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This preliminary note introduces the first of two thematic volumes of the *Revista de Cultura* dedicated to the analysis of the complex European "encounters and mismatches" in the South China Sea during the Early Modern Period. The author contextualizes the initial Portuguese primacy in the region following the conquest of Malacca in 1511 and the subsequent consolidation of Macao as a vital entrepôt for trade with China and Japan. It examines the subsequent competition established by the Spanish presence in Manila and the aggressive expansion of the Dutch and English chartered companies, whose incursions in the seventeenth century profoundly altered the balance of power and the networks of exchange in maritime Asia. The text argues that the historiography of this period has often been limited by nationalist perspectives or by the restricted use of sources in a single language. To overcome these gaps, the present issue brings together ten contributions from international experts, seeking to offer an integrated and multidisciplinary view of the dynamics of cooperation, conflict, and diplomacy in the South China Sea. The author concludes that this compilation of scholarly studies serves as an indispensable analytical preface for the subsequent volume, which will be dedicated to the publication and analysis of seventeenth-century documentary sources produced by the various European protagonists that operated in the region.

This article investigates the practice and survival of exorcism rituals in Macau, contextualizing them within the long Chinese cosmological and spiritual tradition. The author, Ana Maria Amaro, explores the roots of these rituals in Taoist, Buddhist, and Confucian traditions, highlighting the historical figure of the Emperor and the literati as agents of protection against malevolent forces. The study details the magical dimension attributed to writing, calligraphy brushes, official seals, and classical texts, which functioned as powerful talismans and demonifuges capable of curing illnesses and repelling nefarious influences. In the specific context of Macau, the analysis focuses on the persistence of these beliefs and practices among the Luso-descendant community ("filhos-da-terra") until the end of the 20th century. The phenomenon of "bagate" — a form of witchcraft or possession by "errand souls" (gui) — stands out, as do the exorcism rites necessary to nullify it. Through an approach grounded in cultural anthropology and historical observation, the research reveals how these ancient rituals and faith in spiritual mediation resisted modernization, illustrating the complex intersection between magic, traditional medicine, and the social structure of Macanese society. It concludes that the survival of these customs attests to the continuity of an intangible heritage that defines the region's deep cultural identity.

This article analyses the exhibition Contemporary Painting of Macao, organized by the Macao Museum of Art and commented upon by the show's director-artist. Starting from the premise that contemporary Macao painting employs a qualitative language that dialogues with the city's collective memory, the text situates current production as a connecting thread between Macao's historical memories — from the city's entrepôt role in the encounter between the West and China in the seventeenth century, with missionaries such as Sambiasi and Castiglione — and today's artistic practices. The curatorial reading articulated in the essay emphasizes the idea of Macao as an archaeology of memories, a place of permanent communication between authors of different generations, beyond geographical borders. The analysis takes as reference works by artists present in the show, such as Konstantin Bessmertny, Exact time house; Mio Pang Fei, Palma; and the relationship between curatorial choices and the city's identity. The methodology combines critical-descriptive analysis of the works, historical contextualization of Macao, and reflection on the museological function of the exhibition, whose rotation of pieces reinforces the incomplete and evocative character of the Macanese collection. It concludes that the show is not merely a sample of the collection, but affirms Macao as a meeting point between West and East, memory and contemporaneity, opening perspectives for future readings of Macanese painting.

