25 Dollars 1972, Singapore
| in Krause book | Number: 4d |
| Years of issue: | 07.08.1972 |
| Edition: | |
| Signatures: | Minister for finance: Mr. Hon Sui Sen |
| Serie: | 1st Series - Orchid Series (1967–1976) |
| Specimen of: | 1967 |
| Material: | Cotton fiber |
| Size (mm): | 140 × 79 |
| Printer: | Bradbury, Wilkinson & Company Limited, New Malden |
* All pictures marked 
are increased partially by magnifying glass, the remaining open in full size by clicking on the image.
** The word "Specimen" is present only on some of electronic pictures, in accordance with banknote images publication rules of appropriate banks.
Description
Watermark:
Head of the lion.
The lion facing rightwards to represent a more forward looking nature.
Avers:
Centered are the orchids "Renanthopsis Aurora" or "H.Iwanaga".
Renanthopsis, abbreviated Rnthps in the horticultural trade, is the nothogenus for intergeneric hybrids between the orchid genera Phalaenopsis and Renanthera (Phal. x Ren.). 
At the bottom is red seal Type II.
Top right is the coat of arms of Singapore.
The National Coat of Arms of Singapore is the heraldic symbol representing the Southeast Asian island nation of Singapore. It was adopted in 1959, the year Singapore became self-governing within the British Empire. The committee that created it, headed by then Deputy Prime Minister Toh Chin Chye, was also responsible for the national flag and the national anthem of Singapore.
At the centre of the emblem is a red shield bearing a white crescent (a new moon, representing a rising young nation) and five white stars (representing various national ideals including multiculturalism), supported by a lion and a tiger (representing Singapore and Malaysia respectively); below them is a blue ribbon inscribed with Majulah Singapura in gold, Malay for "Onward Singapore".
The central emblem of the coat of arms is a red shield with five white stars resting above a white crescent, similar to the crescent and stars used on the Singapore flag and such other national symbols as the national ensign for civilian ships. Red symbolises "universal brotherhood and equality of man" and white "pervading and everlasting purity and virtue". The crescent represents a new moon, which reflects "a young nation on the ascendant", while the five-pointed stars "stand for the nation's ideals of democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality".
The supporters of the shield are a lion and a tiger: the tiger symbolises the nation's historical connections to Malaysia (which Singapore was a state of from 1963 to 1965) while the lion represents Singapore itself. Below the supporters is a blue ribbon on which the national motto, Majulah Singapura, is written in gold. Majulah Singapura is also the title of the national anthem; it means "Onward Singapore" in Malay, the national language of Singapore.
Denominations in numerals are in top corners, in words on the left side, at the bottom.
Revers:
The Old Supreme Court Building (Malay: Bangunan Mahkamah Agung Lama, Chinese: 最高法院大厦) is the former courthouse of the Supreme Court of Singapore, before it moved out of the building and commenced operations in the new building on 20 June 2005. The building was the last structure in the style of classical architecture to be built in the former British colony. The building, together with the City Hall, has been converted into National Art Gallery of Singapore which was opened in 2015.
Many colonial-built houses were built before the courthouse was constructed in the 1930s, in addition to the Grand Hotel de l'Europe, which was demolished to make way for the new building. Raffles initially designated the site for public use, but his administrator in Singapore, Willam Farquhar, allowed private residences to be constructed there. By the 1830s, houses built in Madras chunam lined the streets that faced the sea. The residence of Edward Boustead designed by George Drumgoole Coleman stood there.
The house was remodeled to become hotels of several names, namely London Hotel, Hotel de l'Esperance and later Hotel de l'Europe. However, these houses made way for the Grand Hotel de l'Europe in 1900, the only other hotel in Singapore that could be comparable with the landmark Raffles Hotel. The Grand Hotel boasted a lounge, reading room, a bar, shops and a roof garden, a novelty at that time. In 1932, the hotel's business declined and filed for bankruptcy. It made way in 1936 for the present building, the former building had good views of the Padang from its verandah.
On 1 April 1937, the original foundation stone of the Old Supreme Court Building, (then the biggest foundation stone in the whole of Malaya) was laid by the Governor of the Straits Settlements, Sir Shenton Whitelegge Thomas. Buried beneath the stone, is a time capsule containing six Singaporean newspapers dated 31 March 1937, and a handful of coins of the Straits Settlements. The capsule is not due to be retrieved until the year 3000.
The building was declared open on 3 August 1939 by Sir Shenton Thomas and handed over to the Chief Justice, Sir Percy McElwaine, on the same day.
