Description of the attraction
Chimes Hall is a complex of buildings located on Victoria Street in downtown Singapore. The buildings of this architectural ensemble belong to different styles and eras. Nowadays, it is this combination of ancient and modern architecture that gives the complex additional attractiveness.
The history of the oldest building in the hall began in the middle of the 19th century. The authorship belongs to the first colonial architect of Singapore, Irishman George Coleman. The building was named after its first owner, a British judge - Caldwell House. It did not belong to him for long, and was bought for the needs of the Catholic mission. At the Caldwell House, French nuns organized a girls' school, which became the basis of a Catholic monastery. It became known as the monastery of the Holy Infant Jesus. The complex of monastic buildings expanded. The most notable addition was the Gothic chapel with a high spire and columns, decorated with unique stucco molding, exquisite stained glass windows and frescoes.
The further transformation of religious buildings into a popular secular place is associated with the relocation of the monastery to a quiet suburb in the nineties of the last century. The city authorities have assessed this set of architectural structures as a national treasure.
After a large-scale restoration, entrepreneurs were attracted here. Chimes Hall is now a trendy and busy place. This autonomous shopping and entertainment complex includes art galleries, shops, restaurants of national cuisine, bars. The monastery school became an art gallery, and the Gothic chapel became a multifunctional hall, which is called Chimes Hall. Now, concerts, exhibitions and even weddings are held under the arches of the former church. For celebrations, a branded Australian restaurant is open here, decorated with soft pink marble and furnished with elegant furniture in the style of the fifties.
This urban ensemble was named indirectly in memory of the former monastery: chimes are chimes, that is, tower bells.
