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SCMP Reporter

THERE are always intriguing tales behind antiques, and the silver trowel on display at the ''Education in Hongkong: Past And Present'' exhibition at the Hongkong Museum of History is no exception.

  The trowel, used by former Governor John Pope Hennessy to lay the foundation stone for St Joseph's College in Robinson Road in 1881, was reported missing more than once.

    ''Someone took the trowel to Ireland, and then someone found it in a flee market and returned it to the school. But it disappeared again during the Japanese occupation,'' said Mr Joseph S. D. Ting, the curator of the museum.

    Some years ago, an Asian brought the trowel to the school office and then disappeared, he said.

    Besides this mysterious trowel, old photographs, academic publications, school emblems and documents which highlight the changes in the education system in the past 152 years are also on display.

    Special items include an iron used in the boarding school during the 1920s and a Chinese-English dictionary with a unique system of spelling English words with Chinese characters.

    ''In four years, Hongkong will be taken over by China. Now is a good time to review the developments in education,'' Mr Ting said.

    The exhibition aims to illustrate the progress of the Hongkong education system and the effects of political, socio-economic and cultural developments on the system. It is divided into four time periods.

    Winning entries of an inter-schools competition of study projects on the history of Hongkong education are also on display.

    The winners of the competition are Wa Ying College, Jockey Club Ti-I College and Yuen Long Public Secondary School.

    In the old days, private schools (Sishu ) and study libraries were the places to learn.Government and subsidised schools were founded in the latter half of the 19th century.

    During the Japanese occupation, schools were suspended and education came to a standstill.

    After the war, the Government took a more active role in education, enforcing compulsory education and expanding post-secondary education.

    The exhibition is being held from now till September 9. Museum hours are 10 am to 6 pm from Monday to Saturday and 1 pm to 6 pm on Sundays and public holidays. The museum is closed on Fridays.

    Admission fee is $10 (half-price for students and senior citizens).



An exhibition highlighting the developments in education will run from now till