Maritime Archaeology in Cabo Verde, wrecks interventions report 1999-2001

Alejandro  Mirabal

Inventory of marine archaeological sites discovered and assessed in the Cabo Verde archipelago, including Cidade Velha, during the archaeological explorations and interventions from 1999 to 2001. The list includes 44 wreck sites of archaeological importance which were investigated at various levels of intervention, some of them prior to 1999.

Maritime Archaeology in the Cabo Verde Archipelago Wrecks’ interventions report (1999-2001) M.Sc. Alejandro Mirabal Archaeologist / Operations Manager 1 Contents Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... 7 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 8 Exploration and Survey .................................................................................................. 10 Registration of finds ....................................................................................................... 12 The Shipwrecks .............................................................................................................. 13 The "São Francisco wreck", C.1650 (AGO-063) .................................................................... 16 The astrolabe ....................................................................................................................... 22 The Composite Guns ........................................................................................................... 25 Tentative identification ....................................................................................................... 26 Site plans ............................................................................................................................. 30 The Princess Louisa, 1743 (MAI-006) ................................................................................... 32 History of the ship and the wreckage .................................................................................. 32 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................... 37 Site plans ............................................................................................................................. 41 Le Dromadaire, 1762 (VIC-004) ............................................................................................ 45 History of the ship and the wreckage .................................................................................. 45 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................... 49 Site plans ............................................................................................................................. 54 The Leijmuiden, 1770 (BOA-005) .......................................................................................... 56 History of the ship and the wreckage .................................................................................. 56 Exploration of the wreck site .............................................................................................. 58 Site sketch ........................................................................................................................... 61 The Grev Ernst Schimmelmann, 1781 (MAI-010) .................................................................. 62 History of the ship and the wreckage .................................................................................. 62 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................... 66 The Copper Plate Money..................................................................................................... 73 The Plate Money of the “Schimmelmann” .......................................................................... 78 Site plan ............................................................................................................................... 97 The Hartwell, 1787 (BOA-007) .............................................................................................. 98 History of the ship and the wreckage .................................................................................. 98 Exploration of the wreck site ............................................................................................ 108 Site sketch ......................................................................................................................... 110 The Lady Burgess, 1806 (VAL-002)..................................................................................... 111 History of the ship and the wreckage ................................................................................ 111 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................. 116 2 Site plans ........................................................................................................................... 130 The “Varandinha Wreck”, 1834 – 1850’s (BOA-018) ......................................................... 132 History of the ship and the wreckage ................................................................................ 132 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................. 133 Site plans ........................................................................................................................... 142 The Yorktown, 1850 (MAI-011)............................................................................................ 143 History of the ship and the wreckage ................................................................................ 143 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................. 145 Site plan ............................................................................................................................. 149 The “Rombos Wreck”, 1856 - 1896 (BRV-006) .................................................................. 150 History of the ship and the wreckage ................................................................................ 150 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................. 151 Site plans ........................................................................................................................... 159 The Guadalupe IV, 1865 (BRV-007) .................................................................................... 160 History of the ship and the wreckage ................................................................................ 160 Excavation of the wreck site ............................................................................................. 168 Site plans ........................................................................................................................... 175 PART II: Non-Excavated Wrecks ................................................................................ 176 SANTIAGO ISLAND ........................................................................................................... 176 AGO-030. Urania (1805)...................................................................................................... 177 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 177 Historic references............................................................................................................. 180 Site sketch ......................................................................................................................... 181 AGO-039. “The Cognac Wreck” (1830 - 1870) ................................................................... 182 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 182 Historic references............................................................................................................. 185 AGO-051. “The Wooden Wreck” (1550 - 1600) .................................................................. 185 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 185 Historic references............................................................................................................. 190 AGO-071. “The Tarrafal Wreck” (c. 1800) .......................................................................... 190 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 190 Historic references............................................................................................................. 191 AGO-022. “The Ponta Facho Wreck” (c. 1600) ................................................................... 192 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 192 Historic references............................................................................................................. 192 AGO-001. “The Ponta Temerosa Wreck” (c. 1600) ............................................................. 193 3 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 193 Historic references............................................................................................................. 193 AGO-021. “The Mortar Wreck” (c. 1750) ............................................................................ 194 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 194 Historic references............................................................................................................. 195 AGO-024. “The Bronze Cannon Wreck” (c. 1550) .............................................................. 195 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 195 Historic references............................................................................................................. 196 AGO-025. “The Pottery Wreck” (c. 1600)............................................................................ 196 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 196 Historic references............................................................................................................. 198 AGO-038. “The Cemetery Wreck” (c. 1700)........................................................................ 199 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 199 Historic references............................................................................................................. 200 AGO-050. “The Crucifix Wreck” (c. 1650) .......................................................................... 200 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 200 Historic references............................................................................................................. 202 AGO-060. “The Deep Wreck” (c. 1600)............................................................................... 202 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 202 Historic references............................................................................................................. 204 AGO-064. “The Ponta Lobo Wreck” (c. 1700)..................................................................... 204 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 204 Historic references............................................................................................................. 204 SANTO ANTÃO ISLAND ................................................................................................... 205 ANT-015. “The Ponta Brejo Wreck” (c. 1650)..................................................................... 206 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 206 Historic references............................................................................................................. 208 Site sketch ......................................................................................................................... 209 SÃO NICOLAU ISLAND .................................................................................................... 210 NIC-001. “The Barril Wreck” (c. 1800)................................................................................ 211 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 211 Historic references............................................................................................................. 212 NIC-003. “The Praia Branca wreck” (c. 1750) ..................................................................... 212 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 212 Historic references............................................................................................................. 213 NIC-004. “The Ponta Carriçal wreck” (c. 1800) ................................................................... 213 4 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 213 Historic references............................................................................................................. 213 BOA VISTA ISLAND .......................................................................................................... 214 BOA-006. The Santo Andre, 1856 ........................................................................................ 215 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 215 Historic references............................................................................................................. 216 BOA-008. “The Ponta Antonia Wreck” (c.1800) ................................................................. 216 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 216 Historic references............................................................................................................. 217 BOA-010. “The Ponta Rodrigo Wreck” (c.1750) ................................................................. 217 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 217 Historic references............................................................................................................. 218 BOA-011. “The Ilheu do Galeão Wreck” (c.1700) ............................................................... 219 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 219 Historic references............................................................................................................. 219 BOA-012. “The Ilheu do Cascalho Wreck” (c.1862) ........................................................... 220 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 220 Historic references............................................................................................................. 220 BOA-013. “The Glass Wreck” (c.1800) ............................................................................... 221 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 221 Historic references............................................................................................................. 222 BOA-015. “The Holanda Reef Wreck” (c.1800) .................................................................. 222 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 222 Historic references............................................................................................................. 223 BOA-001. “The Vauban shoal Wreck” (c.1800) .................................................................. 223 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 223 Historic references............................................................................................................. 223 BRAVA and FOGO ISLANDS ............................................................................................ 224 BRV-004. “The Furna Wreck” (c. 1850) .............................................................................. 225 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 225 Historic references............................................................................................................. 225 BRV-005. “The Fajã de Água Wreck” (c. 1700) .................................................................. 226 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 226 Historic references............................................................................................................. 226 FOG-001. “The Carlota Wreck” (c. 1800) ............................................................................ 226 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 226 5 Historic references............................................................................................................. 226 MAIO ISLAND .................................................................................................................... 227 MAI-013. “The Five Cannon Wreck” (c. 1600) ................................................................... 229 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 229 Historic references............................................................................................................. 230 MAI-008. The Missouri, 1826 .............................................................................................. 230 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 230 Historic references............................................................................................................. 231 MAI-009. “The South Maio Wreck” (c. 1900) ..................................................................... 232 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 232 Historic references............................................................................................................. 232 MAI-012. “The Brick Wreck” (c. 1800) ............................................................................... 233 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 233 Historic references............................................................................................................. 234 MAI-015. The Conceição, 1625 ........................................................................................... 234 Description of the site ....................................................................................................... 234 Historic references............................................................................................................. 235 Site sketch ......................................................................................................................... 237 Expeditions Teams ....................................................................................................... 238 Conservation Centre (Centro de Restauração e Museologia CRM) ............................. 238 Bibliography ................................................................................................................. 239 6 Acknowledgements The marine archaeological interventions and subsequent study of the wreck sites in Cabo Verde, is the result of the combined effort of a large group of specialists. Working in the Cabo Verde Archipelago, with a multinational team and carrying out research on artefacts which were unknown at that time to most of us, posed quite peculiar hurdles to overcome. Although this publication would not exist without their hard work, mentioning them all here would be impossible. First, I would like to express my profound gratitude to Dr. Margaret Rule, mentor and friend, for the trust she granted me and her wise guidance and advice. To Edwing James Herbert, Jimmy, for sharing his apparently endless wealth of knowledge regarding the plate money. To Peter Darracott, Senior Conservator and Director of the Conservation Centre in Praia, Cabo Verde (CRM) and his team for the meticulous conservation of the artefacts and the post-conservation recording. To Piran R. A. Johnson, Christian Pauly and José Lima for their zeal in the records at the lab, overcoming technical problems so common in those days of migration from analog to digital platforms. Without them this publication would not be possible. To the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Cabo Verde, namely Dr. Mario Alberto Fonseca (INIC) and Dr. Carlos Alberto de Carvalho, President of the National Institute of Culture (INAC), for their support on the project. To Emanuel C. D’Oliveira “Munaia” (INIC) for his enthusiasm and vision. Finally, I especially want to thank the team of archaeologists, archaeological divers, skippers, conservators, draftsmen, IT specialists, deckhands and boatmen, namely Surveyor Eng. Faure Cambiella and Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebize, who faced so much hardship and extreme conditions during the project, without ever lowering the quality of the collected data. Any achievement that this publication may contain is owed to all of them; the errors, that may plague it, are entirely mine. 7 Introduction The uninhabited Cabo Verde Islands may have been discovered in about 1460 by Genoaborn António de Noli, who was later appointed governor of Cabo Verde by the Portuguese King Afonso V. Exactly which Sea Captain first sighted the Islands is disputed due to inaccurate accounts from the time - many of which were not written until many years after the voyages. It may have been the Venetian, Alvise Cadamosto, or the Genoese, António de Noli or Diogo Gomes (all of whom were on service for the Portuguese). There are also some questions regarding when exactly the Islands were discovered, with both Diogo Gomes and António de Noli being attributed with the discovery, with the official date being May 1st, 1460. Diogo Afonso is credited with the discovery of the islands of Santo Antão, São Vicente and São Nicolau. In 1462, the Portuguese founded Ribeira Grande at the mouth of the freshwater stream of the same name. Nowadays the town is known as Cidade Velha (Old City) and is considered the first permanent European settlement in the tropics. In the 16th century, the archipelago prospered from the transatlantic slave trade. Pirates occasionally attacked the Portuguese settlements. Sir Francis Drake, an English corsair, ransacked Ribeira Grande in 1585. After a French attack in 1712, the town declined in importance in relation to nearby Praia, which became the capital in 1770. With the decline in the slave trade, Cabo Verde's early prosperity slowly vanished. However, the islands position in the middle of the Atlantic’s shipping lanes made Cabo Verde an ideal location for re-supplying ships. Also, the Portuguese had intended to colonize the islands, but upon arrival they discovered that the islands had no fertile land or practical use for colonization, so instead they used the archipelago as a stopover in the slave trade and check point for trade. 8 This traffic, together with magnetic anomalies produced by the geology of the islands and the sudden storms that are so common in those latitudes, ended in a high occurrence of accidents and shipwrecks. These water today are a prolific field for maritime archaeological research. The history of modern maritime archaeological interventions, underwater exploration, and salvage in the waters of the archipelago, goes back to 1980. In that year Robert F. Marx with a company called Phoenician Explorations and Robert Stenuit filed separate applications for licenses to explore and recover historic shipwrecks. Rex Cowan and Erick Surcouf did the same in 1981 and 1982, respectively. The Dutch Underwater Group applied for a license between 1982 and 1984. In 1984 two other companies, Howed Finance Corp. and Consortium Salvage, applied for permissions to the Ministry of Education and Culture. A more elaborated proposal came in December 1984 by the group World Wide First, represented by Franck Goddio and Edmound Balm, with plans to conduct works on the Dromadaire (1762), Naarden (1623), Leijmuiden (1770), Hartwell (1787), Lady Burgess (1806), and Conceição (1625). In 1986 another proposal was made, this time by the Mel Fisher enterprises INC. None of the aforementioned companies succeeded in getting a concession to work in the waters of Cabo Verde. (Tavares, 2017) This interest, and the fact that several of the mentioned wreck sites were continuously exploited by local fishermen as a sea resource, and by international divers who loot them, may have played a role in the government of Cabo Verde to take steps to protect their underwater cultural heritage, even if partially. The first to sign a contract to explore and recover historic shipwrecks in the country was Afrimar, a South African company who got a license in 1993 to work on the wrecks of the Leijmuiden (1770), Hartwell (1787), and Santo André (1856), all in Boa Vista island. 9 In August 1995, an exclusive concession contract was signed between the Government of Cabo Verde and Arqueonautas Arqueologia Subaquática S.A, a Portuguese company registered in Madeira, covering the whole of the archipelago’s territorial waters. This license lasted until 2001 and was the last underwater archaeological intervention in Cape Verdean waters until today (2020). In May 1999, I joined this project as archaeological advisor and “on-field” archaeologist, working in straight cooperation with Dr. Margaret Rule and Mensun Bound (Oxford University MARE). The aim was that the international archaeological standards were strengthened assuring that the company started following the procedures defined by the ICOMOS Charter of 1996, Article 6. As a result, a storage facility in Cidade de Praia, assigned by the Government of Cabo Verde, was converted into a conservation laboratory, the Centro de Restauraçao e Museologia (CRM), which since 2008 became the Museu de Arqueologia da Praia. In that centre the conservation and restoration of artefacts was done, under the leadership of Mr. Peter Darracott, a British conservation expert for maritime artefacts. Emphasis was made in the training of national students seeking long-term benefits for the community and the creation of a national team capable of protecting national maritime heritage. Exploration and Survey In the search for shipwrecks, exploration was planned based on high probability areas indicated by historic documents, information from local fishermen or analysis of marine hazards and outline of the reefs. The team carried out the exploration by two basic methods: remote sensing survey and visual exploration. Remote sensing survey was conducted by towing electronic equipment (magnetometer, side-scan sonar, sub-bottom profilers, etc.) over a computerized grid. The primary 10 objective was to locate and map any anomalous features for future investigation. A coverage overlap was designed to accommodate the site conditions, weather, boat type, boat operator abilities, etc. In geographically limited areas of good visibility and close to the breakers, we used the visual exploration. This activity was divided into two systems: the sledge and the autonomous exploration. The sledge exploration system allowed the team to cover large areas of the intermediate zone of the reef in depths between 2 and 12 metres. Similarly, autonomous exploration was used to cover the shallow area near the breakers where the other survey methods are not recommended. A group of divers made swim lines from one known GPS position to another in a predetermined direction, with the maximum distance between them that guarantees overlapping of the section of the seabed observed by each one. Once a site with cultural material was discovered the surveyor proceeded to map and record. A first pre-disturbance survey plays an important role in planning the excavation. It defines the area of the site, type of seabed, depth of the overburden, extent of archaeological material, and its nature. The archaeological team recorded every visible object belonging to the shipwreck as well as conspicuous natural marine features (for instance big coral heads or gullies) as reference points. All visible objects were numbered (e.g. cannons like G1, G2, etc and anchors as A1, A2…) measured individually and in relation to each other. For wrecks sites in fairly flat seabed, without large coral heads between the objects and with short distances between them the triangulation method was used. On sites where the difference of depth was of relevance, variables were introduced in the measurement to get 3D information for the site plan and avoid the error produced by the apparent position of the artefacts. All measurements were introduced in a vector 11 software to make a plan of the sites on 1:100 scale, or a scaled site sketch depending on the case. Registration of finds Each wreck was identified with a code referred to the area and the chronology of its discovery. That way MAI-006 is the sixth wreck found at Maio island and VIC-004 is the fourth wreck found at São Vicente. This code will identify the wreck, the dives done in it and the artefacts recovered from the site. The documents developed to get the raw information from archaeological excavations in our case were the Dive Log and the Artefact Sheet. The Dive Log records any dive done in an archaeological intervention. The Artefact Sheet is generated when an artefact is recovered and it constitutes its “birth registry”; an artefact gets a number (which is related to the site code and dive log), which will accompany the artefact through the different steps until its final publication. The Artefact Sheet records the characteristics, measurements, nature, category, associations, condition, and relationships of every artefact as well as a drawing of the object. Dive logs and artefact sheets are introduced in a database created for that purpose which is also fed with the digital photos of the artefact (pre conservation, post conservation, conservation process, etc), unique artefact number, a site plan of the wreck with the location of each artefact, details of conservation procedures applied, technical drawings, etc. All excavated artefacts were placed into a desalination tank on board of the expedition vessel. The tank was filled with 50% seawater and 50% fresh water, to avoid deterioration due to violent osmosis. After few days they were placed in fresh water, which was continuously renewed until delivery to the laboratory. Only months later, when the 12 conservation processes were concluded, we were able to observe marks and features in the artefacts that helped us in the tentative identification of the wrecks. The Conservation Log was produced when the artefact reached the laboratory and, aside of including the relevant information from the artefact and the dive in which was recovered, registered all chemical processes applied to the object and outlined follow up treatments to be conducted in the future. The Shipwrecks The masters of early ships, using the northeast trade winds en route to Brazil or to Cape Town, feared the waters around the Cabo Verde Archipelago. This group of ten islands, lying 340 nautical miles from the west coast of Africa, rise dramatically from the deep waters of the Atlantic Ocean and have been death traps for mariners for centuries. The storms that swept the islands from the northeast and the steep cliffs and shallow offshore reefs rising through the sea mists were often lethal. Underwater exploration in the Cabo Verde islands has revealed over a hundred wrecks dating from the 16th to the 20th centuries. English, Dutch, Portuguese and Danish East Indiamen, the great trading ships which plied between Europe and the Far East, lie in storm-tossed confusion on the seabed together with the remains of slave vessels and an American sloop-of-war intent on stopping the slave trade between Africa and the United States. Unreliable charts of the waters around the Cabo Verde Archipelago coupled with unpredictable offshore mists and dust storms from Africa, can wreak havoc with boats and ships that venture too close to the coast. Ships were lost at sea for a wide range of reasons, including: navigational errors and uncharted reefs, high winds, heavy seas, adverse currents, human error, piracy and fire, enemy action, mutinies, overloading or 13 shifting of cargo and weakened ship structure (for example, by the infamous Teredo worm). Most of the wrecks discovered in Cabo Verde were maritime errors, the result of poor navigation and misinformation. Their commanders never intended to go so close to the islands but driven on by a terrible ocean swell and mislead by poor navigation marks they struck the reefs and ground to pieces on the jagged semi-submerged rocks. In these conditions most of the wrecks were scattered and destroyed. The present paper is about some of these wrecks, their history, their enigmas, and the condition in which they were at the end of 2001. As the level of intervention varied great deal within the sites, depending on weather conditions, budget restraints, experience of the team members, logistical reasons, and company policies, we have divided the wrecks in two groups. Part I discusses the wreck sites which were partially or totally excavated to the bottom of recent deposits, artefacts were recovered, registered, classified, and stabilized. In most of the cases of this group, the author has conducted research for years after the field works finished in 2001. This research has been mainly based in stock photographs, databases entries and the author’s own notes, as most of the artefacts are not easily accessible today. Part II describes the wreck sites which were not excavated, but reconnaissance and assessment works were done to different extents. In some cases, the works were limited to non-intrusive observation and registering, in others some trial excavation was done, and exposed artefacts recovered. This section also includes monitoring visits to wrecks found in previous expeditions, aiming to enrich the existent information and evaluate the conditions in which they were after some years of been reported. This paper, although some necessary references to previous interventions are made, discusses the works in which I, or the team under my supervision, directly participated. 