Hip Tin Temple of Sha Tau Kok was rebuilt between 1894 and 1895 to replace an earlier temple dedicated for the deity Kwan Tai who was bestowed the title "Hip Tin" in the Ming dynasty. It is a temple of significant historical value to the economic development of the Sha Tau Kok area in the late nineteenth century, and is one of the few surviving main temples associated with the Tung Wo Market operated by the village alliance "Shap Yeuk" (Alliance of Ten), which dominated the economy of the Sha Tau Kok area from the 1830s to 1930s. The temple’s rebuilding project was documented in details on the five stone plaques in the front hall, which also reflected the social network of the overseas Chinese community with the Sha Tau Kok area. Architecturally, the superbly crafted altar and fascia boards, the trefoil doorways of the front and rear halls, as well as the fine brick façade with granite door frame and plaster dragonfish corbels all remain intact.
The temple serves as a place to deliver religious, communal and educational functions for the local community in the last century. In the early twentieth century, it was used as the premises of a village school named Fuk Tak Study Hall. It has been used as a school again since 1959 as the then newly established Shan Tsui Public School used part of the temple as the school office and classrooms. In 2015, the school reverted to the name of its pre-war predecessor at the temple and was renamed Fuk Tak Education Society Primary School. Villagers of Shan Tsui still commemorate the Kwan Tai Festival on the thirteenth day of the fifth lunar month.
Hip Tin Temple was declared a monument in 2021.
Shan Tsui, Sha Tau Kok, New Territories (Plan)
Hip Tin Temple is located in the Frontier Closed Area (FCA). Please refer to the website of the Hong Kong Police Force for information on access to FCA.