Moorish Barracks
A visit to Macau World Heritage sites will typically include churches, temples, gardens and squares, and offers a real insight into old Macau. Chinese and Portuguese architecture abounds - but have you seen a Moorish building in Macau?
In 1874, the Portuguese built a Moorish Barracks on the slopes of Barra Hill, opposite a demolished barrier, garrisoned by Indian soldiers. The two-storey brick and stone neo-classical structure with exotic Moorish influences now serves as the headquarters of the Macau Maritime Administration.
The Barracks are not open to the public but visitors can tour the verandah where the square and pointed ornaments on the parapet walls resemble mosaics and exude an impressively beautiful and subtle rhythm. The Moorish Barracks used to provide typhoon signals for fishermen many years ago.
To know more about the traditions and way of life of the fishermen in ancient Macau and southern China, it is well worth visiting the nearby Maritime Museum, which displays several types of ship from Portugal and China, plus instruments, and a typical fisherman's dwelling, where the whole family can be seen sharing the work tasks.