The tomb plot was the biggest in Seh Ong cemetery. Together with his two sons’ tombs Peng Hock and Boon Tat buried next to him, it would easily be as big as 3 basketball courts.
Ong Sam Leong would be an influential member of the Ong clan that could be the reason why he was allowed to be buried in the highest hill of the Ong cemetery. In 1910, Ong was instrumental in deciding to smooth the road to the Hokkien cemetery adjacent to the Tai Yuan Shan
Ong Sam Leong wife Yeo Hean Neo belonged to one of the old Yeo family. Her aunt Yeo Choon Neo was the first wife of Song Hoot Kiam. Perhaps nothing speak better of her than the following obituary notice published on 27 May 1935 about her charitable work.
She was the personification of sympathy and kindliness.
No one who has ever turned to her for help has ever been turned away empty handed.
She was a plain person and she loved plain people. Wealth and station in life counted for nothing with her.
Ong Boon Tat and Ong Peng Hock with Mrs Ong Sam Leong celebrating her 69th birthday
The funeral was a grand affair being she was buried next to her husband in Tai Yuan Shan
The tomb was constructed based on fengshui principles. From the tomb inscriptions, we learned that Ong and his wife came from Kinmen.
There was also a couplet mentioning Tai Yuan, no doubt refering to Tai Yuan Shan, the burial ground of the She Ong Cemetery
From the tomb inscription, we know that the tomb sits on 辛山乙向
Xing (west) direction and facing the Yi 乙 (east) direction.
This is no doubt using a kind of fengshui burial arrangement for the placement to bring forth abundance wealth and plenty of children for the future generations.
There is a very big half moon shaped granite flooring, known as the
明堂 (bright hall) whereby the auspicious qi can gather. The surrounding moat of running water embraces the tomb. Water is also drained out through two auspicious dragon fish outlet in the tomb
Dragon fish “Ao” water outlet
The wall panels of the tomb depicts the full set of the 24 filial piety stories:
You can see one of the stories here:
Yu Qianlou Tasting His Father's Stool out of Grave Concern for His Health
A pair of Silk guards and stone lions protect the graves.
There are also many auspicious carvings on the tomb, for example Fu Lu Shou, the 3 lucky gods.
Even for the Earth deity who protects the tomb, it is as big as a grave itself
Fu Shen – Earth Deity
Other characteristics of the graves include the Minton tiles on the granite flooring, favored by the peranakan families then
Not only the old Mrs Ong was fond of Malay opera plays, it was said that the Ong family even engaged the services of a Malay caretaker family, who built their house next to the tomb.
In a report in 1993 in the Chinese newspapers, it was said that a 70 year old Malay woman still come to clean up the place once in a while
Rest well, Sam Leong and Yean Neo. May your deeds and way of life continue to inspire and teach our future generations
