4. What did the Chinese want from the Europeans? The Jesuits, led by a man named Matteo Ricci, demonstrated their ability to predict solar eclipses which were important in Chinese culture, they also showed off inventions like the clock, prism, eyeglasses, and musical instruments. Most of these “European inventions” were derived from earlier Chinese and Middle Eastern breakthroughs that reached Europe through trade. In some cases, the Portuguese presented the Ming and Qing officials with innovations of technology that started centuries before in China. Matteo Ricci learned to speak and write classical Chinese and was the first European allowed into the emperor’s Forbidden City. The Portuguese in return learned a great deal from their Chinese hosts and brought their observations of Chinese culture back to Europe which spurred more interest in travel to and trade with East Asia.