Main entrance to CHIJMES.

The CHIJMES Hall, designed by Father Charles Benedict Nain as a chapel, was completed in 1904.

The steeple of CHIJMES Hall.

The Gate of Hope at CHIJMES.

Intricate floral and bird motifs on the Corinthian columns at CHIJMES Hall.

A few of the 648 capitals on the columns of the Chapel and a spiral staircase along a corridor.

Today, CHIJMES is a flourishing centre of fine restaurants and retail shops.

Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Middle Education School (CHIJMES) (Chinese: 赞美广场) is a historic building complex in Singapore, which began life as a Catholic convent known as the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus (CHIJ) (圣婴女修院) and convent quarters known as the Caldwell House (古德威尔屋). The complex is located at Victoria Street in the Downtown Core, within the Central Area, Singapore's central business district. 1904 (MCMIV) is a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Steeple is a the name of a number of settlements: In the United Kingdom Steeple, Cumbria Steeple, Dorset Steeple, Essex Steeple is also an architectural term. ... Corinthian refers originally to the port of Corinth in Greece Corinthian order a classical order of Greek and Roman architecture Corinthian league Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: First Epistle to the Corinthians Second Epistle to the Corinthians Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Armenian Orthodox) The... A capital of the Composite order In Western architecture, the capital (from the Latin caput, head) forms the crowning member of the column, which projects on each side as it rises, in order to support the abacus and unite the square form of the latter with the circular shaft. ... This article is about an abbey as a religious building. ... Victoria Street (Chinese: 和维多利亚街) is a street located in the Downtown Core area of Singapore. ... The Downtown Core is technically an urban planning area in the city-state of Singapore which surrounds the mouth of the Singapore River, and is part of the Central Area, Singapores central business district. ... The Central Area is the collective term for a group of financial and commercial districts in centre of Singapore which was previously otherwise known as the Central Business District and was renamed to accommodate the expanded function of the area. ... The central business district of Melbourne, Australia. ...

This complex of convent buildings has a Gothic-style chapel. It was used as a Catholic convent for 131 years, with Caldwell House constructed in 1840–1841 and the chapel in 1904. The chapel, now known as CHIJMES Hall (赞美礼堂) and converted into a multi-purpose hall, and Caldwell House, now an art gallery, have been protected as Singapore's national monuments. The complex has been restored for commercial purposes as a dining, shopping and entertainment centre with ethnic restaurants, shops and a function hall, providing a backdrop for musicals, recitals, theatrical performances and weddings. See also Gothic art. ... A chapel is a private church, usually small and often attached to a larger institution such as a college, a hospital, a palace, or a prison. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... take you to calendar). ... 1904 (MCMIV) is a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... An art gallery or art museum is a space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art, and usually primarily paintings, illustrations, and sculpture. ... The Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB), a statutory board under the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA), has so far gazetted 54 buildings and structures in Singapore as the National Monuments of Singapore. ... Commerce is the trading of something of value between two entities. ... In general terms, eating is the process of consuming something edible. ... Shopping is the examination of goods and services with the intent to buy. ... Entertainment is an amusement or diversion intended to hold the attention of an audience or its participants. ... Toms Diner, a restaurant in New York made familiar by Suzanne Vega and the television sitcom Seinfeld A restaurant is an establishment that serves prepared food and beverages to be consumed on the premises. ... A function hall is a room for the purpose of hosting a party. ... Musical theatre (sometimes, although less often than not, spelled theater rather than theatre) is a form of theatre combining music, songs, dance, and spoken dialogue. ... A recital (from the Latin word recitare, meaning: to read out) consists of an account or repetition of the details of some act, proceeding or fact. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... The examples and perspective in this article do not represent a worldwide view. ...

History

In October 1852, four French nuns arrived in Penang after having travelled overland from their native country in caravans. Reverend Mother Mathilde Raclot, leader of this group, was to become a key personality in the early history of the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus on Victoria Street. 1852 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Nun in cloister, 1930; photograph by Doris Ulmann In general, a nun is a female ascetic who chooses to voluntarily leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent. ... State motto: Bersatu dan Setia (United and Loyal), formerly Let Penang Lead Capital George Town Governor Tun Dato Seri Haji Abdul Rahman bin Haji Abbas Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon Area 1,056 km2 Population  - Est year 2000 1,225,501 State anthem Untuk Negeri Kita (For... Caravans comprise land-based trading convoys, often utilising the camel as a beast of burden, and generally associated with crossing deserts in Asia or Africa. ... An Abbess (Latin abbatissa, fem. ...

