The Stories of Macau 06. Colégio de São Paulo - c1610
There is no doubt that the establishment of St. Paul's College is an important event in the history of Macau.
Founded by the Jesuits, Colégio de São Paulo was the first formal higher education institution in the orient. It was established in 1594, and its services ended in 1762. In those years all missionaries who went to spread Christianity in China and the Far East had to come to learn Chinese and oriental languages and cultures. The College also offered courses on western theology, philosophy, mathematics, astronomy and arts in the same way as modern universities. For these reasons the college became the main and first gate that connected the East and the West culturally, scientifically and academically.
St. Paul's College had a few number of buildings that formed the complex. Its church building was usually being called as the St Paul's Cathedral, which was burned down twice in 1595 and 1601. The third rebuilding of the church commenced in 1602 and was concluded in around 1640. The façade of the cathedral, which is built with granite, is architecturally Baroque but also contains motif and elements from the east such as Chinese characters. This have made the façade become a representation of the cultural entanglement between the east and west, and eventually the symbol of Macau.
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