Holy House of Mercy Museum

The Museum of the Holy House of Mercy exhibits pieces that represent the history of the institution and objects of religious art that illustrate the meeting of different cultures. The meeting of different cultures was brought about by the diffusion of Christianity in this part of the world.

The most significant item in the Museum of the Holy House of Mercy is the "Commitment of the Holy House of Mercy of Macau." It was hand-written in the year of 1662.

The "Commitment of the Holy House of Mercy of Macau" is the oldest existing document in the archives of this institution, which was founded by the first bishop of Macau, D. Belchior Carneiro.

There are several and various pieces of artifacts inside the small space of the Museum.

Various pieces of Chinese, Japanese and European porcelain and ceramic show the role played by Jesuits in the clash of the eastern and western cultures.

This is symbolized by the monogram of the Society of Jesus that can be seen on each piece.

Other relevant pieces of the centuries-old history of the Holy House of Mercy are: the skull of D. Belchior Carneiro and the Cross with which he was buried; a full length oil painting portrait of D. Belchior Carneiro from the 18th century; and a bronze bell from the old St. Raphael Hospital, which succeeded the hospital founded by D. Belchior Carneiro in the 16th century.

The history of the Holy House of Mercy and some of its activities and gifts to the society of Macau are discussed below:

The Holy House of Mercy is the oldest social solidarity institution in Macau.Founded in 1569 by Dorn Belchior Carneiro, the first Catholic Bishop of Macau.

The Fraternity of Mercy (House of Mercy) was born inspired by similar Portuguese institutions which began to be established towards the end of the fifteenth century, through the initiative of Queen D. Leonor.

Like its counterpart in Portugal, the Holy House of Mercy of Macau has always privileged the neediest, having played over the centuries a most important role in the field of hospital assistance and social charity.

In spite of its historical links to the Catholic Church, the activity of the Holy House of Mercy was always carried out without regard of nationality, ethnical origin or religious belief of the people they assisted.

The Holy House of Mercy inaugurated a Girls Orphanage in 1637, considered as the first orphanage in Macau, the memorial stone of which can be seen on the façade of this building.

D. Belchior Carneiro, the founder of the Holy House of Mercy of Macau, decided to open a hospital initially known as the Hospital of the Poor and later transformed into the St. Raphael's Hospital.

When it closed in 1974, the function of the Holy House of Mercy changed to be completely focused on social assistance, an area in which it continues to develop most of its activity.

Currently, the Holy House of Mercy houses the needy elderly in the Our Lady of Mercy Home for the Aged, a model institution in the field of assistance for the third age that provides a totally free of charge service to the elderly.

The Holy House of Mercy also provides assistance to the handicapped through a Centre for the Rehabilitation of Blind People, which has been in operation since 1960.

The Holy House of Mercy has recently created a Social Centre and inaugurated this Museum. For this purpose, all the buildings located in this Alley of Mercy, property of the Holy House, were restored and rehabilitated, followed by infrastructure and pavement renovation works to embellish the whole street.

Today, as always, the Holy House of Mercy of Macau continues to respond to the necessities of the neediest, keeping its door open to all those who need a helping hand to better face the difficulties of their daily life.

A trip to the Museum of the Holy House of Mercy is necessary in order to understand the usefulness of the building Santa Casa de Misericordia situated right beside the Senado Square.

Also, it is important to know that such an organization existed even before the modernization of Macau, and to recognize the hard work of the people who were and are still involved in the organization.

TOP of Museum of the Holy House of Mercy

The caretaker sitting at the second floor balcony
of the Holy House of Mercy, overlooking the Senado Square

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