Exquisite Perception in the Ming Court

In the early autumn of 1600, the Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci (Li Madou) set sail from Nanjing along the Grand Canal. His destination was Beijing and he came bearing gifts for the Wan Li Emperor (r.1573-1620) – chiming mechanical clocks, oil paintings, prisms, a clavichord, lavishly illustrated religious books. The presents, carefully selected and painstakingly acquired, attracted considerable attention.