A new Maritime Heritage Foundation (MHF) is being set up to support the establishment and development of a new public maritime museum in Singapore, dedicated to collecting and exhibiting artefacts, documents, records and information of historical or cultural significance to Singapore as an important trading station along the Asian maritime silk route.
MHF will also support efforts to acquire artefacts salvaged from shipwrecks, either as permanent collections of or exhibits at local public museums and art galleries for public education and as attractions for Singapore's overseas visitors.

The first substantial donation contributed to the MHF was received from the Estate of Tan Sri Khoo Teck Puat, in memory of the late philanthropist, at a private event on 13th January 2005.

MHF will be chaired by Mr Bobby Chin, Managing Partner of KPMG, with representation from Sentosa, Singapore Tourism Board and other organisations. It will be financed by both local and international philanthropists as well as private corporations who support the preserving of, learning about and sharing of the world's rich maritime and cultural history. Details of the new Foundation are currently being worked out and more details will be revealed in due time, but the Khoo's significant donation is a first critical boost to getting it underway.

As a direct result of this contribution to MHF, Sentosa is pleased to announce that it has raised sufficient funds to proceed to buy the magnificent 9th century Tang Treasure as a permanent maritime attraction for Singapore. The purchase of the Tang Treasure was concluded in February 2005.

Sentosa announced in December 2004 that it had acquired the rights to exhibit, with an option to purchase, this astounding maritime treasure trove dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907AD). Since then it has held several private viewings to secure funding for the Collection's purchase and was successful in securing the necessary fund in just a couple of months.

With the Tang Treasure purchase now concluded, Sentosa expects to take receipt of about 10,000 artefacts by June / July 2005 and the balance 50,000 pieces by the end of the year.

Working closely with the Singapore Tourism Board and other key government agencies, the longer tem plan is to house these priceless exhibits in a new public maritime museum, coined the 'Singapore Maritime Silk Route Museum'. This museum will also support research and conservation. Details of this new museum are being studied, including its location and funding model.

Until an appropriate location is found for the new Singapore Maritime Silk Route Museum, the Tang Treasure will be exhibited in an interim facility. However, the public will be able to see key highlights of the collection in its first public showcase at the Asian Civilisations Museum from 15 June to 31 July 2005.

"Singapore has achieved a great deal and has much to be proud of, including our rich maritime past. The Estate of Tan Sri Khoo Teck Puat believes we should focus more on our history, and therefore it wants to help create new avenues to share this aspect of our culture with the world," Mavis Khoo-Oei, Chairman of Goodwood Park Hotel said.

Editor's note:

The Tang Treasure
The 9th century shipwreck of Arab or Indian origin was laden almost entirely with Chinese trade and imperial ceramics. It was discovered in 1998 in heavily silted international waters between Sumatra and Borneo. Salvaged from the oldest shipwreck found in Southeast Asia, this rare time capsule dating back 1,200 years features some 60,000 well-preserved artefacts of great cultural, archaeological and historical significance. The Tang artefacts have been authenticated by experts from around the world and key pieces are already widely acknowledged to have rewritten maritime history! Today, many renowned historians and collectors are excited to access it and help unravel its many hidden secrets. Singapore's rich sea trading history and geographical position – right at the crossroads of the maritime trading route between Western Indian Ocean and China – make the republic the perfect location to exhibit this magnificent collection of sunken artefacts.

Fact Sheet One

TAN SRI KHOO TECK PUAT
The late Tan Sri Khoo, who died in February 2004, is most often remembered as one of Southeast Asia's richest businessmen, whose business acumen earned him the description of "dealmaker extraordinaire" from The Straits Times. But his remarkable business achievements have tended to overshadow his equally important contributions to Singapore's and Malaysia's economic and philanthropic development.

An historic early contribution was the role Khoo played in the creation of Malaysia's consumer banking industry, through the establishment of the Malayan Banking group in 1960. In six years, he opened an average of three new branches every two months, creating one of Malaysia's most successful banking groups to date, whose Maybank skyscraper building still graces Singapore's skyline. With this rapid growth, Khoo's Maybank helped introduce widespread banking to Malaysia's emerging middle class just as the rapid postwar growth took hold, thus supporting the country's growth through consumer finance and "democratization" of banking.

Another industry that benefited significantly from Khoo's involvement was Singapore's tourism and hospitality business, where his portfolio of hotels helped put Singapore on the world tourism map. The properties he owned at one time or another include the Ming Court Hotel and Holiday Inn, now known as the Orchard Parade and Royal Plaza on Scotts. Others were well-known in their day, though they no longer exist, such as the Hotel Malaysia, Cuscaden House, Ladyhill and Connaught Hotel.

