Archeological materials found at Patio do Amparo not from Qing Dynasty

A Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) study on archeological materials found at a land plot at Patio do Amparo, in the surroundings of the Ruins of St Paul’s, are unrelated to what was initially suspected to be the main structure of an ancient Chinese imperial customs house dating to the Qing Dynasty.

The conclusions of the study were presented earlier this week at the plenary meeting of the Cultural Heritage Council.

The IC said the ancient building, known as Kwan Pou Hang Toi, should have been in that area, according to old records.

But after in-depth analysis, including the excavation and research of materials and structures found at the site, it was concluded the structures at Zones 5 and 7 of the Patio do Amparo were, most probably, related to a residence for officials’ families.

This was part of a later extension to the imperial customs house, located behind the main building. It was this building over which the IC formed a particular interest.

According to the president of the IC, Deland Leong, only porcelain and objects of personal use dating from different times were found at the site.

While these items hold no “special value,” she said they would still be sent to local museums for exhibition.

The IC also said that after the conclusion of work at the site, the land will be returned to its owner.

The land has been in the possession of the IC since April 2021 when, at a meeting of the Urban Planning Committee (CPU), the IC called for the suspension of the issuance of an urban conditions plan for the plot in question.

The bureau suspected then that this site could be home to valuable remains of an ancient structure.

This theory was first aired by a member of the CPU, architect André Lui, who presented a map dated circa 1838 indicating that the ancient building, Kwan Pou Hang Toi, had occupied at least part of the land.

Leong also said that after 1849, the date when the imperial customs house should have closed, the land plot’s purpose was altered several times and it has since been used for different purposes up to the present day.