Jack flew in from Kathmandu and Joseph Koh led us around Bukit Brown cemetery. Jack has a new GPS watch - and here is where we walked
All trips start at Joseph's
Sign - directing to graves of two families
A Hokkien grave site. The structure behind the tombstone is shaped like the Greek character, Omega. Some say it is symbolic of the womb from which the spirit will emerge. The teardrops represent ink drops, intelligence.
Another example of the Omega structure
Old gravesite with small Omega
Another example
Stone carving - guarding the grave
Another view
Another guard
Old grave with tile decorations
Lion guarding
A lady attendant
Another lady attendant
Lion
Another lion with teeth
Sitting on top of a column
The placement of guards and attendants
Old grave
White stone
Grave guarded by 2 Sikh guards
This guard is protecting
This guard is on patrol
Another view of positions - rifle butt broken
Another grave site with Omega structure, ink drop and guards
Note water channel along the inner aspect of the Omega
Another example
My brother Jack and Joseph Koh. Joseph was amazing - not only for helping with spider identification, but translating the Chinese characters and helping us understand the stories
Joseph describing
The Sikh-guarded grave - initiated about 1930
Ink drop signifying intelligence
Offering to spirits
New headstone
Multicolor Chinese characters
Omega structure, no water channel
In the field
Camaricus maugei - A colorful crab spider - note amazing reflections of blue sky and clouds on the anterior aspect of her cephalathorax
Reflections of the sky and clouds on the cephalothorax of Camaricus maugei
Face of Camaricus maugei with reflection of the blue sky and white clouds
A yellow orchid
Another view
Melastoma
Restored grave
Cluster of graves
Famous grave of Ong Sam Leong
Male lion guarding the grave
Female lion
Stone carving of the story of mother feeding the mother-in-law (Filial Piety -she has no teeth and cannot chew). Another version has the mother feeding the father-in-law
Another carving
Golden characters
Another story
The complete story
A Sikh guard
From the side
Female lion
For our medical students. The old man is sick and the attendant is smelling the feces for diagnosis
Another view
Reflections in the stream
Clusters of graves
C. Frank Starmer