Little more than a year after government plans to demolish the Star Ferry and Queen's piers sparked an outcry about our disappearing past, a hidden gem that exemplifies the discussion has come to light. The Jardine's Lookout flat of actress Lin Dai, preserved in almost the same state by her late husband as when she committed suicide in 1964, is a rare snapshot of what life used to be like for the well-to-do in the 1950s.
In a sign of changed times, the government has been quick to respond to concerns about heritage preservation and is in talks with the couple's son, who wants to renovate and sell the flat. Given the value of the premises to our understanding of the past, it is to be hoped that the lesson of the King Yin Lei mansion in Mid-Levels has been learned and that an amicable deal can be quickly struck.
The actress' preserved home and its contents are, after all, not an everyday find. It is a window into a long-gone era, as well as being a collection of memorabilia of a beloved star. The King Yin Lei Chinese-style mansion was similarly worth preserving, but the owner was allowed to deface its facade before serious talks began. Eventually, he was persuaded to repair the damage and the building has been given temporary monument status.
Lin's flat reveals a facet of the government's heritage policy that needs to be looked at in discussions on how a new approach should be framed. It was not even on the lists of monuments or protected sites, yet clearly deserved to be. How it should be preserved is a difficult matter, given its location. At the very least, though, the contents should be kept together as much as possible and, if practical, the rooms recreated elsewhere.
Whatever the challenges, here is a perfect opportunity for authorities to put into practice what they have been promising. The chance cannot be allowed to slip by, nor dealt with shoddily.