Thian Hock Keng Temple

Translating into a 'Palace of Heavenly Happiness', Thian Hock Keng is a temple and a national monument. Also known as Tianfu Temple, it was built for the worship of Mazu, a Chinese sea Goddess. This shrine is one of the oldest and most prominent shrines of the Hokkien community of Singapore. The temple first started as a little joss house built during 1821-22, at the waterfront. The seafarers and immigrants of the Hokkien community gave thanks to Mazu for a safe sea passage on their arrival to Singapore. The temple originally ran along the coastline until the land reclamation work began in the 1880's.

Starting its construction in 1839, the temple was built with the help of funds and donations collected over the years from the community. A statue of Mazu and numerous building materials were imported from China. The statue of Mazu was enshrined in the main hall of the temple in 1840. The building resources like timber, tiles and stone for the columns were recycled from ballasts in ships. The Indian community of the local Chulia street helped build the temple. As a reminder to the Indian community's kind gesture, a statue of a man who seems to be an Indian, holding a beam up at the ceiling was placed in the right wing. Eventually, the temple was completed in 1842, at the cost of 30,000 Spanish dollars.