This article investigates the Parsee merchants who established themselves in Macao and Canton, situating their community within the broader mercantile networks of the Pearl River Delta. Carl T. Smith traces Parsee origins to Zoroastrian Persians who migrated first to India (notably Bombay) and then to China, where Parsis appeared in Canton before expanding into Macao's commercial sphere. A central focus is the Parsee minority's distinctive identity, including dress, customs, and a naming system that preserves the father's name as last name (patronymics) with occasional fixed surnames appearing in the nineteenth century; the study also notes the prevalence of patronymic endings such as *bhoy* and *jee*, which complicate kinship tracking. Methodologically, the article relies on archival, primary-source material: English East India Company records, Canton registers, the *Anglo-Chinese Calendar* (1832) listing Asiatic British subjects, and Canton General Chamber of Commerce membership lists. These sources enable a reconstruction of Parsee presence and movement: twenty-one merchants with clerks and servants in 1831; a substantial Parsee presence in five foreign-hong premises by 1832; a rising Parsee count through the 1830s (peaking in the mid-1830s, with continued representation into the 1840s). The piece also documents social incidents—such as a sunrise-prayer practice in Canton and a fatal quarrel at a Parsee-involved factory in 1829—illustrating religious identity and cross-cultural tensions. Conclusions emphasize the Parsee merchants as a significant yet understudied component of Macao's multicultural commercial landscape, whose diasporic networks linked Canton and Macao to wider Indian Ocean capitalism.

This article examines the presence and socio-economic activities of Muslim communities and "Moorish" traders in the Pearl River Delta from 1700 to 1930. While the early history of Islam in China is well-documented, the authors address a significant historiographical gap regarding the Qing dynasty, during which traditional Portuguese and Chinese records offer limited information. By utilizing alternative European maritime archives—specifically French and English ship logs—the study reconstructs the vital role played by Indian Muslim merchants and "Lascars" (sailors) from ports such as Surat and the Malabar Coast in the regional trade networks of Canton and Macao. The authors analyze the terminological complexities of the era, distinguishing between religious identity and the contemporary label "Moors," used by Europeans to categorize non-Chinese, non-European maritime actors. The findings highlight that despite being a minority, these groups were integral to the delta’s maritime economy, often preferred over European crews for their cost-efficiency and regional expertise. By tracking the evolution of these contacts into the early 20th century, the article demonstrates how maritime trade facilitated the establishment of permanent Muslim settlements, contributing to the cosmopolitan cultural fabric of Macao and the broader Pearl River Delta. This research underscores the continuity of the Muslim presence as a persistent, though often overlooked, element of South China’s social history.

This article examines the spiritual and intellectual journey of Wu Li (1632–1718), a preeminent painter of the "Six Masters of the Early Qing" and a central figure in the Orthodox School of Chinese landscape painting. Born during the transition from the Ming to the Qing dynasty, Wu Li initially utilized traditional literati arts to navigate a period of intense political censorship and cultural oppression. However, the author argues that his life was defined by an evolving quest for spiritual transcendence, metaphorically described as the search for a “Western lantern” to illuminate his inner self. The study traces Wu Li’s religious trajectory from his early engagement with Buddhist and Daoist circles to his pivotal decision at age fifty to travel to Macao to study Christianity. By analyzing Wu Li’s literary output—specifically the poems and verses composed during his tenure at the Jesuit seminary and his subsequent years as a rural priest—the paper explores how he reconciled his syncretic background in the Three Teachings with his conversion to Catholicism. The research further situates Wu Li’s experience within the historical context of Macao as a 17th-century center for religious and cultural exchange. Ultimately, the article evaluates how Wu Li’s adoption of the "Western Tao" served as a means of achieving religious fulfillment and personal enlightenment amidst the social and political upheavals of early Qing China.

Starting from the classical authors' separation of Seres and Sina, the paper investigates how European conceptions of East Asia—especially China—were formed, contested, and finally revised, culminating in the early modern cartographic reorientation associated with Portuguese exploration. It argues that the longstanding Seres misunderstanding persisted well into the age of discovery, obstructing a coherent map of Asia, until the Portuguese, by combining navigational practice with a developing cartographic tradition, helped to realign European maps with actual geography. The study traces this epistemic shift through a careful reading of both primary cartographic sources (Ptolemy’s Geography and its world map, 15th–16th century planispheres and portolan charts, including Homem’s 1559 Planisphere) and a broad historiography, including Yule, Coedès, Pelliot, Lach, Cortesão, and Armando Cortesão, as well as Portugaliae Monumenta Cartographica. Methodologically, Tao employs historiography–cartography synthesis: juxtaposing textual accounts with visual maps to demonstrate where misunderstandings originated and how the Portuguese voyage-and-map complex contributed to their clearing. Findings indicate that the Seres problem was not resolved by one discovery but by a cumulative reinterpretation of East Asia enabled through Portuguese routes, exchanges, and elite cartographic practice, which ultimately integrated Cathay/China into European geographic consciousness. The article thus reframes the Portuguese contribution as central to the history of European cartography and cross-cultural exchange.

