BELIEVED to have been built by Cheah Chen Eok, who was a part of “the big five Hokkien families of nineteenth century Penang” (Yeetuan Wong, 2007), the Moon Gate, which is located near the Botanical Gardens, at the start of a 7km trek to Penang Hill, still has relatively little literature written on it.

There are remains of Cheah’s bungalow up the path from the gate. The mansion “was one of 11 famous mansions of Penang as mentioned in the Penang Gazeteer by visiting Chinese scholar Li Jun who stayed in Penang for 3 months in 1891. The name of the mansion is "Yu Yi Yuan" (Yu Yi Garden). According to Bin Lang Yu Zhi Lue, it was located to the right of the water source, presumably the Waterfall reservoir. There was a plaque at the Moon Gate which read yong yi. yu yi and yong yu are derived from the Analects of Confucious (24th paragraph in the Xian Jin Chapter of the Lun Yu). Yi is the name of a river in Shan Don Province in northeast China. Yu Yi means to take a bath in the Yi river, and Yong Yi probably means singing praises of the river Yi.” (Penang Travel Tips)

Cheah is also best remembered for building the Queen Victoria Memorial Clock Tower in George Town to commemorate the diamond jubilee of the Queen’s reign. Read here for more 

In related news, recently, the RM7mil expansion plan for the Botanic Gardens came under fire after a group called “Save Penang Botanic Gardens”, spearheaded by the Penang Heritage Trust called the project to be halted un­­til a public briefing on it is organised. “Attempts by non-governmental organisations to put forward recommendations have come to nought. The two archways being constructed near the entrance of the gardens are simply horrible and ugly,” stated the group. Read here for more.

References

• Wong, Y.T, 2007 The Big Five Hokkien Families in Penang, 1830s–1890s, Chinese Southern Diaspora Studies, Volume 1, 2007, pp 106-115
• Moon Gate (Penang Travel Tips)

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