he Vatican Museums will pay homage to 17th-century Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, the first Westerner to be buried in Beijing, with an exhibit opening on Friday.

The exhibit marks the 400th anniversary of Ricci's death with Western artworks from the 16th and 17th centuries as well as Chinese objects and paintings, some of which are more than 3,000 years old.

Ricci was considered Europe's ambassador to China's imperial court from 1601 until his death in 1610, when the emperor authorised his burial on Chinese soil.

A fluent speaker of Mandarin, Ricci wore traditional Chinese clothes and went by the name of Li Madou.

He was "a veritable bridge of dialogue and exchange between Europe and China," said Monsignor Claudio Giuliodori, the bishop of Ricci's native Macerata in central Italy.

Ricci introduced the works of Confucius to the West and - established an intense dialogue with the most illustrious literary and culture figures of China - Giuliodori told a news conference at the Vatican on Wednesday.

Giuliodori said he hoped the exhibit, which runs until January 24, would further bolster "friendship with the Chinese people...and ties of communion with the Catholics of this great country."

The Holy See has no formal relations with China, where a "Patriotic Association" formally oversees the country's officially registered Catholics.

China severed diplomatic ties with the Vatican in 1951 in anger at its recognition of Taiwan, which Beijing views as a renegade province.

The Western items include scientific instruments, a painting by Peter Paul Rubens of the Miracle of Saint Ignatius of Loyola -- the founder of the Jesuit order -- and Veronese's Allegory of the Battle of Lepanto.

On the Chinese side is a shrine to Confucius, engravings and figurines from various periods including a Ming Dynasty funeral procession and a 16th-century Virgin and Child with Asian facial features.