The courthouse had 11 courtrooms and adjoining judges' chambers. In 1988, a further 12 courtrooms from the City Hall were transferred to the Supreme Court to accommodate the needs of the main courthouse, as it needed more courtrooms.
The building used to have many premises[clarification needed]before moving to the premises at City Hall. Engineer Frank Dorrington Ward's plan was to demolish the Singapore Cricket Club, Old Parliament House and the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall to make way for a grand government scheme designed by his department. However, this plan was interrupted by the onset of World War II.
The building was the site of war crime trials of members of the Japanese Imperial Army in 1946 after the World War II.
The Old Supreme Court Building, together with the adjacent City Hall, was converted into the National Gallery Singapore opened in 2015.
Built in front of the historical Padang grounds between 1937 and 1939, the Old Singapore Supreme Court building was designed by Frank Dorrington Ward, an engineer of the Public Works Department of Singapore, and was his last and most significant piece of work.
The former courthouse features Corinthian columns, classical design, and spacious interiors with murals by the Italian artists. The four-storey steel structure was erected by United Engineers. The building consists of four blocks surrounding a central courtyard which houses the circular law library with its significant dome and Travertine columns supporting two balconies on two levels. Behind the main dome, there is a smaller dome.
The Corinthian columns and The pediment sculpture are works by Cavaliere Rudolfo Nolli. Nolli also carried works for the general building, pre-cast works, imitation stone sculptures, artistic decorations, special plastering and bush-hammered facing works.
In the tympanum sculpture, the central figure represents Justice; to the left is a person begging for mercy (or protection), and next to him are the legislators with books in hand, representing the Law. On the other side of Justice is a figure showing gratitude, then a man and a bull, and two children holding a sheaf of wheat, all representing Wealth, Prosperity and Abundance where Law and Justice prevails. (www.nusantara.com).
A tree is shown near the Old Sumpere court building. It is almost on par with the building. Such photo I have not found yet.
But, I have an opinion about the tree. I think, it is the Samanea saman, which is very common in Singapore.
Samanea saman, also sometimes known as albizia saman, or the rain tree, is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is native to the Central and South America. Its range extends from Mexico south to Peru and Brazil, but it has been widely introduced to South and Southeast Asia, as well as the Pacific Islands, including Hawaii. Common names include saman, rain tree and monkeypod (see also below). It is often placed in the genus Samanea, which by yet other authors is subsumed in Albizia entirely.
Saman is a wide-canopied tree with a large symmetrical umbrella-shaped crown. It usually reaches a height of 15-25 m. (49-82 ft.) and a diameter of 30 m. (98 ft.). The leaves fold in rainy weather and in the evening, hence the name "rain tree" and "five o'clock tree" (Pukul Lima) in Malay. The tree has pinkish flowers with white and red stamens, set on heads with around 12-25 flowers per head. These heads may number in the thousands, covering the whole tree.
During his 1799-1804 travels in the Americas, Alexander von Humboldt encountered a giant saman tree near Maracay, Venezuela. He measured the circumference of the parasol-shaped crown at 576 ft. (about 180.8 m.), its diameter was around 190 ft. (about 59.6 m.), on a trunk at 9 ft. (about 2.8 m.) in diameter and reaching just 60 ft. (nearly 19 m.) in height. Humboldt mentioned the tree was reported to have changed little since the Spanish colonization of Venezuela; he estimated it to be as old as the famous Canary Islands dragon tree (Dracaena draco) of Icod de los Vinos on Tenerife.
The tree, called Samán de Güere (transcribed Zamang del Guayre by von Humboldt) still stands today, and is a Venezuelan national treasure. Just like the dragon tree on Tenerife, the age of the saman in Venezuela is rather indeterminate. As von Humboldt's report makes clear, according to local tradition, it would be older than 500 years today, which is rather outstanding by the genus' standards. It is certain, however, the tree is quite more than 200 years old today, but it is one exceptional individual; even the well-learned von Humboldt could not believe it was actually the same species as the saman trees he knew from the greenhouses at Schönbrunn Castle. A famous specimen called the "Brahmaputra Rain Tree" located at Guwahati on the banks of the Brahmaputra River in Assam, India has the thickest trunk of any Saman; approximately twelve feet (3.66 meters) diameter at breast height (DBH).
Large branches of the tree tend to break off, particularly during rainstorms. This can be hazardous as the tree is very commonly used for avenue plantation.
Denominations in numerals are in top right and lower left left corners. In words - at the bottom.
Comments:
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