Nantah Arch

This is a miniature version of the Nantah Arch found at the Yunan Garden in NTU. The design is typical of a Chinese architecture with a tiled roof and 3 different gates, each symbolizing a different element of Chinese traditional philosophy- sky(天), earth (地 ) and people (人). The characters ‘南洋大学’ (Nantah University) and date of its establishment ‘1955’ is found below the main arch. The arch has significant culture heritage as it was once the entrance of the first Chinese University outside of mainland China, providing higher education to the Chinese who were unable to pursue one in China due to the tight immigration control. It was also called a ‘People’s University’ as it was founded with the support of tycoons to hawkers who understood the need for the University (National Library Board, 2014). Today the replica of the arch appears at the Yunan Gardens, placed in front of the Chinese Heritage Centre which was also once the administrative building of Nantah.