Architecture of Macau
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The architecture of Macau is the architecture that is found in
Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
. Macau has diverse architecture from the casinos in its casino region to its tallest building,
Grand Lisboa Grand Lisboa (, Portuguese: Grande Lisboa) is a 47-floor, hotel in Sé, Macau. It is owned by Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau and designed by Hong Kong architects Dennis Lau and Ng Chun Man with the interiors created by Khuan Chew, ...
(which stands at 258 metres). Macau is influenced by both
Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...
and
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
cultures.


Background

Macau Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a p ...
is a large city located off the south coast of
Mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
, with a population of approximately 630,000 people. and the official native languages being
Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...
and
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
. Macau is classified as a special administrative region (SAR), meaning it has separate executive, legislative and judicial systems to China. Macau was previously a Portuguese dependency, which ended in 1999 when it became autonomous. The
architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
of Macau encompasses a mixture of
World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
listed and modern buildings, as well as multiple
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
s and
tunnel A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...
s.


Casinos in Macau

Within the region of Macau, there is a total of 50
Casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...
s spread across the cities of Macau,
Cotai Cotai (; pt, Zona do Aterro de Cotai) is a piece of newly reclaimed land on top of Seac Pai Bay between Taipa and Coloane islands in Macau, that has made two independent islands become one island, since 2005. The word (a portmanteau of Coloan ...
and
Taipa Taipa ( zh, t=氹仔, ; pt, Taipa, ) was a former island in Macau, presently united with the island of Coloane by reclaimed land known as Cotai. Administratively, the boundaries of the traditional civil parish Freguesia de Nossa Senhora do ...
. Being known as the ‘
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
of China’, Macau has a substantial amount of casinos compared to other regions, with 30 in the city of Macau, 14 in Cotai and 6 in Taipa. An example of a famous Casino in Macau is the ‘
MGM MACAU MGM Macau (; formerly known as MGM Grand Macau) is a 35-story, 600-room casino resort in Sé, Macau. Under a sub concession approved by the Macau government, the project is owned and operated a ...
’, which stands at 154 metres tall and is located near the southern coast of the northern region of Macau. Other casinos in Macau include the
Grand Lisboa Grand Lisboa (, Portuguese: Grande Lisboa) is a 47-floor, hotel in Sé, Macau. It is owned by Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau and designed by Hong Kong architects Dennis Lau and Ng Chun Man with the interiors created by Khuan Chew, ...
Casino & Hotel, Wynn Casino Macau and Sands Macao Hotel, all of which are clustered around each other and near the MGM MACAU. This architectural cluster centralises the casinos near the southern coast of Macau, creating a ‘hub’ for
gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...
and accommodation.


Tall buildings in Macau

Within the
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
of Macau, there are 20 completed buildings and 2 under construction that are above 150 metres tall, which ranks Macau as #48 in the world by number of buildings over 150 metres. Macau's first building over 150m was the
Bank of China The Bank of China (BOC; ) is a Chinese majority state-owned commercial bank headquartered in Beijing and the fourth largest bank in the world. The Bank of China was founded in 1912 by the Republican government as China's central bank, repl ...
, which is located in the City of Macau and currently stands at 163m (535 feet) tall. The tallest completed building in Macau is the Grand Lisboa Casino & Hotel, with an architectural height to the tip of 258m (846 feet) and a residential height of 197.7m (649 feet). These statistics rank the height of the building as #332 in the world. The building began construction in 2003 and was completed in 2008. Functioning as a hotel/casino and made from predominately steel,
concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wid ...
and
glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling ( quenching ...
, it was designed by architectural company "Dennis Lau & Ng Chun Man Architects & Engineers (HK) Ltd. (DLN)" as their 9th tallest building. The Grand Lisboa has 48 floors above ground and 4 below, with 433
hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
rooms and 338 parking spots. Macau's most recently constructed tall building, finished in 2018, is the Morpheus building, which is a multi story building that stands at 155.2m (509 feet) tall with 40 floors above ground and 770 hotel rooms. Architecturally, the Morpheus is unconventionally constructed with an
exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton (endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...
design and 3 separate openings that travel through the middle of the building. The building was designed by the late
architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
Dame Zaha Hadid and was developed by Melco Crown Entertainment Limited. Within the table below, is a list of the top 20 tallest completed buildings in Macau ranked upon structural height. The amount of floors only includes above ground floors. Technically the tallest structure in Macau, however not classified under the same category as the tallest buildings in Macau, the
Macau Tower The Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Center (; pt, Centro de Convenções e Entretenimento da Torre de Macau), also known as Macau Tower (; pt, Torre de Macau) , is a tower located in Sé, Macau. The tower measures 338 m (1,109 ft ...
(pictured below) is 338m (1102.9 feet) tall to the tip. The tower began construction in 1998 and was opened on 19 December 2001. It was designed by architect, Gordon Moller and was inspired by the Sky Tower in Auckland, New Zealand. It currently holds the Guinness World Record for the highest commercial
bungy jump Bungee jumping (), also spelled bungy jumping, is an activity that involves a person jumping from a great height while connected to a large bungee cord, elastic cord. The launching pad is usually erected on a tall structure such as a building ...
point at 233m (764 feet) and the first person to jump was film star
Edison Chen Edison Chen Koon-hei (, born Chen Hing-wah on 7 October 1980) is a Canadian-born Hong Kong actor, singer, rapper, fashion designer and entrepreneur. Chen is the co-founder of CLOT, a Hong Kong-based streetwear and fashion label. Debuting in 19 ...
(China) in 2006.


