The Wan Chai Market was constructed in 1937. It is located at 264 Queen's Road East and Stone Nullah Lane

Stone Nullah Lane

Stone Nullah Lane is a retailing street in the Wan Chai district of Hong Kong island, Hong Kong. It intersects with Queen's Road East and is best known for its Wan Chai Market.One of the signs has now been defaced to 'Stoned Nuttah Lane'-See also:...

 in Wan Chai

Wan Chai

Wan Chai is a metropolitan area situated at the western part of the Wan Chai District on the northern shore of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. Its other boundaries are Canal Road to the east, Arsenal Street to the west and Bowen Road to the south. The area north of Gloucester Road is often called...

, Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...

. It is a Grade III Historic Building.

Its architectural style is influenced by Streamline Moderne

Streamline Moderne

Streamline Moderne, sometimes referred to by either name alone or as Art Moderne, was a late type of the Art Deco design style which emerged during the 1930s...

 (also known as Streamlined Moderne or Art Moderne) architecture, a popular style of building of the 1930s. It is often erroneously referred to as a Bauhaus

Bauhaus

', commonly known simply as Bauhaus, was a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught. It operated from 1919 to 1933. At that time the German term stood for "School of Building".The Bauhaus school was founded by...

-style building.

History

During Japanese occupation

History of Hong Kong

Hong Kong began as a coastal island geographically located off the southern coast of China. While pockets of settlements had taken place in the region with archaeological findings dating back thousands of years, regular written records were not made...

, the basement of the Wan Chai Market was occupied by the Japanese troop for the storage of corpses.

In 1961, the Market underwent a renovation to improve its facilities
and environment so that the Market could compete with other market places in the district.

The Land Development Corporation obtained approval from the Executive Council

Executive Council of Hong Kong

The Executive Council of Hong Kong is a core policy-making organ in the executive branch of the government of Hong Kong.. The Chief Executive of Hong Kong serves as its President.The Executive Council normally meets once a week...

 to acquire land in Wan Chai, including this site, for redevelopment as part of an urban renewal project. A consortium was formed comprising Chinese Estates (40%), Kwong Sang Hong (25%), Chi Cheung Investment (20%) and Peregrine Group

Peregrine Investments Holdings

Peregrine was an investment company based in Hong Kong...

 (15%).

Chinese Estates, controlled by Joseph Lau Luen-hung

Joseph Lau

Joseph Lau Luen Hung is a billionaire Hong Kong real estate investor who owns a 61% stake in Chinese Estates Holdings. His fortune is estimated by Forbes at $4.3 billion.-Wealth:...

, agreed with the Urban Renewal Authority

Urban Renewal Authority

The Urban Renewal Authority is a statutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating redevelopment to provide a better living environment and neighbourhood.-History:...

 in 1996 to jointly redevelop the site into a luxury residential-commercial complex. Phase two of the project, which requires the demolition of the building, was scheduled to start early 2008 and completion by mid-2011.

In 2007, the Urban Renewal Authority

Urban Renewal Authority

The Urban Renewal Authority is a statutory body in Hong Kong responsible for accelerating redevelopment to provide a better living environment and neighbourhood.-History:...

 and the Development Bureau jointly announced that the facade and the front part of the historic market building will be preserved in the redevelopment project; the front part will be used as a
shopping centre. A residential building will stand at the back of the market building.

In popular culture

In the successful video game by Eidos

Eidos Interactive

Eidos Interactive Ltd. is a British video game publisher and is a label of Square Enix Europe. As an independent company Eidos plc was headquartered in the Wimbledon Bridge House in Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton....

, Deus Ex, Wan Chai Market is used as the basis for a portion of the game.