Remember a time when the Merlion stood proudly at the heart of Sentosa?
The 37-metre-tall half-fish, half-lion statue became one of the island’s most recognisable landmarks.
That was until it “disappeared” in 2019. Seven years on, its absence still prompts a question among locals and visitors alike.
Just last month, a user on Reddit asked on the r/asksg forum: “Why was the Merlion Statue destroyed?”
Source: Reddit
The Original Poster (OP) attached two photos of the former Merlion statue that stood tall in Sentosa, evoking nostalgia and sadness from many local netizens.
Although many remember the news of its demolition in 2019, it’s clear that netizens are still curious as to why the statue was removed.
Today, MS News is diving into the history behind the iconic Sentosa Merlion.
As the symbolic guardian of Singapore’s tourism and economic growth, the Sentosa Merlion was built to serve as a major tourist attraction in Singapore.
Built in 1995, the Sentosa Merlion was a 37-metre-tall iconic tower, serving as the largest Merlion statue in Singapore.
Designed by Australian sculptor James Martin, the S$8 million statue towered over Imbiah Station, its body adorned with 320 scales.
The tower stood on a base resembling a bagua, an eight-sided feng shui motif associated with prosperity and affluence.
Additionally, the eight-sided pattern was also repeated on the 320 scales on the tower as a deliberate nod to feng shui symbolism.
Source: Robert Sevorino on Facebook
Inside, the Merlion tower houses exhibits such as a three-dimensional animated story of how Sang Nila Utama discovered Singapore.
Visitors could also take a lift to viewing galleries at the tower, either overlooking the panoramic views of Sentosa via its mouth or on its head.
On the rear end of the Sentosa Merlion was the Merlion Walk, where visitors could admire mosaic sculptures and water pools.
The colourful, Gaudí-inspired pathway was a recreation of the fable of how the Merlion ascended from the water to its ridge-top location overlooking Singapore.
Apart from being an aesthetic spectacle, the tower also served as an important piece in Sentosa’s attractive experiences.
The tower played a part in the ‘Magical Sentosa’ show, a popular multimedia nighttime fountain show that played at the Sentosa Musical Fountain at Imbiah Lookout.
Staged from 2002 to 2007, the multimedia show revolved around the interactions between an orderly fountain master and the frantic monkey.
Source: ECA2
An impressive display of visuals, fire effects and music was shown during the whimsical musical.
Although not considered a prominent character, the Merlion statue comes to “life” and emitted green lasers from its eyes that shone down on the fountains during the last act of the show.
Source: ECA2
After the show ended on 25 March 2007, beach-based nighttime productions like ‘Songs of the Sea’ and later, ‘Wings of Time’, took over as new musical experiences in Sentosa, but the Merlion was not involved in those shows.
While many Singaporeans loved the Sentosa Merlion, the tower posed several issues, according to online reviews at least.
During its lifespan, the tower began to show signs of wear and tear due to exposure to the sea, winds and other elements of nature.
Source: TripAdvisor
One netizen who weighed in on the Merlion’s removal suggested that the statue was built with a “limited lifespan”.
For one, its intricate design made cleaning “impossibly difficult”.
Its towering height also meant that the attraction could accommodate only a limited number of visitors at any one time.
“The trade-off in removing it [the Merlion] is that the space can now cater to a much larger crowd,” they said.
Source: Reddit
Under the initial Reddit post, a netizen noted that prior to the demolition, the beams inside the Merlion were corroded.
Source: Reddit
The decision to remove the Merlion was ultimately tied to Sentosa’s plan to redevelop the heart of the island.
In a written reply to a Parliamentary Question (PQ) in November 2019, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said that the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) had decided to demolish the statue “after exhausting all options of retaining or relocating it”.
According to SDC, the Merlion’s size and location would “severely constrain the development of the surrounding area”.
Additionally, it will also block access along the thoroughfare for elderly and less-mobile visitors.
The statue was therefore cleared to make way for a new north-south thoroughfare connecting Resorts World Sentosa to the island’s southern beaches.
The S$90 million project, later named Sentosa Sensoryscape, was conceived as a key part of the wider Sentosa-Brani Master Plan to transform the island into a major leisure and tourism destination.
Source: Wikipedia
Relocating the Merlion, meanwhile, was deemed “not feasible”.
Back in 2019, former Minister for Trade & Industry Mr Chan Chun Sing explained: “It is 37 metres tall, which is the same size as a 12-storey building with staircase, lift and other structural installations within it.”
He added that the decision to demolish the Sentosa Merlion was not made without recognising the statue’s sentimental value to Singaporeans.
In the same parliamentary reply, SDC acknowledged that its removal was a “difficult” decision because some members of the public had strong sentimental regard for the Merlion.
Today, the Sentosa Merlion is gone, but its reason for removal is fairly straightforward.
Ultimately, the planned redevelopment won out, and the space occupied by the statue stood in the way of a larger plan to reshape the island.
Singapore features five replicas of the original Merlion, but the Sentosa Merlion was truly one of a kind.
While its removal was necessary to make way for a new chapter in Sentosa’s development, that has not made the landmark any less memorable to those who’ve visited.
Also read: How this 22-year-old S’porean backpacked across Southern Africa on a S$3K budget
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Featured image adapted from Reddit and Wikipedia.