From Penang, the nuns sailed to Singapore. On 5 February 1854, they reached the island's shores and took up residence at the first convent quarters, the now gazetted Caldwell House. The house had been purchased for the convent by Father Jean-Marie Beurel, a French missionary, who also established Saint Joseph's Institution, the former site of which is now the Singapore Art Museum, and the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, where he was the parish priest. February 5 is the 36th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1854 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... A british term for announcing something such as defining the borders of a park reserve. ... A missionary is a propagator of religion, often an evangelist or other representative of a religious community who works among those outside of that community. ... Saint Josephs Institution (SJI) is a Catholic secondary school for male students in Singapore. ... Cathedral of the Good Shepherd The Archbishops residence on the grounds of the Cathedral. ... A parish is a type of administrative subdivision. ... Roman Catholic priest LCDR Allen R. Kuss (USN) aboard USS Enterprise A priest or priestess is a holy man or woman who takes an officiating role in worship of any religion, with the distinguishing characteristic of offering sacrifices. ...

Caldwell House was designed by George Drumgoole Coleman, and is an example of his Neoclassical style. The bay on the upper floor became the sisters' lounge. Lazienkowski Palace in Warsaw The neoclassical movement that produced Neoclassical architecture began in the mid-18th century, as a reaction against both the surviving Baroque and Rococo styles, and as a desire to return to the perceived purity of the arts of Rome, the more vague perception (ideal) of Ancient... A Bay is a module in classical or Gothic architecture, the distance between two supports of a vault or the unit of an opening and its framing on a façade. ...

The nuns began taking in pupils only ten days after moving in. Reverend Mother Mathilde staffed her school with sisters from the parent Society, the Institute of the Charitable Schools of the Holy Infant Jesus of Saint Maur. She dedicated 20 years of her life turning the convent into a school, an orphanage and refuge for women. Two classes were conducted, one for fee-paying students and another for orphans and the poor. Slowly, the nuns managed to restore the house into a simple but austere residence. American high school students in a school A school is most commonly a place designated for learning. ... An orphanage is an institution dedicated to caring for orphans (children without living parents). ... Refuge has a number of meanings: Wildlife refuge National Wildlife Refuge, protected area in the United States Christian programme for teenagers run by Love In Action Buddhist religious practice This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Austerity is a term from economics that describes a policy where nations reduce living standards, curtail development projects, and generally shift the revenue stream out of the physical economy, in order to satisfy the demands of creditors. ...

The first chapel of the Convent, which had been built around 1850, was in such a bad condition that it was necessary to build a new one. At the end of the 19th century, the Sisters started fund-raising by various means for the new chapel. The old one was becoming so dangerous that the Sisters decided to celebrate mass in Caldwell House. 1850 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Categories: Wikipedia cleanup | Stub ... Mass is the term used of the celebration of the Eucharist in the various liturgical rites of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglo-Catholic tradition of Anglicanism, and in certain Lutheran parishes and provinces, such as the Church of Sweden which are largely High Church. ...

Father Beurel acquired all the nine lots of land between Victoria Street and North Bridge Road, originally belonging to the Raffles Institution, that would constitute the entire convent complex. He presented them all to Reverend Mother Mathilde. Name Raffles Institution Abbreviation RI School Code 3009 Chinese Name 莱佛士书院 Pinyin Láifóshì Shūyuàn Malay Institusi Raffles Tamil ராப்பிள்ஸ் கல்வி நிலையம Address 1 Raffles Institution Lane Country Singapore Area Bishan New Town Founded 5 June 1823 Type Independent Session Single Students Boys Levels Secondary 1 to 4 Colours Green Black...