14 PART I: Excavated Wrecks 15 The "São Francisco wreck", C.1650 (AGO-063) One of the most fascinating wrecks in the Cabo Verde islands was called by the team the “São Francisco” wreck (named after its location near the São Francisco bay), discovered in 1999 off the coast of Santiago island. Little is known about her except what may be deduced from the artefacts recovered from the site. She was most likely a merchant vessel, the average size of which at the time was about 120 tons, well-armed, a need for trading in dangerous waters. Cannons on board included two of unusual construction, made up of layers of copper, iron barrel and lead sheeting or washers. A well preserved silverplated Portuguese astrolabe recovered from the wreck is engraved with the name NICOLA(O?) RUFFO and is dated 1645, which gives a clue to the date and provenance of the ship, which also carried a range of Iberian pottery. The “Sao Francisco” wreck, code-named AGO-063, was lying in a narrow gully, less than 50m from the shore on the East Coast of Santiago Island, very close to the Passa pau point and was excavated during the 2000 season. The gully that contains the wreck is 9m deep in the western sector and 10.2 m deep in the eastern one. It is mainly formed by loose stones, some sand and dead coral debris with depths of between 25 cm and more than 1m inside the cave in the west of the wreck. The main visible artefacts inside the gully were 18 cannons (16 made of iron and 2 composite guns), 5 anchors and some pottery fragments on the superficial area. Immediately a Datum Line (DL) was established from the western end of the area explored during the 1999 season (union of the flukes with the shaft of anchor A3 [meter “0”]) to the eastern end of the debris field (2 m to the east of the cascabel of cannon G1 [meter “32”]). The Datum Line was marked meter by meter with a plastic tag at every 16 mark showing the distance in meters from that point to anchor A3. The bearing of the line was 265º - 85º. Cannons and ballast stones inside the gully in AGO-063 Another line was placed perpendicularly to the DL from meter 26 to the SSE (175º) and 11m long until the rock wall. This line was placed to allow for taking measurements of any artefact that might appear during the cleaning of the gully that was used to drop the debris. A group of 17 very eroded silver coins were found in this place (see site plan for exact position) and some pottery fragments were observed superficially in the area. A new line, this time parallel to DL, was placed to assure accurate measurements on cannons G11, G12, G13, and G14 and anchor A5. In that section the DL was quite far from the seabed due to its depression, that is why the new line was settled down closer to the bottom. Olive jars found in the wreck site. 17 Approximately 2.3 m to the W of point “0” an intact olive jar was also found exposed inside the cave, visible because a large amount of sediment was displaced from the cave during the months of rough sea (December, January, February, and March). The sediment in the cave was quite compact, reaching a depth of 80 cm. An airlift was thus used to reach the evidences of the shipwreck at a depth of 50cm. We came across small pieces of rope located under the olive jar, small loose fragments of wood, one bone (presumably from a pig) and some pottery fragments of olive jars (not necks), as well as a “pulley” made of wood with three holes (monkey face). The sediment inside the cave was made of very fine sand or mud on the surface, but going deeper (until 20cm approx.) it became more compact and with little shells and small colonies of dead coral (apparently Mussidae) until a depth of approximately 70cm, where the loose rocks began to appear. The excavations were stopped at 6m inside the cave because no other wreck evidence could be found. The A1 anchor was badly broken into 4 pieces, spread all over the seabed. The A4 anchor, which was lying in a vertical position (flukes down) against the rock wall, had a metallic object in the shape of a flower accreted to it near the deeper end, between the anchor and the wall. This metallic object was recovered and seemed to be a candelabrum of copper alloy, partially broken at the base. It was heavily concreted with the anchor and parts of fabric (clothes?) in fairly good condition. One fragment of this fabric had an ornament in silver and was also recovered as a sample. Clothes with silver ornament (left), base of a candle holder found concreted to A4 (center) and a complete one found later (right) 18 A metal detector’s survey was done in a gully to the S of m10 of DL. One silver coin and two much eroded iron bolts were found approximately 25 cm deep into the sediment. Several pottery fragments were also found together with the metallic artefacts. In this metal detection a pocket watch and a group of copper dishes were also found. The watch caught our attention because even if we know that pocket watches were developed in the 16th century, by mid-17th century (the estimated date of our wreck) these ingenious pieces were certainly not common. On addition, the watch is made of brass, completely undecorated, as if would be a mundane object instead of a precious piece of machinery. It was found deep into the sediment of the gully, in context with other wreck material, making it unlikely to be modern contamination, although is still a possibility. Pocket watch and a group of copper dishes excavated in the same area. In the narrowest part of the gully (between G14 and A4) a remarkably interesting find was made. An apparently intact mariner astrolabe was excavated under a thin layer of loose stones and sand, inside a small cavity under the rock wall. The astrolabe was measured in the site plan (see site plans) and later recovered to be immediately taken to the Conservation Centre in Cidade de Praia. It was in unusually good condition. The mariner astrolabe in the moment of its recovery. 19 The G8, G9 and G10 cannons appeared to be concreted on a large iron concretion with stones, pieces of pottery and lead shot. Also, some coins were located inside this concretion. It seemed like most of the small and heavy things were deposited there by the strong swell and the difference of depth. Excavating the area of cannons G11, G12, G13 and G14 we found some coins and links of two different types of gold chains. The chains appear in small fragments (10 or 12 links) and links were of “easy-open” type. These seem to be the type of chains which used the links as “currency” and trade. Pewter bottle top (top left) and gold chain with detachable links (top right). Pewter plates (bottom left) and mark in the back of one of them (bottom right) A group of 18 silver coins and one gold link were found widely scattered in the area and about 20cm deep into the sediment. The whole area had pottery fragments under the layer of the surface. The area around cannons G15, G16, G17 and G18 was excavated with the airlift. Other artefacts such as bottle tops made of pewter were found (besides A2) whilst excavating in ponds of sand and stones, where the bedrock was reached. Under anchor A4 another fragment of a gold chain and one very eroded coin were found. In this place the bedrock appeared very quickly and therefore the sterile layer under the archaeological station was reached, ending the excavation. 20 21 The astrolabe This is a unique Portuguese silver-plated bronze mariner's astrolabe, signed ‘NICOLA[O?*] RVFFO’ below the ballast and dated 1645 in between two four pointed stars enclosed with a double circular border in between the two lower quadrants of the ballast. The suspension apparatus is made up of a small ring carried on a 'U' shackle pinned on to a non-rotatable mount, thus restricting movement of the instrument to the vertical plane, the suspension is attached to a low, double-lobed throne cast in one piece with the body of the instrument. This has ogival corners to the quadrant openings and a semi-circular bottom ballast. The instrument is neatly divided in the upper quadrants for zenith distance measurements 90-0-90 by radial divisions in a double scale, the numbers for every 10° being punched in the lower arc, the graduations and the 5° numerals in the upper arc, also each single degree is marked between rings 2 and 3. The double arc for the scale is continued round the lower two quadrants, the maker's name being punched between them at the bottom of the ballast. The reverse of the instrument is plain. Diameter: 171.45mm, 6 ¾ in. Thickness: 215mm at the top and 220mm at the base Weight: 2.82 kilos The astrolabe was found associated with other wreck material of mid-17th century within a complex of deep gullies and caves at a depth of 7 to 12 metres. There was little or no site contamination by extraneous material. The instrument was in good condition for a maritime find. Its preservation deep in the gully has meant that it was relatively unabraded. 22 This astrolabe has been assigned the number 84 in the ongoing register of mariner's astrolabes by the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. It is unique in that the entire corpus is plated with silver, being the only known example with this feature (Smith, 2002). The vane or alidade, which is complete, is made of brass, and is attached to the body of the instrument by a threaded bolt, secured by a butterfly wing nut on the reverse and a knob and washer on the front. Front of the mariner astrolabe after conservation. Presumably, the reason for using these materials was to facilitate reading by their contrasting colors. The interest of these unique features is heightened by the fact that in form the astrolabe is highly traditional, closely resembling other Portuguese instruments in the NMM register. It is almost identical to an astrolabe signed by Andre Ruffo (presumably a member of the same family of makers) in 1648, recovered by a dredger working at the entrance to Cadiz in southern Spain (NMM Cat. No. 64). That instrument 23 uses exactly the same signature layout with identical word and star positions as the present one. Drawing of the mariner astrolabe after conservation. 24 The Composite Guns Gun No 1: Ago-063/99/15380 - Excavated on 29/10/99 Gun No 2: Ago-063/99/15411- Excavated on 4/11/99 Bore 7.5cm., 3in., Overall length 107 cm. Composite iron and copper cannons, probably Dutch, mid-17th century with brass lifting dolphins, conventional vents and cast decoration. These guns are similar in construction to two guns recovered from the wreck of the Batavia, wrecked in 1629 off the coast of Western Australia. The construction of these guns appeared to be a combination of wrought iron rings or collars over a copper barrel with the whole gun sheathed with copper. Gun No.1 has the inscription in the base ring “169A”, possibly its weight in “Amsterdam pounds” (494 gr.) The weight of the gun in metric system would be 83.4 kg. 25 In addition to the above mentioned guns there are only few other known examples of guns which are similar in construction: one is the Azdaha Paikar cannon (“Dragon Body”, manufactured in 1674), located on the Musa Burj of Golconda fort, India, one in the Museum of Artillery in the Rotunda at Woolwich (Kaestlin, 1963) and the other recovered from a seventeenth century wreck in the Grand Bahamas. Tentative identification The shipwreck code-named AGO-063 and now referred to as the “São Francisco” wreck was a 17th century trader, whose name remains unknown. The identification of this shipwreck was particularly important, because of the exceptional finding of an Astrolabe dating 1645 and assigned to Nicolao Ruffo. Researchers have searched archival documents in Spain and Portugal to try and find a ship that matches the remains found by the team of marine archaeologists. Firstly, a list of possibilities was compiled, following a list of outgoing slave ships from Seville between 1640 and 1650: • 1640: Nuestra Señora de Populo, Spanish ship. • 1644: an 80 tons foreign ship. • 1645: 4 Spanish ships The Santiago, El Cesar, Santo Tomás and a small boat. • 1647: the Cesar, an English ship. • 1650: 4 Spanish ships Urca Nuestra Señora de Populo, San Antonio alias la Buena Fortuna Dorada, San Salvador and Nuestra Señora del Rosario. • 1652: Nuestra Señora de la Victoria and San Francisco de Paula, Spanish ships. From the 7 different wrecks references found which would fall into the time brackets, the 1650 date seemed to be leading to an interesting conclusion. 26 While further researching historical information on that shipwreck, one document from the “AHU - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino” caught the researcher’s attention particularly because of the Passa-Pau location it refers to, where the shipwreck was found. We were thus able to identify the shipwrecked vessel from the location of Passa-Pau. Chronological aspects and data on the cargo helped to confirm this identification but it was mainly done through the specificity of the location’s name. A first reference appeared in a document from Overseas Historical Archives (AHU Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino) which was an official inquiry sent to Lisbon by the Governor, Jorge Mesquita de Castelo Branco, but made under his predecessor, Pedro Semedo Cardoso and dated 26th of June 1652. The inquiry mentioned problems between the said governor and certain royal officials as to whether or not they were authorized to trade with and provide support for two Spanish ships, which had come to buy slaves. The date of the wreck is clearly indicated; November 1649, although the actual day is not mentioned. Equally clear are the location of the shipwreck and the port of origin of the ship: it came from Seville and wished to buy slaves to take to the "Indias de Castela". The main cargo of the ship was gold, silver and most probably coral. Other products are mentioned and certain coins, such as patacas, identified. The products mentioned are silver spoons and plates, pottery, pewter ware, olive oil jars and fabrics from Rouen, Brittany and Holland. The clothing included shirts, socks, dresses and clothing in general, as well as cloths and a blanket. Some of the products were not identified, among which are a silver "tabaladeira" (?) and several times reference is made to something along the lines of silk "colebas" (?). The most common goods were the unknown silk "colebas" (?), the coral, silver ware and patacas. 27 The shipwreck happened at night when the ship was sailing along the coast and ran aground at the place of Passa-Pau, from where most of the people on board and the cargo were taken ashore. No other detail of the ship or its surroundings, nor the size, exact destination, even the name of the captain, pilot or any other officer are given. There is a brief reference to some "Castilians" who appear to have been taken prisoner. The most significant individual reference is made to a Portuguese, a merchant called Adão Dias Solis (a name with obvious Jewish connections, probably linked to the Solis, a family of converted Jews) who may have served as the intermediary between the interests of the Spanish (or possibly only his own) and the royal officials. Charges range from removal of the cargo to connivance with said merchant to allow more Spanish ships to come to the island, although the two countries were at war. This view may even have led the said Adão Dias to return in 1650-51 with two more ships and given rise to the official inquiry mentioned above. The effects of this shipwreck were felt for many years. In a report dated 1662 on the problems of Treasury administration this case is mentioned as having happened approximately eight years previously, caused by the pilot's unfamiliarity with the coast, so that the ship ran aground at. It also says that since the event nothing was decreed concerning the thefts carried out by the royal officials. Quotes from original sources (17th C.) Letter from Juan Suarez de Mendoza. Dated at Sevilla, July 12th, 1650: “By virtue of the commission ordered by Your Majesty on September 17 of the last year of 1649, I have proceeded in the investigation of the trip made by the two ships under Bartolomé Medina and Juan de Morera. The ships were loaded at Sanlúcar [about one 28 hour south from Sevilla] with agricultural products and other cargo for buying slaves along the rivers of Guinea and from there, taking them to the Indies. This was done without the consent of the crown and having made the necessary enquiries, I have established that the said two ships having bought a consignment of blacks (slaves) and wanting to transport these to the Indies, were wrecked off those coasts. The owners (of the ships) were saved and some of the crew went to Cartagena. The whereabouts of the ship under Juan Vicencio Uzelo has not been discovered.” En virtud de comisión de V.M. despachada en 17 de septiembre del año pasado de 1649 he procedido a la averiguación del viaje que hicieron dos navíos, el uno de Bartolomé de Medina y el otro de Juan de Morera que cargaron en la ciudad de Sanlúcar de frutos y otros géneros para rescatar negros en los ríos de Guinea y de allí llevarlos a la Indias sin licencia de VM y habiendo hecho en esta razón todas las diligencias convenientes, he podido averiguar que los dichos dos navíos habiendo rescatado partida de negros, y queriendo los navegar a las Indias se perdieron en aquellas costas, y que se salvaron los dueños y alguna gente que fueron a Cartagena y el paradero que tuvo el navío Juan Vicencio Uzelo no se ha podido averiguar … Sevilla 12 de julio de 1650. Fdo. Juan Suarez de Mendoza. (AHU, Cabo Verde, box 4) Halfway through the document found at the “AHU - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino” the researchers read that the disputes, between the two parties (governor and officials) were old ones and could be seen in another official inquiry, which the governor had set up when another ship had been shipwrecked at a place called Passa-Pau. It is precisely this official inquiry, a priceless document, that seeks to ascertain who was responsible for taking away some of the cargo which had been recovered and/or removed from the shipwreck, rather than find the causes of the shipwreck itself. 29 Site plans 30 31 The Princess Louisa, 1743 (MAI-006) History of the ship and the wreckage The Princess Louisa was built in 1733 at Deptford in south-east London by Bronsdon and Wells, a famous firm of shipbuilders who built ships for the Royal Navy as well as very fine merchantmen. She was designed for the service of the East India Company, the immensely powerful company which had a monopoly of England’s trade with Asia, and so, although privately owned by a syndicate of merchants and businessmen, she had to conform to specifications laid down by the Company. At this period, this meant that she was a three-masted, two-decker ship, about 104 feet in the keel, just over 33 feet in breadth and with a depth of hold of 14 feet, two inches. She had a pronounced rake in her bows and a smaller one in her stern, where her roundhouse and great cabin were built up from the deck and would have been about 120 feet long overall at the level of her upper deck. She mounted 30 guns and was rated at 498 tons like all East Indiamen of this period, though this tonnage was an administrative fiction and the Princess Louisa would have been rather bigger, about 550 tons. Many of the ships built for the East India Company were named for royalty and the Princess Louisa was named in honour of the youngest daughter of King George II, an eight-years-old girl who was to become the Queen of Denmark in the same year that the ship met its tragic fate. Ships like the Princess Louisa were the largest, and indeed the most beautiful, in the British merchant marine and were exceeded in size in the contemporary world of merchant ships only by the larger galleons of Spain and Portugal. They had evolved during the 130 years that England had been trading with the east and were now big but graceful ships, strong, fast, well-armed and eminently suited for the long and dangerous passages that they had to make. And yet, so great has been inflation since the eighteenth 32 century, an East Indiaman cost only about £4,000 or £5,000 paid by the owners to the shipbuilders in five separate payments at different stages of her building, the last when she was launched, an occasion graced by a big dinner attended by the ship’s owners and directors of the Company. Management of the ship was entrusted to one of the owners known as the ship’s husband, in this case a businessman with wide-ranging interests called Thomas Hall, and he now had to fit out the ship, a process which could double her cost as sails, cordage, guns, provisions and the innumerable range of artefacts necessary for successful operation were purchased from specialists in the port of London. Once the ship was ready for sea, he made a charter-party for the voyage with the East India Company, an immensely complex document which covered every conceivable occurrence but, most importantly, laid down the amount of freight which was to be paid to the owners by the Company. East Indiamen were designed to make four voyages to the east in their working lives, making the immense and arduous voyage from England south round the Cape of Good Hope and then into the Indian Ocean, calling at ports in Arabia, Persia, India, Sri Lanka and China, depending on the vagaries of trade. The Princess Louisa set sail for her maiden voyage in November 1733 under the command of Captain Richard Pinnell. She loaded coffee at Mocha in Arabia and then sailed to Bombay to load more cargo and was back in England in April 1735, a voyage of seventeen months which was described by the young nephew of one of the owners as “very pleasant. I like the seas very well.” This was fairly short for an East India voyage which averaged between 18 months and two years. Once back in England, the ship underwent a long process of overhaul and refitting so that it was not till late in 1736 that the Princess Louisa set out on her second voyage, this time to Calcutta and back, and not till 1739 that she sailed on her third voyage to Madras, Calcutta and Bombay. These three voyages had their share of alarms and 33 adventures, as did all voyages to the Indian Ocean, but they were on the whole successful and profitable, so that owners and crew were not particularly apprehensive when the Princess Louisa got ready for her fourth and fatal voyage early in 1743. This time she was captained by John Pinson, his second voyage in command, and she was chartered to sail to Bombay and Persia. The crew consisted of six mates, purser, surgeon, boatswain and 91 other officers and seamen, and she also carried 14 soldiers for the service of the Company in India, a total of 115 men. This was about average for the period, though some East Indiamen carried considerable numbers of paying passengers in addition to their crews. The Princess Louisa’s cargo is listed in the Commerce Journal of the East India Company and it was a typical cargo, woollen textiles for the Persia market and a mixed cargo for Bombay consisting of gunpowder, iron guns, sailcloth, cordage, iron, lead, and rather unusually ivory or “elephants’ teeth”, 822 tusks in all. However, the Company could never find sufficient goods with a market in Asia to pay for what they wanted to bring home and so much the most valuable part of the cargo was money, 20 chests of Spanish and Spanish American pieces of eight, a total of 69,760 ounces of silver. If this fourth voyage had been successfully completed, the return cargo would have been silk and cotton textiles, indigo, pepper and spices, saltpetre for gunpowder manufacture and a host of other things. The Princess Louisa set sail from Portsmouth on her last voyage on 20 March 1743 in company with another East Indiaman, the Winchester commanded by Captain Gabriel Steward, 26 smaller merchantmen and, since this was a time when England was at war with Spain, a naval escort in the form of the 70-gun two-decker warship, H.M.S. Sterling Castle. However, the early stages of the voyage were uneventful and once clear of the cruising grounds of the Spanish privateers, the two East Indiamen parted from their 34 consorts and sailed south towards the Cabo Verde Islands, the Winchester struggling to keep up with the Princess Louisa who was the better sailer. On 17 April, four weeks out of Portsmouth, Boa Vista in the Cabo Verde Islands was sighted, and the two ships set a course to pass through the islands. As night fell on the following day, both ships shortened sail as they entered dangerous waters, the Princess Louisa’s lights clearly visible about a mile ahead of the Winchester. By midnight, the island of Maio could just be seen to the south-west and about an hour later the Princess Louisa fired her guns as a signal of danger. Shortly afterwards, the Winchester saw her sister ship “in or very near the breakers” on a reef, just in time to tack and save herself from sharing the same fate. At daybreak, the stricken ship could be seen “among the rocks without ever a mast standing and the sea making a free passage over her.” The Winchester launched two boats to try and save the men from the Princess Louisa, but the sea was too high to get close and they had to pull away from the reef, while the men on the wreck despairingly “waved their hats and called to us, but we could not distinguish what they said.” A second attempt was equally unsuccessful and, by now, the upper works of the Princess Louisa had all been washed away and there was not a man to be seen. Reluctantly, the Winchester hoisted in her boats and set sail again, “there being no possibility of saving anything.” “I am afraid”, wrote Captain Steward in his log, “there is not a man alive of them to tell their tale.” This was too pessimistic, as we can tell from a letter written by Stephen Lightfoot, surgeon of the Princess Louisa. By his account, the ship ran onto the reef off the island of Maio at half past one in the morning. She struck several times before she was held fast by the rocks and, although severely damaged, she remained in one piece until nine in the morning when she broke in two, her forepart veering round to the poop. By now, the breakers were crashing over her “to a very great height” and, once it was clear that the 35 Winchester’s boats could not help them, there was no choice but to abandon ship and let each man try to save his own life. Lightfoot saved himself by clutching onto a piece of wreckage, and “by its assistance and swimming got safe on shore, though not without great difficulty, for the breakers broke over my head several times; when I had got near land a large shark swam by me, but never offerred to attack me.” Forty other men, including the captain and most of the senior officers, saved their lives in similar ways, most of them being badly cut and bruised in their passage to land and some severely sunburned, like Lightfoot himself who had stripped naked before committing himself to the sea. The remaining 74 men aboard the Princess Louisa were all drowned, most of them according to Lightfoot in the forecastle where, despairing of saving their lives, they had drunk themselves into oblivion, drinking off whole bottles of brandy to ease their passage into the next world. Nothing was saved from the ship, except what was washed up on the coast of Maio, and both survivors and corpses were stripped of their valuables by the islanders, even the naked Lightfoot being relieved of his diamond ring and a pair of gold buttons which he had hoped to save by carrying them in his mouth. Soon Portuguese officials arrived to prevent further looting and the survivors made various arrangements to return to England, some taking passage on a ship sailing to Barbados and some to Virginia before they eventually got home to tell their story. Captain Pinson and his surviving officers were found not guilty of negligence in losing their ship and were seen to be the victims of unknown currents and inaccurate charts. Reports on the condition and location of the wreck convinced the East India Company that salvage was unlikely to be successful, though they were prepared to sign a contract on terms very favourable to the salvors with a private syndicate headed by the ship’s own husband, Thomas Hall. The syndicate fitted out a galley and a sloop, both well-armed, in 36 an expedition designed to combine privateering with the salvage of the Princess Louisa. However, they were unsuccessful in both ventures and one of their vessels was captured by the French on the way home and taken into Bayonne, thus leaving the wreck of the Princess Louisa to be discovered by the survey team two and a half centuries later. Excavation of the wreck site In 1996 the survey team of the licensed company located the Princess Louisa wreck at the Northeast end of the Baixo do Galeao on the North coast of Maio, two and a half miles from the coast. The normal conditions of the sea in this area are rough. Big waves come from the North and Northeast, breaking with all their strength on the reef. The nucleus of the wreck was a pile of iron and lead bars surrounded by cannons and small guns. It was the northern point of all evidence found here, except for an anchor at a distance of 177m and 005º. There are 20 big iron cannons (6 of them mixed with the iron and lead bars), 19 small cannon (approximately) and 2 anchors. Iron and lead bars pile (top left), iron cannons (top right), lead bars (bottom left) and elephant tusk in situ (bottom right) 37 There is a gully a few meters to the south (8m) of this pile, that ends in a small wall that runs almost East-West. Most of the silver coin clumps and lead shot were found in the gully. This “wall” was a highly effective mechanical barrier that stopped most of the heavy objects and concentrated them in the gully. Continuing to the south and over the “wall” is a shallow flat bottom, gently falling to 6m deep and for the next 100 metres. An area with elephant tusks is 337 metres at 201º from the iron pick pile, but there is debris of a modern steel wreck in between these two sites. As the Princess Louisa site is lying under waves of 3 to 4 metres and very strong tide currents during both summer and winter, most of the light objects were washed away during the last 200 years. In 1998, the company made the first intervention on the Princess Louisa wreck site, which seem to have been focused in the recovery of the silver coins and elephant tusks. No site plan nor sketch was produced that year by the previous team, therefore the original location of most of the coin clumps and the few visible artefacts recovered was not registered. In the season of 1999, our team set up a grid system in order to carefully excavate smaller areas and register the finds. Each grid was 25m2 area (5 x 5 metres) and orientated towards the North and East on each face. Several single coins and lead shot were found under the rocks as well as fragments of glass and some glazed pottery. In the SE of the wreck there was a zone with a broken anchor, but the sediment was much deeper than in the south. In fact, the sediment sometimes reached a depth of 50 cm, yet all personal belongings (knife handles and pieces of jewellery) and the Seville coins (rounded pillar dollars very different from the cobs of the rest of the area) were found there whereas the elephant tusks were quite well concentrated in the area to the SW. Is interesting to note that the Seville coins were not mixed with the cobs and this suggests that were stored in different place in the ship or at least in different boxes. 