MM011-Guia Fortress, Chapel of Our Lady of the Snows and Lighthouse

Built between 1622 and 1638, this fortress was, together with Mount Fortress, crucial in the protection of the city from the tentative Dutch invasion of 1622. Inside the fortress stands Guia Chapel, built around 1622 and Guia Lighthouse built in 1865, the first modern lighthouse on China’s coast, still in operation to this day. Macao takes the reference for its geographic co-ordinates from the exact location of the lighthouse. Guia Chapel is dedicated to Our Lady of Guia, noting that “Guia” means “Guidance” in Portuguese. In 1996, frescoes were uncovered inside Guia Chapel during routine conservation works. The chapel’s elaborate frescoes depict representations of both western and Chinese themes, displaying motifs of religious and mythological inspiration that are a perfect example of Macao’s multicultural dimension. Guia Fortress, together with Guia Chapel and Lighthouse are remarkable symbols of Macao’s military, maritime and missionary past.