MANILA, Philippines — Does China have a claim over the Philippines’ Panatag Shoal and Benham Rise?
Perhaps, the old maps on display at the ongoing “Mapping the Philippine Seas” exhibit of The Metropolitan Museum of Manila (MET Manila) have the answers.
“Mapping the Philippine Seas,” according to MET Manila, is “an informative and nostalgic throwback to centuries past, when the aspiration was to map the Philippine shores to help foreign voyagers navigate the wide open waters in their quests to discover and establish political and economic relations in the country.”
With the advancement in today’s technology such as the GPS (global positioning system), maps have become essential tools for navigating even short distances, such as going around Metro Manila’s winding and congested streets.
The exhibit features 165 original maps and sea charts, generously loaned for the exhibit by members of the Philippine Map Collectors Society (PHIMCOS), the Government Social Insurance System, and the several other private collectors. Dating from the early 16th century to the late 19th century, these valuable maps and nautical charts emphasize the Philippines’ crucial position in the history of maritime trade in the Asian region, and its importance in theEuropean colonial conquests and trade explorations.
These antique artifacts also bring to surface the increasing knowledge and understanding of the Philippine geography and hydrography by mapmakers. Basic maps from the 16th century that contained inaccuracies, were, by the late 19th century, charting with greater precision the Philippines’ topography, shorelines, and maritime voyage obstructions such as islets and rock formations. The greater accuracy translates, in turn, to safer and more economical voyages on sea.
On view at the exhibit are several historically valuable antique maps. The famed “Murillo Velarde Map” of 1734 is widely acknowledged as the finest map of the Philippines ever made. Published by the Jesuit priest Pedro Murillo Velarde, the map is flanked by twelve illustrations of Philippine genre and country types by Filipino artists Francisco Suarez and Nicolas de la Cruz Bagay, and is thus also considered to be apioneering example of Philippine printmaking.
Another exhibition highlight is the Treaty of Paris map, published in 1899. The enormous map, measuring 273cm x 144 cm., is composed of a montage of six sea charts. It was attached to the Treaty of Paris signed in October 1898, which formalized the turnover of colonial power over the Philippines from Spain to the United States.
“Mapping the Philippine Seas” is on view until April 29. It is co-presented by the Metropolitan Museum of Manila and the Philippine Map Collectors Society.
The exhibition is complemented by the following lectures on Saturdays, scheduled at 10:30 a.m.: March 25 – “Ancient Maps and Modern Mindanao: Memories and Boundaries” by Prof. Jay Batongbacal; April 1 – “The Direccion de Hidrografia in the Philippines” by Dr. Carlos Madrid; April 22 – “Questions I Used to Ask About Maps” by Prof. Raphael Lotilla; and April 29 – “Ways of Seeing: The Linked Worlds of Maritime Trade and the Making of the Selden Map” by Prof. Stephen Davis.
The Metropolitan Museum of Manila is at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Complex, Roxas Blvd., Manila. Museum hours are from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Mondays to Saturdays.
— Reports from Deni Rose M. Afinidad-Bernardo
WATCH: Virtual tour of “Mapping the Philippine Seas” exhibit
Philstar.com/Efigenio Christopher Toledo IV