https://www.hengpangkiat.com

EMERALD HILL and Heng Pang Kiat

Heng Pang Kiat had many residences in Singapore and also in Malacca, Malaysia, but his primary place of residence was 44 Emerald Hill Road.
This property is still around today and is classed as a conservation shophouse (i.e. heritage-protected) with the Singapore postal code 229320.
It is located on a relatively quiet street these days and is literally a stone's throw from Orchard Road.

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URA article on Heng Pang Kiat and Emerald Hill

There are several references to this property and the adjacent units.
A quick Google search yielded a document entitled 50 Emerald Hill Road by URA
(ref: URA 2003). Note that his name is also alternatively spelt as Hing Pang Kiat.
Here is a screenshot:

(picture source: URA 2003)

According to the article, Heng Pang Kiat developed a row of 8 shophouses even numbered 38 to 52 on Emerald Hill Road in 1908.
The architect firm was d’Almeida & Kassim. (ref: URA 2003)

Heng Pang Kiat also developed another row of 4 shophouses on Emerald Hill Road even numbered 30 to 36
but used a difference architect by the name of Yeo Hock Siang. (ref: Lee 1984)

As the developer, he also owned some of the shophouses himself.
His chief residence was number 44 Emerald Hill Road. (ref: URA 2003)

According to family documents, he also owned number 42. (ref: TBA)

In a Straits Times Domestic Occurences announcement, it is stated that he passed away in number 28 Emerald Hill Road (ref: The Straits Times 9 May 1930)
It is very likely that number 28 was one of his properties that housed other family members. (personal conjecture)

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Why number 44 Emerald Hill Road?

The number 4 is actually considered to be a auspicious and propitious number by the Teochews. (ref: DBS 2023, Murray 2023)
In Teochew culture, it is considered lucky to give "red packets" of money (紅包 Teochew: ang5 bao1) in monetary groups of 4
(e.g. $4, $40, $44 etc...) during Chinese New Year and other festivities like weddings etc... (ref: DBS 2023)

The house numbers with 4 or 44 are often desired and chosen by Teochews for its particular auspicious connotations. (ref: Murray 2023)

The most common explanation is that in Teochew, the number 4 (四 Teochew: si3) sounds like the word "happiness" or "joy" (喜 Teochew: hi2).
(ref: DBS 2023, Murray 2023, Learn Teochew 2023)

Another possible explanation is that the number 4 (Teochew: si) is pronounced close to the word "silk" (絲 Teochew: si1)
or even the "Emperor's seal" (璽 Teochew: si2), a symbol of royalty, power and prosperity. (personal conjecture) (ref: Learn Teochew 2023)
(Note: I updated Wikipedia on this topic.)

Perhaps Heng Pang Kiat was also fond of the old Chinese idiom 四季发财 (To be Wealthy All Year)? (personal conjecture) (ref: Travel China Guide 2023, The Daily China 2023)

In any case, Heng Pang Kiat had the choice of 12 house addresses along Emerald Hill Road, and interestingly, he still picked number 44 for his primary residence!

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Emerald Hill book by Lee Kip Lin

(picture source: Lee 1984)

One of the best published references on Heng Pang Kiat is a locally written book called
Emerald Hill - the Story of a Street in Words and Pictures

[Author: Lee Kip Lin
Contributor: National Museum (Singapore)
Publisher: National Museum, 1984
ISBN: 9971917092, 9789971917098
Length: 88 pages]

This book is no longer in print so copies are getting scarce.
Occasional used copies turn up on Amazon UK and it is definitely a keepsake book worth getting if you are a descendant of Heng Pang Kiat.

I was able to obtain a used copy of Lee's book many years ago from a small used bookshop in the USA but they would not ship overseas,
so I got them to ship it to my cousin Dr Darlene Lim in California instead and she shipped it to me, which I am super grateful for.
Dr Darlene Lim is a NASA scientist and also a descendant of Heng Pang Kiat.
You can read more about her work at NASA here
Her personal homepage is called DarleneLimology

Heng Pang Kiat is discussed in this book as one of the keystone developers of Emerald Hill, with a feature blurb on number 44 Emerald Hill Road.
Lee spelt his name as Hing Pang Kiat and also Khoo Yeo.
On page 86, the row of houses even numbered from 38 to 52 are attributed to Heng Pang Kiat, using the architect d’Almeida & Kassim as per the URA article above
Heng Pang Kiat was also credited in the book for developing the row of houses even numbered from 30 to 36,
but using a different architect by the name of Yeo Hock Siang.
On page 88, there is even a great full page silk painting of Heng Pang Kiat dressed in traditional Chinese regalia!

(picture source: Lee 1984)

The silk painting is dated c1900 and the book incorrectly writes his birth year as 1860, instead of 1856.
So he was actually 44 years old when this painting was done. It may be sure coincidence, but are you getting a common theme with the number 44?

I tried to figure out who actually owned this silk painting of Heng Pang Kiat and whether there was even a chance I could view this painting in person,
or at least take a colour photograph. Sadly, by the time I started investigating this silk painting, the author of the book had passed away.
Lee did not mention the source of this painting in his book.
Anyone knows where this painting is or who it belongs to these days?

Who was Lee Kip Lin?

A Singapore Peranakan and architect, the late Lee Kip Lin was born in 1925 and educated at the
Singapore Chinese Girls' School and the Anglo Chinese School.
He received his architectural training at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, University of London.
From 1956 until his retirement in 1984, he combined a career in private practice with teaching at
Singapore Polytechnic and University of Singapore (now called National University of Singapore or NUS).
He was the author of several monographs on Singapore's architectural history and a keen collector of Singapore memorabilia.

It is interesting that Singapore Chinese Girls' School was located in Emerald Hill at the time, hence his own interest in the area.

You may want to read up more on the book author in the following articles:

BiblioAsia (National Library of Singapore) article on Lee Kip Lin

Another article by Singapore InfoPedia on Lee Kip Lin

Some of Lee Kip Lin's notable publications include

Telok Ayer Market: A historical account of the Market from the founding of the settlement of Singapore to the present time
by Lee Kip Lin | 1 Jan 1983 (out-of-print)

and

The Singapore House: 1819-1942
by Lee Kip Lin | 15 Mar 2015

When Lee passed away, his family donated thousands of photos and microfilm to the museum
- some of his photos of Singapore in the developing years (1965 to 1995) were collated into a book called
Through the Lens of Lee Kip Lin: Photographs of Singapore, 1965-1995

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References

Bourne, Murray. Interactive Mathematics Accessed 27 July 2023

DBS Bank Singapore 8 interesting facts about Ang Baos for the win Accessed 27 July 2023

Learn Teochew Learn Teochew Wiktionary Index S Accessed 27 July 2023.

Lee Kip Lin (1984) Emerald Hill - the Story of a Street in Words and Pictures National Museum Singapore, ISBN 9971917092, 9789971917098, p88

Travel China Guide Lucky Number 4 Accessed 27 July 2023.

The Daily China Did you know that the number four can also symbolise luck in Chinese culture?" Accessed 27 July 2023.

The Straits Times (9 May 1930) Domestic Occurrences Lee Kong Chian Reference Library, National Library, Singapore. Microfilm reel NL635, p6

Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore URA (2003) 50 Emerald Hill Accessed 27 July 2023

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