This article analyses the trajectories and historiographical debates surrounding the formation of the world-economy and the process of globalisation, focusing on the historical interactions between Asia and Europe. The author begins the reflection with a critique of the contemporary and vulgarised use of the concept of "globalisation," often presented by the media and political discourse in an ahistorical manner lacking conceptual rigour. It is argued that this simplistic view ignores the genealogy of the phenomenon and often serves to mask persistent asymmetries and old forms of domination between the Western centre and global peripheries. Through an epistemological review that engages with the theoretical frameworks of the "world-economy" — referencing the influence of figures such as Fernand Braudel and Immanuel Wallerstein — the study examines how globalisation has consolidated itself as a representation of Western rationality and power. The text explores the tension between the narrative of a technological "global village" and the reality of the structures of social and worldwide division of labour that keep vast populations on the margins of development. It concludes that historiography must recover the temporal density and spatial dynamics of Euro-Asian relations in order to overcome Eurocentric views that reduce global development to a mere *imitatio occidens*, underlining the need to understand globalisation as a long-term historical process marked by structural inequalities.

This article examines the intersection between imaginary travel literature of Classical Antiquity and the historiography of European expansion in the Renaissance. Starting from the account of Iambulus, preserved by Diodorus Siculus in his *Bibliotheca historica*, the author explores how this fantastic voyage across the Indian Ocean to Southeast Asia served as a prototype for the construction of ideal worlds. Juan Gil establishes a parallel between Iambulus’s narrative, imbued with Stoic and Cynic doctrines, and Thomas More’s *Utopia*, arguing that both works employ real maritime discoveries as a basis for projecting transcendent sociopolitical visions. The analysis extends to the figure of an anonymous Portuguese nobleman and the role of Lusitanian humanism in reviving classical myths and chimeras during the Age of Discoveries. Through a comparative and historiographical approach, the study demonstrates that Renaissance explorations were not merely commercial enterprises but also the materialization of secular hopes for happiness and social perfection, situated at the geographical limits of the known world. The article concludes that the dialectic between the real and the imaginary is fundamental to understanding the mindset of the travelers who mapped the islands of Southeast Asia.

This article reexamines the Parsis’ role in the China trade within the broader context of Sino-Indian relations, arguing that Parsis from Bombay and the west coast of India occupied a more consequential position in modern exchanges with China than is typically acknowledged. It situates Parsi commercial activity within the long-standing India–China trading networks that linked the Gujarat-based Parsi diaspora to the Pearl River Delta and to Hong Kong, thereby moving beyond a narrow focus on opium. Employing a historical-analytic approach that synthesizes primary records, trading networks, and existing scholarship, the study traces the evolution of Parsis’ engagement from early maritime commerce through the Ming-era restrictions to the late-seventeenth-century revival of direct Sino-Indian trade, highlighting the centrality of Gujarat as the Parsis’ settlement region. Key findings indicate that Parsis’ economic interactions with China encompassed a wide range of commodities—gold, tea, porcelain, silver, pepper, and other goods—alongside their well-documented involvement in opium, thereby complicating simple narratives of colonial or pharmacopoeial commerce. Their relations with British and Chinese actors were multifaceted, featuring collaboration as well as competition, friendship as well as antagonism. The article also demonstrates the Parsis’ tangible influence on regional urban development and institutions in places like Hong Kong (evidenced by figures such as H. N. Mody and the University of Hong Kong). Ultimately, the study contributes to Macao’s cultural minorities by illustrating how minority trading communities shaped the China trade’s networks, practices, and legacies beyond reductive historiographies.