38 One of the several clusters of silver coins found in the wreck. The excavation was done from the main iron pile to the South and going SE and SW (downwind) until the occurrence of artefacts was null even deep in the sediment. A systematic metal detection was performed in the main area of finds and in the edges of the scattering area without interesting readings. A wide survey was done to the North East and South West (until 1 mile approximately from the pile) and no new evidences of the wreck were found. Aside from the silver coins, not many artefacts were found in this wreck. The main area of coin clumps and lead shot was the gully in the South of the iron pile. In this gully the seabed was literally covered with coin clusters of various sizes and lead shot (bird shot mainly) and in the west end of this place were found most of the bottles and fragments of glass of the wreck. Fragment of salt-glazed stoneware “GR” (George Rex), a bottle, and a pharmaceutical mortar, few of the artefacts that survived the rough conditions on the site. 39 The birdshot were scattered from the iron pile (and surrounding it) until the “wall” in the South and very few were found over the “plateau” after the wall. The rest of the lead shot (medium to big size) were found mainly to the South of the gully and mercury was found in almost every deep depression in the seabed, mixed with lead shot and coins. Copper fasteners and fragmented clay pipes recovered from the site. The elephant tusks were quite well concentrated in the area to the SW and very few were found in the cannons area. A wide scattering of elephant tusk is present going downwind (SW) and some tusks were found even in the coast (2.4 miles away), as fishermen information reads. Elephant tusk and lead ingots. The excavation was performed with hammers and chisels most of the time, as the conditions of the sea did not allow the team to use other kind of tools. The diving operations on the Princess Louisa wreck lasted 97 diving days (1999 and 2000 seasons); 788 dives amounted to 1,287 diving hours (13.2 diving hours per day). A total of 189 lead ingots and 548 artefacts were recovered, many of which were coin clusters. 40 Site plans 41 42 43 44 Le Dromadaire, 1762 (VIC-004) History of the ship and the wreckage Le Dromadaire belonged to the French East India Company and was built in Nantes in 1758. She was under the command of Captain Joseph Le Houx, who had served that rank since 1756. Initially Le Dromadaire departed for India on the 22nd of January 1759, but she set out again from Port Lorient for Ile de France on her later fateful voyage on the 2nd of February 1762, in company with two other Indiamen Le Berryer and Le Massiac. Le Dromadaire was a ship of 520 tons, carrying 20 guns, 1000 cannon balls and a chest of silver. It had 123 officers on board as well as 31 passengers and soldiers, bringing the total personnel to 154 people. The ships were sailing between the Cabo Verde Islands when Captain de Vinselou of the Massiac made a signal to Le Dromadaire before it was dark, asking him to change his tract but because it was foggy and the ships were now at a much larger distance from each other; Le Dromadaire did not see the signal. The three ships had left the port of Lorient as usual, but had decided to change their courses and separated during the voyage in order to avoid interception, as there had been a rupture between Spain and Britain just before their departure. Le Dromadaire’s new course brought the ship closer to island of São Vincente than was originally planned, which was to be the first link in a chain of events that brought the ship so close to land that the breakers could be heard, spreading panic among the crew as the weather worsened. Within minutes she was carried against the coastline of the island by the violent currents and broke into two. A Dutch ship was able to save 77 people. 45 A full account can be read in the extract of the translated letter of Monsieur Gouyon and Ensign Saintromain, written from Lorient to the “Compagnie des Indes” on the 13th of June 1762. Quotes from original sources (18th C.) Translated letter of Monsieur Gouyon and Ensign Saintromain, written from Lorient to the “Compagnie des Indes” on the 13th of June 1762. “It is with all the sadness and regret possible that we inform you of the loss of your frégatte Le Dromadaire. We departed from the Port of Lorient, as you already know, on the second of February 1762 at 6 o’clock in the evening, accompanied by the vaisseau Le Berryer and the vaisseau Massiac; we sailed together on the same course for several days, but since Le Berryer was not sailing at the same speed, we decided to leave Le Berryer eight days after our departure, we then passed the Canary Isles, the 15 th of the month, we then crossed the Tropic [of Cancer], M. Lehoux the Captain of the frégatte informed us that he had orders to pass to the west of the Cape Verde Islands [underlined in original text], as a consequence he was going to make a course to the S.W, which we did at two hours after noon, having originally sailed on a course of S1/4 SW, unfortunately in spite of our representations not to abandon our comrade [Le Massiac] which continued its route S1/4 SW to pass beyond doubt to the East of the Cape Verde Islands, the Captain did not have the grace to follow our advice and continued the route to the S.W., our comrade Le Massiac being of contrary opinion continued its course S ¼ SW with the result that during the night of the 15th to the 16th of the month, we lost sight of her, and the next morning the fog was so thick the horizon was obscured and we could barely see a league ahead of us and as a consequence we were unable to make a sighting and unhappily for us the fog continued until the 19th of February, when at 6 o’clock in the morning, the fog continuing with even more force, at noon, not being able to make a 46 sighting with an instrument, we estimated our Latitude as N 17, and by Longitude 28, and by daybreak, the first Pilot placed us 12 leagues to the south of Saint Antoine according to the map of Maureapn who placed it 36’ more north than our French maps, having placed full confidence in the first pilot, continued to make the route, believing we had passed the islands in the evening, being on the lookout for bars [reefs] the Pilot reported to the officer of the watch that he had seen nothing but cautioned the persons assigned to look-out duty to take guard for land, but in spite of all our care the fog being so think and the visibility so poor, that when we sighted land at 7:30 on the night of the 19th of February were so close that we only heard the breaker when they were under the forecastle, M. Lehoux and M. Beaulie [1st Lieutenant] on the stern castle declared that we should alter course in order to avoid the rock upon which we evidently were about to be lost, the crew having lost their heads, the fear of peril being in general spread among them, it was not possible for us to execute the desired manoeuvre, and since the ship was not far away enough to avoid falling upon this dreaded point of rock with violent currents that lead us with a fury to hit land on the island of Saint Vincente; from the moment we sighted land and until the loss of the ship, not more than seven minutes elapsed, and having struck on this point of rock around 7:45, the ship found itself on rocks so big and monstrous, with the sea breaking with a terrible impetuousness over the rocks, that with the first blow, the main mast fell into the sea, and the second blow was just as strong so that it brought down the mizzen mast, and the third hit was so powerful that the ship was given such a blow on the starboard that she was capsized, the hatches in the water, and was smashed in two as a consequence.” 47 Le Gentil, Voyages, II, 697 The “Dromadaire” French east indiaman of 520 tons monted of 20 canons sailed from Lorient at the end of 1761 under captain Joseph le Hou, with the “Massiac” captain de Vinselou. The ships sailed between the Cap Verde Islands. M. Vinselou made signal to the “Dromadaire” before night came asking him to change his tract. The weather was strong and foggy. The “Dromadaire” did not see the signal and thought to be much off the coast of St. Vicent on which she was lost. Only 77 persons were saved. The crew was salvaged by a Dutch ship that sailed to Cap of Good Hope. (Le Gentil, Voyages, II, 697). Letter of the Governor of Cabo Verde dated 19 Feb. (AHU Cabo-Verde, Caixa 28, dossier 27, dated 30 March 1764) “I was charged to give assistance to the crew of the French ship lost on the coast of São Vicente about 60 leagues from here, and to try to recover the cargo. I was only informed that the crew was salvaged with boats which arrived at São Vicente and São Antão ... The wood salvaged from the wreck has been bought by the bishop and people says that the chest in which was loaded the silver was lost in the bottom. The French told me that they try several times to salvage the chest but without success because it was too deep.” Letter dated 30 Jan 1765 (AHU, Cabo Verde, Caixa 27, dossier 2) “A barrel covered with iron which according to the Frenchmen was loaded with silver sank to the bottom when the ship struck and was not recovered.” 48 Excavation of the wreck site Le Dromadaire (1762) is wrecked in the North coast of San Vicente, in Ponta Recanto da Prainha. The wreck was found on 22nd of January of 1996 during a survey of San Vicente Island. The report of that expedition read that on the first inspection of the site, the team counted 19 cannons and “recovered a semi-precious stone (sic) that has clearly been cut from a ring, copper sheathing and a gold coin dated 1760…” Location of the wreck site against the coast of the island (left) and finds from the first expedition (right) After a survey in 2001, we realized that instead of 19 there were 27 iron guns and 3 anchors, scattered mostly from North to South, following the coastline. The wreck is smashed against the coast and the scattering field, parallel to it, has 68 meters of length from G19 (northern end) to G27 (southern end). Going to the East, the wreck’s debris starts in 2m depth, just under the shoreline and finishes 55 meters away, at 17.5m of depth in the Eastern end of a deep gully. Iron cannons (left) and anchor (right) on the Dromadaire site 49 The sea conditions in the place are usually rough and the diving operations are overly sensitive to it, that is why we had worked in an area mostly defined by the strong surge and swell. The diving tasks were set depending on the surge: if the sea condition was adverse, we concentrated the work in the deepest places and vice versa. When the divers were working on the shallow zone, very close to the coast, we placed a “safety line” (a thick rope) between the anchors and the cannons, heading to the deep area, in order to go in and return safely. The mooring line for the dive boat was placed in the deepest part of the wreck, trying to avoid the white waters of the breaking waves in the coast. The access from the coast to the site is possible, although dangerous. Is necessary a very calm day to go into the sea from the coast and then is possible (I would say, very probable) that a sudden change of the sea conditions would made impossible to safely return to shore. The seabed on the site is made of hard rock with some deep craters and one gully where the artefacts are concentrated. In the shallow zone of the wreck, and very near to the shoreline, a large concretion of cannonballs and iron structural parts of the ship, already misshaped, can be seen forming a mass of a “false bottom” that covers an extensive area. Most of the finds came from this area as is almost impossible that any artefact had survived if was “free” from the concretion. Most of the cannons are inside the craters, trapped together with cannon balls, iron objects and coins. Tidal currents are particularly strong in the area, running to the South or the North depending on the tide phase, making difficult the decompression stops and the journey from the dive boat to the wreck and back, but the real danger on this wreck is the surge. That part of the coast is open the swell coming from the Northeast and East and the bottom falls abruptly very near to the shore until depths of 30m and more, which indicates there is no possible obstacle to decrease the strength of the waves before they arrive to the site. The underwater visibility is usually very good, around 25 meters. 50 Artefacts from Le Dromadaire. Stocked weapons parts, dagger hilt, sounding lead and cuff links 51 The deep gully is located at 2 meters to the South of cannon G1, where the seabed falls from 9 to 15m of depth. The gully is orientated W-E, is 21 meters long and approximately 2 meters wide. The sediment on that place is made by big boulders (some of them of 80 cm of diameter) and a deep layer of sand that can reach 1m of depth in certain spots. The most common finds inside the gully were the pistol parts and the stone-glass ornaments. Interesting were a pottery jug and a fragmented container, which survived almost intact in such hard conditions. A gold case of a watch with the inscription “GII-F” under a crown, was also found in the gully. The excavation conducted in 2001 on this area was done mainly removing the boulders with the lifting bags and blowing gently the sand with the scooter. In the season of 1998, this gully seemed to have been extensively worked with the airlift. Pottery vessels, some of the few fragile artefacts found in the site. Stocked weapons parts and gold watch case excavated from the deep gully. 52 The cannon balls and star shot concretion (5 meters to North of G4) is located at 8.5m of depth, in a flat rock seabed, less than 15 meters from the coastline. Most of the silver coins recovered during 1998 were found within the concretion. I believe is necessary to underline that the heavy surge and the nature of the substrate (very hard), made the excavation very inaccurate and potentially dangerous for the artefacts, as is impossible (or extremely difficult) to be 100% sure that the chisel will not damage anything. Some silver coins and other artefacts recovered during 1998 season, show chisel marks. A total of 3,388 silver French écus with the inscriptions “LUD.XV.D.G.FR ET NAV.REX.” in the obverse and “SIT NOMEN DOMINI BENEDICTUM” “DOMINE SALVUM FAC REGEM” in the reverse, were recovered. Their dates range from 1726 to 1761 French écus recovered from the wreck site. The few fragments of ceramics, glass and other light materials found in this wreck, were located mainly between or under the cannons G3, G4, G5 and G6. The ornamented knife handle made of silver, found in 2001, was very deep under G6. No wood was found in the last season of excavation. The excavations of 2001 season took place for 9 diving days, 111 dives were done amounting to 135.31 dive hours. Fifteen dives were aborted due to unsafe conditions and some other dives were restricted to the deepest area for the same reason. 53 Site plans 54 55 The Leijmuiden, 1770 (BOA-005) History of the ship and the wreckage The Leijmuiden, a Dutch East Indiaman of 1,150 tons built in 1755, belonged to the Amsterdam Chamber. She sailed with 347 crew on board, departing from Texel 29th December 1769, on route for Ceylon with a quarter of a million of guilders. She ran aground on 25 January 1770 and was wrecked near the island of Boa Vista. Both the master, Jan Hermanus Kinsbergen, and his navigator, Berend Wedelink, were dismissed from their posts and would “never again be employed in any position of service of the Company”. This ship was described in one of the Uitloopboekes as having wrecked on the island of Bonavista (sic) and in another as being lost on a reef or rock “op een Klip”; Aanwisten 551 also says “of the ship and cargo nothing of importance was saved, the greatest part of the men saved.” The Resoluties of the Chamber of Amsterdam have a number of entries relating to the crew. For example, a letter was read in the Chamber from Commander Robyn written in Texel on 11 June 1770 after he had returned from Cayenne where he had picked up sixteen or seventeen survivors from the Leijmuiden including Captain Kinsbergen, who told him that they had been wrecked on Boa Vista and that he had taken a ship from Boa Vista to Cayenne. Another report tells of eight men being brought by way of Faial in the Azores on the Portuguese ship N. S. da Piedade and another entry from the Dutch consul in Lisbon written on 3 July refers to more survivors arriving there. However, the biggest group of survivors 114 from a crew of 350 were carried on board the VOC ship Renswoude which sailed along with the Leijmuiden and picked up survivors at Santiago. 56 A few of the men who came aboard the Renwoude were discovered to have taken off some gold from the Leijmuiden and the declarations made regarding this offense were included in reports from the Cape. Other reports received by the VOC testify to the fact that the Leijmuiden had a cargo of gold on board and that some of it was taken off by crew members. In the Resoluties of the Herren XVII  the governors of the VOC is an entry of 01 October 1770 concerned mainly with the punishment of the officers; however, it also mentions that, “The Leijmuiden wrecked on 25 January near “bij” the island of Boa Vista and a few days later was entirely smashed to pieces. Her lading was worth the sum of 259.940 guilders of which 213.785 guilders was in gold and nothing more has been found than sixteen ingots “staven” and two small bits “stukjes” of gold which were found at Santiago on some of the shipwreck sailors who were being sent to Ceylon with the VOC ship Renwoude. In the journal of the Amsterdam Chamber there is an entry for 30 November 1769 entitled “Specien voor Indien” which reads as follows: “Get: an J, H, Kinsbergen, schipper op’t schip Leimuyden 29 bharen Goud in 2 Kisses, voor Ceylon en 8 bharen Dito in Een Kisse voor Coromandel, om de selve overteleveren aan als voren. #822 fl 213.785.8” Thus, the Leijmuiden was carrying a valuable cargo, roughly 5.000 oz of gold in bars. The Leijmuiden’s consort Renswoude, according to the same document, carried “40 bharen Goud in 3 Kisten ... fl 213.355.19”. As a check, we went through the journal looking at all entries between 01 January 1769 to 01 April 1770 to see if the shipment of gold was abnormal. The journal for this period contains approximately 15 entries for shipment of specie to Asia. about two-thirds of the vessels of this period carried silver only, including the most valuable, the Prins Willem and Princes van Orange, which sailed with cargoes of silver valued at fl. 382.769.7 on board each ship; one ship carried both 57 silver and gold; however, about a third of the ships that sailed at approximately the same time as the Leijmuiden wrecked carried only gold. Of these, the Coromandel bound ship Carel Philip Castel, was the richest being laden with “53 bharen Goud in 4 Kisses” valued at fl 307.499. Finally, we examined the Resoluties of the Amsterdam Chamber to see if there were any entries indicating that any salvage was planned or had been carried out. This source showed that salvage was indeed undertaken, on other ships, but there is no reference to salvage on the Leijmuiden, a fact that suggests to us that the gold recovered by the sailors was the only gold recovered from the ship at the time. Exploration of the wreck site Differently from the other wrecks treated in this paper, the Leijmuiden was not excavated. Our team visited the wreck for two days in 1999 with the aim to explore it and produce a site sketch of it. Some test pits were opened to assess the depth of the sediment and when artefacts were found they were recovered. This wreck site is located over the reef in Head of Rifona off the north coast of Ilha de Boa Vista. The remains are scattered over a wide area on top of the flat crest of the reef at 4 meters of depth and going down a slope until 9 meters depth. The crest of the reef is mostly flat and hard, being unlikely that light artefacts would have remained there, only the heaviest objects as 5 cannons are still in this plateau. The slope (from 4 to 9 meters depth) has an inclination of approximately 45 degrees and it seems to be the part of the wreck site more likely to contain wreck material. Is made of loose boulders of different sizes, presumably washed from the crest of the reef, mixed with structural iron parts of the ship. On a transversal view, this slope makes a sort of “triangle” under the seabed, between the flat crest and the flat bottom on 9 meters, which 58 could contain important quantities of artefacts washed down from the top of the reef. In the few test sondages made there we found some intact artefacts (wine bottles, clay pipes, a small cup of Chinese porcelain, lead shot, etc) and several fragments. Once the first layer of boulders is removed, a soft sediment (mainly sand) very deep and rich in wreck material becomes visible. Chinese porcelain cup and the typical clay pipes recovered from the Leijmuiden wreck site. Various marks present on the clay pipes recovered from the Leijmuiden wreck site. 59 Some of the fragments of clay pipes presented marks in the heel depicting crowned numbers, crowned letters, crowned symbols, and a combination of letters like “ABC” and “BVB”. The maker’s mark “ABC” is attributed to various manufacturers, being the closest to wreckage date that of Abraham van den Berg (ca. 1759). The mark “BVB” could be from either Barend van Berkel (1730) or Maarten Bruijnvis (1757-82). The crowned “P” most probably belongs to Jan Souffreu (1760-91). The crowned numbers “14” could be of Dirk de Vries (1763-1782) and the “27” to Jan van Beek 1745-1781. The crowned symbol in the picture above identifies this piece as made by Barend den Hagenaar (1756-1782). (Van der Meulen, 2003) The deep part of the wreck site (on 9 meters) is also flat and made of hard rock, with some spots or “pools” of sand mixed up with different sizes of stones, corals, shells, etc. Eight cannons and 11 anchors are present there as well as many copper pins, keel bolts, iron rings, etc., some of them deeply incrusted on the seabed, indicating the possibility of more artefacts buried under the first layer of rock. The general conditions of the site are challenging for diving or even sailing safely. The swell is coming from different directions and breaking all over the area, making difficult to understand a pattern to produce a coherent risk assessment. In most of the days is only possible to work in the deep area as is protected from the surge by the slope and the reef, but the conditions on the surface are always quite bad. Strong currents were also felt during the few days we spent there and the long distance from land makes this site extremely dangerous for diving and working without a careful contingency plan. 60 Site sketch 61 The Grev Ernst Schimmelmann, 1781 (MAI-010) History of the ship and the wreckage During the year of 1779, Frédéric de Coninck & N.L. Reiersen, the Copenhagen trading and shipping firm, bought the German built vessel “Der Cronprintz Von Preussen”, of about 700 tons. The ship sailed to Denmark and was renamed “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” of Copenhagen, named after count Heinrich Ernst Schimmelmann (1747-1831), Secretary of Finances and Director of the Guinean Trading Company and owner of a sugar refinery in Copenhagen, several estates throughout Denmark as well as several sugar plantations in the Virgin Islands, The Danish West Indies. Carl Schimmelmann came from Germany to Denmark in 1761 to help the government with economic policy and soon bought estates in Denmark, Ahrensburg and Wandsbek in Holstein, Lindenburg, Gudumholm, as well as the Berckentin Palace in Broadstreet in the capital. He also purchased estates in St. Croix and the largest sugar refinery in Copenhagen. He completed his business empire by establishing a munitions factory in North Zealand and acquired a monopoly to supply weapons to Danish overseas territories. The Schimmelmann family thus became one of the richest in Denmark. Carl’s son Ernst took over the whole business in 1782 and at one time owned 1,000 slaves in the West Indies. He contributed to the abolition of slave trade in Denmark by revealing in a report, how Danish slave trade was inhumane and led to deficits. In the report, he also showed how better treatment of slaves in the Danish West Indies could reduce the high child mortality rate, which each year substantially reduced the slave population. Schimmelmann was not against slavery, but rather the ghastly Atlantic slave trade. Ernst Heinrich von Schimmelmann was a slave owner himself, owning a large sugar plantation 62 on the island of Saint Croix and was a shareholder in a company that transported slaves from the Gold Coast. According to a letter in the Public Record Office: Kommercekollegiet 369, no. 967: (1780 36-150) the ship, after an application by the Frédéric de Coninck & N.L. Reiersen company, was imported into Denmark without paying the fees normally due in connection with the importation of a foreign built vessel. As the Frédéric de Coninck & N.L. Reiersen company was in need of able-bodied seamen, another application (Kommercekollegiet no. 967) was made to the Royal Danish Navy, in which the company asked for permission to borrow a crew of 76 sailors from the navy. The captain too, was borrowed from the Royal Navy, his name was Hans Reimert Reiersen, and he was the younger brother of one of the owners of the ship: Niels Lunde Reiersen. He was born in 1749 in Copenhagen, joined the navy as a naval cadet in 1761 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1773. In August 1780, the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” got its Algerian passport, a special passport to protect the ship and crew against pirates along the coast of North Africa as, in accordance with an agreement with the government of Tunis, Algiers and Morocco, it acknowledged the ship as Danish and its crew as subjects of the Danish king. About the middle of August 1780, the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” left Copenhagen bound for East India. She is referred to as an outward-bound vessel of 1,400 tons (sic) Captained by Mr. Reiersen, as reported in Lloyd’s List and was said to have been lost in April 1781 on the Isle of Maio on her way to East India and possibly to China. The ship was transporting a cargo of 114 (one hundred and fourteen) iron guns, silver specie and rare Swedish copper plate money. 63 However, there are some discrepancies regarding the date of the accident in the different archival documents consulted. The Lloyd’s List referred that she was lost on 24 April 1781, but a document from the Cabo Verde archives states the following: - Naufrágio na Ilha de Maio, na “Ponta do Galião, 3 léguas distante do Porto” do navio Dinamarques “Conde Ernest Schimmelmann”, comandado pelo Sr. Riersen, a 12 de Novembro de 1781. A maioria dos bens (pratas e averes pessoais) do navio foram resgatados e, depois de inventariados, entregues ao comandante sendo mais tarde leiloados. (AHU, Cx.41 Dos.16, Junho de 1782) (Wreckage on the Maio Island, at “Ponta do Galião”, of the Danish ship “Conde Ernest Schimmelmann”, under the command of Mr. Riersen, on the 12 November 1781. The majority of the goods -silver and personal possessions- from the ship were rescued and, after inventory, delivered to the Captain and later auctioned) There is another document that states that the accident took place sometime in late 1780, which seems more likely as there is yet another document stating that Capt. Reiersen arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in April 1781 on board the “Infødsretten”: - … todos os bens que tivessem falecido na dita Ilha de Mayo, pertencentes aos Naufragados da Nau de Dinamarca, que tinha dado na referida costa da ilha de Mayo, no dito ano de 80, e no mes de Janeiro de 81 se transportou para esta ilha o Comandante Riersen da dita Nau naufragada… (AHU, Cx.41 Doc.16,9; 15 de Maio de 1782) (… all goods which were wrecked at the said Island of Mayo, belonging to the castaways of the Danish Nau, which had hit the coast in the mentioned Island of Mayo, in the referred year of 80, and in the month of January of 81 were transported to this island by the Commander Riersen of the wrecked Nau…) 64 Despite the mismatch in the given dates, what seems very clear is that the salvage operations were very successful as explained in the following document: - Fr. Francisco Bispo de Cabo Verde comprou ao feitor da Fazenda Real, a madeira do navio dinamarques para instalações da paróquia da Ilha de Maio. (AHU, Cx.41 Dos.18; 9 de Junho de 1782) (Fray Francisco, Bishop of Cabo Verde bought from the supervisor of the Royal Treasury, the wood from the Danish ship for installations of the parish on Maio Island.) These documents provide evidence that the salvage of the ship was so thorough that not only was the cargo of silver rescued, but even the timber cargo of the ship was recovered and sold to the Bishop of Cabo Verde. Archival document stating the loss of the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” at the island of Maio, Cabo Verde. AHU, Caixa 4, doc. 3, 1871. 65 Excavation of the wreck site The wreck site of the “Schimmelmann” was found on 12 August 1999. Continuing with a systematic survey on the north coast of the island of Maio and taking advantage of the unusually good sea conditions on that day, the archaeological team decided to conduct a visual survey in the area. A diver was towed behind the Zodiac using a “sledge” and following pre-determined tracks controlled by the boat operator inside the “Baia do Galeão”. The survey was done in parallel tracks of 3 nautical miles in length and a spacing of 20m between them, in north-south direction starting on the reef and ending at the coastline. During the third track the wreck was discovered, the GPS position taken, and the first exploratory dives were done. Location of the wreck site of the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” at the north of the island of Maio. The site is located approximately at 800m from the coast and on a flat rocky bottom. The first vision of the wreck, from a distance of approximately 20m thanks to the excellent underwater visibility on that particular day, was like a big coral head in the middle of a deserted seabed. A closer inspection showed a solid mass of iron bars and cannons, still quite well arranged, and various cannons, anchors, and iron objects in the periphery of 66 the central part of the wreck. During the first reconnaissance dives, 16 iron cannons and 2 anchors were observed surrounding the main body of the wreck, scattered on the seabed and completely exposed, with the exception of anchor A2 that was partially buried in an area of sand. We immediately started installing datum points for mapping the site and planned further excavation. The abundance of large objects fixed to the seabed and concreted together allowed us to take measurements of the site using trilateration, with four as the minimum number of datum points in each measurement. Unlike most inshore sites in Cabo Verde, the waters are relatively calm and although no wood survived, the distribution of objects within the hold provided clear evidence of the careful and methodological stacking of the heavy items. Excavation grids in the central area of the debris field of the “Schimmelmann”. 