On July 10, 2024, NOW Corporation Managing Director Kristian Pura presented an official replica of the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map to AFCEA Pacific Northwest Chapter President Col. David Stookey (Ret.) in Dupont, Washington. The first scientific map of the entire Philippine archipelago, the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map was presented among the pieces of evidence at The Hague during the Philippines’ pursuit of a fair resolution to its maritime dispute. The turnover of the map took place two days before the eighth anniversary of the Philippines’ historic victory at the South China Sea Arbitration on July 12.

“The Netherlands strongly condemns all actions that are not aligned with UNCLOS and the 2016 arbitral award. Might does not make right. International law does. And so that is what will guide us.”

This was emphasized by Her Excellency Marielle Geraedts, the Netherlands Ambassador to the Philippines, in her remarks during the event, “Amplifying the True Narrative: West Philippine Sea Public Briefing.” The briefing was organized by the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication (AIJC) in cooperation with the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Philippines on February 7, 2024 at Club Filipino, San Juan City.

During the event, AIJC and NOW Group Chairman Mel Velarde shared the story behind his acquisition of the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map, which played a crucial role in the Philippines’ landmark victory at The Hague, where the country asserted its rights to Scarborough Shoal and the Spratly Islands in the West Philippine Sea.

Retired Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio delivered a keynote lecture on the Philippine island territories in the West Philippine Sea, while Commodore Jay Tristan Tarriela, spokesperson of the Philippine Coast Guard, presented a report on the current threats and challenges in defending the country’s rights over these waters.

Journalists Mara Cepeda of The Straits Times and Chino Gaston of GMA Network, together with host/moderator Roby Alampay of International Media Support, discussed the role of the press in debunking false narratives and amplifying the truth as they report on tensions and rights violations in the West Philippine Sea.

At the end of the program, the Velarde family presented the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with an official replica of the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map.

Over 40 participants from the diplomatic community, including Ambassadors and various members of the diplomatic corps, as well as some representatives from the media, joined the public briefing.

First published on the AIJC website

An official replica of the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map was donated to the Austrian Embassy Manila by Chairman Mel Velasco Velarde of the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication (AIJC) and the NOW Group.

The Austrian Embassy is among the Embassies of the EU Member States to the Philippines that expressed its support for the peaceful resolution of disputes and the upholding of international law in the 2023 “Local EU Statement on the Anniversary of the Award rendered in the Arbitration between the Republic of the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China on the South China Sea.”

Chairman Velarde and Ambassador Johann Brieger signed the Deed of Donation and Acceptance at the map turnover ceremony, which took place at the Austrian Embassy in the City of Taguig on July 15, 2024.

In Baltimore, NOW Corporation Managing Director Kristian Pura presented an official replica of the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map to AFCEA International on June 26, 2024, the second day of TechNetCyber.

AFCEA International President and CEO Lt. Gen. Susan Lawrence, USA (Ret.) received the map, which is known as the “Mother of all Philippine Maps.” The oldest and first scientific map of the Philippines, the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map was instrumental in the Philippines’ efforts in asserting its territorial rights in the South China Sea.

At the event, Pura also met Brig. Gen Paul Fredenburgh (Ret.), Maj. Gen. Garrett Yee (Ret.), Col. Mike Black (Ret.), Nancy Temple, CW4 Eutimio “Tim” Reyna III (Ret.), and other members of the AFCEA International Leadership Team.

CEBU CITY – The provincial government of Cebu is now in possession of the official replica of the oldest scientific map of the Philippines, Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said Friday.

The legendary Murillo Velarde Map of 1734 was a gift of businessman Mel Velasco Velarde to the governor who celebrated her birthday Thursday at the provincial capitol.

Garcia said the map is called the “mother of all Philippine maps,” as it was first published in Manila in 1734 by Jesuit cartographer, Fr. Pedro Murillo Velarde.

The map considered to be the first scientific map ever produced to depict the Philippine archipelago.

“This is to award the Province of Cebu for the role it played in the past 500 years,” Velarde, a descendant of the cartogrpaher, was quoted in a statement issued by the capitol.

Measuring 1120 by 1200 millimeters (112 by 120 centimeters), the map was used by the Philippine government in asserting the country’s sovereign rights in the disputed territories in the West Philippine Sea.

It was not discussed yet where the replica will be displayed.

According to Geographicus Rare Antique Maps, the Murillo Velarde maps, along with 270 others, were used in the international arbitration to refute China’s claim of historic suzerainty over the entire South China Sea.