This article argues that Parsis, by engaging extensively in India–China trade during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, generated fortunes that underwrote the growth and modernization of Bombay and, to a significant extent, Hong Kong. It situates Parsi merchants—primarily from western India—within a nexus of European firms, banking, and insurance, showing how their commercial networks financed urban expansion, the cotton-textile industry, shipbuilding, and retail enterprise, while simultaneously fostering social and cultural life through philanthropy. Drawing on biographical studies and archival material—most notably Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy and related merchants, and the founding of banking and insurance institutions such as the Bank of Bombay, Mercantile Bank of India, and HSBC—this paper traces the trajectory from guarantee brokers to industrialists and financiers. It also highlights the social implications of this wealth, including substantial contributions to religious, educational, medical, and architectural institutions, and to charitable trusts that advanced higher technical education. In Hong Kong, Parsis' commerce contributed to the cosmopolitan mercantile milieu and philanthropic networks. The analysis emphasizes that the China connection enriched Bombay's urban, social, and intellectual life, beyond mere economic growth, and underlines the cross-cultural exchange that characterized this era of rapid modernization. The study contributes to understandings of Macao’s cultural minorities by illustrating how Parsi transnational capitalism shaped regional development and intercultural exchange in both Indian and Chinese ports.

This article presents the Author Index of Issues 1 to 8 of RC Internacional (Revista de Cultura), whose purpose is to organize and make available the contributions published in the period 2002–2003 on the History and Culture of Macau. Through a bibliographical compilation, the index aggregates authors, titles, issue numbers and pages, revealing the diversity of disciplinary approaches that structure the field of Macao studies. The analysis of the collected items reveals a transnational and interlingual body, focusing on central themes such as Sino-Portuguese relations, Jesuit missions, traditional medicine, cultural identity, religious syncretism, urban heritage, and historical education. From the entries, one observes the presence of historiography, literary studies, visual culture, linguistics and anthropology, as well as a recurrent group of researchers, which points to networks of collaboration and thematic continuity across the issues. The method emphasizes alphabetical organization by author, with reference to the editorial policies and intellectual trajectories that structure RC Internacional. It concludes that the index not only facilitates access to studies on Macau but also highlights the thematic dynamism and international vocation of the journal, consolidating Macau as a meeting point for transnational historical and cultural debates.

This article analyzes the 5th Macao International Design Biennial, held at the Museum of Art of Macao, and proposes a historical reading of the role of design in the construction of Macao's cultural identity across five biennials. Drawing on a documentary review of the editions, catalogues, official programmes, and institutional sources, the text situates the Biennial within a continuum that links the earliest graphic design initiatives in the 1970s — including the role of George Smirnoff in the local press — to the institutionalization of design within the framework of the Macao administration in the 1980s and the founding of the Association of Designers of Macau in 1986. It argues that the dialogue between fine arts and design, sustained by numerous agents between exhibition venues and local cultural policies, was decisive for the maturation of a professional practice in the territory, supported by the Cultural Institute of Macao and the Leal Senado and continued today by the Institute for Civic and Municipal Affairs. The presentation of an expanded edition, featuring authors resident in mainland China and Formosa, accompanied by an international jury and the inaugural exhibition of Shigeo Fukuda, signals a gradual internationalization of the biennial and a strategy of legitimation. It concludes that, after five editions, Macao has consolidated a public–private design field that fosters regional exchanges and local development.