67 An excavation grid of 5 x 5m was deployed when the main measurements were taken in order to control the excavation. Measuring the cannons cargo was a difficult task as they were almost completely covered by the iron bars and very difficult to count and draw. There were five rows of approximately 20 cannons each, arranged muzzle/cascabel in every case. The second row from the bow was made up of 20 guns, 3m long each. The other rows were made up of 2.50m cannons. In the stern section of the wreck, scattered under the iron bars, six smaller guns were found, probably also part of the cargo, but when measured we found that they were only 1.50m long, i.e. smaller than all the other iron cannons found at the site. The 16 guns from the ship, which were found in the surrounding area, were of different sizes, between 2m and 2.10m long. To the north of the stern section, scattered across an area of approximately 50m2, a total of 20 small bronze cannons (signal guns) were found. Two of the bronze signal guns still in-situ (left) and after excavation on board of the expedition vessel “Polar” (right). Signal guns, also referred to as salute cannons, were used aboard ship and on land to make salutes, to warn of danger, and to attract attention in the case of an emergency. These cannons were generally cast in the style of the period to which they belong. Personal cannons can also fall into this category. These miniatures were popular in the East Indies 68 from the 16th Century, where they were mounted on small ships and also considered a form of currency. They were not intended solely for use as weapons but were also admired for their beauty. Miniature cannons are valued for their age, beauty, type of metal and use. These interesting small cannons were found together with broken bottles and remains of wood possibly from the crates which transported them. Detail of the site plan showing the location of the bronze signal guns. Signal guns of two different sizes were found; 10 of them were 45cm long and the other 10 were 55cm long. Due to the fact that they were not decorated much, we are inclined to believe that they had more of a utilitarian than an ornamental function. Each set of 10 cannons was numbered from 1 to 10, so we can assume that they were transported in boxes of 10 and sorted according to size. 69 Detail of the serial number in the bronze signal guns (left to right: 7, 9 and 10). Drawing of one of the bronze signal guns of 55 cm of length. Serial number “5”. The pile of iron bars and the cannons cargo is still quite well arranged in the southern part of the main body of the wreck (bow section), but from the middle to the north the remains appear more disturbed and chaotic. Apparently, the stern section was broken during the wreckage or early salvage works. The archaeological team checked under the bow section for evidence of the hull or keel, but nothing was found. Under the bow section, the space was very narrow between the iron bars’ cargo and the rocky seabed, therefore inspection in this area was limited, but no copper fastenings were found during sondages in the surrounding area. In fact, no 70 fastenings were found at all in the area of the wreck, so we can assume that the “Schimmelmann” was built using iron spikes and keel bolts. As we were unable to find any keel bolts, it made it very difficult to calculate the size of the ship. The only trace of the hull’s sheathing was relatively small and scattered fragments of lead sheathing. The iron gudgeon from the ship’s rudder was very much eroded and most of it was lost, so only partial measurements of this object could be taken. The first piece of copper plate money was found isolated, resting on the seabed at a distance of 1m from the group of bronze signal guns. As a career archaeologist I was supposed to be able to recognize the squared artefact in my hands right away, but the truth is that I did not. Despite being under water, there were five distinctive stamps visible, one on each corner and one at the center. The first thing that crossed my mind was that someone was testing a die to stamp coins on the soft surface of the copper. The circular corner stamps showed a crown over an ornament amidst the date “1720”, and the center stamp read “1/2 Daler, Silf:Mynt” with two crossed arrows below. I sent the preconservation photo to my colleague and friend Dr. Margaret Rule by email, asking her for advice. In less than 48 hours I got her answer: “Dear Alex, you have made a very rare find! That is Swedish copper plate money. Are there any more?” Once we had this information, we gave priority to the excavation of the stern area of the pile of iron bars, near where the first plate was found. Under the iron bars of the stern section we made what is, without a doubt, the most interesting find at this wreck. A cargo of copper plates was visible mixed with the cannon balls and the iron bars. Most of the plates appeared in no particular order, scattered between the cannon balls and concreted to one another. A few artefacts of this nature were found outside the pick of iron bars, in the close vicinity to the stern section, under the gudgeon and individually concreted to the seabed. The majority of the copper plates 71 were found in the east side of the wreck, and the only coherent stack of them was located besides cannon G16. No traces of the wooden crates where the plates were transported were observed and no plates were found in the bow section or under it. Site plan showing the areas where plate money was found within the wreck site. The excavation of the copper plates was done by hand, using only a hammer and chisel to carefully remove the concretion to the seabed or iron bars and cannon balls. After recording the exact location of each plate or concreted group, the artefacts were tagged and lifted to the ship. A unique artefact number was given to each individual piece or small “stack”. Once on board the artefacts were photographed (pre-conservation photo), measured, stored in fresh water and introduced in the database and site plan. Every two weeks the expedition ship delivered the recovered artefacts to the Conservation Centre in Praia city, Santiago Island, where conservation, stabilization, analysis, and post72 conservation photography took place. In the case of the concreted groups of copper plates with only one artefact number, after conservation, consecutive fractions were given to each piece, e.g. 20165.001; 20165.002, etc. The Copper Plate Money Since the same monetary label could have different meanings under different circumstances and during different periods, most monetary terms dealt with in this study are not translated into English since that could create some misunderstandings. For example, the Swedish currency unit “daler silvermynt” could be translated into “dollar silver coin” or “dollar silver specie”, which could suggest a dollar existing in the form of a silver coin. However, the “daler silvermynt” was a unit of account and copper plate coins were denominated in this unit. Furthermore, after about 1665, actual silver coins were counted in daler courant and daler carolin rather than in daler silvermynt (Edvinsson, 2009). Between 1624 and 1642, the copper mines of Sweden supplied its mints at Sater, Nykoping, and Arboga with the metal for coinage. After that timeframe, coinage production switched to the copper mint established at Avesta. This mint became the main operation for coin striking in 1644. In fact, it was the main site for almost all of Sweden's copper minting up until 1831. The Swedish Mint at Avesta was designated by Sweden's King Gustav II Adolf to be the sole government facility to refine, mint and sell the copper plate money. To make the copper plate money more useful, Swedish government officials created a plan to issue large copper plates stamped with a designated legal tender value corresponding to its value in silver. Each copper plate was stamped with dies at least five times (Eggleston, 2013). Sweden had minted Plate Money from 1644 until 1776. This huge and cumbersome 73 coinage was needed both due to a lack of silver and an overabundance of copper in the country. During the first two years the coins were issued only in denominations of 10 Daler, a monstrous coin with a weight of 19.7kg and a size of 62 x 33cm. As many as 26,539 plate money coins with the denomination of 10 Daler were minted during 1644. In 1645 only 235 pieces were struck until the production ceased (Lannby, 2008). The next year in which plate money was minted, was 1649 when 1 Daler, 2 Daler and 4 Daler pieces were introduced; these denominations were struck nearly every year until 1768, the last year of plate money production. After that, in 1651, the 8 Daler coins were introduced and produced on an infrequent basis until 1682. Slightly smaller than the 10 Daler, the 8 Daler coins bore a weight of 15.7kg and were over half a meter in length, leading a Danish visitor to comment: “Many people carry their money in a rope on their backs, others place them on their head and, in cases of large sums, they transport them on a wagon.” (Tingström, 1986). The Coinage Act of 1674 authorized the striking of 3 and 5 Daler plates and they were evidently produced only during that year. The ½ Daler coin was issued for the first time in 1681 and appears to have been produced every year until plate money was discontinued. Plate money in 3, 5, 8 & 10 Daler denominations is quite rare. During the period between 1709 and 1766 Sweden and Finland were officially on a copper standard, although a fiat standard* was in place between 1716 and 1719 and between 1745 and 1776. In 1710 copper plates were once again minted on a larger scale. * Fiat standard / monies: Fiat money is money that derives its value from government regulation or law. The term fiat currency is used when the fiat money is used as the main currency of the country. The term derives from the Latin fiat ("let it be done", "it shall be"). On a longer term, this had a profound effect on the monetary system in Sweden and Finland and stimulated the rise of fiat monies. In this respect, there is some similarity with the effect of the introduction of copper plates in the 1640s and 1650s, which subsequently led to the issuing of the first bank notes in Europe in the 1660s. When copper plates were 74 once again minted on a larger scale in 1710 the mint equivalent was increased. However, in the early 1710s the price of copper increased substantially compared to the previous decade (Edvinsson, 2009). Copper plates became dear money and tended to be driven out. The export of copper plates increased and in 1713 and 1714 export of copper plates was temporarily banned (Wolontis, 1936) (Tingström, 1984). On 17 May 1715 it was decided that copper plates would be revalued by 50 percent, after getting a stamp for this revaluation (Hegardt, 1975). Copper plates once again became cheap money, and were more valuable as means of payments than as metal. The Daler had a value of ⅓ of a Riksdaler, which was equivalent to a Swedish Silver Dollar. These coins were not popular from the moment they were first introduced, both because of their large size and their weight. Any sum of them constituted a considerable effort to move around. An early account of a bank robbery in Stockholm notes that the thieves took all money except the plate money because of the effort involved in hauling it away. In 1776 a large minting reform took place, which in principle abolished the old medieval division into marks, öre and penningar, the multi-currency, copper and silver standard, and the counting in kopparmynt, silvermynt, öre courant and carolins. A mono-currency, silver specie standard was de facto introduced with the riksdaler, the only stable means of payment that has existed in Sweden and Finland since the 16th century, as the sole unit of account (not considering the ducat). One riksdaler was divided into 48 skillings, and one skilling into 12 runstycken (Edvinsson, 2009). The old currencies stopped being legal means of payment on 1 January 1777 and were exchanged for riksdaler coins and fiduciary notes (although notes in daler kopparmynt continued to circulate for some years) (Montgomery, 1920). The old silver coins were exchanged to their full value, i.e. one riksdaler for 3 daler courant or for 1.92 daler 75 carolins. However, the Riksbank notes and the round copper coins were reduced in value by 50 percent, i.e. 1 riksdaler = 6 daler silvermynt (72 mark kopparmynt), in accordance with the market rate of the riksdaler. The metallic value of 6 daler silvermynt of copper plates was worth more than one riksdaler, and a decision was taken on the 7 October 1777 that one riksdaler would be exchanged for 4 daler silvermynt in copper plates (Wallroth, 1918). The production of plate money was quite artisanal and somehow similar to that of the hammer-struck silver cobs from the 16th and 17th centuries. First, molten copper was poured into a crucible and allowed to cool down slowly; while still quite warm it was removed from the crucible and hammered into a rectangular sheet, with measurements varying according to the denominations being produced. These sheets were reheated and re-hammered several times, then moved to a cutting room where they were cut into standard size rectangles, again depending on the denomination being struck: for instance, a sheet would produce a sheet of four plates of 4 Daler blanks, a strip of eight plates of 2 Daler, sixteen (2 rows of 8) for 1 Daler and thirty two (4 rows of 8) for ½ Daler. When trimmed to uniform weight, the plates were moved to the stamping room where they were again reheated and then each was placed on an anvil where the center punch (denomination) would be hand-struck. The plates were then taken to a water or human-powered hammer where one workman held them above an anvil and another held the die for the corners and as the hammer fell, the plates were rotated until all 4 corners had been struck. Plates were then sent to another area for tabulation and storage 76 Human powered hammer during the confection of copper plates. The central stamp was struck by the two workers in the lower left of the picture. Engraving by P.J. Thelott, 1716. Courtesy of The Royal Coin Cabinet, Stockholm. The resulting plates were everything but comfortable to handle. Their sizes and weights certainly inhibited widespread use by the average person and the fact that they had sharp corners instead of the soft round edges of other coins (as we experienced firsthand during the excavation and conservation of these artefacts) certainly didn’t help. They most probably never saw much use in Swedish commerce, except as a convenient manner of trading copper as a commodity. The inconvenience caused by the plates however, did instigate a significant change in Swedish currency and banking practice. To exchange the awkward money for more portable currency, people would deposit the plates in banks in return for ‘credit notes’, Sweden therefore became the first European country to issue freely circulating banknotes. The demonetization of the copper plate money in 1776 basically rendered the money worthless except as scrap metal. The greater majority of these coins were subsequently called in and sold for scrap. They were useful as ballast, so they were loaded deep into the holds of ships travelling to the Far East, where they were thence unloaded and sold as scrap to merchants in Asia. 77 The Plate Money of the “Schimmelmann” The diving operations at this wreck were carried out during August and September 1999, with fairly good sea conditions but with very limited visibility (around 70cm on an average day) and the team made a total of 357 dives amounting to 484.8 diving hours. There were 538 registered artefacts of single or groups of plates and a total of 846 copper plates were recovered in scattered groups or as single isolated plates. All of the finds were photographed immediately after recovery, but marine encrustation made most of these photographs useless for identification. However, it did illustrate that many plates were fastened together in stacks or piles, with what was at first assumed to be a copper/iron corrosion product. From the total amount of copper plates and fragments recovered from the wreck (846), 783 plates or fragments had denomination information, or could be guessed by size and weight, amounting to 1,793 Dalers; 684 had discernible dates (including 6 dates in fragments which were impossible to guess original denomination) and the remaining 678 still conserved dates and denomination information. From the total amount of plates only 43.7% (370) had enough surviving diagnostic attributes to be useful for study. All statistics and considerations in this study are based on this group of 370 copper plates with “numismatic” information. Many of the plates were recovered in groups or as collapsed “stacks”. The dates ranged widely within each group and the stacks contained plates of different sizes and values. It was clear that all of the plates had been stored, probably in wooden crates, beneath the piles of iron bars. All the plates recovered were marked with the Avesta mintmarks and the dates range from 1710 to1759. The face value varied and included ½ Daler, 1 Daler, 2 Daler and 4 Daler coins. 78 The proportion of copper plates within the sample produced under different rulers shows the following distribution: - Karl XII (1697-1718) - 32 plates - Ulrika Eleonora (1719-1720) - 6 plates - Fredrik I (1720-1751) - 225 plates - Adolf Fredrik (1751-1771) - 46 plates - Undetermined - 61 plates Proportions of rulers found within the entire collection. The proportion of the different denominations within the sample shows the following distribution: - ½ Daler - 34 plates - 1 Daler - 85 plates - 2 Daler - 97 plates - 4 Daler - 131 plates - Undetermined - 23 plates 79 Proportions of the denominations found within the entire collection. From the complete copper plates (the ones without obvious fragments missing) of different denominations we were able to identify the average and range in weights as follows: ½ Daler - Range: 300-600g; Average: 368.5g 1 Daler - Range: 600-1050g; Average: 700.9g 2 Daler - Range: 1000-1550g; Average: 1374.6g 4 Daler - Range: 2050-3150g; Average: 2773.2g All the copper plates were stamped with five or six stamps, normally one in each corner and one in the center, some of them having a countermark either in the obverse or reverse. Plate money was struck at several different mints, indicated by various markings in the central stamp, but the entire collection of plate money recovered from the “Schimmelmann” was produced at the Avesta mint, with the following central stamp types: 80 - Round containing a numeral/DALER/Solff.Mnt/varied designs (1644-1714) - Round with a numeral/DALER/SILF MYNT/crossed arrows (1710-15 & 1719-68) - A diamond with a numeral/DALER/S:M (1715-17) 81 - A triangle containing a numeral/D-shield-S (1718-19). We know by the bibliography consulted that other markings within the central punch denote the mine from which the copper was obtained. Examples are Solff.Mnt/starGarpenberg mint (1710-12), Solff.Mnt/crowned B-Basinge mine (1710-14), SILFMYNT/G-Gustafsberg Company (1748-52) and SILFMYNT/V or crowned CCalsberg Company (1752). Other mints that can be identified by the central stamp include Kengis-round with numeral/DALER/Solff.Mynt/Altmonogram (1675-1701) and Stockholm-round with numeral between crowns or lilies/D.S.M./date; corner stamps of these have a legend around crown (1714-16; these plates are made of recycled cannon metal). None of these stamps were observed on the copper plates recovered from the “Schimmelmann”. Plate money from mints other than Avesta or those which indicate the copper source is quite scarce. The circular corner stamps on plate money identify the ruler and indicate the date of striking. The corner stamps found at our wreck are as follows: 82 - Karl XII - legend around crowned date (1702-15) - Karl XII - crowned C.R.S. above date (1710-15) - Karl XII - crowned monogram amidst date (1715-17) 83 - Karl XII - 3 crowns above date (1718) - Ulrika Eleonora - crowned monogram amidst date (1719-20) - Fredrik I - crowned FRS above date (1720-50) 84 - Adolf Fredrik - crowned AFRS above date (1751-68) Also, some additional stamps appear on the plate money of Karl XII and denote a revalidation of the legal tender of the pieces. In 1718, he directed that plate money had to be revalidated for continued circulation and a fee was required for this “service”; those without the new stamp would still be allowed to circulate but only at a 30 percent reduction in value. The first of these was a circular stamp with a Lion of Göta shield and 1718; these were normally applied to the front. Within a short time, Karl called for a second revalidation (with another fee, of course) and a circular stamp with 3 crowns was applied; these appear on the front or back. Obverse of artefact 20572 (minted in 1711) showing the countermark from 1718. Reverse of artefact 20572 (minted in 1711) showing the countermark from 1718. 85 Detail of the countermark in the obverse of artefact 20442.03 showing the Lion and shield, 1718. Detail of the countermark in the reverse of artefact 20442.03 showing the three crowns, 1718. Research has indicated that about 25 percent of the plates held by the public in 1718 had these marks added to them; plates with the revalidation stamp(s) usually command a premium over the others of the same type. Very shortly after this, Karl decreed a revaluation of ½, 1 and 2 Daler plates to 3/4, 1- ½ and 3 Daler respectively, with another appropriate fee and the appropriate stamps (circular with a numeral/DALER/S.M./1718 applied to the front). These last items are extremely scarce and were not found in the wreck. The counter-stamping was done in Stockholm and the entire process from March to July 1718 comprised the large sum of 1,795, 000 Daler, corresponding to more than 900,000 plates. It is, perhaps, not surprising that sometimes the counter-stamping was done a little too hastily and without sufficient supervision. A few examples of the errors made during the counter-stamping are given below. A 1 Daler 1715 has the normal stamp with Three Crowns on the reverse but not the originally intended Lion on the obverse (Avesta Coin Museum no. C 789). In a private collection there is also a 1 Daler plate with a Three Crown stamp on the obverse. A number of plates issued in accordance with Coinage Acts earlier than 1709 and not mentioned in the Decree of 1718 on the counter-stamping of plate money, were also given an extra stamp. Two such plates, a 2 Daler 1686 and a ½ Daler 1689, were given the 86 stamp indicating the 50 per cent revaluation and are now in the Coin Cabinet of the University of Uppsala. A similar example is found in the Royal Coin Cabinet where a 2 Daler 1676 was revalued in 1718 to 3 Daler and another 2 Daler from 1683 was stamped with the Lion on the obverse and the Three Crowns on the reverse. There is also a 2 Daler 1716 which was incorrectly revalued to 3 Daler and which is now in the Svensson collection at the Royal Swedish Coin Cabinet. (Tingström, 1986) There is, nevertheless, an unusual plate in the “Schimmelmann” collection that, although it does not exactly classify within the counter-stamping errors, it has irregularities that were not observed in any of the other coins in the sample. It is a 1 Daler plate of 1729 (Art. No. MAI-010/99/20502.01) which, besides the regular five stamps on the obverse, shows another five faint stamps on the reverse. The stamps are scattered on the back of the plate, quite randomly, not intending to reproduce the pattern of the five stamps on the obverse. Obverse of artefact 20502.01, 1 Daler, 1729. Reverse of artefact 20502.01, 1 Daler, 1729, showing the five faint and random marks. 87 Other rarities were observed but this time related to the weights of some of the plates. Due to the loss of material after being immersed in salt water it is reasonable to expect that most of the plates would weigh less than stipulated by their face value. However, in three cases the situation was the opposite, with plates weighing more than they should. The first one is a ½ Daler plate of 1713 (Art. No. MAI-010/99/+002.02) which instead of the expected 378g, weighed of 600 g (59% heavier). The other two examples are 1 Daler plates from 1710 and 1711 (Art. No. MAI-010/99/20452.01 and MAI-010/99/20502.07) which weighed 1,050g, surpassing by 39% the official weight of 756g. It is worth noting that such coins are some of the oldest found at the wreck, dating back to 1710 to 1713, years in which the price of copper increased substantially, providing a possible explanation for this phenomenon as the mint house might have been still adapting the weights to the new and higher value of the metal. Half Daler, 1720, Ulrika Eleonora. Half Daler, 1715, Karl XII. 88 Half Daler, 1724, Fredrik I. Half Daler, 1726, Fredrik I. 1 Daler, 1715, Karl XII. 1 Daler, 1718, Karl XII. 89 2 Daler, 1719, Ulrika Eleonora. 2 Daler, 1746, Fredrik I. 90 4 Daler, 1721, Fredrik I. 4 Daler, 1757, Adolf Fredrik. 91 The archaeological excavation of the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” wreck gave us the opportunity to learn more about the intense trade between Europe and the Far East during the 18th century and its influence on fairly isolated territories such as the archipelago of Cabo Verde. In addition to confirming with archaeological evidence some archival facts, it opened a series of fascinating questions which deserve further research. Also, interesting insights of the declaration of transported goods to the East can be glimpsed based on the study of the cargo found at the wreck and on the official cargo list. For instance, in the book of Ole Feldbæk, Indian Trade under the Danish Flag 17721808, it is said that a normal cargo onboard ships sailing between Denmark and India would be: 1. Metal goods 2. Supplies for shipbuilding: tar, pitch, canvas, anchors, rope and timber. 3. Ammunition 4. Alcohol 5. Silver, coined Realen van Acht (pieces of eight) 6. Miscellaneous In general terms the cargo found in the “Schimmelmann” fits with these categories, as we know, based on archival documents, that the silver was rescued, large amounts of cannon balls and cannons were observed and iron bars covered almost the entire bow section of the wreck. Nevertheless, there is still no mention of copper plate money, which could be included in the “Metal goods” or “Supplies for shipbuilding” as we will see later. When looking for the official cargo list of the “Schimmelmann” first we found an interesting document in the Public Record Office (Kommercekollegiet no. 967) stating 92 that another ship, also belonging to the firm of Frédéric de Coninck & N.L. Reiersen named “Haabet” (The Hope), was sailing to India in the same year but was unable to load all the goods. The remaining cargo that was meant to have gone with the “Haabet” was then transferred to the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” as follows: - 114 cannons - 400 bottles of genever - 468 pieces of cloth - 270 skippund* of rope made from hemp. (Approx. 43 tons.) - 300 barrels of tar - 100 barrels of pitch * Skippund = Ship pound, (mix of German/Dutch) 1 ship pound = 160kg. As we can see no copper plate money was transferred from the “Haabet” to the “Schimmelmann”. After loading the goods from the “Haabet”, the “Schimmelmann” set sail for her last and fateful voyage in August 1780 with the following cargo as stated in the Kommercekollegiet no.968: - 2,529 oak and beech trunks - 96 trunks suitable for masts - 134 cannons (114 cannons from the “Haabet” plus the 20 small signal bronze cannons) - 14,350 cannonballs - 550 barrels of tar - 500 barrels of pitch - 4,183 pieces of bar iron - 572 bunches of iron wire - 918 pieces of canvas 93 - 43 skippund of twine (Approx. 6.8 tons) - 38 pieces of different types of drapery goods - 27 boxes of wine - 17 casks of brandy According to this list of cargo, there was no Swedish copper plate money on board the “Schimmelmann” when she left Copenhagen. So where did the copper plate money found at the wreck came from? We know that there was a large export of this money from Copenhagen to India around 1780, as we have in the Public Record Office cargo list of ships such as the “Roepstorff”, also owned by Fred. de Coninck & Reiersen, which sailed to India in 1781 with 300 skippund (48 tons) of Swedish copper. Another Danish ship, the “Grev Bern Storff” sailed out the same year, also transporting 48 tons of Swedish copper. (both in Kommercekollegiet no. 969) However, one of the cases that could shed light on the “missing” plate money question, is that of the ship “Johanne Maria”, because in the cargo list for this vessel, dated 22 September 1780, we find 2,500 pieces of Swedish copper plate money, but in a cargo list for the same vessel dated 4 December 1780 we only find 8,394 pieces of Swedish iron. This makes it likely that the Swedish copper money on the second list had been changed or renamed into Swedish iron. (Kommercekollegiet no. 968) Another interesting case is the “Printz Von Bevern” ship because it seems that this ship brought a cargo to Copenhagen in order to send this cargo to India on board two ships: the “Cristianssted” and the “Maria Aletta”. In the cargo list of the “Printz Von Bevern” 94 we can find 12,000 pieces of bar iron, brought to Copenhagen from St. Petersborg and Stockholm. However, on the ships which takes this cargo to India we find 27 boxes of Swedish copper plate money on the “Maria Aletta” and 53 boxes of copper plate money on the “Cristianssted”. At the same time, the 12,000 pieces of bar iron have been reduced to 9,963 pieces so it is likely that the bar iron has become Swedish copper money. Therefore, we could claim that it is likely, in this case, that the Swedish copper money in the cargo lists was imported into Denmark as bar iron but exported out of Denmark as boxes containing Swedish copper money. With this we have reason to conclude, that the Swedish copper plate money onboard the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” was listed as a part of the 4,183 pieces of bar iron cargo onboard this ship (Kommercekollegiet no. 968). Most of the cargo on board these ships would be used in the flourishing shipbuilding industry in India which had grown up around Bombay and Calcutta in the years after 1750. Especially after the battle of Plassey in 1757, when the East India Company (EIC) took over Bengal, this Indian shipbuilding industry saw spectacular growth and in the 1790s the fleet of country ships for inter-Asiatic trade based in Calcutta numbered around 575 ships (Furber, 1976). The reason for this growth in India shipbuilding was that it was cheaper to build them in India than in Europe and during The War of American Independence and later during the Napoleon Wars, the Royal Navy laid claim to almost all of the good timber and other supplies for shipbuilding back in Britain and therefore the EIC and other private traders in the East started having their ships built in India. The copper plate money most probably would also go into this ship building industry, as it would be made into sheathing plates for the underwater hull of the ships. 95 With a much better idea of the provenance and destination of the Swedish copper plate money as well as the composition of the cargo found in our wreck, after such an unusual accident in the north of Maio Island, we should consider what happened to the ship’s crew after the wreckage. In April 1781 Captain Reiersen with 12 of his sailors reached the Cape of Good Hope, where they were taken aboard a Danish naval vessel, the “Infødsretten”, bound for Copenhagen. At the time, Reiersen was able to inform the captain on the “Infødsretten”, that out of the approximately 76 crew members of the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann”, 24 sailors had died on the Cabo Verde Islands and that 40 sailors were still left on the islands as they were too sick or weak to be transferred. On the way home, 2 of the 12 sailors which had travelled with Reiersen to the Cape of Good Hope died, so although all members of the “Grev Ernst Schimmelmann” survived the loss of the ship, more than 50% of the crew died afterwards from different diseases or exhaustion. What about Captain Reiersen? He definitively was not a man of luck. The following year, in 1782, he took the “Infødsretten” as second in command on a voyage to India, but on the way back, in 1783, the ship was lost with all hands. 