After being granted land in 1849 for the formation of Saint Joseph's Institution, Father Charles Benedict Nain, a priest at Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, tried his luck once more for the building of a school for girls. He was refused but, undaunted and after returning re-inspired from his voyage to France in 1852, he was engaged as an architect for the construction of the chapel at the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus and, on behalf of the Roman Catholic community, was in charge at the same time of the construction of the extension of the Saint Joseph Institution. The construction of the chapel started in 1901 and it was completed by 1904. Father Nain was highly involved in the worksite. He is the author of all the fine architectural details found in the chapel. 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1852 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... 1904 (MCMIV) is a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Much of the knowledge about the daily activities of the convent comes from seven volumes of diaries that were meticulously kept by convent scribes. These diaries cover over a hundred years of convent history, from 1851 to 1971; they are handwritten in French and entitled Annales de Singapour. From their observations, it is known that life within the convent walls was anything but sedate. Apart from daily chores, the nuns also had to organise and attend mass, grade papers, maintain the buildings and the grounds as well as raise money to support their activities. An appointment diary A diary or journal is a book for writing discrete entries arranged by date. ... Illustration of a 15th century scribe This is about scribe, the profession. ... 1851 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... Mass is the term used of the celebration of the Eucharist in the various liturgical rites of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglo-Catholic tradition of Anglicanism, and in certain Lutheran parishes and provinces, such as the Church of Sweden which are largely High Church. ... A grade in education can mean either a teachers evaluation of a students work or a students level of educational progress, usually one grade per year (often denoted by an ordinal number, such as the 3rd Grade or the 12th Grade). This article is about evaluation of... To examine somebody or something is to inspect it closely, hence an examination is a detailed inspection or analysis of an object or person. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Saint Nicholas Girls' School was established in 1933. The school first held classes in the four old bungalows which formed the Hotel Van Wijk of the 1890s. It later moved into its new premises at the town convent in 1949 when the school was incorporated in the convent grounds. The school has since relocated to Ang Mo Kio in 1985. 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... A bungalow is any single story house. ... The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the Mauve Decade, because William Henry Perkins aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that colour in fashion, and also as the Gay Nineties, under the then-current usage of the word gay which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ... Ang Mo Kio is a heartland new town located in north central Singapore, and is generally within the North-East Region. ... This article is about the year. ...

The last religious service was held in the chapel on 3 November 1983, after which the chapel was deconsecrated and the town convent was closed. Careful restoration work has preserved much of the original structure of the convent and the chapel. After almost five and a half years of conservation and construction work, what was once the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus and the seat of education for generations of Singapore girls, has been converted into a plaza of theme retail and food and beverage outlets interspersed with ample outdoor spaces and courtyards, cloistered walls and long, covered walkways. This haven in the city hub of Singapore, now known as CHIJMES, is a S$100 million project unmatched for its location and unique ambience. It won a Merit Award in the UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation in 2002. In the protestant denominations of Christianity, a service of worship is a meeting whose primary purpose is the worship of God. ... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... To consecrate an inanimate object is to dedicate it in a ritual to a special purpose, usually religious. ... Restoration can be one of several things, depending on context: In criminal justice, restoration is another term for restorative justice. ... Conservation may refer to the following: Conservation ethic in relation to preserving ecosystems Conservationist Conservation movement Conservation ecology Conservation biology Energy conservation in reducing non-renewable energy consumption Conservation law of physics Conservation of energy Conservation of mass Conservation (genetics) in genetics Conservation (botany) in botanical nomenclature Conservation (psychology) in... In commerce, a retailer buys goods or products in large quantities from manufacturers or importers, either directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells individual items or small quantities to the general public or end user customers, usually in a shop, also called store. ... A court or courtyard is an enclosed area, often a space enclosed by a building that is open to the sky. ... Cloister of Saint Trophimus, in Arles, France A cloister (from latin claustrum) is part of cathedrals and abbeys architecture. ... The Singapore dollar, divided into 100 cents, is the monetary unit of Singapore (currency code SGD). ... UNESCO logo The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, commonly known as UNESCO, is a specialized agency of the United Nations system established in 1945. ... 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel and Caldwell House were gazetted as a national monument on 26 October 1990. The Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB), a statutory board under the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA), has so far gazetted 54 buildings and structures in Singapore as the National Monuments of Singapore. ... October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... This article is about the year. ...

