Lou Kau

Lou Kau, originally named Lou Va Sio, was born in Chaolian town of Xinhui city of Guangdong province in 1848. He was an eminent Chinese merchant of Macao during the late Qing dynasty and such a famed gambling operator that he was honored as the first “Gambling Tycoon” of Macao. For over 30 years, he ran a variety of gambling games with his nephew Lou Kuong Iu and his son Lou Lim Ioc, like Vae Seng Lottery, fan-tan game, “Pacapio” (white pigeon lottery) and Lottery of the Holy House of Mercy. He was awarded decorations by the Royal family of Portugal for twice in commendation of his contribution towards Macao.

Actually, Lou Kau built two family mansions, one at no. 7 and the other at no. 9 of Travessa da Sé. The extant mansion, numbered 7, is a Cantonese-style house of simple elegance blended with Western architectural features. The two-storey structure is built of greyish-green bricks, supported by cross-beams and has a flush gable rooftop covered by terra cotta tiles. It is an exemplary of Cantonese-style residential houses exquisitely blended with Western architectural elements of the late Qing dynasty era.