This article investigates the work of priests trained at the Colégio das Missões Ultramarinas de Cernache do Bonjardim in the Far East, highlighting the role of this institution in building the religious network that connected Macau to Portuguese territory. Based on a documentary reading of institutional sources (records of the Seminary of Macau, official discourses, and missionary biographies), it analyzes the transition, from 1871, from Jesuit leadership to a team of lay teachers, under the leadership of Luís de Carvalho, and the pedagogical and demographic consequences of this change (from 326 students in 1871 to 68 in the following decade). The study demonstrates that the scarcity of vocations led the government of the bishopric of Macau to reinforce the role of the priests of the Colégio de Bonjardim, linked to the Real Colégio das Missões Ultramarinas in Cernache do Bonjardim, in Sertã, Portugal. In 1872, two priests trained in Bonjardim arrived in Macau: Sérgio Antão Álvares and António Joaquim de Medeiros; Medeiros would become an eminent figure in the Church of Macau. The article also contextualizes the origin of the Colégio de Bonjardim (1791, created by the Grão-Priorado do Crato) and the role of the Vincentians in its initial leadership, situating the college as a trainer of the secular clergy for the missions of the Far East. It concludes that such training networks shape the intertwining between Macau, Portugal, and China, evidencing the relevance of institutional sources for understanding the Portuguese missionary dynamics.

This article examines the historical religious linkages between Macao and the Philippines from the mid-16th century through the 19th century, arguing that these spiritual ties were inextricably shaped by the political and economic rivalries of the Spanish and Portuguese empires. Despite their geographical proximity, Macao and Manila functioned as the distant outposts of the Portuguese *Padroado* and the Spanish *Patronato Real*, respectively. The author highlights that even during the Iberian Union (1580–1640), the two colonies maintained a "one monarch, two administrations" policy, resulting in mutual mistrust and institutional independence. The study demonstrates that religious exchange was primarily facilitated by maritime trade routes rather than formal ecclesiastical cooperation. Missionaries from both empires utilized the commercial infrastructure of the silk and silver trades to penetrate mission fields in China and Japan. Furthermore, the article contrasts the jurisdictional structures of the two regions: Macao functioned as a suffragan see of Goa, while Manila was initially tied to Mexico. By analyzing the founding of these colonial centers and their respective religious identities—Macao as the "City of the Holy Name of God" and Cebu/Manila under the "Holy Name of Jesus"—the author reveals a complex relationship defined by shared faith yet persistent geopolitical competition. Ultimately, the article concludes that the religious history of Macao and the Philippines cannot be understood in isolation from the commercial galleon trade that served as the primary conduit for Iberian missionary efforts in the Far East.

This article reconstructs the history of the Yan family, a prominent merchant house in Canton, during the mid-eighteenth century (1734–1780s). Historically, research on the Yans was hindered by the difficulty of correlating romanized names found in European records with Chinese genealogical sources, leading most scholars to focus narrowly on the figure of Yan Yingshe (Ingsia). Drawing on newly identified data from Dutch, Danish, Swedish, and Belgian archives, alongside the Yan family genealogy, this study identifies three generations of Yan merchants, beginning with the patriarch Texia (Yan Deshe) in 1734 and continuing through his sons Swetia (Yan Ruishe), Ingsia, and Limsia (Yan Linshe). The findings demonstrate that the Yan family played a pivotal role in the Canton trade, managing complex operations that included the silver-for-tea export business with European East India Companies and an extensive junk trade network in Southeast Asia. By establishing forward and backward linkages—from personal quality control in the Chinese interior to maritime logistics across the Pearl River Delta—the Yans exemplified the sophisticated business practices that propelled early modern global commerce. This reconstruction provides a more comprehensive understanding of the merchant dynasties that shaped the maritime economy and the evolution of the Canton System before the 1780s.

