ReTRIeVIA

The unusual characteristics of the Raffles Pitcher Plant have fascinated scientists and laymen. The plant has been featured on two stamps and a currency note.

The scientific name of the Raffles Pitcher Plant is Nepenthes rafflesiana.

Another special characteristic of the Raffles Pitcher Plant is that the pitchers can have different shapes!

Leaves near the base of the plant produce fat U-shaped pitchers. The upper leaves produce slim V-shaped pitchers.

(Lower pitchers attract crawling insects; upper pitchers attract both crawling and flying insects.)

Also named in his honour is a very unusual plant known as the Raffles Pitcher Plant. This plant is unusual because it is carnivorous!

The leaf-tip extends to form a pitcher which is able to trap, drown and digest small animals such as insects and snails.

(The above illustration is a painting by artist Amy Sobrielo.)

(There is another unusual plant named after Raffles mentioned in page 10.)

Today, the trading station is an international business centre for many big shipping companies and banks.

In honour of Raffles and his foresight, many places have been named after him. Four of these places are featured on Singapore stamps.

The story of modern Singapore begins with its founding by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819.

On 6 February 1819, Raffles signed an agreement with the local chief to set up a trading station. At that time, Singapore was a simple coastal village.

Every Singaporean knows that Sir Stamford Raffles founded Singapore in 1819. Many may also know that he was a keen explorer of the flora and fauna of this region and have heard of the plant discovered in Indonesia that was named after him – the Raffles arnoldi, which has a flower famous for its enormous size and infamous for its smell of rotten meat. It is likely, though, that fewer Singaporeans have heard of another unusual plant, Nepenthes rafflesiana, discovered in Singapore and named after him, commonly known as the Raffles Pitcher Plant.

In this simple book, “Singapore Heritage: the Raffles Pitcher Plant”, Dr Tan Wee Kiat has innovatively communicated factual information by using stamps, phone cards, and currency notes. Readers receive an introduction to Singapore’s humble beginnings; learn that the Raffles Pitcher Plant is carnivorous, and that the plant is a living heritage that should be treasured by Singaporeans.

I recommend this book to all our students and teachers.

Professor Leo Tan

Director, National Institute of Education

Chairman, National Parks Board

2003

For the next 2 months or so, on every Monday and Thursday we will feature a page from the book “Singapore Heritage:  The Raffles Pitcher Plant”.  This will bring us to 6 Aug 09.