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GEORGE TOWN: The 193-year-old St George’s Church, nestled in the shade of majestic Mahogany trees on the corner of Lebuh Farquhar and Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling in the heritage enclave here, may be home to buried treasure.

Vicar Rev Charles Samuel, convinced by the story, is keen to recover what is believed to be artifacts and memorabilia buried in the compound of the oldest Anglican church in Southeast Asia.

“It is believed that priceless artifacts were buried at the height of World War II in an area measuring 20 ft by 20 ft at the back of the church,” he told Bernama.

The church, built in the Georgian Palladian style in 1818 on the initiative of Penang Colonial Chaplin Rev Robert Sparke Hutchings, was not spared during World War II.

The Japanese air raid which began on Dec 11, 1941 saw six bombs dropped onto the lawn and part of the building but much of the walls, porch, columns and pillars survived the bombing.

However, all furnishing and fittings, including the statuary and floor tiles, were looted. Even the roofing material, and doors and windows were completely stripped away.

At the height of the looting, the then priest and workers managed to save many of the valuable fittings and artifacts, and stored them in a secret place before burying them at the back of the church.

The church caretaker, identified only as Raju, had once spoken about the buried treasure, said Rev Charles.

He said that Raju, now in his late 70s, has claimed to have seen vicar Rev Eric H. Scott, an Englishman, hurriedly burying various items in the church compound.

Raju was an orphaned young boy who had come to seek shelter at the church just before World War II. He had offered to clean the church and compound for meals and a roof over his head. He still lives in a small room at the back of the church.

Rev Charles said he hopes that the treasures can be unearthed by archeologists to help enrich the history of the heritage building.

“However, the task to recover the artifacts would be a costly affair as experts would have to use highly sophisticated and specialised tools,” said the senior clergyman who was inducted as the parish vicar early this year.

He said the church has no resources to undertake the mammoth task but would appreciate if interested parties, either local or foreign, can fund the project.

Construction of St George’s Church was funded by the East India Company with the use of Indian convicts in 1816 when Colonel John Alexander Bannerman was the British governor of Penang.

The church was completed in 1818 and consecrated on 11 May 1819 by the Bishop of Calcutta, Thomas Fanshawe Middleton.

The lawn of the church hosts a special memorial to Captain Francis Light, known as the founder of Penang in 1786, in a structure reminiscent of a circular Greek temple.

After the church was declared a national heritage building in 2007, the National Heritage Department undertook an almost RM2mil conservation project last year. The work was completed in February this year.

Rev Charles said St George’s Church has become a tourist attraction, registering more than 80,000 visitors from over 80 countries since February.

He hopes that the relevant authorities or corporate organisations can sponsor the setting up of a tourism booth at the entrance of the church to facilitate the movement of tourists in the sprawling compound.

The tourism booth can be a miniature of the historic church building, without affecting its heritage status, he said. [News link]

Posted by admin on December 20, 2011 under Penang Story.