Photo Gallery

Nagore Durgha Shrine (built 1828-30)

Nagore shrine is one of three surviving structures built by the Chulia people, who were immigrants from the Coromandal Coast of South India. The shrine was originally dedicated to the Muslim holy man Shahul Hamid Durgha of the city of Nagore, India. At the time of its completion in 1830, Telok Ayer street was adjacent to the shoreline. Over the next two centuries land reclamation projects have pushed the sea further to the south, leaving the site in the midst of downtown Singapore.

The shrine's architecture is an eclectic blend of classical Western motifs and Indian influences. The lower portion of the facade (hidden from view in the photos above) consists of a series of arches mounted on Western-style columns. The upper portion of the facade, with its 14-story minarets and perforated walls, is much more in keeping with traditional south Indian design.

The shrine was closed since the 1990s due to its deteriorating condition. At the time the above photographs were taken, the shrine was in the midst of a renovation. It reopened in 2007 as an Indian Muslim heritage center.

The architecture of Nagore Durgha Shrine is quite similar to a structure of the same name found in Penang, Malaysia (also archived on this website).