96 Site plan 97 The Hartwell, 1787 (BOA-007) History of the ship and the wreckage The Hartwell was a new ship in the service of the English East India Company when, on her maiden voyage, she was wrecked in the Cabo Verde Islands. She was launched on 9 February 1787, carried 24 guns and had a crew of 129 when she put to sea. The cargo she took on board at Gravesend consisted of cloth, lead, sundry merchandise (amounting to approximately £ 24,170), but of far greater value were the 60 chests of the East India Company's Treasury (209, 280 oz.) valued in Sterling in 1787 at £ 53,642. l0s. 8d. This was the largest consignment of bullion loaded on any of the eighteen ships sent out by the Company that year. Additionally, her owners [including Captain Edward Fiott] had placed 3 more chests aboard and it seems likely from the way that the entry is phrased that more bullion was stored in the 9 chests belonging to private individuals that were also put on board. Thus the total amount of bullion loaded on the Hartwell may have been as much as 72 chests (251,136 oz.) or £ 64,371 Sterling in the value of the day. The voyage of the Hartwell from England to China began 23 April and from early on seemed fated to end badly. She was not a happy ship, and, in fact, on 22 May, when approaching the Cabo Verde Island of Sal, a mutiny took place. And though the Captain was able to maintain control of the ship, nine crewmen had to be placed in irons. About two days later, at 3 A.M. in sailing conditions that were later adjudged not to have been dangerous, the Hartwell was allowed to strike a shoal of rock north of Boa Vista Island. Only one man perished during the actual wreck, although a second died from injuries shortly after getting ashore. Surviving crew members made their way back to England in a variety of vessels and by various routes, including some by way of Madeira and Lisbon, others going via distant ports such as Boston in New England. The 4th Mate of the 98 Hartwell, Mr. Gregory Jackson, along with 23 men in the ship's long boat made their way to the island of St. Vincent in the West Indies before finding passage back to England. He would provide evidence on the loss and later play a primary role in attempts to salvage the valuable cargo. When the East India Company learned of the wreck of the Hartwell, officials entered the value of the loss in the ledger at £ 77,812. l0s. 6d., though this total did not include the value of bullion or merchandise belonging to private trade that was in the ship, an amount which the Portuguese governor of the Cabo Verde Islands referred to as “considerable" . Soon after getting back to England, the purser of the late ship Hartwell, Robert Dagley, advised the Company that he thought that it might be possible to salvage "part of the cargo". The Company then advertised the job and received some offers in writing from hopeful salvors, but after careful consideration it was decided to entrust the work to Mr. Braithwaite and his sons who were to receive 1/8 of all recovered, according to the initial contract entered into with the Company. The Braithwaites set out in September, 1787 in their sloop Elizabeth accompanied by the Lark, Captain Needham, for the Cabo Verde Islands where they were to be assisted by the Bull Dog, a sloop that the Royal Navy sent to protect the salvage party and to carry home any bullion that might be recovered. Mr. Gregory Jackson, the only senior officer to come out of the loss with honour, was sent out by the Company to supervise salvage operations. Help from the Portuguese Government was sought, and on 8 October 1787 a letter from the Portuguese Secretary of State was sent instructing the Governor of the Cabo Verde Islands to assist the English salvage efforts where possible. The logbook of HMS Bulldog attests to the presence of the salvage party and provides locational information on the Braithwaite's sloop, Elizabeth, and as a consequence may 99 be used to confirm the location of the wreck of the Hartwell, as the following extract will indicate: ADM 52/2190 Masters Log, Bulldog, "... Bearing at Noon l4 June 1788; The NW end of Boavista bore W Dist 10 or 11 miles middle key of the NE Reef SE 1/2 # 10 miles; Fresh breezes and vary at 2 pm laid too main topsail to the mast between the NE Reefs & Boavista where we found the Elizabeth sloop & an American brig at anchor; I sent a launch on board the sloop; 1/2 past 4 returned the launch attended him in & I made sail at 5 tack at 6 abrest the No part of the reef at 1/2 past nine anchored in English Roads; 12 August; bearing; NE part of Boavista SSW 6 miles... at sunset the NW end of Boavista bore ENE distance 7 miles English Roads SE by S Dist 6 miles In 2nd reef of topsails; at Noon saw the Elizabeth sloop at anchor within the reefs bearing SSE dist 3 leagues; 13 June sloop on the middle Reef [where she stays most days]" Some secondary sources, such as J.W. Heinke, A History of Diving, indicate that the Braithwaites were able to salvage virtually everything of value from the Hartwell. On page 15 of this book, Heinke writes: "... In the years 1789 and 1790, they [John and William Braithwaite) successfully searched for and recovered all the dollars, and a large quantity of tin and lead, from on board the Hartwell, East Indiaman, lost off Boavista, Cape de Verde Islands. This was accomplished in depths varying from five to seven fathoms, by means of Mr. John Braithwaite's diving machine.... " (Heinke, 1871) Heinke then goes on to describe another subsequent salvage job of the Braithwaites which shows that the depth at which the remains of the Hartwell lay would not have been an obstacle to recovery: "From the wreck of the ship ' Earl of Abergavne’ outbound East Indiaman, of 1300 tons burthen they succeeded in recovering nearly all the cargo, and £ 75,000 in dollars. This vessel was lost in 1805, and after having laid under 10 fathoms water for 16 months, during which time many unsuccessful experiments were made by Mr. Tucker, Mr. John Braithwaite, by means of his peculiar diving machine [which was not a diving bell], succeeded in raising the ship and cargo, amounting in value to many thousand pounds. By his apparatus he was enabled to remain under water eight or ten hours at a time..." (Heinke, 1871) However, primary sources suggest that the salvage work on the Hartwell was not nearly as complete as the diving histories imply. According to East India Company records, work 100 on the site of the Hartwell was under way by late January, 1788, though it is a little difficult to determine exactly how successful or otherwise this early attempt was since all letters and papers on the subject were referred to the Committee of Shipping whose records, unfortunately, were subsequently destroyed. Fortunately, other sources may be used to fill in the gaps. Amongst the Admiralty papers in the Public Record Office, for example, is a letter dated 12/2/1788, which reads as follows: "The Court of Directors of the East India Company, having great reason to believe that a considerable part of the Treasure and cargo of the late ship Hartwell, which was lost off Boavista, may still be recovered, and that since the coming away of His Majesty's ship Bull Dog, Captain Fancourt, who afforded a great assistance and protection to the persons employed on the said wreck, and the Court being apprehensive, that for want of such protection and assistance they may be greatly molested... [request] the Bull Dog to [be] return[ed and]... permitted to take on board such treasure and goods as she can conveniently receive and bring the same to England." [ADM; 12/2/1788] From this letter, it is clear that even though the salvors had been on site for some time, "a considerable part of the Treasure" had not been recovered by then. In fact, it appears that they had not been able to use traditional salvage methods, as expected, for later on, we learn that the Braithwaites requested a special diving machine to be sent out from England to assist their salvage attempts. By March HMS Bull Dog had returned to Portsmouth with 3 chests of dollars belonging to the Hartwell. The Bull Dog went back to Boavista again on 12 May 1788 with a diving machine, as requested by the Braithwaites, but even with this equipment, their salvage efforts appear to have been little or no more successful. The total recoveries in 1788 seem to have been limited to 3 chests of dollars [it is assumed that these are the three chests referred to above], 630 loose dollars, 17 guns, and a number of miscellaneous items. According to Captain Fancourt of the Bull Dog, writing on 22 September 1788, the new diving machine of the Braithwaites was of little use; they were able to use it only one day because of a persistent ocean swell in the area. He also reported in this letter that "all the 101 chests being destroyed which will make the business tedious and difficult." Even though it was expected that weather and sea conditions would become more favorable for salvage work in the months to come [, i.e., after Fancourt wrote], letters from the Company's agents, Gregory Jackson and his assistant Clotworthy Upton, to the Committee of Shipping suggest that not much was accomplished: eg., the following extract from a letter dated 23/12/1788, though praising the efforts of the Braithwaites and all concerned with the salvage attempt concludes that "their want of success was owing to the weather during their continuance at Boa Vista being uncommonly unfavourable." Despite the general lack of success, salvage efforts continued in the next year, and these would be more successful, as can be seen from a letter, dated 1 September 1789, from Gregory Jackson who states that: "... Messrs. Braithwaites have met with very good success on the wreck having taken up twenty five Chests of loose Dollars, as also eighty one pieces of lead and twelve Blocks of tin; they would most likely have taken up ten Chests more this season had we not been interrupted by five pirates who have been hanging about this side of the Island for some days past; on their first appearance off the Reef, Messrs. Braithwaítes Sloop was on the Wreck and seeing their Boat coming towards them, Messrs. Braithwaite sent their boat, Mr. Upton in her to demand what they wanted on that reef their answer was that we are come for turtle and anything else we can get upon, upon which we all thought it most prudent to land the money immediately, these vessels having stood off and on for two days close to the Reef... Mr Braithwaite went on board one of them they told him they came from South East Asia on purpose to go on the wreck of the Hartwell. Mr. Braithwaite told them they could by no means do it as the Company had not given it up, for which they wanted to see my authority from the Court of Directors to prevent any person going on the Wreck ... I read them my Power of Attorney granted me by the Honorable Company but they made light of every thing, and told me they had come for money and money they would have...." The pirates then went off to the island of Sal but later, on Friday/Saturday, came back, and this time: "... they were armed and said they would dive and have the money, we laid off at some distance with our boat and saw them dive and bring up a quantity of dollars, as soon as the sloop got out we moored all fours right over the Money so their people could not work...[but were] forced to slip our cable [when] they threatened a broadside... [With 102 regard to what had already been salvaged,] the money I have dug a large pit under the house and buried it till such time as I know the Honourable Court means to have it conveyed to England." Included in this correspondence is the following description of the recovery efforts: "An account of Bullion recovered, from the Wreck of the Hartwell, by Messrs. Braithwaites. When taken up, 1789 July 3d 4th l5th 20th 21 31 August 1st 4th 6th 8th Total Loose Dollars, number 5,181 5,181 10,910 16,209 16,210 14,405 14,405 6,216 124 4,060 100,901 Dollars Clotworthy Upton (Company's Agent) On 17 Oct 1789 HM’s sloop Bull Dog was ordered to return to the Cabo Verde Islands to take back all the treasure that had been recovered. However, an examination of the logbooks of the Bull Dog revealed that, in fact, she did not go back to the islands, but must have received other orders when in Gibraltar for in the following months she is found cruising the Mediterranean. Instead, another Royal Navy ship, HMS Termagant, was sent to the Cabo Verde islands, arriving in Boavista in late 1789. According to the logbook of the Termagant's Master, John Davy, on 29 December, the ship worked her way into English Road and remained there a couple of weeks. However on "10 February, [there] came alongside the Company's sloop and launch with the money [which was put] on board [from] the Company's sloop, 25 chests supposed to contain twenty one thousand pounds Sterling and 24 blocks of tin and 75 pigs of lead" [the Captain's logbook confirms this but indicates that 77 pigs of lead had been brought aboard..] 103 The following day, 11 February, Davy reported that they were "stowing away the money tin and lead... [and] at 12 [o'clock] weigh[ed anchor] and come to sail" for the voyage back to England. According to the accounts of the East India Company, Captain Walter Gwennap of the Termagant was paid £ 209. 17s. 6d being 1% on the amount of silver, tin, and lead saved from the Hartwell. In early 1789, the Braithwaites expressed an interest in continuing to work the wreck but only under more favorable terms, and soon thereafter, it was agreed by the Company that their salvors would receive 1/5 of the salvage of all bullion and one half of everything else. From the register of letters received and passed on to the Committee of Shipping, it is clear that the Braithwaites, and the Company agents, Gregory Jackson and Clotworthy Upton, remained in the Cabo Verde Islands through 1790. However, since the letters themselves have not survived, it is not clear at this point in the research whether any further successful salvage took place. Certainly, the much more generous terms demanded by the Braithwaites and granted by the Company suggest that any further salvage was thought to be considerably more difficult. In support of the assumption that further salvage efforts met with little, if any, success, it should be noted that the Company's accounts in 1790-1791 do not reveal any percentage payment orders like the earlier ones to Captain Fancourt of the Bull Dog or Captain Gwennap of the Termagant for the carrying of salvaged bullion back to England. All that one finds in this source is an order dated 18 February 1791 to pay Mr. William Braithwaite the £ 450 he requested for 140 tons of lead and some other articles that his divers had recovered from the Hartwell At the same time Clotworthy Upton was directed to return to England; it being thought "unnecessary to continue him longer in that employment". These two statements 104 suggest that Braithwaite did not recover more bullion and that any further successful salvage was thought unlikely. There is no mention of the Hartwell in the Company's minutes for 1792, 1793, 1794, or 1795 which lends additional weight to the view that no further recoveries were made. The Ledger account for 1796 seems to confirm this for the 'profit and loss' entry reads "for the amount of unrecovered cargo of this ship ... £ 61,648.3s. 10d." This account includes an entry for £ 520. 9d for 129 cwt. of tin. saved from the wreck and a debit of £l5, 643. 17s. 8d "by General Joint Stock from the Ledger”. One other source discovered in this research also suggests that the Braithwaites' salvage efforts were effectively played out by 1790. A Royal Navy ship, HMS Pomona, on the West African Station, decided to depart her station for the Cabo Verde Islands to refresh her crew which were suffering considerably from tropical sickness. According to the logbook entries of the Master [William Gregory]: "25 October 1789, [the Pomona, Captain Savage] came into Porta Praya Bay [St. Iago] ... got information from the Governor that there were pyrates about the islands." "28 at 5 am the island of Bona Vista north 3 or 4 leagues ... sent the cutter with Mr. Eaton mate on shore to Boa Vista to gain intelligence and with a letter to the East India company's agent." "30 p.m fired a great many shots at the chace [pirate ship], till some went over her, at 8 she bore down and brought too... sent Lt. wood on board, the boat returned with the master, mate, 2 white and 7 black men, the sloop was called the Two Brothers belonging to the island of St. Thornas but under American colours, Thornas Hammond master. Lt. Wood after searching the vessel found a quantity of black dollars in a water cask, sent on board 5330, when the cask was found one of the black men acknowledged that they had been at work on the wreck of the Hartwell Indiaman out of which they had got the dollars and that two schooners and a sloop had been at work with them but was sailed for St. Eustatia about three weeks before, had carried with them 28,000 dollars, at 7 sent a masters mate, midshipman and 8 seamen to take care of the sloop, made sail...." "31 p.m. ... brought too, about 2 Mr. Braithwaite the person employed by the India Company to take up the cargo of the Hartwell and a Mr. Upton came on board, they informed us this sloop, in company with others had fired on him and driven them from the wreck...." 105 "1 Nov.... at 1 the India Company's agent came on board ... at 6 a.m. left the sloop and prisoners in charge of the agent to be proceeded against according to law; at noon weighed and made sail out of the bay." Another Master's logbook of the Pomona included the following information: "The sloop was a tender to a Danish Guinea Man, to which coast she was bound. Lt. wood found a quantity of dollars in a water cask and when the discovery was made the mate and a black cooper said, they were taken from the wreck of the Hartwell, and they had been to work there some time...” The logbook of Captain Henry Savage of the Pomona has the following entries relating to salvage on the Hartwell: “25 Oct. 1789 In Porta Prayo received information from the Governor and by a letter from the Honourable the [ sic ] East India Company's agent that their [sic ] were some vessels piratically plundering the wreck of the Hartwell ... and that they threatened to seize upwards of £ 20,000 he had saved from her." "30 sent a boat with Lieut on board to examine [the prize], he sent the Master, mate, 2 white men and 7 black men divers on board, the master said the sloop belonged to St. Thomases, she was under the American flag, the mate and people acknowledged that they had been at the wreck, got the dollars out of her, and had driven the co[mpan]y's sloop off, in company with 3 other vessels....” On 27 May 1790 shortly after the Pomona had returned to England, Captain Savage sent the Admiralty a report of the whole episode. In it, he stated that after arriving in the Cabo Verde islands and learning of the piratical attack made upon the salvage operation of Hartwell. "I went immediately to the Co[mpan]y's property and was so fortunate to capture one of the pirates, by which a large sum of money that had been recovered from the wreck was saved." There is a separate report entitled "Pirate Sloop Brothers" which starts with "A Narrative of the proceedings of HM S ship Pomona... in the capture of the pirate sloop Brothers, Thomas Hammond master." This includes a copy of the letter by Clotworthy Upton dated Boa Vista, 28 August, in which the writer states that they "had recovered £ 20,000 and the divers are continuing to work on the wreck but are threatened by five piratical vessels now lying in the Isle of Sal." Captain Savage's narrative continues: 106 "The master upon his being brought on board behaved insolently and gave the following account of himself. That his name was Thomas Hammond, that he was a native of New York in North America, that the sloop was called the Two Brothers of St. Eustatius, the property of Robinson and Duffy of that island and himself 1/3 each, that he was fitted out as a tender to a guinea man belonging to St. Thomas's under the Danish flag, commanded by Capt. Darby a native of Ireland... he denied being fitted out for the purpose of working on the wreck of the Hartwell, or his having worked on it, but was waiting for the Guinea man and was fishing and turtling until her arrival... The mate... his name was Adam Donaldson, he was a native of Airshire in Scotland but had resided in America since the year 1775. [he did admit) that the sloop was fitted out to work the wreck of the Hartwell and they had procured for that purpose seven Negroes as divers for that purpose ... arrived off Boavista sometime in the month of September where they found two schooners and a sloop at work on the wreck ... vizt the schooner Mary commanded by one Bosse, a native of Rhode Island under the Dutch flag and belonging to St Eustatius, this schooner he was informed had fired at a vessel employed by the East India Company to work on the wreck... and drove her off, that this schooner got about 10,000 dollars and had sailed for St Eustatius about 3 weeks ago ... The schooner Swift commanded by one Haddock, a native of St Eustatius, under the Dutch flag, had got about 8,000 from the wreck, but had lost his best diver on the reef and had sailed for St Eustatius with the Mary ... The sloop [blank] was commanded by one Lumbard a native of Cape Cod ... got about 8,000 and sailed with the two schooners for St Eustatius. this sloop showed Swedish colours. He [i.e., the mate, Donaldson] was informed prior to his leaving St Eustatius that there was a brigg fitting at Antigua ... to mount 10 carriage guns ... and [would sail] from thence to work on the wreck of the Hartwell " Captain Savage also interrogated John English, one of the black divers, who confirmed what the mate said. English was kept on board the Pomona "as an evidence and as he was a good cooper." He confirms that Lt. Wood had discovered 5,333 dollars on the Two Brothers. From this body of evidence, we learn that these pirates recovered about 33,330 dollars, maybe more since we do not learn what the fifth ship may have recovered. All this evidence suggests, however, that they may have recovered between 33,000 and 40,000 dollars. It seems unlikely that they would have obtained more from the wreck since in his letter dated 1 September 1789, Mr. Upton had written that the Braithwaite's had recovered about 25 chests [confirmed in the account] and that they hoped to get another 10 chests [no more], or approximately 40,000 dollars. It seems unlikely that the pirates were better 107 equipped than the Braithwaites or would have achieved more. Therefore, in all, one would estimate that salvage efforts on the Hartwell yielded about 38.5 chests or 154, 000 dollars. Exploration of the wreck site This site was found in July 1996 and have been positively identified as the Hartwell, English East Indiaman sunk in this place on the 24th of May 1787. Our team visited the site in 1999 with the aim of exploring it and take measurements to produce a site sketch. Due to the adverse weather just few dives were done in two days of exploration. Information from previous interventions was provided by archaeologist Julian Van Rensburg. There is a large mound of ballast stones mixed with lead bars and tin ingots visible. A total of 20 iron cannons are scattered in the surroundings of the ballast as well as three “arrow” type anchors. Remains of the hull structure are located to the North of the ballast pile and some copper keel bolts are protruding from the seabed, still attached to the wood. In excavations performed in years previous to this visit a large quantity of silver coins (part of the cargo) were recovered. They were all silver coins of 8 reales, minted in Mexico between 1772 and 1786, bearing the inscriptions “CAROLUS.III DEI.GRATIA” and “HISPAN . ET . IND . REX”. But certainly the most interesting artefacts found in this wreck were a collection of fog watches, most of them made of gold, and watch parts in which is still possible to read the name of the manufacturers (Fox & Jon, London)(Edw. Tomlin Royal? London) (Jn. Wood, London) (Barraud London), all known to have worked in the 18th century in London. Also some lead and tin ingots were recovered to be tested for Alpha Radiation levels. 108 Gold watches, watches parts and tin ingot from the Hartwell Silver coins (above) and EIC seal and coral beads (below) from the site 109 Site sketch 110 The Lady Burgess, 1806 (VAL-002) History of the ship and the wreckage The Lady Burgess, a ship belonging to the English East India Company, weighed 820 tons, carried 30 guns and a crew of 100 men. The Lady Burgess sailed from Portsmouth on the 31st of March 1806 with the rest of the outward-bound East India fleet, under convoy of the Leopard. She was bound for Madras and Bengal in India. Her cargo consisted of iron, lead and general merchandise. The Commerce Journal of the East India Company shows the value of the cargo of the Lady Burgess. The Journal indicates that no bullion was shipped upon the Lady Burgess by the East India Company. A thorough examination of the Journal shows that only 7 of the 20 Company ships which set out for Madras or Bengal in 1806 carried bullion; 3 of them, it might be noted carried over £100,000 each, but the Lady Burgess was not one of them. In the early hours of the 20th of April 1806, when sailing between the islands of Boa Vista and Santiago, the Lady Burgess and the Lord Melville ships found themselves separated from their fleet and in great peril. Captain Swinton was able to turn his ship into deep waters; Lady Burgess, however, could not escape the breakers. During the hours of hardship, longboats were sent out and a large part of the crew could be saved. An account of the loss can be read in Captain Swinton's logbook of the Lord Melville. The logbook reads: 111 "Sunday 20 April… At 2 a.m. saw breakers on the starboard beam, off one cables length [608 feet], put the helm a starboard the ship struck 3 times abaft the main channel and got afterwards into deep water. Sounded 25 fathoms [210 feet]. One ship on the starboard quarter was standing in the middle of the breakers, at a quarter past 2 a.m. she fired guns in distress. Hove to the larboard tack, and … most of the fleet S by W one mile distant at daylight. Tacked and stood to the NNW saw a ship on the reef with his masts gone and the sea breaking over her, made the signal to the commander he heading west 1.5. miles, the most part of the fleet a long a long way to leeward. At 8 am hove to and Capt. Swinton and a part of the crew and passengers came on board. Found it to be the Lady Burgess. At 11 received the longboat full of men, sent two boats from the ship to assist in taking off the crew. At 10 a.m. [she] was in the middle of the breakers, at 11 the wreck disappeared." MHS Leopard Journal of the 20th and 21st of April 1806. 112 Quotes from original sources (19th C.) The Court Minutes The Court acquitted all officers “of all imputation of neglect and misconduct” and found “the conduct of the officers seamen and others has been such as to merit the court’s entire approbation particularly in the general good discipline of the former and the sobriety and attention to orders of the latter.” The Court did, however, have some reservations lamenting “the want of information as to the dangers of the passage between Cape de Verde islands and of that rock on which the ship was lost. The uncertainty of its position should have induced some caution beyond what seems to have been adopted as the Lord Melville struck and had nearly experienced the same fate as the Lady Burgess. The situation of this rock is from the Journals in this house sufficiently established as may be seen by bearings annexed to the said report taken on board the Deptford in the year 1773. It further appears… that the alleged necessity of filling up water at St. Jago which induced that passage was very trivial as the fleet had been only 19 days from England.” ‘The journals of Archibald Swinton’ in Bengal: Past and Present, XXXI, 35 “... on 20 April 1806, the Lady Burgess (captain Archibald Swinton), outward bound for Madras and Bengal, struck a rock between St. Jago and Bona Vista. Thirty-four were drowned; and among them were three midshipmen, of whom the son of Archibald Swinton was one.... ” 113 His Majesty’s Ship Leopard Port Praya, Island St. Iago, 21on April 1806: Sir I beg leave to acquaint you for the information of my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, that I arrived here this day (with the Ships named in the margin) to complete our water, and shall proceed from hence agreeable to their Lordships directions as soon as that is done, which I hope will be in three or four days. I am extremely sorry to inform their Lordships, that on the morning of the 20th at 2 AM the Lady Burgess East India Ship bound to Madras & Bengal, one of those under my convoy was wrecked on a shoal to the Westward of the Island of Bonavista, which is supposed to be Leton’s Reef, but if it was, it is most erronously laid down in the Charts, being to the Westward and Southward of is there called Leton’s Reef. I am happy to Captain Swinton, the second, third, fourth & fifth Mates, the Surgeon with 36 of the crew & Passengers were saved, the Chief & Sixth Mates the Purser, five Midshipsmen and 32 of the crew and Passengers were lost. Since my arrival here, I have been informed that Vice Admiral Sir. I. B. Warren with a squadron of his Majesty’s, left this Bay seventeen Days since with the Marengo, Admiral Linois and a Frigate their Prizes. I have the honor to be Sir Your most obedient humble servent 114 His Majesty’s Ship Leopard Spithead 8th June 1806: Sir I beg you will please to acquaint my Lords Commissioners of the Admirality, of my arrival here in his Majesty’s Ship Leopard under my command; having agreeable to their Lordships directions been as far to the Southward as 10 degrees North Latitude, where I parted from the East-India ships and virtuallers margin, directing them to proceed to their destination agreeable to the orders they had previously received. One of the East India Ships the Lady Burgess I am sorry to inform their Lordships was wrecked on the night of the 20th of April on a Reef to the Westward of the Island of Bonavistas supposed to be Latons Reef: but if it was, is erronously laid down in the Charts published by Heather, being much to the Southward and Westward of its situation as there pointed out: I am happy to say with her own Boats and those of the Leopard, the Captain second, third, fourth & fifth Mates, Surgeon, most of the Passengers, and several of the crew making in all 142 were saved, the Chief, Sixth Mates & Purser, in all 40 were drowned. I beg to acquaint their Lordships that on the 19th of May in Latitude 40º..11’ North & Longitude 25º..46’ West I spoke the Moselle and have by this Post forwarded a letter to their Lordships directed to you from Captain Gordon. I beg Leave to transmit enclosed a Log of the Procedings of His Majesty’s Ship under my Command between the 31th March and 8th June 1806 as also her state and condition; and have the honor to be. Sir. your most obedient humble sevent RichCo: Raggeth 115 Letter from Captain Raggeth, MHS Leopard, 21st of April 1806. Excavation of the wreck site In 1999 our survey team located the wreck in the South East end of the Joao Valente reef, almost halfway between the islands of Maio and Boa Vista in the Cabo Verde Islands. Operations in the year 2000 took place from 09.06.00 until 26.08.00 consisting of 44 diving days on this wreck site, with 702 dives amounting to 895 diving hours. The debris field of the shipwreck of the Lady Burgess was scattered in a wide area measuring 200m from the pintle P3 (easternmost point) to an iron hook (westernmost point), running almost in East-West direction with only few spots a little away from this main scattering course. The dispersion to the North and the South was very small (70m in the wider area) in comparison with the main displacement’s vector of the heavy objects. 