A Study of Jewish Refugees in China (1933–1945) by Guang Pan

Author:Guang Pan
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789811394836
Publisher: Springer Singapore

The Moller Villa

British Jew Eric Moller came to Shanghai in 1919 empty-handed and made his fortune here by winning bets on the horse races. He was chairman of the Shanghai Horse Racing Club. In 1930, he bought a land at Yarppe Road (now 30 Shanxi South Road) and built the villa. In 1936, the villa was completed. With the base area of 5269 m2, it covers an area of 1396 m2 and the total construction area is 3132 m2. The main building is a brick and wood structure, covering an area of 894 m2 and a building area of 2411 m2. The family lived at 3 floors, with a total of 106 rooms of various sizes. The lawn garden on the south side of the house is about 2200 m2.

The overall style of the building reflects the Scandinavian style of Northern Europe. At that time, it was unique since almost all other foreign buildings in shanghai were of Western European style, therefore it is an important historic site in the history of modern buildings in Shanghai. On both sides of the main building, there are four-slope top towers with different heights, sleek shapes and fine decoration. The east tower is nearly 20 m high, and the west tower is about 25 m high. The four slopes on the top of the tower have bay windows and plastic ornaments. The top surface of the tower is covered with blue aluminum tile. Behind the top of the east tower there is a small spire with a stained-glass roof. These high and steep roofs reflect the architectural features of the Nordic houses in high latitudes, designed to withstand the cold winds and reduce the snow area, while the villa was designed to be aesthetically pleasing. The south façade of the main building has three double-sloping roofs and four cusp bay windows, which are intertwined with the three four-slope spires on the east and west and are shaped like a magnificent little palace. The wooden components at the top of the double slopes are clearly exposed and the white ash is wiped between these components. This is typical style of Nordic country houses. The exterior wall of the main building is covered with Taishan bricks, and the surrounding walls are made of imported refractory bricks, and the roof is made of yellow and green glazed tiles. The entrance of the house, the foyer and the staircase have the Baroque charm. The interior decoration of the main building is exquisite, and the wall planks are inlaid into various patterns and colored. The wooden flat top is finely carved and painted. In addition, the wainscoting, alcove, door frames and escalator railings of the aisles in the hallway are decorated with a wide variety of carved or laminated feet, and the bottom of the escalator is also made of carved wooden flat tops. The escalators in the building are tumbling up and down, and even the rooms on the same floor are often accessed by going up and down stairs.

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