Focus
Western giants helped build ancient China
By Du Guodong (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-05-28 07:50
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Throughout China's long history, few foreigners have had more impact on the country in terms of creating cultural links and advancing science than Matteto Ricci and his peers during the time of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Ricci, German priest Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Belgian Jesuit missionary Ferdinand Verbiest stand out for advancing cultural communications between the Middle Kingdom and Western countries and were pioneers in bringing Western civilization to the ancient country.
Johann Adam Schall von Bell
Born in Cologne, Germany, to an aristocratic family, Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1591-1666) first traveled to the area in 1619 as part of a Jesuit mission to Macao, southern China. After spending several years there, learning Chinese language and culture, he arrived in Beijing four years later.
As an expert in astronomy, Schall won the appreciation and trust of the Chinese emperor within two years of arriving in the capital following his accurate measurement of a lunar eclipse compared to Chinese scholars.
During the rule of the Chongzhen Emperor (1627-44), Schall was offered the job of compiling the Calendar Compendium of the Chongzhen Reign, a great honor, especially for a foreigner, at that time.
During the reign of the Shunzhi Emperor (1651-61), he was given the right to build churches and allowed to preach throughout the country, kicking off massive religious contacts between China and the outside world. Under Schall's direction, hundreds of Western churches spread throughout the country.
In addition to preaching, Schall brought maps, astronomy equipment and other scientific instruments to China. He later was invited to establish an observatory within the royal palace.
In 1626, Schall wrote, with the help of Chinese scholar Li Zubai, a book about the telescope based on Galileo Galilei's findings. The book was the earliest introduction of Western state-of-the-art optics and telescope techniques in China.
In 1666, Schall died from an illness in the South Chamber of Xuanwumen Catholic Church after having lived and preached in China for more than 44 years.
Ferdinand Verbiest
Together with Ricci and Schall, Ferdinand Verbiest (1623 - 88), a Belgian Jesuit missionary, was acclaimed as one of the trio of top missionaries during the Ming Dynasty and Qing dynasties.
Verbiest traveled to China in 1657 and started his preaching in Shannxi before being summoned to Beijing because of his skills as a mathematician and astronomer. He became a household name after serving as the science teacher to Kangxi Emperor (1661-1772).
In 1660, he was called by Kangxi to assist Schall in amending the traditional Chinese calendar based on Western technology and methods. Later, he was assigned the task of rebuilding and re-equipping the Beijing Ancient Observatory as the chief director.
In 1674, Verbiest wrote the Disclosure on the Newly Built Astronomical Instruments in the Observatory, to systematically describe the design, use and function of Western astronomy instruments and offer direct instructions for their production.
Verbiest was also a master of cannon design and constructed an aqueduct with 132 cannons for the Qing Army, which proved to be superior to any previous Chinese weapons. During his life, he made as many as several hundred cannons of different kinds, which played an important role in settling down the border disputes at that time and won the acclaim of the ruling class.
Verbiest wrote more than 30 books, many of them on science and mathematics. As a wizard for invention, he even invented an automobile by placing a steam pump into an enclosing oven and fastening the device onto wheels. He also experimented with pump designs and built an aqueduct to regulate water and at the same time prevent flooding along river basins.
After his death in Beijing at the age of 66, Verbiest won the honor of being the only Westerner in Chinese history to receive a posthumous name from an emperor for his unique contribution to science and technological development.
He was buried near his two companions - Matteo Ricci and Adam Schall at the campus of Beijing Administrative College.