116 All relevant reference points were measured by triangulation or distance and bearing, depending on the conditions. Each of these points was measured itself and in relation with others, the seabed, and important geographic features in order to retrieve as much information as we could from the way they were situated in the moment that recovery operation began. The same points were then used as reference points for the location of artefacts. The relevant reference points were identified with small numbered buoys for easier briefing of the divers in excavation and survey. Due to the strong swell and very hard conditions of the sea almost every day, no datum lines were placed, and the relevant reference points were marked through distance and bearing or triangulation. The relevant reference points used for measurements were: - The 3 “corners” of the lead bar pile. - 4 iron bar concretions. - 3 cannon balls concretions. - 3 rudder pintles - 5 gudgeons - 24 cannons - 7 anchors. - 1 iron hook. The team therefore had total of 50 relevant reference points that covered the whole area of the wreck for easy and accurate measurements of the artefacts. Due to the wide scattering of the evidence, the wreck site was divided into two main areas: Area #1 (stern section, pintles, gudgeons, lead and iron bars) and Area #2 (bow section, cannons, anchors, cannon balls, concretions). This division allowed the archaeologist to brief the divers and boatmen more easily and plan the work better. Important geographical features were further used as relevant reference points, basically in the Area # 2. 117 Area # 1 (Stern section) Description: This area was located to the East end of the wreck between 9m and 6m of depth. The most conspicuous objects seen at first were the lead bars’ pile and the several rudder pintles and gudgeons surrounding it. A more careful inspection showed us four concreted areas of iron bars and scattered iron blocks. Pile of lead bars (left) and gudgeon Gd 3 (right). The sea floor was mainly flat rock with wide depressions and some small “pools” that were filled with loose rocks of different sizes. The depth of the sediment in the area was less than 30 cm to the bedrock. Exceptions were two points that reached 85 cm (Gd 1) and 120 cm (5.5 m to the SE of Gd 1) below the original sea floor level. The main surge felt in the site was from the NE direction and strong currents were also observed from N and S, depending on the tides. The area was quite open and had no physical barrier to break or stop the big waves, which were usually present. Rounded edges lead bars (left) beveled “Lead Company” lead ingot (right). 118 The pile of lead bars was almost triangular in its shape and decreasing in height to the south. It had two types of lead bars, one rectangular and sharp in the edges (beveled), flat base and top and with the inscription “Lead Company” on most of them. A sample of this type weighed 54 Kg. The second type is also rectangular, but with rounded ends and top, flat base and mainly without any inscription, the sample’s weight was 70 Kg. Both types were mixed in the pile without any visible trace of arrangement or storage system. One sondage made in the southern part of this pile showed remains of wooden structure with copper sheeting underneath. The iron stacks of concreted bars appeared around 3m to the NW side of the lead bars’ pile. The iron bars were quite well arranged and divided into 4 main groups. Excavations performed around these areas provided many artefacts such as hat badges, pharmacy items (glass pestles and mortars, glass stoppers, small bottles, etc.) and pewter inkwells. Military hat badge (left) Pewter inkwell (center) and glass stopper (right). Glass pestles, mortars, and bottles as a sample of the medical items recovered. The gudgeons and rudder pintles surrounding the place described a semicircle (in the N, NE, E, S, SW and W) in distances that vary from 7 m from the lead bar pile to 127 m. 119 Area #1 Site plan 120 Finds and interpretations. The artefacts found in this area (or located without recovery) can be categorized as cargo and structural parts due to their quantity, kind, and concentration in certain areas. For instance, the large number of glass pestles and mortars made us think that they were cargo, which was underlined by the fact that they were basically concentrated around the iron stacks. The same is to be said for the pewter inkwells that occurred in large quantities and were concentrated in a small area. No inkwell was found in any other part of the wreck. The intact wine bottles (17) found deep in the sediment (120 cm) beside the gudgeon # 1 (Gd 1) were quite well arranged and in relation to wood (not very thick). This also made us think that they were part of the cargo. The huge amount of parts of stocked weapons (bronze parts) and the good condition of most of them also seemed to us like cargo. These objects were scattered all over the area as in area # 2 in a little less quantity. Stocked weapons parts (butt plates, trigger guards, ramrod pipes) (left and center) and wine bottles (right). Also present in the whole area were bronze bolts and nails, plus copper and lead sheathing. In this area (5.5 m to the SE of Gd 1) a big clump of silver coins was recovered which presumably was the content of two boxes of 1,000 coins each. They appeared rolled in rows, very well arranged, and seem to have been private cargo. (Historical research does not indicate any company’s bullion carried on this ship.) 121 Silver coins cluster during the conservation process. All coins were 8 reales, Ferdinand VI, Carolus III and IIII, minted in Mexico with dates between 1752 and 1804. Very few objects that could be categorized as personal belongings were found in this area. Only two gold coins which were isolated from the rest of the artefacts and 24.5 m away from each other seemed to belong to somebody’s pocket. These coins were also different from the rest of gold coins found in area # 2. No obvious remains of upper decks such as guns or cabin belongings were found here. It is necessary to highlight the hat badges. They were all carrying the legend “HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE” ("Shame to him who thinks ill of it.") that is known to be the motto of the Most Noble Order of the Garter (Berkshire History: The Order of the Garter, s.f.), the World's foremost Order of Chivalry. Due to their location within the wreck material, quite close one to another, we are inclined to think that they were transported in the hold as cargo instead of being wore by soldiers or passengers on the ship. All badges have similar levels of abrasion, suggesting they were in the same condition when the ship sank. Taking all this information into consideration, we may assume that mainly the cargo was collected in this area and was stored in the lower decks of the ship. 122 Area # 2 (bow section) Description: Located at 110 m to the West of the lead bars’ pile (anchor A4, the “center” of area #2) and with depths between 7m and 4m, this area appeared very different from Area #1 in artefacts and seabed characteristics. The big objects present in the area were 24 cannons, 7 anchors and 1 iron hook and all of them lay against the Southern wall of the reef’s head (3.5-m height). The bottom in this area was basically flat and hard, only interrupted by deep holes (“pools”), which were close to that wall. The characteristic of the seabed made us use a different approach to the archaeological recording in comparison with Area #1. Registering cannons and anchors inside A4 Gully. The holes in the seabed were narrow in the entrance and wider in depth (like a bell, most of them) and their location in the middle of a very flat and hard bottom made them natural “collection” points for the artefacts. Almost nothing was found outside of these “craters”; even very heavy objects like cannons and anchors were inside them. In this area the scattering of artefacts was more “bottom-driven” than “surge or swell-driven”, therefore we paid particular attention to the description of each “crater” and its contents for better understanding. 123 A4 Gully (110 m to W of lead bars’ pile) Dimensions: Was the biggest of the “craters” in the site with approximately 70 m2 of area and a central position between all other holes. Contents: It contained 3 anchors (A4, A5 and A6), 8 cannons (G2, G3, G4, G5, G6, G7, G8 and G18), also some iron bars belonging to the ship structure because they have bolts attached to them. Depth of the sediment: 1.2 m in the deepest part and 0.7 m in the shallowest. Sediment: Mostly medium sized rocks, some big rocks and thick sand under the rocks. Finds: Loose wooden structure remains and iron concretion in the S end and deep into the sediment, personal belongings as buttons, forks, spoons, 8 gold coins, 6 silver coins, 1 gold Indian coin and human bones. One alidade or sight rule possibly from an astrolabe or other instrument was found here as well as a telescope and other parts of navigational instruments. Crater # 1 (12m to NW of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 11 m2 Contents: 2 cannons (G11 and G12), iron bars and cannon balls. Depth of the sediment: The excavation reached more than 1.5 m in depth without reaching the bedrock. Sediment: Under the very thick iron concretion appeared very fine sand with little stones, very rich in artefacts and artefact’s fragments. Finds: Under the cannons was found a noticeably big iron concretion made by cannon balls, iron bars and other iron objects. Inside that concretion many artefacts were found (most of them in good condition), like bottles, ceramic bowls, the handle of a sword and its sheath, 4 Arabic silver coins, 6 gold coins, cutlery, 8 silver coins, buttons, a silver jar, knife handles, tooth brushes and a several fine transparent glass fragments. Remains of wood were also present. Crater # 2 (7m to W of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 7.5 m2 Contents: Some bronze parts of pipes and pieces of the ship and one big rock (1.2 t) that was removed during excavation. Depth of the sediment: The western side of the crater was 40 cm deep and the east end was around 85 cm. Sediment: Under the rock lay sand and little stones. Finds: In the east end and under the rock were found 17 silver coins, lead weights (4, 2 and 1 pound), cutlery, buttons, 1 gold coin and human bones. 124 Crater # 3 (6m to SW of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 2 m2 Contents: At the top almost full of iron concretion, lead and copper sheathing. Depth of the sediment: Once finished 95 cm deep. Sediment: No sediment found, just concreted elements from the wreck. Finds: Cutlery, human bones, one bottle of bitter, 4 silver coins, part of a divider, fragment of a gold chain and buttons. Crater # 4 (10m to WNW of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 3.5 m2 Contents: Only a big rock in the middle (lifted during excavation). Depth of the sediment: Once finished 75 cm deep. Sediment: Sand and stones, also the east wall was concreted with iron remains and copper sheathing. Finds: Cutlery, human bones, 2 intact wine bottles, 6 silver coins, one white and blue ceramic bowl, fragment of a gold chain, 3 gold coins and buttons. Crater # 5 (10m to NNW of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 30 m2 Contents: Inside this crater we found 4 cannons, G9 and G10 in the SW end and G13 and G14 in the NW end. A small concretion of iron was located 1.5m to the east of the muzzle of G13. Depth of the sediment: Around 35 cm. Sediment: No sediment found, just under the iron concretion was fine sand. Finds: One pewter plate, 2 silver spoons and 2 gold coins. Also human bones present. Crater # 6 (6m to N of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 5 m2 Contents: A big rock and sand. Depth of the sediment: Around 45 cm. Sediment: Thick sand and little stones. Finds: Cutlery, human bones, 1 Arabic silver coin, 1 Indian gold coin and buttons. 125 Crater # 7 (12m to E of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 7.5 m2 Contents: Almost empty, only a small spot in the center with some small rocks. Depth of the sediment: 8 cm. Sediment: Little sand in a small hole. Finds: 4 gold coins and lead sheathing. Crater # 8 (16m to E of A4) Dimensions: Approximately 4 m2 Contents: A long iron bar with 2 bronze bolts attached, one iron piece of 2.2m long and a big rock in the northern end. Depth of the sediment: 45 cm in the deepest section (N) and under the rock. Sediment: Medium size stones and fine sand. Finds: 85 gold coins, 2 intact wine bottles, cutlery, remains of wooden structure and human bones. Note: Lead sheathing, copper sheathing, small and medium lead shots, bronze bolts, and nails are present in all the craters. 126 Finds and interpretations Because of the kind and quantity of artefacts found on this area, we are inclined to believe that these were the upper decks of the stern section and possibly the bow. A large group of personal belongings were found there and objects which obviously were inside the cabins and kitchen or dining room. The gold coins found in this area (117) seem to be private belongings of one passenger, as only 5 (2 Indians, 2 Italians and 1 unidentified) were different and the rest were almost identical (Georgius II and Georgius III). The presence of parts of navigational instruments also confirms that the objects placed in the upper decks were washed to this place by the waves and current. Gold coins found scattered in Area # 2. Among the artefacts excavated in this area, there are two that caught our attention. The first is a luggage tag, made of brass, with 4 fixing holes and the name “MISS DIXON” engraved in the front. The find of the artefact in this area was not surprising, as it reaffirms the distribution pattern of personal belongings within the debris field, but it is the human component it has what struck me. The site is extremely difficult and risky to dive, as is 127 an isolated rock in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, and one can only imagine how it was at 2 AM on the 20th of April 1806 when the ship hit the rocks and what “Miss Dixon” felt. Further research revealed that, fortunately, Miss Dixon and her daughter were rescued by the HMS Leopard on the night of the wreckage as stated in the edition of The Times of the 10th of June 1806. But other 40 crew and passengers were not that lucky. A strong reminder that we must approach our work on shipwrecks with ethics and respect, as they always involve human tragedies. “Miss Dixon” luggage tag and section of The Times reporting her rescue with other passengers. The second artefact is an alidade of a mariner’s astrolabe and stands out by its anachronism. Astrolabes were in use for navigation since the late 15th century as we know from João de Barros in 1497, when Vasco da Gama went ashore at Santa Helena with a large wooden astrolabe and measured the height of the Sun, but in the late 17th century mariner’s astrolabes were replaced by more accurate instruments (Castro, Budsberg, Jobling, & Passen, 2015). By 1806, we find it highly unlikely that on board of the Lady Burgess, someone would have been using an astrolabe as a navigation instrument. Was it an antique brought on board by a passenger or an official? Was it in the captain’s cabin as decoration? As the body of the astrolabe was not found during the excavation, we 128 cannot investigate if it was a functional instrument or simply an ornament. The alidade is 94 mm long and has a distance between sights of 59 mm. The mysterious alidade of the Lady Burgess astrolabe. After a long analysis of the site, and after over 2 months of carefully watching the weather conditions, it seemed very unlikely that the Lady Burgess went over the reef and then broke in two parts, the stern drifting away until its final position. It seems more possible that she struck with the stern in this place (8m depth, but surrounded everywhere by small heads of 4 and 5 m) and then broke in two parts, the bow drifting to the West until the head of the reef where it was finally stopped. After that, the upper decks of the stern section were washed to the same place. The most important reason that made us believe this is the great weight of the stern section with the lead and iron cargo and the depth the cargo settled. The stern section will never drift 110m to the East against the main winds (from NE) and surge and jumping over many places that are only 3m deep. There is no contradiction with the information provided in the historical research; for instance, the logbook of the Lord Melville reads that she “…was standing in the middle of the breakers”. On very rough days it is impossible to make a difference between the location of the stern and the main head of the reef because both are under white water and breakers. 129 Site plans 130 131 The “Varandinha Wreck”, 1834 – 1850’s (BOA-018) History of the ship and the wreckage The wreck site known as the “Varandinha wreck” and registered as BOA-018, for being the 18th historic wreck site discovered in Boa Vista Island, belong to a so far unknown ship. It took its name from its location in front of Varandinha point, in the Southwest of Boa Vista Island. In the research of historic files we found entries for three ships wrecked in that area, which could have been potential candidates for the “Varandinha wreck”, but none of them fits, beyond reasonable doubt, the information retrieved from the study of the artefacts recovered. These wrecks are: - - - Maria Fanny, 1881. An Austrian brig of 388 t. en route from Barthursth to Marseille with a cargo of peanuts. Wrecked on 27-02-1881 at Varandinha point, Boa Vista Island. Fortes, Sevéro António – “Mapa dos naufrágios havidos nas costas da ilha da Boa Vista de Cabo Verde desde 1842 a 1908”, in Liga Naval Portuguesa, Boletim Maritimo publicado pelo Conselho Geral, Série VIII, nº 3, pp. 42-43, Lisboa, 1909. Edward-Lee, 1882. A, American schooner of 109 t. en route from S. Nicolau to Boa Vista with a cargo of fishing gear. Wrecked on 22-04-1882 at Varandinha point, Boa Vista Island. Fortes, Sevéro António – “Mapa dos naufrágios havidos nas costas da ilha da Boa Vista de Cabo Verde desde 1842 a 1908”, in Liga Naval Portuguesa, Boletim Maritimo publicado pelo Conselho Geral, Série VIII, nº 3, pp. 42-43, Lisboa, 1909. Vaubam, 1906. A French galley on a trip to S. Francisco, California, with a cargo of cement. Wrecked on 30-06-1906 at Varandinha point, Boa Vista Island. Fortes, Sevéro António – “Mapa dos naufrágios havidos nas costas da ilha da Boa Vista de Cabo Verde desde 1842 a 1908”, in Liga Naval Portuguesa, Boletim Maritimo publicado pelo Conselho Geral, Série VIII, nº 3, pp. 42-43, Lisboa, 1909. By the type of artefacts excavated from the wreck, we are inclined to think that it belongs to a ship from mid-19th century, most probably of British origin, but so far no historical documents have been found to make its identification possible. 132 Excavation of the wreck site The wreck site codenamed BOA-018 was found on February 2000 during an exploration of Boa Vista island in the winter 1999-2000. The exploration was conducted by Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebitze with Ministry of Culture Fiscal Emmanuel Oliveira (Monaia) and a boatman, on board of one RIB doing a systematic survey of the coral reefs and following local fishermen information. The wreck is located off Ponta Varandinha, west coast of Boa Vista island, in the northern side of a reef that runs almost from west to east and about 300 meters from the coast.It is a very scattered wreck and the debris field is wide, having 370 m distance between the first iron bars (at NW) to the anchor A1 (at SE). The seabed in this site is mostly flat, only with small stones and few coral heads; this is one of the reasons that made possible this large scattering area. The depth of the entire site is quite the same, between 4m and 6m. The swell on this particular reef is usually coming from the NW or North and can produce a strong surge on certain days, even if the conditions are normally quite good for diving. We can consider this a “friendly-diving” wreck. Problem was the visibility, usually very short (about 4m in a regular day) because of the sediment in suspension by the surge. In some places the sediment is deep and soft, and large objects were found at considerable depth under it. We can divide the wreck in 3 general areas for easier understanding and because in between those areas, very few evidences were found. 133 Cannons Area (N 16° 02’ 51’’, W° 22 58’ 10’’): This area presents 6 carronade type cannons (1m x 0.4m), four of them without trunnions, with a lug underneath the barrel. They are all highly concreted and have a ring in the place of the cascabel for the elevating screw, one of these interesting guns was recovered for further study. Carronade at the moment of its recovery (up left), after conservation (up right) and drawings (below). The drawing has an error presenting a “0” instead of a “6”in the weight mark. 134 After conservation in the laboratory we could appreciate the marks inscribed in the cannon. The mark “6-5-13”, located in front of the vent, corresponds to its weight in hundred weight (6 x 112 pounds) - quarters (5 x 28 pounds) – 13 pounds, which calculating gives us the weight of 825 pounds (app. 375 kg). The mark “12 (Crown) Pr” indicates the weight of the shot fired, in this case 12 pounds (Badjek, 2012). On the underside of the carronade are the engraved maker’s mark “B.&.Co”, belonging to “Bowling & C°”, a British foundry working from 1800 to 1820 (Peterson, 2014), and caliber “12. P.” for a twelve pounder. It worth noticing that two carronades, (G1 and G4) have trunnions, low in the body. Around ca. 1782-1783, the trunnions were eliminated from the carronade design. Carronades were casted until 1852, although they were phased out of the British Navy in 1851. A significant amount of lead and copper sheathing is also present. Part of a chain with reinforced links is running from that place in South east direction and after more than 114m we can see the anchor and some more chain’s fragments. Two iron hooks, iron bars, white and blue ceramics (both faces glazed), silver plated and pewter utensils, and small wood pieces, were found deeply buried into the sediment, all related to iron debris and bottles. Pewter basin with maker’s mark “ASHLEY” 135 Pewter basin with maker’s mark “COMPTON LONDON” Pewter basin with mark “IN LONDON” The marks in the pewter artefacts helped narrowing the possible date and provenance of the ship and its cargo. The mark “ASHLEY” refers to a pewter maker from Birmingham, England, in 1816, “COMPTON LONDON” belongs to Thomas Compton from London, 1801-1817, and “IN LONDON” has not been identified but leaves no doubt as to origin. Stoneware bottle, salt / pepper dispensers and a sealing wax stick, all marked “London” 136 A silver-plated spoon was found, marked “BROADHEAD & ATKIN” “SHEFFIELD”, belonging to the time of the partnership of Roger Broadhead and Henry Atkin at Love St, Sheffield (1834-1853). In 1853 the partnership was dissolved, and they formed respectively R. Broadhead & Co and Atkin Brothers. (Giorgio, s.f.) Broadhead & Atkin spoon, Sheffield, England, 1834-1853 Only a small bronze pintle was found in the place, alone and loose on the seabed. The sediment in that place is quite deep (more than 50 cm in some spots) and made by fine sand and medium sized rocks. Many fragments of white-blue ceramics and glass were found there. The cannons and hooks were marked with numbered buoys in order to make the site plan. Between cannon G1 and pintle Pt1, a group of 144 commemorative medals or tokens William IV and Adelaide, 1831, was found. These medals, made of white metal, bear the legends “Queen Adelaide Born Aug 13 1792” “Married July 11 1818” “William IV Born Aug 21 1765” and “William IV & Queen Adelaide Crowned Sep 8 1831”. Various pewter objects were found in this spot, including a medical syringe. 137 Commemorative medal William IV and Adelaide, 1831, and pewter syringe. Bottles Area (N 16 02 63, W 22 58 23): This area seems to be mainly the cargo site. Several glass bottles, copper alloy artefacts, pressed glass items and gold coins were found in the area. Some measuring instruments and dividers were also recovered. This place had no sheathing (copper nor lead) and no remains of the hull, just the cargo. The seabed is literally covered with artefacts in concretion, mostly copper alloy objects, gimbal oil lamps, spoons, and glass fragments. Iron bars present. Squared stones, somehow light for their size, almost yellow, are spread all over the area. The sediment in this area is harder than the cannon site, but most of the superficial layer is made by artefact’s concretion. Under them is sand and some loose rocks. Of particular interest was the discovery of a part of a measuring instrument, made by a semicircle of brass, with scales on both faces and holding clamps in the lower end. At the end of the scales the word “LINKS” is engraved, leading us to think it was the maker’s mark. Further research showed that this piece was part of a theodolite or surveyor’s transit and the holding clamps were used to attach the telescope. To measure distances, 19th century surveyors used chains. The standard chain measured 66 feet in length, equivalent to 4 rods of 16½ feet each. With chains, each divided into 100 links, the surveyor could 138 readily calculate the area of each lot of land, 10 square chains being the same as 1 acre. This made us think that the word “Links” at the end of the scale refers to the measuring units instead of the maker’s name. (Henderson, 2000) Brass measuring scale of a theodolite or surveyor’s transit. Deep into the sediment, below the level of the industrial artefacts, a small group of three gold coins (GEORGIUS IV, 1829) was found. They seem to have belonged to a passenger or crew member and not as cargo. Gold coins Georgius IV, 1829. As part of a typical Industrial Revolution cargo, several inexpensive pressed glass objects were found. Shapes varied from stoppers to Victorian tavern glasses and small bottles. It is interesting to notice that some of these objects have survived despite of being under rough conditions for almost two centuries. 139 Pressed glass artefacts sample. Copper alloy artefacts. Oil and gimbal lamps, trays, locks parts, and a powder flask. 140 The wreck was excavated for a short time in 2000 and 2001 seasons. Hammers and chisels were not much used as the sediment is mostly soft sand and dead coral, but iron bars were employed to remove big loose boulders and layers of concretion in few spots. As many of the artefacts were concreted in big clumps, they were recovered together trying to keep them as much protected as possible. The artefact’s clusters were placed in big plastic boxes and then raised to the Zodiac. The excavations along both seasons lasted for 11 diving days, 184 dives were done amounting 285.5 diving hours and 118 artefacts were recovered. The analysis of the collection of artefacts recovered from the wreck points to an English ship with general cargo, armed, that sunk any moment after 1834, year when the partnership of Roger Broadhead and Henry Atkin at Sheffield started, but not much later than sometime in the early 1850’s when the carronades were taken out of the British ships. Datable artefacts range of dates. The red line marks the earliest date the ship could sank. 141 Site plans 142 The Yorktown, 1850 (MAI-011) History of the ship and the wreckage In 1815, the entire United States naval force consisted of 18 warships - the USS Independence, a 90-gun ship-of-the-line, 5 frigates, 2 sloops-of-war, 7 brigantines and 3 schooners. The United States needed new ships after the end of the War of 1812 against the British to help protect American sea commerce and whaling fleet efforts that followed the whale migration around the globe. The first USS Yorktown was named for the Revolutionary War's Battle of Yorktown where the British Commander Cornwallis was trapped between the French fleet and General George Washington's American Army. On October 19th, 1781, General Cornwallis and 8,000 British troops surrendered bringing about an end to the war in America. USS Yorktown was a Sloop-of-War sailing vessel, the fifth and last of the USS Dale-class. A sloop-of-war was smaller than a frigate but large enough for "blue water" operations. They were the destroyers of the day, escort vessels that were armed with various types of cannon normally mounted with fewer than 18 guns. (Potts, 2019) The USS Yorktown, laid down in 1838 by the Norfolk Navy Yard and launched in 1839, was commissioned on 15th November 1840 with John H. Aulick as her commander. She had three masts fitted with 18 sails total, her hull painted black with a horizontal white stripe across the gun ports along both sides. On the bow was a white bowsprit with a figurehead of a double dolphin. The gun deck was one deck down from the main and housed 16 x 32-pounder cannon aligned with the gun ports, 8 per side. The Dale-class ships were sleek, fast and could navigate in both "blue" (deep) and "brown" (shallower) waters with a draught of 15.5 feet (4.7 meters). With her displacement of 566 long tons (575 tons), USS Yorktown made 13 knots (15 mph; 24 km/h) with her eighteen square- 143 rigged sails across her three towering masts. USS Yorktown measured 117.7 feet (35.9 meters) in total length with a beam (width) of 33.9 feet (10.3 meters). Her total crew complement was 150 officers, sailors, and gunners. The Yorktown was first stationed off the Pacific coast of South America from where she protected the interests of the American whaling industry around New Zealand and the Hawaiian Islands. On the 6th of November 1841, she departed Honolulu for the coast of Mexico. By October 1842 she cruises of California. Afterwards sailing for Rio de Janeiro by way of Cape Horn. By the 5th of August 1843, she was in New York and six days later was decommissioned. Recommissioned on 7th of August 1844, she left New York on the 11th October bound for Port of Praia, Cabo Verde Islands, where she joined the Africa Squadron. Cruising the West Coast of Africa, she engaged and captured slave ships Pons, Panther and Patuxent. She was decommissioned for the second time on 9th June 1846 in Boston. After recommissioning, she sailed from Boston on 22nd November 1848, on her second deployment with the African Squadron, in which she was again tasked with the suppression of the slave trade. Yorktown cruised along the African coast, checking any suspicious ships for illicit traffic. On September 6th, 1850, USS Yorktown was sailing in unfamiliar waters of the Cabo Verde Island group when she ran aground almost in the northern coast of Maio Island. The keel of the Yorktown broke causing massive damage as she pivoted on the reef before breaking up and sinking. Luckily, all her hands were able to make it ashore with no loss of life. Her captain, Commander William Harwar Parker, kept his men together on Maio Island for 32 days under the sun waiting for rescue when, on October 8th, her sister ship, the USS Dale, arrived at the island. The USS Dale picked up Captain Parker and crew 144 and, within days, all were transferred to the USS Portsmouth who was enlisted to sail them to home port at Norfolk, Virginia. The crew of the stricken USS Yorktown were pleased with their successful mission that freed some 1,000 Africans from a life of bondage. Away from home for two years they arrived in Norfolk in early December of 1850, USS Yorktown crewmembers were paid their earnings and sent home for Christmas before being reassigned to a new ship. (Potts, 2019) Excavation of the wreck site The wreck site of the Yorktown, codenamed MAI-011, was found on the 7th of August of 1999, following fishermen information of a place where they used to fish for lobsters. The wreck is located in the north coast of Maio Island (15 20 11 N, 23 09 56 W), about 120m from the shore near Ponta Pipa. The first inspection of the site showed 7 cannons, 2 anchors, 1 iron hook and 2 iron boxes. Several iron blocks and cannon ball concretions were also found the first day. The conditions of the sea in that point are rough, the waves breaking all over the place most of the time and strong tidal currents always present. This situation, with the addition of the shallow depth of the place, between 3 to 6 meters, produced an inhibited underwater visibility for most of the days. Half of the dives were aborted because of this reason and the other half due to the strong surge and currents. In days of large swell, the divers had to adopt supplementary safety measurements to avoid being smashed against the rocks. A “safety line” was placed between the mooring buoy of the dive boat and the iron box to the South in order to help the divers on the way to the excavation spot and back. The hydrographic characteristics of this wreck made it very difficult the accurate measurements and a proper survey of the whole area, so, is very probable that some heavy objects and structural parts of the ship could be nearby and were not located. 