This article analyzes the life and work of the Portuguese Jesuit Tomás Pereira (1645-1708), a central figure in the introduction of Western musical theory and practice to China during the Qing dynasty. The study highlights his role as a pioneer in Sino-Portuguese cultural and scientific exchange, underscoring his privileged relationship with Emperor Kangxi, whom he served as music master and scientific advisor for over three decades. Through a biographical and historical approach, the author examines Pereira's contribution to the dissemination of the basic principles of European music, focusing on foundational works such as the *Lu Lu Zuan Yao* (Fundamental Aspects of Music) and the *Lu Lu Zheng Yi - Xu Bian* (True Meaning of Music – Continuation Volume). Beyond his pedagogical and theoretical legacy, the text addresses his technical expertise in the construction of instruments, such as the organ, and his political and diplomatic influence, exemplified by his participation in the negotiations of the Treaty of Nerchinsk in 1689. The article concludes that Tomás Pereira's multifaceted activity was instrumental in facilitating intellectual dialogue between East and West, consolidating the relevance of the Portuguese presence at the imperial court in Beijing and transforming the cultural landscape of the era through the convergence of religion, science, and the arts.

This article examines the unique political and spatial dynamics of the borders separating the Special Administrative Regions (SARs) of Macao and Hong Kong from Mainland China. Positioned within the field of political geography, the study explores how these boundaries function under a framework of "ambiguous sovereignty"—a state where sovereignty is uncontested yet de facto shared through the SARs’ jurisdictional, administrative, and fiscal autonomy. The author highlights the paradox of these borders: they are heavily fortified internal boundaries that nonetheless rank among the most permeable in the world, characterized by a fixed "expiry date" following the 1997 and 1999 transitions. By comparing the historical and contemporary experiences of both territories, the article analyzes how these borders serve as social and political constructs that shape regional identities, land-use patterns, and spatial structures. Special attention is given to Macao’s long history of pragmatic administrative compromises and shared sovereignty. Ultimately, the paper argues that the transitional nature of these boundaries provides a unique case study in the evolution of territoriality, reflecting broader global trends where traditional nation-state concepts are increasingly challenged by regional complexities.

This article examines the socio-cultural dynamics of Macao as a border region, characterizing its residents as "borderlanders" whose identities and daily lives are profoundly shaped by their proximity to the political boundary with Mainland China. Utilizing a socio-cultural geographical approach, the study investigates how people in Macao perceive, utilize, and overcome the border in their everyday routines. The methodology relies primarily on qualitative data from twenty-three open-ended interviews with residents of Macao and Zhongshan, supplemented by quantitative census data to contextualize the demographic background. The findings highlight the border's influence on various aspects of life, including shopping habits, housing choices, and labor market participation, while exploring how residents navigate differing regulatory systems. By focusing on the interplay between Macao's post-colonial status and its integration within the Pearl River Delta, the author argues that borderlanders develop unique intercultural skills and transborder personal networks. The article ultimately seeks to determine the extent to which a distinct transborder regional identity is emerging among Macao people, whose familial and historical ties to Guangdong continue to play a pivotal role in their spatial and social consciousness. This research contributes to the broader field of border studies by providing a specific analysis of the Macao-Zhuhai relationship, a context previously overshadowed by studies of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen border.

This article analyzes the exhibition Peace in Times of War. Commemorative Exhibition of the Centenary of the Birth of George Smirnoff, held by the Macau Museum of Art in 2003, which celebrates the centenary of George Vitalievitch Smirnoff and evokes Macau's condition as a generous city during the Pacific War. Drawing from a biographical reading and the analysis of a set of works from the show (pencil drawings and watercolors from 1945), the text investigates Smirnoff's trajectory, born in Vladivostok (1903) and raised in Harbin, trained in architecture, whose transnational practice situated him between networks of expatriate artists and the dynamics of global conflict. Through iconographic and documentary reading, it discusses how the artist represents, in his images of Macau, an experience of "peace" in the context of war: urban views, religious façades, and public spaces that reveal a sensibility combining architectural observation with restrained lyricism. The 1945 works, executed in pencil and watercolor, offer a documentary and poetic reading of the city under wartime pressure, while bearing witness to memory and the hope for peace. The exhibition, in turn, contributes to the historiography of Macanese art and to the understanding of transnational artistic networks in the Far East during the Second World War.