Murray House | |||||||||||||
Murray House is now situated in Stanley
|
|||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 美利樓 | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Transcriptions | |
---|---|
Standard Mandarin | |
Hanyu Pinyin | Měilì Lóu |
Yue: Cantonese | |
IPA | [mēilèi lɐ̏u] |
Jyutping | mei3 lei6 lau4 |
Murray House is a Victorian-era building in Stanley, Hong Kong. Built in the present-day business district of Central in 1844 as officers' quarters of the Murray Barracks, the building was moved to the south of Hong Kong Island during the 2000s.This building has become an iconic landmark in Hong Kong. After housing the Hong Kong Maritime Museum, now in Central, it is now home to restaurants and shops.
Murray House was one of the oldest surviving public buildings in Hong Kong. Similar to many of its contemporaries from the early colonial era, it was designed in Classical architecture style. The heavy stone walls (with flat arched opening) are on the ground floor to give a sense of stability, while the lighter Doric and Ionic columns are on the floors above to allow better ventilation. All floors have verandas on all sides in response to the local subtropical/monsoons climate.
Murray House was built in 1844 as officers' quarters of the Murray Barracks during the early years of British rule. It was named after Sir George Murray, the British Master-General of the Ordnance at the time. The designer and constructor were Major Aldrich and Lieutenant Collinson of the Royal Engineers.
During the 44-month Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, the building was used as the command centre by the Japanese military police. It was also the execution place for some Chinese citizens.