The New Clock Tower, or Retro Clock Tower, as it is popularly known among Taipingites, is a tower with an electronic clock located at the entrance to the Market Square (now known as Halaman Pasar), facing Jalan Taming Sari (formerly known as Main Road). The Market Square is where Taiping’s old market complex is located. The tower marks the entrance to the old market complex, and is a major landmark in the city. The architectural style is unmistakably art deco, with large stained glass panels and a stepped tower.
The site where the tower stands was originally the site of a very large and ornate cast iron fountain, donated by Ng Boo Bee in Taiping’s very early formative years. This fountain was relocated when this clock tower was built, and is now at the Lotus Pond in the Taiping Lake Gardens.
The retro clock tower, so nicknamed for it’s very distinct architecture, was once neglected and was in a sorry state of disuse and disrepair for many years, with the clock face non-functional.
Restoration works were carried out early this year and the clock is now fully functional again, with new lights to light up the brilliantly-coloured stained glass panels that line the tower’s central column. The new lighting scheme gives off some very strong synthwave/ outrun vibes with the alternating RGB lights when lit at night, even more befitting it’s moniker.
