工程照

世德堂谢公司，简称谢公司，是槟城历史悠久的姓氏团体，为福建“五大姓”之一。谢公司的族人皆来自福建漳州海澄县石塘社。19世纪中叶，石塘谢氏逐渐聚居在本头公巷，购地建立了宛如同姓村的公司聚落。即四周属于族亲所住的店屋群，围合成一个封闭的院子，合院内耸立祠堂和宗议所。通往院子的是一狭窄的门通，门楼上刻有“宝树”两大字的门额，那是代表姓谢的堂号。

谢公司是一座中西合璧的宗祠建筑。传统闽南一殿两扶昔，前带拜亭的寺庙形式巧妙的结合了双层“凸规”洋楼平面。到了1930年的整修，前面的凸规拜亭改造成铁花栏杆和西洋柱形，并加上灰塑西洋狮子，更显西化。有趣的是，楼身还加了一圈木雕马来 “檐板” 饰，形成一种中西杂揉，兼带马来风味的峇峇建筑。

文思古建公司于2013年受委全面修复谢公司，修复众多项目，从更换地板铺面，到木作结构、屋顶瓦作和墙体油漆。修复完成后的谢公司于2016年获得亚太区房地产大奖的五星级最佳公共服务建筑奖。

Cheah Si Hock Haw Kong Kongsi, more commonly known as Cheah Kongsi, is one of the ‘Big Five Clans’ of old Penang Hokkien community. The clansmen of Cheah Kongsi originated from the Sek Tong Seah in the district of Hai Teng, Zhang Zhou prefecture of Fujian Province, which is presently the designated Development Zone of Hai Chang, opposite of Xiamen. In mid-nineteenth century, the clansmen who resided at the Armenian Street acquired a piece of land to construct a massive congregation of clan buildings, which comprises largely domestic shophouses that encloses majestic ancestral hall and clan offices within.

The ancestral hall Seh Tek Tong is an eclectic architecture of the East and the West. The inherent forms and spaces descend from the traditional Hokkien planar configuration of a single hall with two wings fronted by a prayer pavilion. The Chinese plan was then doubled to make a two-storeyed building and the new form conveniently echoes the qualities of an Anglo-Indian bungalow. During a restoration in 1930, wrought iron balustrades and neoclassical capitals with lion plaster sculptures were added to the prayer pavilion. On top of that, continuous strip of Malay style engraved timber fascia board lines the prayer pavilion at its center. All of these elements gave rise to a masterpiece with a subtle Baba’s influence.

In 2013, Wensi Heritage was contracted to undertake the restoration of Cheah Kongsi to its original entirety. The scope of works included floor works, rectification of timber structures, roof works and repainting works. Cheah Kongsi was commended as the 5-Star Public Service Architecture for the Asia Pacific Region at the Asia Pacific Property Award in April 2016.