One of many cannons still scattered across the forts of the Spice Islands. There is no evidence of pre-colonial artillery in the region; the Portuguese were the first to introduce such weapons from their arrival in 1511. During the wars between Portugal and Spain, Portugal and Holland, Spain and Holland, Britain and Holland, and the local people versus all the colonial powers, many cannons–great and small–found their way to the islands, and many remain there.
Early cannons brought from Europe were of beautiful but expensive bronze manufacture. Later, cheaper cast-iron weapons replaced them on the battlefields. Cannon foundries in Europe, Goa, Macau, Java and Macassar all supplied ordnance.
Sadly, there are many more discarded cannons lying around the Spice Islands than budgets available for their restoration.