Architecture

The Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus is distinctive for being a architecturally self-contained city block in Singapore. It contains groups of buildings of different styles and periods in order to maintain a diversity in aesthetics. They are formed around courtyards and other expansive spaces, landscaped and enclosed with walls which scale with its urban surroundings. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... A court or courtyard is an enclosed area, often a space enclosed by a building that is open to the sky. ... Landscape architecture is the art, planning, design, management, preservation and rehabilitation of the land and the design of man-made constructs. ...

George Drumgoole Coleman's house built in 1840-1841 for H.C. Caldwell, a magistrate's clerk, is the oldest building in this enclave, which also includes the Gothic chapel and Saint Nicholas Girls' School buildings. It was in the Caldwell House that the nuns did their sewing, reading and writing for so many years in the semicircular upstairs room whilst the first storey served as a parlour and visitors' room. The early Gothic style chapel has finely detailed works, such as the plasterwork, the wall frescoes and stained glass panels. 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... take you to calendar). ... A magistrate is a judicial officer with limited authority to administer and enforce the law. ... A clerk can be someone who works in an office and whose duties include record-keeping or correspondence. ... C is As enclave and Bs exclave. ... Turn of the century sewing in Detroit, Michigan An old sewing machine Sewing is an ancient craft involving the stitching of cloth, leather, animal skins, furs, or other materials, using needle and thread. ... Parlour (or parlor), from the Fr. ... Fresco by Dionisius representing Saint Nicholas. ... Strictly speaking, stained glass is glass that has been painted with silver stain and then fired. ...

The grand Anglo-French Gothic chapel was established with the support of the Catholic community in Singapore and beyond. Designed by Father Nain, the chapel is one of the most elaborate places of worship ever built in Singapore. The chapel was completed in 1904 and consecrated the following year. Anglo-French is a term that may be used in several contexts: Nationality, eg. ... Places of worship are buildings or other locations where religious persons may worship their deity, regularly or not. ... 1904 (MCMIV) is a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

A five-storey spire flanked by flying buttresses marks the entrance to the chapel. The 648 capitals on the columns of the chapel and its corridors each bear a unique impression of tropical flora and birds. A modern spire on the Lancaster University Chaplaincy Centre A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. ... A buttress (and mostly concealed, a flying buttress) supporting walls at the Palace of Westminster Three different types of buttress: diagonal, on the statues plinth; an ordinary buttress supporting a flying buttress, to the right of the statue; a small ordinary buttress to the right side of the picture... A capital of the Composite order In Western architecture, the capital (from the Latin caput, head) forms the crowning member of the column, which projects on each side as it rises, in order to support the abacus and unite the square form of the latter with the circular shaft. ... Roman pillar In architecture and structural engineering, a column is that part of a structure whose purpose is to transmit through compression the weight of the structure. ... Hall is a term often used to refer to several different types of room in a house or a building. ... The tropics are the geographic region of the Earth centered on the equator and limited in latitude by the two tropics: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere. ... Flora may refer to: Flora (goddess), a goddess in Roman mythology Flora (plants), a collective term for plant life; as distinct from fauna (animals); or, a book or other work that describes the plant species occurring in a particular area or region. ... Aves redirects here. ...

The various buildings are related by design with the intent to form exterior spaces which would be pleasing for its users, and were used for church school activities until November 1983 when the school vacated the premises. The spaces contained within the whole block have been adapted for public use, and form one of the major buildings in the Central Area. 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Public art in a public space in Lille, France One definition of public space or a public place is a place where anyone has a right to come without being excluded because economic or social conditions (fees, paying an entrance, being poor, ...). Malls are examples of private space with the...

References

• National Heritage Board (2002), Singapore's 100 Historic Places, Archipelago Press, ISBN 9814068233
• Norman Edwards, Peter Keys (1996), Singapore - A Guide to Buildings, Streets, Places, Times Books International, ISBN 9971652315
• Preservation of Monuments Board, Know Our Monuments

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

CHIJMES

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External links

• CHIJMES Online
• Uniquely Singapore article
• Journey to Singapore's Yesteryears - CHIJMES