From West PH Sea to PH identity: The multi-faceted Murillo Velarde 1734 map
By Paige Javier, ABS-CBN News
August 28, 2024
In 2016, Velarde brought home the map years after acquiring it at an auction in London for over P12 million. Paige Javier, ABS-CBN News
The Murillo Velarde 1734 map and other cultural treasures will be available for public viewing, free of charge, at the National Library of the Philippines starting next month. Paige Javier, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — After playing a role in the country’s historic arbitral win over China, businessman Mel Velasco Velarde believes the Murillo Velarde 1734 map carries a new meaning in this day and age.
Dubbed as the “Mother of all Philippine Maps,” the Murillo Velarde map served as a key part of the country’s winning presentation at the Permanent Court of Arbitration under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) at The Hague in 2016.
The map boosted the country’s claims against China, showing “Panacot” shoal now known as Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal. It also featured the Spratly Islands, once called “Los Bajos de Paragua.”
“We had a problem with China which still lingers at this moment. Its role was more than the legal significance or legal aspect. It’s really our moral argument against our neighbor which uses historical evidence as their argument. Every time they talk about the nine dash line, we have to tell them we have the Velarde map as early as 1734,” Velarde told ABS-CBN News on Wednesday.
“This map, as early as 1734 under Philip V, an official Spanish government document showing that the contested islands including the low tide rocks are owned by the Philippines and which was confirmed by the Treaty of Paris, Treaty of Washington and all the other maps which are all called the siblings of the mother of all Philippine maps even under the American government,” he added.
The historic map is also known as the first scientific map of the Philippines. It was named after Spanish Jesuit Friar Pedro Murillo Velarde, who prepared the map with Filipinos Francisco Suarez and Nicolas dela Cruz Bagay.
Beyond the crucial contribution of the map in the country’s maritime row with China, Velarde said it reflects the lives of Filipinos before the 18th century.
The map defined in detail Philippine territory during 1734, depicting the country’s boundaries, mountains, bodies of water and more.
Velarde, who also sits as Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication chairman, noted that the map showed Filipinos farming and a sense of community.
“Beyond or even before late 18th century we had an idea of a nationhood that as you can see in the map the Filipinos had a clear understanding of what is right and wrong Filipinos or the native or the Indios were self-reliant,” he said.
“Pedro Murillo Velarde, Nicolas Bagay and Francisco Suarez with all their indio teams collaborated to show here that we were self-sustaining, we were self-reliant, we have a community we knew what were morally permissible and impermissible. Murillo Velarde made sure that it is not just a map that shows the islands and rocks it’s also a reflection of the lives of the Filipinos, early Filipinos here,” Velarde added.
The entrepreneur shared that retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio encouraged him to bid for the map.
In 2016, Velarde brought home the map years after acquiring it at an auction in London. A year later, he donated the map to the government, with the hopes of having it displayed at a museum.
Velarde said the map, which he bought for around P12 million, turned priceless due to its relevance to Philippine history.
“I think if you look at the map, you will see and realize that on this land, generations come and go. They lived here, they cried here, they celebrated here, they suffered here, they became victors here. And their moments were golden moments, and now is our golden moment as well. So let’s take advantage of it and own it. We must own our own country,” he shared.
Nearly eight years since the map was returned to Philippine shores, it has found a permanent home in the National Library of the Philippines (NLP) in Ermita, Manila.
The map is housed in the Permanent Gallery, which was inaugurated on August 9, 2024.
“This journey stands as a testament to dedication and perseverance, bringing a significant cultural treasure to the forefront of public access and fulfilling the intent of Mr. Mel Velarde and the Philippine government to preserve and showcase the nation’s rich cultural heritage,” NLP director Cesar Gilbert Adriano said at the inauguration.
Velarde is hopeful more Filipinos, especially the youth, could get to see the map up close and get a better understanding of Philippine history and territory.
The Murillo Velarde 1734 map and other cultural treasures will be available for public viewing, free of charge, at the National Library of the Philippines starting next month.
By Lourdes Escaros, DZXL
August 13, 2024
By ANC
August 30, 2024
“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