The map recognized as early as 1700s that the Kalayaan Group of Islands and Scarborough Shoal are parts of the Philippine territory.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines stating that China had “no historical rights.” But China rejected the ruling. (PNA)

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1211757

An official replica of the “oldest” scientific map of the Philippines has been given as a gift to the Cebuano people by businessman Mel Velasco Velarde on October 12, birthday of Gov. Gwen Garcia.

The map, called “Mother of all Philippine Maps”, measures 1120 x 1200 mm. It was personally received by Governor Gwen Garcia, along with Vice Governor Hilario Davide III and the members of the Cebu Provincial Board.

The Murillo Velarde 1734 Map was first published in Manila in 1734 by the Jesuit cartographer Fr. Pedro Murillo Velarde, the first scientific map ever produced depicting the Philippine archipelago.

It was used by the Philippines in asserting its sovereign rights in the disputed territories of the West Philippine Sea before the Permanent Court of Arbitration, where the Philippines demonstrated that not only did it have legal bases for its claims, but also historical rights vested by the map which recognized as early as 1700s, that the Kalayaan Group of Islands and Scarborough Shoal are part of the Philippine territory.

“This is to award the Province of Cebu for the role it played in the past 500 years,” said Velarde, whose father was born in Oslob, Cebu. | Babie Jane Revecoy

https://www.cebu.gov.ph/sugbonews/story.php?id=325

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. declared in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) that the Philippine government will continue upholding its sovereign rights and preserving territorial integrity. In his SONA, President Marcos underscored the importance of unity and social cohesion among the Filipino people, assuring them that the government will not lose any of its territory. “Our journey to progress requires not only unity and social cohesion amongst our people. It is also imperative that our nation remains intact and inviolable, our sovereignty preserved,” President Marcos said. “We will protect our sovereign rights and preserve our territorial integrity, in defense of rules-based international order,” the chief executive added, referring to an international ruling on the West Philippine Sea. President Marcos also emphasized that the Philippine government will continue to pursue constant dialogue and diplomatic approaches to the resolution of any issue that may arise. The chief executive emphasized that the interest of the Philippines and the Filipino people will be given priority in the government’s foreign policy. Source: PCO-PND (Presidential News Desk) Link: https://pco.gov.ph/news_releases/pbbm-vows-to-continue-upholding-ph-sovereign-rights-preserving-territorial-integrity/

About this Item

“Buy it, na!” Tony Carpio said to his friend Mel Velarde. It was an old map that Tony encouraged Mel to buy — the Carta Hydrographica y Chorographica de las Islas Filipinas, more commonly known as the Murillo Velarde 1734 map — the oldest known map in Philippine history. It was November 2014. Sotheby’s had announced an auction of some 80 heirlooms of the Duke of Northumberland, Ralph George Algernon, which included the rare map.

Retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio “Tony” Carpio, whose personal advocacy was (and still is) the protection and preservation of Philippine territorial and maritime sovereignty, specifically in the West Philippine Sea, immediately saw the value of the Murillo Velarde map to counter the adverse claims of China on Philippine territory.

“Local public and private museums declined to take part in the Sotheby’s bid. The National Museum was interested but didn’t have the money, so the plan was for (Mel Velarde) to buy the map and sell it later to the National Museum,” Velarde recalled to media in June 2014. The National Museum had a limit of only P5 million to buy rare items. Mel Velarde paid £170,500 (approximately ₱12 million at that time) for the Murillo Velarde map — not for the name, he says, for he cannot trace his lineage to the Jesuit priest Father Pedro Murillo Velarde (1696-1753) who conceptualized and designed the map under orders from King Philip of Spain. Filipinos Francisco Suárez and Nicolás de la Cruz Bagay did the artwork and engraving, respectively.

There are less than 50 extant copies of the map. Some are mounted on a cloth backing measuring 112×120 cm. The map itself measures 108×71 cm and is on a scale approximating 1:1,400,000. The National Library of Congress of the USA, which owns one of the original copies, describes the “Carta” map thus:

“The Philippines were (sic.) at that time a vital part of the Spanish Empire, and the map shows the maritime routes from Manila to Spain and to New Spain (Mexico and other Spanish territory in the New World), with captions. In the upper margin stands a great cartouche with the title of the map, crowned by the Spanish royal coat of arms flanked each side by an angel with a trumpet, from which an inscription unfurls. The map is not only of great interest from the geographic point of view, but also as an ethnographic document. It is flanked by 12 engravings, six on each side, eight of which depict different ethnic groups living in the archipelago and four of which are cartographic descriptions of particular cities or islands. According to the labels, the engravings on the left show: Sangleyes (Chinese Filipinos) or Chinese; Kaffirs (a derogatory term for non-Muslims), a Camarin (from the Manila area), and a Lascar (from the Indian subcontinent, a British Raj term); mestizos, a Mardica (of Portuguese extraction), and a Japanese; and two local maps — one of Samboagan (a city on Mindanao), and the other of the port of Cavite. On the right side are: various people in typical dress; three men seated, an Armenian, a Mughal, and a Malabar (from an Indian textile city); an urban scene with various peoples; a rural scene with representations of domestic and wild animals; a map of the island of Guajan (meaning Guam); and a map of Manila.