145 The seabed is hard with rock walls of 2 and 3m of height, conforming channels and gullies where most of the remains of the ship are located. The debris field of wreck material is mainly in the North-South direction but is understandable because is the same direction that the gullies are heading. All cannons are the same type, carronades type with a lug for the elevation screw instead of a cascabel and almost always related with copper sheathing, laying under them. Also some wheels were located under cannon G1, made of copper alloy and in fair general condition. The anchors still have their chains attached and pointing in SW direction for more than 45m, and then they accreted to the seabed making impossible to follow till the end. The ring of these anchors is not circular as others, is elongated (width 1/3 smaller than height) and very strong. Several bronze bolts and pins are present all over the area, but few artefacts could be located or excavated because the characteristics of the seabed. The eastern side of the wreck is made of a flat and hard bottom where some iron blocks and cannon balls are scattered. In this area various gold, silver and copper coins were found. As expected, they were predominantly United States dollars and Mexican reales, but also with occurrences of Spanish escudos and French francs. Gold United States dollar, French 20 francs, and escudos from Spain (above) and silver Mexican reales (below) 146 Of particular interest was a copper coin of One Cent from 1842 with the counterstamp “VOTE THE LAND FREE”. This is the only known example of a 19th century American political countermark punch. Both “VOTE THE LAND FREE” and “LAND LIMITATION” were countermarks of the National Reform Association. The genesis of the National Reform Association was a series of meetings in New York City in 1841 among members of the Locofocos, National Trades Union, and Workingmen’s Party. Its platform included free federal homesteads, exemption of farms from seizure for failure to pay debts, and “land limitation” to restrict the amount of land that could be owned by the wealthy. (Brunk, 2012) One Cent 1842 copper coin counterstamped “VOTE THE LAND FREE” Drawing of one of the carronades in the wreck. Note the presence of trunnions. 147 A group of artefacts, typical from the military apparel and uniforms, was also found in this area. Sword handles and scabbard, uniform buttons, a powder flask with the US Navy letters, and belt buckles, were all located concreted to the superficial layer. The seabed there is mainly hard rock, and no deep spots of sediment were found nearby. • Military items excavated from the wreck. 148 Diving operations on this wreck took place along 27 diving days between 1999 and 2000 (24 in 1999 and 3 in 2000). 217 dives were done amounting 307.4 diving hours (11.38 hours per day) and 156 artefacts were recovered. Site plan 149 The “Rombos Wreck”, 1856 - 1896 (BRV-006) History of the ship and the wreckage The wreck site known as the “Rombos wreck” and registered as BRV-006, for being the 6th historic wreck site discovered in Brava Island, belong to a so far unknown ship. It took its name from its location within the Ilheus do Rombo, at North of Brava Island. The discovery of the wreck in February 2001, was led by information from local fishermen. They knew the site for long time and were able to show it to us without hesitation. There was a story of a Portuguese diver who aggressively plundered the site with explosives for 8 months on 1985 or 1986. By their story, the diver recovered a large amount of silver coins as well as wine bottles and cutlery. One local fisherman state that he himself found 6 silver coins in a small clump and he showed us two of them cleaned with vinegar. The coins were Isabel 2da, 20 reales of 1826 in very good condition. As this find cannot be archaeologically linked to the wreck, we will not consider it for the analysis of the context. Moreover, the wreck is located at just 350 m to the NW (317˚) of the Guadalupe IV (BRV007) and we know that the same type of coins were found in the latter, making it possible to be a confusion by the fisherman. By the type of artefacts excavated from the wreck, we are inclined to think that it belongs to a ship from the second half of the 19th century, most probably of British origin, but so far no historical documents have been found to make its identification possible. 150 Excavation of the wreck site The wreck site is in 6m depth on a flat bottom of rock and about 150 m from the coast of Ilheu da Cima. The seabed is made of solid volcanic rock with almost no marine growth or deposition on it, with exception of some deep holes filled with sand and big boulders. The waves are coming from the NE and having no obstacle in their way, they hit the wreck with all their strength, making the dive very uncomfortable and often, dangerous. In 15 diving days of the expedition, we had to abort 5 dives on this wreck due to the strong surge and the shallow depth. However, no strong currents were felt during the diving operations on that site. The only possible way to access the wreck site is by small boats (Zodiacs or RIBs), even if is open to the North and Northeast, because the sea is very shallow all around in several hundreds of meters. The Zodiacs must anchor about 50 m further to the North of the wreck to avoid the breaking waves present on the site. Like BRV-007, the coast of Ilheu da Cima is inadequate to start a diving course from there, even with light gear. On the first inspection of the site a huge pick of iron bars as a unique concretion (EastWest orientation), a cargo of tin ingots, lead slabs, cutlery, and wine bottles, as well as 2 cannons and 4 anchors were located. In that moment, a copper fork was recovered by us for identification purposes because it had marks on the stem. Diving operations started the 8th of September 2001, simultaneously with the work on BRV-007 with a team of 10 divers split between both wrecks. During the survey and measuring of the site, as well as the first test sondages and trial trenching, copper nails and bolts, copper sheathing, lead shot, birdshot, mercury, one copper coin, and white and blue glazed ceramic were found. Most of the artefacts were accumulated in a small area around the mound of iron bars and tin ingots. The scattering 151 field was not very wide (24 m in the widest section) and most of the large iron parts of the ship were located on the North side of the mass of iron bars. The copper coin was the first artefact to give us information as to the time frame and possible provenance of the wreck, despite its corroded condition. Some diagnostic attributes were still visible after conservation. The coin was a “One Quarter Anna” (1/64 Rupee), from the British East India Company and it has no visible date, but this type of coin was minted in India between 1835 and 1849. Our coin was 25.1mm in diameter, which identifies it as minted in Bombay. Measurements for the mints of Calcutta and Madras are 26.2mm and 25.5mm, respectively. (Kunnappally, s.f.) “One Quarter Anna” copper coin, minted in Bombay between 1835 and 1849. The cutlery, present in large quantities, was located inside a concretion besides the anchors A3 and A4. Spoons and forks were mixed with several objects of ceramic and fragments of broken wine bottles. In the deepest parts of the excavation points, mercury was found very often, but in small quantities. The cutlery was recovered in large concretion blocks trying to avoid damaging the artefacts. Those blocks were then placed in a plastic box and lifted to the Zodiac with ropes. There was a variety of artefacts within the cutlery which bear manufacturing marks that, in some cases helped us identifying the provenance. They were all silver plated or electroplated items, including forks, spoons, and various tableware. 152 Sample of cutlery items found in the wreck. Technical drawings of cutlery items showing their manufacturing marks. 153 The largest quantity of cutlery artefacts presented the marks “Ashberry”, “ASH - BER – RY”, “ASHBERRY- BEST METAL FOR USE” and “P - A - & - S” which identified them as produced by PHILIP ASHBERRY & SONS (1829-1936). This company was active at 21 Bowling Green St, Sheffield, United Kingdom from 1856 to 1935. Philip Ashberry began trading in 1829 making Britannia metal wares, but the firm became "& Sons" in 1856 and "Ltd" in 1900. The names SAVOY and STAYBRIGHT were used in early 20th century cutlery. The firm was maintained under the control of Ashberry family until 1935 when Lewis Rose & Co Ltd purchased the site and demolished the old factory. The “PHILIP ASHBERRY & SONS” marks. The mark “WR (under a crown) Pa - te – nt” possibly means “William Rex”, referring to William IV who was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. 154 Other unidentified marks are also present in the artefacts, but the presence of the “crown” indicates that the cutlery was manufactured before 1896. A prohibition of stamping plated wares with the "crown", to avoid misunderstanding with the symbol identifying the Sheffield Assay Office, was passed in 1896 (Giorgio, s.f.) Unidentified marks, some of them showing the “crown”. Copper buttons and buckles from the British Navy uniforms were also found in context with stoneware bottles. The uniform buttons had the inscription “EXTRA RICH QUALITY” in the back and the Navy emblem in the front. 155 Copper uniform buckle. Few fairly complete stoneware bottles were found concreted to the iron bar mound. Some of them show the emblem “* STEPHEN GREEN * LAMBETH. IMPERIAL POTTERIES”, one with the addition of “OS PATENT” and another with “KM PATENT”. The inscriptions on these so-called Bung jars identifies them as made by Stephen Green Imperial Potteries, which were manufacturers of earthenware from 1828 to 1831 in Lambeth, Greater London, and made stoneware from 1831 to 1858. (The British Museum, s.f.) 156 Undoubtedly the most attractive artefact from this wreck is the gold cross with emeralds and diamonds that was found concreted to a large rock, 4 m to the west of the SW end of the iron pile (Spt2). Ironically and despite of its beauty, was also the one which gave us less information. It is a piece of Victorian jewellery, most probably a brooch, but the absence of marks leaves us just with the wide range of years of the Victorian era, 1837 to 1901. The piece still conserves three emeralds and one diamond, presenting holes for another three stones which are missing. This artefact was the only evidence in the wreck of personal belongings. The gold brooch before and after conservation. Note the hollow back as to home an attaching part. In the west side of the iron bars pick a concentration of birdshot mixed with many broken wine bottles was found. The tin ingots and few lead slabs were located inside the nucleus of the iron bars pick and under it. Some paving stone slabs were also found there. Very few remains of wood were found inside one of the deep holes in the area and under the sediment was also noted a strange soft paste of intense red-wine colour (both under Fe 6). The two iron cannons are located in the east end of the iron pile and a roll of chain is on top of G1. Both cannons are very eroded and heavily concreted and looks like in the moment of the wreckage they were used as ballast. A broken rudder pintle was located 10 m to the north of the cannons. Some keel bolts made of bronze were found in the 157 proximity of the iron pile, firmly stocked between the slabs and rocks, making difficult the task of recovering them for measurements. The excavation was done mainly with hammers and chisels due to the hardness of the concretion and the absence of soft sediment. A survey around the site was done, but no more wreck debris was found towards the coast nor between BRV- 006 and BRV - 007. Diving operations were conducted along 15 diving days in which 156 dives were made amounting 246.2 diving hours (16.4 hours/day). The information gathered from the artefacts suggest a British ship which wrecked between 1856, date in which Philip Ashberry company became Philip Ashberry & Sons, and 1896, date when the prohibition of stamping plated wares with the "crown" was enforced. Datable artefacts range of dates. Red lines mark the probable range of dates when the ship could have sink. 158 Site plans 159 The Guadalupe IV, 1865 (BRV-007) History of the ship and the wreckage The discovery and subsequent research on the Guadalupe IV shipwreck, opened a dramatic window to the world of emigration from Spain to America in the 19th century. Overcrowded and unfitted ships frequently made the dangerous passage between the continents with a cargo of hope for a better life. Shipowners and insurance companies often disguised the real conditions of the vessels to profit from their human cargo. The following is the sad story of one of them. The Guadalupe IV was 302 tons, two-decks frigate, with a shady history. During the research in La Coruña and Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain, we learned that the ship made regular trips to Havana and later to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. As stated in the Boletín Oficial de la Provincia de La Coruña (Coruña Town Hall meetings) the first mention of the ship is in 1851, under the name Nueva Guadalupe, with Captain Zoilo de Fano and shipowner Diego María de Bolivar. From that year until the day it sank, the ship changed names twice, to Guadalupe Tercera (Guadalupe III) in 1857 and Guadalupe IV in 1864, always with the same Captain and shipowner. Her trips on those years are listed as follows: 1851. Nueva Guadalupe. Appears as an “hermosa fragata” (beautiful frigate) June 2. Announces a trip at the end of that month to Havana. Advertises for passengers and cargo. The office for registration is in Calle Santa Catalina 39. October – November. Trip to Havana. 1852. Nueva Guadalupe. End of May. Trip to Havana with a stop in Puerto Rico to leave off passengers. 160 September - October. Trip to Montevideo and Havana. 1853. Nueva Guadalupe Beginning of March. The ship leaves for Montevideo and Buenos Aires. 1854. Nueva Guadalupe January. Advertisement that the ship is to leave in February for Montevideo and Buenos Aires. 1857. Guadalupe Tercera May 15. Advertisement for the ship to sail to Montevideo and Buenos Aires at the end of July. The office for registration changes to Calle Real 48 July 29. The ship is to sail “in all brevity” August 12-23. Various requests for a “professor of medicine and surgery for the trip to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. If any person desires to travel embark to that destination, he is to contact the outfitter at Calle Real, no. 48” August 30. “ Those persons who are to sail on the Guadalupe Tercera to Montevideo and Buenos Aires are to present themselves at the office of the outfitter which is in front of the Post Office on the15th of the month of September in order to sail on the following day, the 16th. Passports and necessary papers are to be handed in beforehand for those who have not already done so” 1858. Guadalupe Tercera June 3. The frigate “will sail her customary route from the port of La Coruña at the end of the next month of August.” September – November. The ship continues to advertise for passengers and a doctor. 161 1859. Guadalupe Tercera July. Advertisement that the ship is to leave in September for Montevideo and Buenos Aires. Registry office is now on Calle de Acevedo 48. 1860. Guadalupe Tercera January. Various advertisements throughout the month for the trip to Montevideo. February. The ship continues to advertise for passengers as well as a surgeon / doctor. March. In the list of ships being loaded for departure, there is an entry for the Guadalupe Tercera to Buenos Aires. 302 tons and 16 crew. July 9. The news that the Guadalupe Tercera arrived safely in Montevideo on May 19 “the said news will be for satisfaction of the families of those passengers and crew members aboard” This notice appeared for several more days. August 14. The ship advertises for passengers to Montevideo for the month of September. November 1. The Guadalupe Tercera is to sail at the end of the month to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. It would seem likely that there were not enough passengers to sail in September, so the trip was delayed. 1861. Guadalupe Tercera August 16. Various adds for the corbeta (sic) Guadalupe Tercera appear for Montevideo. 1862. Guadalupe Tercera July. To Montevideo and Buenos Aires in September. 162 1863. Guadalupe Tercera May - June to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. Here the ship is again referred to as a corbeta (sloop) 1864. Guadalupe Tercera February. Advertisement for trip by this frigate in May to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. 1865. Guadalupe IV May 30. The first advertisement appears for this trip to Montevideo and Buenos Aires. Captain Zoilo Fano and shipowner Diego María de Bolivar. The date of her departure was to be in the month of September. Throughout the month of June, the ship advertised every three or four days. No notice was printed in July but as of mid-August these appear again. August 29 - There is an advertisement for a doctor-surgeon for the ship. The salary offered was 70 to 120 escudos depending on the experience of the applicant. It seems this was not a very exciting prospect for the doctors of La Coruña because the advertisement appeared repeatedly for the rest of the month, in September and until mid-October. On October 17, a doctor seems to have been found and the last advertisement for passengers was on October 23. At this late date, the notices still say that the ship was to sail in the month of September! The Guadalupe IV finally departed La Coruña on the 4th of November. November 1865 was not a happy time in Galicia. The local papers reported torrential rains and cold weather. A month earlier, the region had been struck by cholera which was also affecting the rest of the country. In El Progreso – published in Pontevedra - the editorial on November 26, 1865 was six columns long and addressed an issue of great concern, that 163 of emigration. Galicians, most of whom were single males and often young boys, were loaded on ships under terrible conditions. After a long trip across the Atlantic, those that survived were frequently taken to ports other than those they for which they had paid their journey. There were numerous cases of outfitters who undertook obtaining the required passports and supplying passengers with clothes just so as to be able to fill the passenger quota. Part of this article appears as follows: “...Individuals have come here with their licenses and certificates to engage in the trade of human flesh...the most ill-fated propaganda was carried out throughout the land and from wherever committees appeared in search of men, children and women, who, unwary, tricked and innocently were taken to faraway places in America, the republics of the south, to Montevideo and Buenos Aires... the experiences they endured during the voyage are well known. Repeatedly we have seen ships leave with 400, 500 and more passengers from our shores. On board, they are packed and crushed like sardines in hampers where they are in danger of suffocating or falling victim to a terrible epidemic on the trip or only be given half or a bad ration of food...what is to become of these innocent creatures who are not more than 12 or 14 years old and have been torn for the first time from their homes...” On the 20th of November, two weeks after leaving La Coruña, the ship ran aground on the rocks to the North of Brava Island, Cabo Verde, a place known as Ilheus do Rombo. The drama of the event is crudely described by one of the survivors, José Paler, in an account for the newspaper La España, published three times weekly in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The following abstracts are from the publication of the 9th of February 1866 (translation by the author). Testimony of José Paler, a castaway from the Guadalupe IV: (P. 1675 col.2) We set sail from La Coruña on the 4th day of November at 8 in the morning with a NE wind and about 200 passengers, of which 50 were women. After four days at sea, we were hit by a storm and lost our starboard lifeboat. It was lost partly because it had been filled with rations and even beehives and because there was no wind on the davit of the bow side. Furthermore, at 4 a.m. of the same night, we ran up against a frigate that was riding out the storm, there were only 3 brazas (fathoms) distance between the two ships. Neither our ship nor the other had our positioning lanterns lit. The reason was to save on oil 164 (P.1676 col.1) compromising so many lives and interests aboard. But of what importance was this, the insurance company pays everything, that is, except the lives of the unfortunate who have died! The ship set sail taking on 4 feet of water every 24 hours; I took care of finding out, although they kept this from the intelligent passengers, that the pump was manned every 12 hours. The vessel was 13 years old and due to her defects, she was obliged to change her name often. Her riggings had rotted, her sails were torn and there was not a yard of canvas to mend these. All the halliards of the studding sails and bow and the sheets of the lower studding sails were of esparto. On one day we lost the ties of the pole (pernada) of the two starboard shrouds and we did not have two fathoms of cord to embigotar (?) and while we made it with shreds of rope, we found two bits of rigging covered with esparto, of the type which the muleteers use to tie up their loads. By comparison, coastal boats are better outfitted. Another day we were at the point of burning up for the wooden forecastle where food was cooked for the passengers caught fire. This happened at 4 a.m. which is the hour when the oven is lit. This declarant helped to put it out and as it had not been controlled, the fire very nearly spread to the fore mast. On the 20th of November, we believed ourselves to have passed the islands of Cabo Verde. We were sailing with a fresh breeze, with full sails and fittings and it was a clear starlit night. I retired at 10 p.m., the captain, Don Zoylo kept watch until midnight and then handed over to the pilot D. Enrique Pereira. At 1.45 a.m. we ran onto Piedra Lela; the reefs off Isla Brava. When I heard the shouting of the pilot “Brace to starboard and luff, we are about to hit”, I came up on deck and took hold of the situation in which we found ourselves and, from the first moment, realized that the ship was lost. I went down to the orlop in search of my thirteen-year-old son but did not find him as he had gone to his mother´s room. I brought them both up on deck and took them to the starboard side where the rest of the women were. There was a terrible wailing; the ship was by then sinking and the trunks were floating in the saloon. The Captain and the pilot showed little signs of competence or bravery. When the ship hit, the command should have been given for the rigging to be furled or braced in a cross, but this was not done and so the same rigging braced at the starboard and open at the port, knocked the ship over on to her starboard side. When the first waves washed aboard all those on the leeward side drowned. Among these were 30 women including my wife and son. In less than five minutes, 60 people perished while I remained clutching the binnacle and steering wheel. When I looked to the side where my family had been, I saw nothing but the open sea; (P.1676.col.2) the shouting had stopped! The sails and tops were completely extended out across the sea, the boat and lanterns were knocked to the side of the ship as they had been made firm with seams of rotted esparto. As a consequence, nearly 30 people died; as they hit the free board, they were torn apart. The Captain made yet another error; after leaving the Canaries (Islands) behind, he ordered that the anchors at the bower be unhooked and put below the forecastle and their cables in the hold. As a result, had it been necessary to drop anchor, it would have been impossible. The small boat would not have been of any use either; it was full of potatoes and other rations for the passengers. 165 I call to the attention of the Insurance Society that court proceedings be opened against those responsible and that the passengers be called to give testimony regarding the truth of what I have said and will prove if it is necessary. Rescue. From the moment the ship fell on to its side, we remained on the portside until daybreak some four hours later. The captain stayed at my side and afterwards, the pilot and then the quartermaster as well as all the passengers who numbered 130. At dawn, we recognized Isla de Fuego (Fogo Island) in front of us and to the south was Isla Brava (Brava Island). I asked the captain what place this might be, and he said he did not know. I asked the pilot if these (islands) were inhabited and he answered that they would be by savages. It is clear that they had not studied much geography. He did tell me though that the capital of the islands of Cabo Verde was 50 leagues away. In the meanwhile, I did not know how we were to save ourselves. We only had one lifeboat and as we let it down, the bottom was torn away and it started to sink. Six men grabbed on to it and they made it to Isla Rasa which was about a mile´s distance from our stern. The wind and tide were in their favour, five made it to shore and one drowned. They were able to take the boat into a small beach and they repaired it by covering it with clothes and as best they could although it took two days to do so. The rocks where we hit were 200 meters from the ship, but the breaking waves made it impossible to make use of any boat. It was also impossible to swim without hitting the rocks. It was essential to take a cable to the shore in order to palmearse (action of moving a ship or part of the rigging from one place to another by attaching something, usually a cable to something firm and pulling by hand. In this case, it seems to have been the way to pull the people to shore safely.) Amongst the crew, there was no-one prepared to do this and besides, aside from the three who left with the boat, one drowned and the rest were useless. There was only one youth, a 17-year-old passenger by the name of Antonio Martínez from Santa Marta de Ortigueyra, who threw himself into the sea with the end of the halliard of the flag tied to his waist. As the waves broke, he held on to the reefs which were very sheer and managed to save himself. Right away he was thrown another stronger cable which he manged to make firm on the shore. From that one, 20 women who had survived saved themselves. If it had not been for this cable, they would surely have met their death. And so they all pulled themselves into the shore (palmearon). The captain was one of the last. I remained until 11 in the morning. (P.1677, col.1) The Captain stayed to save some small babies and children who had been left behind by their mothers in order to save themselves. He made a raft with two spars and the boom of the spare top sail. When it was ready, he ordered the cable on the shore to be pulled, the same one which the rest of the people had used to pull themselves. When the raft was halfway there, one of the ends came untied and the two spars fell apart. The children and the captain drowned. We remained on the rocks, men and women without clothes, food, or water for four days under a sun of 12 degrees and fearing certain death as we believed the islands four leagues distance from us were uninhabited. Let us return to the boat which was at Isla Ron with the five men. Among these was a Francisco Piñiero y Varela, a passenger of the ship from Galicia and an energetic and knowledgeable man of the sea. He took command of the boat and went towards Isla Fuego, sailing northwards and then coming down to the south of the coast to explore the area for possible life. He found a town to the south and went into the beach where he 166 found the people to be Portuguese. Immediately, a military official and the Governor appeared and they outfitted the boats at hand as well as sending water, biscuit and eight soldiers with him (Piñiero). Late at night, three days later they appeared close to the spot where we were and shouted to us that the next day we would be rescued. At daybreak and with great danger, they came up to the reefs and took four of us on each boats and took us to Isla Ron which is where the dead ones and effects from the ship were washing ashore. Once there, the Governor of Isla Brava and the American Consul came on a pilot´s boat of his possession with a pilot by the name of D. Cesar Augusto Silva. He took us on board for Isla Brava while the Governor and some customs officials remained to collect the effects and bury the dead. In fact, it was not possible to bury anyone as the place was so rocky and with sadness, it was decided to burn the bodies. We stayed on Isla Brava for six days where we were treated very well by the authorities as well as the local inhabitants. The wealthy residents took in those castaways they desired and gave them food and clothing. D. Cesar Silva took five, myself amongst them and he gave us such food and clothing as he did himself. The doctor of the island looked after three others and furthermore, he distinguished himself in his care of the sick among our companions. As well, the parish priest, D. Guillermo Meneses y Magallanes looked after the funeral and burial of our dead brothers and families and I give thanks for such charity. From there, we left for Santiago, the capital of Praia Cabo Verde on two pilot´s boats provided by the government. When we arrived there (P.1677, col.2) the General was very solicitous. He prepared a place for us with all the best commodities he could give us. We were given a good helping of chickpeas and bacon, and coffee in the morning and as well, the locals took in a good number of us. I was sent to the home of D. Enrique Oliviera, Commander and Colonel of the Portuguese army. He looked after three people for ten days in his home, where we shared meals with him and he clothed us. The General had six in his home. He sat them at his table, gave them clothing and sent his secretary door to door to ask the residents for a contribution to help the most needy and 350 patacones (silver or copper coins) were collected. He also made arrangements for us on the packet boat from Angola to Lisbon. Three others and myself asked for passports for this ship which we were granted. We were sent to San Vicente and from there, we were free to arrange our passage and the government looked after us until our departure. The steamer Pemtergiman under captain D. José Gregori took us on board and we sailed to Rio de Janiero. We were put up in the saloon and shared our meals with him. Furthermore, he said that if our government representative would not look after us in Río, that he would finance us to the amount of 20 pounds sterling so as to sail on a steamer to Montevideo. For this reason, I want to publicly give thanks to such generosity of the captain. The Spanish minister D. José Blanco del Valle was most attentive; when he learned of our misfortune, he gave the appropriate orders to the Consul so that we could sail on the packet boat Arno and paid for the passage of the four castaways. So we are also very grateful to this gentleman as well as to his secretary and the Consul Sr. Aránega. Moreover, the Spanish community residing in Brazil showed the best intentions towards us; as soon as our arrival was made known, immediately we were informed that we would be looked after by both the residents as well as the authorities. As a result, we left there with great gratitude towards our compatriots who reside in that city of Brazil. 