Koi Bench - Ashcroft, British Columbia
Posted by: 
T0SHEA
N 50° 43.183 W 121° 16.738
10U E 621487 N 5620068
Koi Bench is located near the Joss Temple in the Ashcroft Chinese Cemetery on Barnes Street.
Waymark Code: WM145ED
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 04/20/2021
Views: 0
Koi Bench
The Tsui Family of Vancouver donated the funding for this bench. Their family has been visiting the Chinese Cemetery for over 30 years to pay respects to their grandfather who is buried there.
The Koi Bench was designed by local artist Marina Papais, who has been working in glass and mosaic for 35 years.
The koi symbolizes. in Asian culture, luck and good fortune. The koi is used quite often in art, and even tattoos.
Ashcroft Chinese Cemetery is located in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District. Though not currently active, the cemetery was neglected for decades. It was a period of over 15 years, that the dedicated members of the Chinese community, Ashcroft Rotary and Lion Club membership made possible the restoration of this historic cemetery completed in 2017.
This is the final resting place of at least 49 members of the Chinese community many of whom came here to help build the Canadian Pacific Railway. The Cemetery is on CPR property, and open to the public. "The Chinese cemetery was developed by the CPR over 100 years ago with 49 visible grave sites including 7 with original headstones. The first internment took place in the late 1800’s and the original headstones that are still there are dated in the 1940’s - 1960’s.
