THE TOUR / The Stone Carving and Structure of Leong San Tong
 Praying For. - A general and a child hold a flag (qi) and a ball (qiu) respectively. This pictorial presentation is a pun on the phrase praying for (qi qiu) |
 Auspices and blessings. - The figures hold a halberd (ji) and a chime (qing) respectively. This pictorial presentation syombolizes auspicies (ji) and blessings (qing) | The carvings on the walls are rich and significant. By means of metaphors or other figures of speech, these carvings convey directly or indirectly various messages. Some of them portray the arrival of good fortunes and the avoidance of bad luck. These include "eastern dragon, western tiger" (dong long xi hu). "praying for auspices and blessings" (qi qiu ji qing). "wealth and safety" (fu gui ping an), "sun, moon and kylin" (ri yue qi lin), "three goats for auspicious beginning" (san yang kai tai), "joy flies onto the eyebrow" (xi shang mei shao), etc. Most of them feature the motifs of flowers, birds, animals and human figurines. |
 Safety - The vase (ping) represents safety (ping an), while the peony stands for wealth. Together they represent wealth and safety (fu gui ping an) |
 The Kylin sculptures on the walls adjoining the portal represent benevolent animals  The relief sculpture with three goats is a pictorial representation of the auspicious expression "san yang kai tai", literally meaning three goats for auspicious beginning, which is commonly used at the beginning of the year  A stone carving at the top panel of the front wall features the story of Lady White Snake saving her husband - an episode in The Legend of the White Snake  The stone carvings feature the two affections, namely the affection of Lotus by Wang Xi Zhi, and the affection of Plum Blossom by Meng Hao Ran |
 Eastern dragon. On the left, the engraving features two dragons in the cloud and sea |
 Western tiger. On the right, the exquisite folklyric engraving features two tigers, one big and one small, roaming in the woods | ||
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Some other carvings depict educational themes commonly found in the Chinese mythology, historical anecdotes of folklores. These include stories from Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Legend of the White Snake, and "The Picture of the Four Affections." The thematic messages of these depictions are the traditional values of loyalty, filial piety. faith and righteousness.
Among them, the most famous ones are the four panels at the front wall of the Cheng Soon Keong that depict the twenty-four stories of filial piety. Each panel has six stories, and some of the stories reappear in the murals inside the halls. The recurrence of these stories is to remind the Khoo clan of the importance of filial piety, for it is the continuous practice of filial piety that the clan culture can continue for generations. | |||
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The first panel depicts 6 of the 24 stories of filial piety (CLICK TO ENLARGE) |
The second panel depicts 6 of the 24 stories of filial piety (CLICK TO ENLARGE) |
The third panel depicts 6 of the 24 stories of filial piety (CLICK TO ENLARGE) |
The fourth panel depicts 6 of the 24 stories of filial piety (CLICK TO ENLARGE) |
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