本書是西班牙道明會嗃呣（Juan Cobo）神父，為了向華人宣揚天主教義及西方科學知識，在馬尼拉當地閩南人的幫助下完成翻譯工作，而後在華人刻工的協助下，於1593年完成刻版印刷傳世。書分為九個章節，前三章主要為介紹天主教教義，後六章則是有關天文、地理及動植物的科學知識，並附上生動的圖說，為現存世界上最早以閩南語將十六世紀西歐知識譯成漢字的書籍，具體呈現大航海時代閩南人與西班牙人在宗教、科學知識交流的過程與成果，為人類「世界記憶」（Memory of the World）的重要資產。

This book was written by Spanish Dominican missionary Juan Cobo, who wished to spread Catholicism and western scientific knowledge to Chinese people. Its translation was completed in Manila with help from local Hokkien people, and it was printed in 1593 with aid from Chinese typographers. The book had nine chapters; the first three chapters mainly introduced Catholic doctrines, while the remaining six chapters contained scientific knowledge from fields such as astronomy, geography, zoology, and botany, which were complemented with vivid graphic illustrations. This book was considered the earliest work that translated 16th century Western European knowledge into Hokkien with Chinese characters. It brilliantly presented the process and achievements of Hokkien-Spanish exchanges in religious and scientific knowledge in the Age of Discovery. It is also an important and precious asset of "Memory of the World" for the mankind.