Scarborough Shoal and the Spratlys in Ancient Maps: An Exhibition, opened on Friday at the Alliance Française de Manille featuring the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map and Justice Carpio’s old Philippines map collection.

Justice Carpio, who was the guest of honor and main speaker at the Alliance Française, said “the 1734 Murillo Velarde map is a living document because it determines Philippine territory today, that is, Philippine territory cannot be determined without this map.” This oldest Philippine map of “Las Yslas Filipinas” is the official Spanish Government map showing Philippine territory during the Spanish regime. It shows Panacot (Scarborough Shoal) and Los Bajos de Paragua (the Spratlys) as part of Philippine territory, Justice Carpio said. None of these islands drawn in this Murillo Velarde map appeared in China’s maps from centuries ago.

“The map debunks once and for all, the Chinese historical narrative that China has owned the South China Sea for 200 years. Now the world knows better. Thanks to the definitive ruling of the Arbitral Tribunal, China’s historical narrative has been exposed as fake news. The map proves, beyond any shadow of doubt, that Spratlys and Scarborough Shoal were part of the Philippine territory as early as 1734,” Justice Carpio had said at a lecture at the Ateneo de Manila University in 2017.

At the Alliance Française opening, Justice Carpio explained that the aggressiveness of China in claiming the Spratlys and Scarborough Shoal started with the 1898 Treaty of Paris, after the Spanish-American war, when Spain ceded to the United States the archipelago known as the Philippine Islands in exchange for $20 million to ratify the Treaty. Spain might have missed the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal, putting these outside the western side of the polygonal lines of the Philippines in the Treaty of Paris.

But the United States noticed the exclusion, and demanded a revision of the map for the revised treaty, called the 1900 Treaty of Washington, which provided that “Spain relinquishes to the United all title and all claim of title, which she may have had at the time of the conclusion of the Treaty of Peace of Paris, to any and all islands belonging to the Philippine Archipelago, lying outside the lines described in Article III of that Treaty and particularly to the islands of Cagayan (Mapun), Sulu and Sibutu and their dependencies, and agrees that all such islands shall be comprehended in the cession of the Archipelago as fully as if they had been expressly included within those lines.”

The frame of reference for the 1900 Treaty of Washington’s definition of the Philippine territory was the Murillo Velarde map, which included the Spratlys and the Scarborough Shoal, But still, China’s position is that Philippine territory is limited to the islands enclosed by the polygonal lines drawn in the 1898 Treaty of Paris. Justice Carpio said that China did not participate in the Arbitral proceedings, but “by officially submitting its Position Paper to the Arbitral Tribunal, China expressly and formally recognized that Philippine territory is defined by three treaties, including the 1900 Treaty of Washington… China is forever estopped from claiming that Philippine territory is limited to the islands enclosed by the Treaty of Paris.”

It was only in 1947 that China started to claim the Spratlys, Justice Carpio said. Scarborough Shoal appears in a 1948 Chinese map, named Si-ka-ba-luo, a Chinese transliteration of the English name Scarborough, The shoal was named by Captain Philip D’Auvergne, whose East India Company ship East Indiaman Scarborough grounded on one of the rocks on Sept. 12, 1784, before sailing on to China although it already had a Spanish name recorded in the 1734 Murillo Velarde map of Spanish Philippines (W. Gilbert [1804] A New Nautical Directory for the East-India and China Navigation .., pp.480-482).

The Carta Hydrographica y Chorographica de las Islas Filipinas, the Murillo Velarde 1734 map is indeed the “Mother of all Philippine Maps,” a “Living Document” to history, as Justice Carpio says.

Filipinos thank Justice Antonio Carpio for his unrelenting fight for Philippine territory and maritime sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

We thank Former Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador Albert del Rosario, who had fought together with Justice Carpio for Philippine rights on the seas. Ambassador del Rosario, 83, passed away on April 18. May he rest in peace.

Amelia H. C. Ylagan is a doctor of Business Administration from the University of the Philippines.

SOURCE: BWORLDONLINE