May we come to the conclusion that piracy allways existed, as actually it may still exists ... i mean classic pirates, not the sophisticated version ones
. Weaponry used became therefore more and more modernized.
The event depicted in the attached picture just took place "the other day".
It appears that the China Sea, after the opium war, was boiling with shameless pirates, that assaulted civilian merchant junks, also imperial ones, even threatening westerners.
Some guy called Mah Chow Wong was one of the mightiest, leading various fleets and with enough wealth to bribe whomever necessary.
They wouldn't hesitate to atack territories under Portuguese protectorate, such as Macau. This gave place for local traders, fishermen and ship owners
to ask the mandarins escort for their boats and guard to their businesses by Portuguese forces. By around 1855 a total of almost 200 Portuguese lorchas, handled by mixed Chinese and Portuguese crews, were hunting these pirates. Weapons then used were rifles, swords ( sabres ) and axes.