However, the hotels Khoo is best known for are the Goodwood Park Hotel and the nearby York Hotel. Officially designated a Singapore landmark in 1989, the Goodwood – through the Khoo family's nearly 30 years of ownership – has preserved and honed its reputation for quiet elegance.

Khoo was also among the first Singaporeans to "go global" long before that trend became popular among the business community. Aside from his Singapore hotel portfolio, Khoo once owned the largest chain of hotels in Australia, the Southern Pacific Hotel Corp., which he bought in 1981 and sold in 1988. But his biggest global foray came in 1986 when he was one of three investors to become the largest single shareholder in the British bank Standard Chartered. While his two partners sold out, he held onto his stake, forming the basis of the family's fortune to this day.

Throughout his successful career on the global business scene, Khoo maintained a commitment to giving back to Singapore through numerous charities and philanthropic projects. Over the years, he quietly donated millions of dollars to the community, and in 1981, set up the Khoo Foundation with a S$20 million grant.

"He was always low profile, always generous during his lifetime," says his daughter Elizabeth Khoo, "and inculcated this sense of community commitment into his family members." The Khoo family has continued the tradition, mostly recently in May with a S$2 million donation to the Singapore American School to complete the building of a new school library. The donation towards the purchase of the Tang Treasure is a significant next step in this continuing family commitment to vital philanthropic efforts.

Fact Sheet Two

THE TANG TREASURE
The Tang Treasure was discovered in 1998 by Tilman Walterfang in Indonesian waters between Malaysia and Borneo and salvaged from a sunken 9th century Arab or Indian dhow vessel that was probably bound for what is today's Saudi Arabia. These East Asian antiquities – which are causing the world's collecting and museum circles to redefine the boundaries of historical knowledge – make up some 60,000 items intended for trade and an imperial gift. 98% of the collection is made up of ceramic pieces with the balance artefacts made of gold and silver.

This collection was not only meticulously salvaged by stringent archaeological and conservation procedures, but Tilman Walterfang's company Rickshaw Investments has also ensured professional legal licensing and adherence to world salvage processes, even though the waters where the wreck was found are not governed by UNESCO guidelines.

In archaeological terms, the sunken Tang Treasure is generally not regarded as a particularly large collection. However, its significance lies in the rarity of the artefacts within the collection. To retain the integrity of the find, Tilman Walterfang has stipulated that the collection be bid for and purchased as a single lot, despite pressure from several interested parties and auction houses to sell the collection in smaller lots.

Rickshaw Investments' salvage affiliate Seabed Explorations has also paid meticulous attention to historical, archaeological and conservation procedures throughout its operations, unlike standard treasure hunters. It has received top marks from experts who were invited to supervise the processes. News of this discovery only circulated recently because the company had been running the treasures through the painstaking desalination and immersion processes necessary for proper preservation.

Fact Sheet Three

Special significance of the Tang Treasure
This collection of artefacts has been authenticated by experts from around the world and stand out on several counts:

1. The Tang shipwreck is the earliest South-East Asian ship discovered to date, and only such vessel in the world with a complete load of 9th century cargo. This makes it the largest collection of 9th century artefacts today.
2. The shipwreck and its cargo map out a seaborne trading route hitherto only speculated about. The overland silk route was common knowledge but this sunken treasure trove establishes China as the first great sea power, 200 years before the Spanish, Portuguese and British had theirs. This sea route is also the longest of that era, not to be surpassed until the Portuguese ventured into Asia in the late 15th century.
3. It was a known fact that Arab and China were exchanging gifts. However during the 9th century, China's Tang dynasty was paramount. This valuable gift going from China to Arabia further increases the importance of this find. Moreover, many of the gold items have matching pairs, raising speculation of a royal wedding in Arabia. Some of the motifs featured on the artefacts suggest the blending of Arabic and Chinese cultures. Whatever the occasion, the value and immaculate quality of these items demonstrate the fortification of peaceful relations between China and Arabia.
4. The ship carrying the Tang Treasure featured Arabic ship building technology using Indian timber. This coming together of different cultures has redefined the parameters of our maritime knowledge.
5. The three well-preserved blue-and-white ceramic plates from the Tang Treasure offer physical proof that this ceramic technology started much earlier than generally thought. This find rewrites the boundaries of our knowledge.