The completed Ottawa Chinatown Royal Arch

 October, 2010

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Symbolism; learn more...

The centre blue panel on the Arch is Chinese characters saying "Ottawa Chinatown".

The Arch is rich in symbolism. For example, the tableau shown above is repeated on most of the nine roof corners. The dragon on the left represents the Emperor or government. The figure to the right is a civil servant or messenger riding a phoenix, sent out on state business. The three mythical monsters following him are to eat him up if he does not perform his duties to the highest standards.

The Chinatown business association has produced an informative booklet that explains some of the symbolism in the Gateway, allowing the viewer to "read" some of the stories on the Arch. It also explains some of the architectural features and traditions expressed in the gateway. The brochure will soon be available free at most merchants and restaurants in Chinatown.

Painting the Lion's Eyes

To cap off the unveiling ceremonies, Mayor O'Brien and Liang Wei painted the Lion's eyes with water, washing them, and symbolically awakening the Lions to do their duty guarding the new Ottawa Chinatown Gateway.

Unveiling the lions

At the base of the Arch there are two carved stone lions that guard the Gateway. Both were covered with red cloths, which were removed at the end of the ceremonies. Cloths were removed by representatives of the community:
Diane Holmes, Peter So, Larry Lee, Peter Yeung, Frank Ling, Bill Joe, Ron Tomlinson, and Marion Hum.

A traditional dragon dance followed the unveiling. There were two parent dragons and a baby dragon.

Some of the excitement and sounds of the opening ceremonies were captured in this CBC Morning show broadcast: http://www.ericdarwin.ca/downloads/CBC_Archway.mp3

Happy faces at the grand opening

Assembled together for the opening ...

People gather for the opening celebration. There were "invited guests" and VIP's in the seating area and crowds of people standing around the perimeter.

Councilor Diane Holmes (in gold dragon cape) and Mayor Larry O'Brien in the background.

L to R: Grace Xuexin of the Chinatown BIA; to the right of the Mountie is Lan Lijun, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China; John Baird representing the Government of Canada; Yasir Naqvi representing the Government of Ontario; Larry O'Brien Mayor of Ottawa; and Liang Wei representing Beijing.

October 7th 2010 was the fortieth anniversary of formal diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and Canada.

Setting the stage, 2.30pm

October 7, 2010: 2.30pm...

The stage is set, the chairs are ready to be warmed, but there is nary a dignitary in sight. The lions on the right and left are covered in red cloth for the official unveiling today at 3.58pm.

Scaffolding taking down

On October 1st the contractors removed the scaffolding that has surrounded the Arch since construction started. For the first time, viewers could see the whole arch at once, and previously hidden elments such as the finial shown below.

The Mandarin language characters in the centre panel say Ottawa Chinatown. The removed scaffolding reveals the four mythical beasts -- two at the base of each column -- that guard the Arch. The beasts are a combination of lion and tiger and other ferocious animals. The two guardian lion sculptures have not yet been exposed, they are still covered with protective wood hoarding.

The electrical utility poles at the left are non-functional, ie they do not carry electricity. The electric service stops at the corner of Cambridge. These are left-over poles that haven't been removed because the city-owned utility wants too much money to remove them. Ottawa remains one of the more curious places in the world, in  that it finds overhead wiring inoffensive and indeed features it on otherwise totally rebuilt and landscaped streets.