Bridges and tunnels

The Zhuhai Bridge, opened in October 2018, is the world's longest sea bridge, spanning 55 kilometres (34 miles) from
Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
to Macau and Mainland Chinese city; Zuhai. The bridge cost approximately $20 Billion US Dollars to complete and was under construction from December 2009. The bridge is designed to last over 120 years, withstanding pressures from
earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...
s and
typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...
s. Through employing 400,000 tonnes of steel in its construction, with 30 km worth of bridge above the Pearl River Delta and 7 km worth of tunnel running between two
artificial island An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...
s. The bridge is 3 lanes wide on each side and incorporates merging channels to transfer the traffic from the left to the right as it is technically in Chinese territory. To use the bridge, drivers from Hong Kong will need to attain special permits, of which there are only 300. Point da Amizade, which is Portuguese for the ‘friendship bridge’, connects the
Macau Peninsula The Macau Peninsula is the most populous and historical part of Macau. It has an area of () and is geographically connected to Guangdong Province at the northeast through an isthmus wide. The peninsula, together with downtown Zhuhai, sits ...
to Taipa Island and Pac On. With its construction beginning in June 1990, the bridge took almost 4 years to complete and was officially opened to motor vehicles in March 1994. The bridge spans over 4.7 kilometres (2.9 miles), with a maximum height of 30 metres above the sea and is 18 metres wide at its widest point, accommodating four lanes of traffic. The bridge has two crests at different points to allow for sea traffic to travel beneath. The
Sai Van Bridge Sai Van Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge in Macau, China, inaugurated on December 19, 2004. The bridge measures long and is the third one to cross the Praia Grande Bay connecting Taipa Island and Macau Peninsula. It features a double-deck design, ...
, completed in December 2004, is also a sea bridge used to connect the Macau Peninsula and Taipa Island. The full length of the bridge is 2.2 km (1.37 miles) long, with its pylon heights standing 85 metres above ground level. The bridge was designed by Pengest Planeamento to accommodate both road traffic and railway carriages and is built primarily from steel, steel cables and prestressed concrete. The total cost of the bridge was US$70 million. The smallest bridge in Macau, linking it across the border to Hengquin Island in Zhuhai, is the
Lotus Bridge Lotus may refer to: Plants *Lotus (plant), various botanical taxa commonly known as lotus, particularly: ** ''Lotus'' (genus), a genus of terrestrial plants in the family Fabaceae **Lotus flower, a symbolically important aquatic Asian plant also ...
. The bridge is approximately 900m long and its construction was completed in 1999. It specifically links the Cotai reclamation area of Macau to Hengquin Island with 3 lanes either side of the bridge. The bridge cost US$25 million to construct, which was shared between the Macau and Chinese governments. The Lotus Bridge uses an ‘asymmetric partial cloverleaf’ design, which is designed to re-direct traffic onto the correct side of the road when entering their respective countries, with China being the right and Macau being the left.


Historic architecture

Most of the historic architecture and landmarks within Macau are situated in the
Historic Centre of Macau The Historic Centre of Macao, pt, Centro Histórico de Macau, , is a collection of over twenty locations that witness the unique assimilation and co-existence of Chinese and Portuguese cultures in Macau, a former Portuguese colony. It represents ...
, which is listed as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
. As seen within the table below, there are over 20 buildings and landmarks within the Historic Centre, however in terms of historic architecture, there are a bit less than 20. Some of the architecture within the Historic Centre includes the
Holy House of Mercy The Holy House of Mercy of Macau ( pt, Santa Casa da Misericórdia; ), is a historic building in Senado Square, Macau, China. Established as a branch of the Santa Casa da Misericórdia, it was first built in 1569 on the orders of the Roman Cath ...
, Mandarin's House and the
A-Ma Temple The A-Ma Temple is a temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called chur ...
. As the Historic Centre of Macau is host to both buildings and landmarks, below is a list of the historic architecture, in no particular order, with the name and year constructed included. The Holy House of Mercy is a
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site, constructed in 1569 and situated within the Historic Centre of Macau, in the
Senado Square The Senado Square, or Senate Square (; pt, Largo do Senado), is a paved town square in Sé, Macau, Sé, Macau, China, and part of the UNESCO Historic Centre of Macau World Heritage Site. It is an elongated triangular shaped square and connect ...
. The building was designed and constructed by D. Belchior Carneiro, following a neo-classical architectural trend through incorporating 14 arches on the face and stands 2 stories high. It served as a
medical clinic Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practic ...
for some time, later becoming an
orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared for by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or ab ...
. It is the oldest social solidarity institution in the Macau Special Administrative Region and has undergone multiple
renovation Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...
s, with the most recent in 2003 on the building's Rehabilitation Centre for the Blind. One of the oldest structures in and officially the oldest
temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
in Macau, the A-Ma Temple was built in 1488 on the southwest Macau Peninsula. It is made up of six separate architectural components within the entire vicinity, primarily using
stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
, bricks and
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
to build the temple. Pictured below, a notable aspect of the temple is the Gate Pavilion, which measures to be 4.5 metres wide and is made entirely from granite. The Mandarin's House, built in 1869 and located at No. 10 Travessa de António da Silva, is a traditional Chinese styled compound that once housed Chinese Literary personality Zhen g Guanying. The compound covers approximately 4,000 square metres of land and it encompasses architectural elements of
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
as well as traditional Chinese styling with Western influence. In 2001 the Government took over the complex from its private owners and in 2005 it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site


References

{{Macau topics Macau