An old cannon was found in a construction site located along Rua do Comandante João Belo in Fai Chi Kei last Friday, according to the Cultural Affairs Bureau (also known by its Portuguese initials IC).
Currently, not much is known about the cannon’s origins, although the IC reports that the artefact measures a length of 1.38 metres. The cannon has now been taken to a warehouse and the IC will continue studying the find.
No other relics were found around the area after a search was conducted, the government department says.
[See more: Old cannon found at Galaxy Macau’s construction site]
In 2020, an old cannon was discovered in Cotai during the construction of Galaxy Macau’s Phase 4. Two additional antique weapons were uncovered the following year, with a local military affairs expert stating that they most likely came from a warship when the now-reclaimed Cotai area had still been a body of water.
Information about these previously excavated cannons, as well as another one from the Inner Harbour can be found on the Macao Museum website.
The museum notes that the weapons “provide solid evidence that the waters of Coloane and Taipa were important routes for trade between China and the West” and that they “are of great significance to the studies of Macao’s military, coastal defence and trade history.”
