Leal Senado (Senate) 
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In the center of Macau the Avenida Almeida Ribeiro opens out into the Largo do Leal Senado, in which is the impressive old Senate Building, now occupied by the Municipal Council. It is regarded as the finest example of Portuguese colonial architecture in Macau.
The Senate of Macau earned the epithet "leal" ("loyal") when the Portuguese court was obliged by the invading Napoleonic armies to flee to Brazil in 1809 and the Senate supplied it with a warship.
The present building is thought to have been built in 1784 on the site of an older building. The façade was added in 1870, and the whole building was completely restored in 1939-40. From 1585 to 1835 the Senate played an extremely important role in Macau's contacts with the rest of China.
On the first floor are the Council Chamber, with rich wood paneling, and the Senate or National Library, with more than 50,000 volumes and manuscripts, including many valuable books up to 500 years old. The artistic wood-carvings in the library are reproductions of the carvings in the famous Old Library of Coimbra in Portugal.
Round the Senate are many small shops and antique dealers; the Post Office is nearby.
The Senate of Macau earned the epithet "leal" ("loyal") when the Portuguese court was obliged by the invading Napoleonic armies to flee to Brazil in 1809 and the Senate supplied it with a warship.
The present building is thought to have been built in 1784 on the site of an older building. The façade was added in 1870, and the whole building was completely restored in 1939-40. From 1585 to 1835 the Senate played an extremely important role in Macau's contacts with the rest of China.
On the first floor are the Council Chamber, with rich wood paneling, and the Senate or National Library, with more than 50,000 volumes and manuscripts, including many valuable books up to 500 years old. The artistic wood-carvings in the library are reproductions of the carvings in the famous Old Library of Coimbra in Portugal.
Round the Senate are many small shops and antique dealers; the Post Office is nearby.
The "santa casa de misericordia" in the Senado Square.
Christmas at Senado Square.
Night view of Largo do Senado, Senado Square.
