department, Treasury and Stamp Office, and the bureaus of the Colonial Engineer, the Official Assignee, and the Inspector General of the Police Force. The Legislative Chamber occupied a room on the upper floor.In front of the building was a public square which was given the name Empress Place by the Municipal Council in 1907 in honour of Queen Victoria. It may well be the oldest pedestrian space in Singapore. Over time, Government Offices became associated with Empress Place and its name changed to what we know it today.As the demand for more government office space increased, three major extensions were added in 1880, 1904-1909 and 1920. Fortunately, every one of these extensions were faithful to McNair’s Neo-Palladian design and the building maintained a harmonious overall look.In the surrounding area also known as Empress Place, the Memorial Hall and Tower were added in 1905 and extensive renovations were carried out from 1954 till 1979. Raffles’ statue, now in front of the Victoria Memorial Hall and Theatre, as it is now called, was first erected on the Padang in 1887 but later removed to its present site in 1919. A second statue, a copy of the first one, was erected at Raffles Landing Place in 1972. The Dalhousie Memorial was originally located at Dalhousie Pier but found its present place in 1886. Cavenagh Bridge was built in 1869 and was converted to pedestrian traffic after the erection of Anderson Bridge. These are the major elements which have contributed to the developing qualities of Empress Place.

Must SeeEdit

Must see

Visiting TimeEdit

Monday 1pm – 7 pm
Friday 9 am – 9 pm,
Tues to Sun 9am – 7pm

Closed OnEdit

N.A.

Best Season to VisitEdit

June to July and November to December.

Best Time To VisitEdit

N.A.

Time Required for SightseeingEdit

N.A.

Ticket Required : Yes Edit

Individual National Adult : $ 8

Kids : $ 4

Individual Foreigner Adult : $ 8

Kids : $ 4

Still Photo Camera : N.A.

Video Camera : N.A.

Guide Required : No Edit

Approximate cost: N.A.

Dress Code (If Any) : No Edit

Dress Require: N.A.

Restaurants NearbyAdd / Edit

IndoChine Waterfront Restaurant ; 1 Empress Pl Singapore 179555 ; Ph/M – 65 6338 7596 ; Food Serve – Vietnamese Restaurant:-vietnamese · spring rolls · chandeliers · lemongrass · sugar cane

How to ReachEdit

Taxi : Taxis are generally very hard to get during peak hours (Mon-Fri 7:00am – 9:30am and Mon-Sat 5:00pm – 8:00pm) and on rainy days. If you are at a hotel, have conceirge call you a taxi. If you are out about town and have access to a cell phone- calling for a taxi will cut your wait time by 20 to 30 minutes. All taxis are fitted with meters; all are air conditioned; the majority of the taxis are 5-seaters; about 90% of taxis have radiophones; call booking is done via GPS or digital voice dispatch. All passengers must fasten their seat belts by law.
For taxi Booking fee is SGD $2.3. Minimum fare for taxi is SGD $3 for first 1Km. Fare above minimum fare until 10Km is SGD $0.55 per Km. Fare above 10Km is charge SGD $0.628 per Km. Taxi Waiting charges per hour is SGD $17.6. Peak Hours charges is diffrent.

Bus : Public buses run daily from 5.30am to midnight. Extended night services cost slightly more (a flat rate ranging from $1.50-$3.00). Otherwise, most fares depend on distance travelled and range from 67 cents to $1.58 for air-conditioned comfort (almost all public buses in Singapore have air-conditioning today). There are also “feeder” bus services that charge a flat rate of 67 cents. Each bus should not take more than 15 to 20 minutes to arrive at the bus stop.

Train : Singapore MRT system is very well connected to different parts of Singapore and very clean! If you have the time and plan to explore around little Sunny island, get the the Singapore Tourist Pass!
It runs 6am-12mn, fares start at S$1 (70cents in EZ link). Tickets can be purchased in all MRT stations. You just have to insert your money through the ticket machine. Rush hour’s usually 7am-9am, 11am-2pm and 4pm-7pm.

Air : Changi Airport is the country’s main airport. From the airport there are a number of ways to get into the city:
Taxi is easiest – simply follow the signs after clearing customs. Meters are always used in Singapore and prices are reasonable. A trip to the city during the day will be between $20-$30 including $3-5 airport surcharge. An additional 50% surcharge applies between midnight and 06:00.
Limousines charge a flat $50 to anywhere in the city and are a pretty good deal after midnight, as you can skip the queue and avoid the surcharge. The same pricing applies to chartering van-sized MaxiCabs, which are good for large families or if you have lots of baggage.
Shuttle – Shared six-seater MaxiCab shuttle service to designated areas/hotels costs $7 and can be booked in advance or in the arrivals hall. 6AM-2AM, every 15-30 min.
Subway – MRT trains run from a station between T2 and T3, but you’ll need to change trains at Tanah Merah to a city-bound train: just exit through the left hand side door and cross the platform. The 30 min ride to City Hall station costs $1.90 plus a refundable $1 deposit, and trains run 05:31-23:18.
Bus – Bus terminals can be found in the basements of T1, T2 and T3. 06:00-23:59 only. Fares are less than $2.00, exact fare required (no change given) if you pay cash.

Others : N.A.