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Bringing back the grandeur: conversion of Kom Tong Hall to Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Lai, Wing-Fai Yeung, Evita So Chan, Shing-Wai |
| Copyright Year | 2008 |
| Abstract | Kom Tong Hall is a four-storey Edwardian style classical building and is amongst the very few century-old mansion structures surviving in Hong Kong. It was originally a private residence of Ho Kom-tong, a Chinese comprador. It was later sold to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and used as a religious centre since 1960. When the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government acquired the building in 2004, with the plan to convert it into a museum in memory of the great Chinese statesman Dr Sun Yat-Sen, it was found that the building had been refurbished a number of times. Some of the alterations and additions over the years had been completed to meet the previous needs of a residence or a religious centre. Moreover, the restoration project had to be completed within 14 months so that the museum could be opened within 2006 to commemorate the 140th birthday of Dr Sun Yat-Sen. It was indeed a great challenge for the conservators to convert the historical building into a modern museum, while retaining the uniqueness of the building features under a tight time frame (Figure 1). Before drawing up and implementing the conversion plan, several interviews had been conducted with the previous owners regarding the past history, ornamental design, colour scheme and construction method of the building. With reference to the old architectural plans and the information collected from various sources, it was decided that the building should be returned to its original 1914 appearance in terms of the layout and settings by removing the later additions and alterations of less historic significance. The restoration programme thus included façade cleaning, window restoration, structure consolidation, defects repair, restoration of distinct elements, addition of building services required of a public museum, etc. Amongst the others, the restoration of the distinctive gilded surfaces and stained glass windows is discussed in detail below. |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/Museum/Conservation/documents/10118435/10118865/7_LeungEST_2008_3.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