167 Upon arriving at this port of Montevideo and learning of the misadventure of my companions, representatives of the naval dockyard and navy officials, the master of rations and the gunner on board the warships of H.M. at this naval station, the brig Galiano and the schooner Vad-Rás gave me a sum of money which they collected in my favor so as to be able to help with my basic needs. For that reason, I want to thank them publicly as a sign of appreciation for their generosity. A castaway - JOSÉ PALER (“EL SIGLO” – de Montevideo) Aside of this heartbreaking testimony there is also a peculiar theory that Eugénio Tavares, world known Cabo Verdean poet, was one of the babies who survived the wreckage of the Guadalupe IV and was later adopted by a couple from Brava. Excavation of the wreck site The wreck site of the Guadalupe IV was found on February 2001 during an exploration performed around the coast of Ilha Brava. As at that moment we did not know its identity, was registered with the code name BRV-007. Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebize and I, following fishermen information and surveying potentially dangerous geographic features, did the exploration. The survey was conducted in difficult conditions as we operated from a small fishing boat (wood, 4 meters length with an outboard engine of 25 HP) and we had to cover long distances around the whole island and as far as 6 Nm offshore, where the wreck was found. One anchor, one cannon and several iron structural parts of the ship were located during the first inspection of the site. At the end of the reconnaissance dive, we made a small test sondage and found one bronze sword handle, 3 silver coins (1858 Isabel 2da, 20 reales and 1777 Carolus(?)), one copper coin (no info on it), one gold coin (1855 Isabel 2da, 100 reales) and a gold fragment of jewellery. 168 The only cannon and anchor present in the wreck (left) and the first gold coin as found (right) The wreck is located at 14 58 85 N, 23 37 71 W, 6 miles to the North of Brava, around 200 meters to the East of Ilheu da Cima. The Northwest side of the wreck is sheltered behind a big rock that rises about 8 meters over the surface. Usually the swell is coming from the North and Northeast, breaking against the Northern part of the rock, and pushing hard towards the Ilheu da Cima, further to the Southwest. Tidal currents are occasionally felt and almost always running to the South, but those currents are not very strong. The water is normally clean with visibilities between the 15 and 25 meters. The access to the site is only possible in small boats (Zodiacs or RIBs), because is surrounded by rocks and shoals and the two passages to get there are very narrow and shallow. Once inside that kind of “lagoon” the conditions are much better, even if the waves are big. Diving in the place is not very dangerous, only in two places that are too close to the shore of the rock and shallow; we only had to abort one dive in 15 diving days. When we were diving in the deepest places (until 15.5 m), a decompression stop was made on the third dive. The most difficult dives were made in the shallower places of less than 4 meters, because of the strong swell that can push the divers against the rock’s shore. Any attempt of inspection or dive from the coast of the desert island Ilheu da Cima, 200m to the SW, is dangerous and should be avoided. The coast in that place is rocky and 169 treacherous, the narrow channel that must be crossed have strong tidal currents and heavy swell most of the time. The seabed is very irregular and mainly made of hard rock. The many gullies in the area are mostly like surge channels, with medium to big boulders (from 20 cm diameter to more than 1 meter) and some sand. In the largest gully the bottom seems to be completely covered by sand, but the sand layer is, in fact, very thin and after 10 or 15 cm we reached the bedrock. The depths of the bottom vary from 3 m to 15.5 m in the deepest places. The gullies are delimited by high “hills” of rock bottom where very few artefacts were located, only some big iron parts of the structure. This kind of bottom makes the artefacts be collected inside the gullies. The remains of the ship are scattered in a wide area surrounding the Southeast, South and even the Southwest areas of the rock. The wreck is literally against that rock because bronze nails, copper sheathing and iron parts occurs also under its shoreline. Diving operations started on the 8th of September 2001 with a team of 10 divers, one Zodiac Mark IV and one RIB, all on board of the DSV Polar. A system of 3 dives per day (2 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon) was settled, due to the good weather still remaining that late into the season. We started by measuring and locating the visible objects in order to make a site plan of the site and start the excavation. The scattering field was about 60m long and with an orientation NE-SW. Because of the characteristics of the seabed in this site the excavation was focused in the deep gullies and holes that worked as concentrators of wreck material and consequently, artefacts. Most of these holes were deep, reaching sometimes until 1.7m below the seabed level. The excavation was conducted with hammers, chisels, iron 170 bars and lifting bags, measuring the artefacts in situ before recovery and collecting them on plastic boxes numbered from 1 to 5 for each diver. This system was adopted due to the small size of most of the artefacts found on the wreck. After reconnaissance, the most interesting gully was located at 35m and 55˚ from the cannon. Several iron rings, bars and copper nails were present at first view, exposed on the seabed in the deep part of the gully. In the largest hole, where the iron rings were located, was found the only important iron concretion with some wood remains and artefacts from the whole area. There were recovered the sword handles, the navigational instrument (log), the divider’s leg and some of the gold, silver, and copper coins. A 2 tons rock was removed from the top of the hole in order to excavate under without danger for the divers. The remains of wood in this hole were thin planks of 1.5 cm thickness and 45 cm in the longer end; no remains of hull timbers were found. Ship’s log and dividers, samples of the navigation instruments in the ship. Note that the log has the 1751 date inscribed, meaning that it was already 114 years old when the ship sank. Right from the start, the variety of coins we were finding, from different countries, years, and denominations, suggested that they were personal belongings instead of cargo. 171 Within the gold coins there were samples from Spain, Mexico, Chile, and Peru, with dates ranging from 1773 to 1865 (92 years apart). The oldest coin in the wreck, 1773 (left) the coin from 1865 (center), both from Spain, and a Mexican coin (right) A coin from Peru, 1863 (left) and a coin from Chile, 1842 (right) In the silver coins sample the span of dates is even wider, from 1738 to 1864 (126 years), but only coins from Spain and France were identified. It worth noticing that the corrosion on the silver and copper coins makes it difficult to read dates and other details. The oldest silver coin in the wreck, 1738 (left), the 1864 coin (center) both from Spain, and a coin from France, 1814, 5 Francs (right) 172 The religious copper medallions were found at 80 cm under the sediment at 7m/ 270˚ from the farther iron ring. They display a variety of religious icons and legends that highlight the profound devotion of the passengers. “ESTAN CONCEDIDAS 80 DIAS DE YNDULGENCIAS A LOS C-V--Z EN DELANTE DE ESTA SANTA YMAGEN” (There are conceded 80 days of indulgence to those C-V--Z in front of this saint image) and “Corazones de Jesus y de Maria. Roma / Ntra Sra de la Esclavitud” (Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Rome / Our Lady of Slavery) are just two examples of the inscriptions in the medallions. Sample of the religious iconography found in the wreck. Lead shot and bullets were found in several holes of this site as well as copper pins and nails, present all over the scattering area. Several iron structural parts were found, but very few heavy objects normally expected in a wreck (e.g only one anchor and only one cannon were found) and this fact made us performed further exploration to try to locate a missing part of the wreck. Not having any indication in the consulted documents that the ship was armed, we are inclined to think that the cannon found in the site was transported as ballast. 173 The explorations continued covering the whole North and Northeast part of the rock as well as the South and Southwest side, finding another area with wreck material there. On the western edge of this area was found a huge modern steam ship that is almost overlapping the scattering field of the Guadalupe IV, but no material evidence of modern contamination was found. On this new area several ribs of the ship were found, chain and few iron bars as well as ceramic and glass fragments, but no other kind of artefacts. On the last 5 days of Operations, an Elsec 2000 metal detector was brought and we started a survey in the whole area with this new tool. Some more coins were found but no other interesting area was located under the sand. Diving operations were conducted along 15 diving days in which 180 dives were made amounting 258 diving hours (17.2 hours/day). The total amount of 101 artefacts were recovered, documented, classified, conserved, and stabilized. The ones with more diagnostic attributes were 66 gold coins, 70 silver coins and several copper coins and religious medallions. Also, the ship’s log (navigational instrument used to measure the speed of the boat) was found as well as various sword handles, broken navigational dividers, ceramic and glass fragments, copper pins and bolts, etc. 174 Site plans 175 PART II: Non-Excavated Wrecks SANTIAGO ISLAND 176 AGO-030. Urania (1805) Description of the site The site AGO-030, which has been identified as the Urania, 1809, was found the 30th of December 1995 by a previous team. It is located 150 meters to the South of the Ilheu Santa Maria (14 54' 29'' N, 23 30' 38'' W), inside the bay of Praia, in Santiago Island. Our monitoring expedition to the wreck took place between the 24th and 27th of July 2000. The sea conditions on the site are usually calm, exception made on winter (rainy season) when large waves coming from the South really disturbs the place. The main adverse condition on this site is the underwater visibility, normally inhibited due to the flow of the small river that ends inside the bay and the pollution of the port with all kind of materials in suspension. The seabed is rock bottom with little sand. The entire area is made by small pools of sand and the remains of the ship are scattered inside and outside these pools. The scattering field of this wreck is about 30 meters long and 20 meters wide, orientated north-south, beginning on 4.5 meters depth (close to the island) and ending at 6.4 meters (on cannon G17). The site presents 17 iron cannons and ballast iron blocks. The “central” part of this field are 8 big iron cannons (2.90 m length), very close to one another, surrounded by three small piles of iron blocks from the ballast. To the west of this group is a kind of “row” of smaller cannons (9) of 2.30 m length, heading to the North along 36 meters. No anchors were observed on this site, although a wider exploration to the South could eventually lead to the location of the anchors which were thrown in the deeper area to prevent the ship from running aground. 177 The diving operations on this wreck in 2000 season took just 4 diving days. In total 29 dives were done amounting to 44.95 diving hours. Notes in the Surveyor’s Book kept by Eng. Faure Cambiella with the measurements taken for the site sketch and individual dimensions of the cannons. 178 Artefacts recovered from the wreck during previous years’ interventions. An ornamented pottery lid, a trigger guard from a stocked weapon, a stoneware bottle, a pewter pitcher, and a bronze mortar. 179 Historic references “ No dia 5 de Fevereiro de 1809, pelas três horas da tarde, fundearam na Praia a fragata Urania, sob o comando do capitão de mar e guerra Francisco António da Silva Pacheco, O Destemido (brigue), Almirante Nelson, Alegria Constante, e Pombinha. Estes navios destinavam-se ao Rio de Janeiro, levando para ali emigrantes. A fragata Urania tinha ancorado em bom fundo e distante do Ilhéu de Santa Maria, mas começando a garrar, depois de terminada a faina de fundear e quando o comandante se achava na camara, foi encalhar na restinga sul do referido ilheu, onde se perdeu.” (Barcellos, 1899) (On the 5th of February 1809, around three in the afternoon, the frigate Urania, under the command of Captain Francisco António da Silva Pacheco, the Destemido (Brig), Almirante Nelson, Alegria Constante, and the Pombinha, anchored at Praia. These ships were destined to Rio de Janeiro, to take emigrants there. The frigate Urania had anchored in good grounds and far from the islet of Santa Maria, but started dragging anchor and when the Captain was in his cabin, ran aground on the rocks in the South of the mentioned islet, where it was lost.) A 36-gun frigate built in Lisbon by Torcato José Calvina, was launched under the name Ulysses on December 15, 1792. Its capacity was 329 men. In 1793 it was incorporated into a reinforcement squad requested by England, and until 1804 took part in numerous escort missions to fleets. In 1804 underwent major transformations and left the dock with the name Urânia at the stern and 38 guns. In 1807 joined the squadron sent by D. João V to Brazil, and in 1808, under the command of captain Francisco António da Silva Pacheco returning to Rio de Janeiro was shipwrecked at the Islet of Santa Maria, The commander was tried and found innocent on 23 August 1809. 180 Site sketch 181 AGO-039. “The Cognac Wreck” (1830 - 1870) Description of the site The site AGO-039 was found in October of 1999 by our team, during a survey around the area of Pta. Lobos where local fishermen had reported wreck evidences. The wreck (15 00 60 N, 23 25 72 W) is near Ponta Bomba, East coast of Santiago Island, lying on the reef shoal, besides a deep channel that goes inside a little bay. The sea conditions on the site are normally rough as it is completely open to the winds from the East and the Northeast. The swell sweeps the site and washes the objects towards the coast, approximately half a mile from the place. An uncomfortable surge is usually present near the reef but is always possible to work on the deep parts of the area, also protected by the coral barrier. Tidal currents are not strong on the wreck. To arrive on the site is necessary to use small boats, but not very far to the East is deep enough to moor a medium size vessel without much risk. The depths of the wreck site vary from 2.5 meters on the top of the reef to 9 meters in the sand. The only heavy objects from the wreck, located on the first inspection were an anchor and an iron box, both sitting on the surface of the seabed. The debris field is quite extensive, there is a very wide field of slates, obviously cargo because due to the amount, that runs in SW direction, going into a deeper part of the place and continues in that direction almost literally covering the seabed. The sediment is sand with some loose rocks and is quite difficult to reach the bedrock for heavy objects. In fact, the bedrock was not reached in any spot in despite of the attempts to do it. We made several sondages around the whole area near the anchor and recovered some glass objects as little bottles and stoppers for identification purposes. The most 182 interesting objects found were 2 intact bottles of Cognac (French) and 1 intact bottle of whisky (stoneware), both recovered and measured in. Notes in the Surveyor’s Book kept by Eng. Faure Cambiella with the measurements taken for the site sketch and dimensions of the anchor and box. 183 Excavating some places with deeper sediment, more slates, several flint stones, and shards of glass were found. Pressed glass bottles and flint stones recovered from the wreck The iron box, full of slates, was photographed. The slates were only the superficial layer, because under them was a layer of firebricks. A large quantity of copper buttons is spread in the area even concreted together in some places, they should be cargo also, because of the quantity and concentration. Copper buttons and a pewter spoon recovered from the wreck Excavating in the place near the anchor, to the NE, we found and recovered an iron concretion with needles and pewter spoons. There are also small cannon balls. It is curious in this wreck the absence of other large heavy objects as cannons or more anchors, but the kind of sediment in the place made it possible that these objects are buried deep down. It also seems likely that the wreck had been extensively salvaged before. The diving operations in this wreck took place along 4 diving days, 40 dives were done amounting to 73.33 diving hours. 184 Historic references From the study of the recovered and observed artefacts and the typology of the anchor, we estimate this wreck to be from mid-19th century, of European origin, possibly British, but no reference in our research seems to match with this location and this period. Future archival research could give us an answer. AGO-051. “The Wooden Wreck” (1550 - 1600) Description of the site This site was visited by our team for two weeks between the 15th of June and the 1st of July 1999. Excavation works were ongoing for some time when we arrived, and we joined the works on this and other wrecks in the anchorage of Cidade Velha. The AGO-051 debris field site starts about 200 meters to the east of the eastern entrance of the bay at Cidade Velha, almost in the middle of the submerged riverbed. The depth of this field goes from 15 meters to 30 meters. This is a fairly calm site, referred to sea conditions, and can be worked even during wintertime because of its location and depth. The access from land (beach) is typically easy and is one of the very few sites in Cabo Verde that allows having the working vessel on the top of the wreck during diving operations. The underwater visibility is normally around 10 or 15 meters but on days of heavy swell the surge moves the sediment and the visibility can fall to 3 or 5 meters in the shallower places. On these days, the surge can be felt even at depths of 25 meters, moving the sand and blurring the vision in the excavation. No strong currents were felt on the site, but is necessary to note that on days (or weeks) of heavy rain, the river spreads large quantities of sediment over the site, producing contamination with modern objects coming from the 185 village. When an excavation front is open and the work is ongoing, this daily flow of “foreign” objects makes the interpretation task difficult and potentially inaccurate. Due to the depth, decompression stops were done during the afternoon dives and the maximum bottom time was usually 35 minutes. The seabed close to the reef is coarse yellow sand, about ¼ meter deep, it extends to about 10 meters from the reef. Under this is fine-grained black, with some whitish granules, volcanic sand. Further from the reef it reverts to the black volcanic sand mixed with silt. The bed is flat with some waves in the sand up to ¼ meter deep, it slopes of to the west from about 20 meters depth, to about 24 meters (27 meters distance). It slopes off more steeply to 28.5 meters depth until a gully leading nearly N-S going deeper to the south. It gets shallower to the north and the depth is about 16 meters. There is another rock face about 30 meters to the NNW. There are several definite debris fields within and close to the site. These debris fields appear to be very stable, even after rough weather the artefacts laying on the surface are not disturbed. An airlift was used on most of the fields and little was found below the surface of the sand. At 0.4 meter depth into the sand there was a layer of pumice stones and what appeared to be dead coral but in fact were worm casts. Above and below this layer was the fine volcanic sand with silt; there were a few shards above the layer. Most of the finds were on the surface of the sand or a few centimeters below it. There are four anchors close together, at the base of the rock reef face that rises from 20 meters to about 5 meters, almost vertically. There is another anchor, buried in the sand only showing its ring, just around a point in the reef, about 13 meters to the north, from the previous four. The reef then goes in NNE to NE direction. After 45 meters from the point, there is a group of timbers, 8 were showing, four looked like ship’s frames the 186 others shipside planking. There are several other timbers, between the above positions, two of which could be frames or beams. There is a gully running north – south till about 30 metres of depth, going deeper to the south and shallower to the north. It separates AGO-051 from AGO-052 wreck sites, there were no significant artefacts seen in the gully. Olive jar and coarse ware vessel recovered from AGO-051 wreck site The main types of finds were pottery shards, bones, and intact pottery pieces (olive jars and smaller pots). The bones were found all over the grid and against the rock face in the first layers of sand and occasionally in the clay layer. These finds were found on top of the sand in the sand itself and in the clay layer, but none were found in the layer of “Worm casts”. The majority of intact pieces were found on the surface or in the first 10 centimeters, this was due to the sand movement on the site. Airlifting proved to only provide shards, which were deeper in the sand and in the clay layer. Of particular interest were some fragments of Chinese porcelain found in the wreck. The bottom of a dish, depicting a crab in its interior and a commendation mark in the back, strongly resembles pieces found some years later in another Portuguese ship, the Espadarte (1558) in Mozambique. 187 Fragment of a “crab dish” found in the AGO-051 wreck (above) and “crab dish” found in the Espadarte (1558) wreck at Mozambique (below) Two dishes in the Topkapi Saray, Istanbul, feature identical scenes of a crab within a keyfret border (absent in the AGO-051 sample). Both were studded with jewels after their arrival in the Near East. They have been dated to the second half of the 16th century, Jiajing Emperor (1521-1567) of the Ming Dynasty and bear the mark fu gui jia qi (a fine vessel for the rich and honourable) within a rectangular frame. Other bowls in the same collection show the crab over stylized waves with the sun or moon above. The former bears the mark chang ming fu gui (a long life with wealth and honour). Both are dated to the second half of the 16th century. (Krahl, 1986) Also strikingly similar is a fragment of a “dipping bird” bowl found in this wreck, when compared to other bowls from the Espadarte sample. It is a bowl with outward-leaning 188 body wall and unarticulated rim, decorated on its exterior walls with scenes of perched, dipping birds on flowering trees. Fragment of the “dipping bird” bowl found in the AGO-051 wreck (above) and “dipping bird” bowl found in the Espadarte (1558) wreck at Mozambique (below) A bowl from the Ardebil shrine features dipping birds in fruiting trees with a floral spray in the well; dated late 16th century and bares the mark fu kuei chia ch'i within a square frame. In our opinion, Cidade Velha is a difficult area to define a single wreck. As an anchorage place, the seabed is full of man-made objects that not necessarily belong to wrecked ships, also the fact of an ancient river flowing over the site, bringing every sort of “village garbage”, hinders the interpretation of the wreck sites. 189 There are, in fact, various wrecks in the area, but their debris fields are overlapping and certainly not easy to recognize one wreck as a unit. Historic references From the study of the recovered artefacts, we estimate this wreck to be from mid-16th century or beginning of the 17th century, of European origin, possibly Portuguese, but no reference in our research seems to match with this location and this period. Future archival research is needed. AGO-071. “The Tarrafal Wreck” (c. 1800) Description of the site The wreck site AGO-071 was found on 2nd February 2001 by Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebize and me following fishermen information. The remains of the ship are very close to the shore at the SE of Ponta Moreia, North coast of Santiago Island, between 4 and 8 meters of depth. The sea conditions on this area are extremely rough. A heavy surge is present all the time making the diving operations difficult and dangerous. The seabed is full of rock heads rising almost to the surface with sand in between them. This situation makes the underwater visibility very short (around 80 cm in a normal day) and in conjunction with the large surge represents a real possibility that a diver can be smashed against those heads without a chance to avoid it. In the first inspection of the site we found a cargo of paving slabs as well as tin ingots, white and blue ceramics, birdshot, lead shot, bronze nails, one iron cannon, 2 anchors and many fragments of broken bottles. Several iron bars and grinding stone wheels were also exposed. 190 During the few test sondages we made on this wreck a number of ceramic items were located under the surface of the seabed. Dishes, cups, saucers (most of them badly broken) were together under the iron bars and mixed with birdshot. Fine ware and furniture items recovered from the wreck AGO-071 The diving operations took place along 5 diving days (3 afternoon dives were aborted due to the adverse conditions), 27 dives were done amounting to 33.75 diving hours (6.75 hours per day) and 9 artefacts were recovered for identification purposes. Another 15 dives were done in a survey of the surrounding area trying to locate a possible part of this wreck but no other wreckage evidences were located. Historic references The kind of artefacts found and the structural parts of the ship, suggest a wreck of the mid-18th to the beginning of the 19th century, of European origin, possibly British, but the weather conditions stop us from further study of this site. No reference in our research seems to match with this location and this period. Future archival research is needed. 191 AGO-022. “The Ponta Facho Wreck” (c. 1600) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered on December 1995 by a previous team. It is located under the cliff of the coast off Ponta do Facho, East of Praia Harbour, South coast of Santiago Island. It consists in a pile of ballast stones resting on a mostly flat rocky seabed at 6m of depth. In the original report no other sign of wreckage were observed. Our team did an inspection of the site and the surroundings until 100m distance in every direction. Small fragments of lead sheathing from the hull were observed inside small depressions on the seabed, as well as shards of coarse pottery, presumably from olive jars or similar containers. No anchors nor cannons were found in the site nor the immediate surrounding area. Coarse ware fragments recovered as samples from AGO-022 The wreck site does not appear to have been recently disturbed by human activity. There are no signals of excavation or anchorage in the place. Historic references Based on the typology of the coarse ware pottery and the presence of lead sheathing, we are inclined to think this is a 17th century wreck, but no reference in our research seems to match with this location and this period. 192 AGO-001. “The Ponta Temerosa Wreck” (c. 1600) Description of the site This site was found in November 1995 and now re-visited by our expedition. It is located in front of the lighthouse of Ponta Temerosa, Southwest end of the Harbor of Praia, in Santiago Island, almost against the shore at 2m of depth. It presents a small pile of ballast stones with some small iron concretions on it. Several signals of modern contamination were observed during the inspection. Extemporary steel planks and copper pins are located in the vicinity of the wreck, but they have been presumably washed down to that place from the normal activity in the harbor. By the size of the ballast stones pile and the absence of any other wreck material that could be positively matched with the time period of this wreck, we believe that it was a reasonably small ship which ran against the coast and was totally salvaged. No fragments of ceramics nor hull sheathing were observed. It is quite difficult to assess if the site has been disturbed and the level of disturbance. The place is very busy with naval traffic and with the consequent littering and anchoring that this activity produces. Historic references Although the wreck seems to be from an interesting time period, somewhere in the 17th century, it is very unlikely that would still contain cultural material in quantity and quality to justify further intervention. There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. 193 AGO-021. “The Mortar Wreck” (c. 1750) Description of the site This site was found in December 1995 during the general survey of Cidade Velha anchorage. It is located very close to the coast in the Western end of the Cidade Velha cemetery at an average depth of 5 to 6 metres. The diving conditions in the place are quite challenging as it is open to the swell coming from the SE and crashing against the shore. The seabed is of hard rock with surge channels perpendicular to the coastline, filled with pebbles and broken shells. The description of the moment of the finding mentioned one anchor and 4 cannons plus a mortar. During our exploration of the site and its surroundings another 2 cannons were found plus a possible lead shot mould. Copper button with military emblem and copper centers of pulley blocks from AGO-021 The site is quite damaged by the mechanical action of the swell in the area. Even some large objects as the cannons, show signal of mechanical abrasion. It is not possible to determine if there has been much human intervention on the site but does not seems likely. This is an interesting wreck and we recommend further assessment and survey in the future. 194 Historic references Based on the typology of the cannons, the manufacture of the pulley blocks and the presence of the military copper button, we estimate this wreck to be a ship from the first half of the 18th century. There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. AGO-024. “The Bronze Cannon Wreck” (c. 1550) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in December 1996. It is known also as the “Bronze cannon wreck” due to the finding of one artillery piece made of bronze in the site. The site is located almost under the cliff in front of the restaurant in Cidade Velha, at a depth of 26 m on the top of the rock platform and 29 m in the sand channel. Is located on the southern edge of Cidade Velha channel (old riverbed). The wreck has been badly plundered. There is evidence that there was at least four other guns there. The remaining bronze cannon was found already strapped for lifting. There are pottery fragments and 2 broken ancient anchors. Its debris field in sections overlaps with those of the areas of AGO-051 and 049. Remains of removed bronze cannons concreted to the seabed and the artillery piece recovered 195 Historic references This is an especially important wreck site in terms of historical relevance, which have been lost due to the irresponsible intervention in the site by persons unknown. The typology of the surviving bronze cannon (Portuguese Berço) suggests a wreck of the second half of the 16th century and probably of Portuguese origin, something unusual in the Cabo Verde archipelago. There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. AGO-025. “The Pottery Wreck” (c. 1600) Description of the site This site was found in December 1996 when surveying the surroundings of the “Bronze cannon site”. During our monitoring visit in 1999, we confirmed that presents some coherent remains of wood structure, ballast stones and pottery. It seems to be a 17th century wreck at depths between 18 and 24m. As during the visit, we had an ongoing excavation in the bordering site AGO-051, we decided to use the same resources to further explore AGO-025 by means of airlift in order to better understand its stratigraphy. East of the grid ( “A” up to the rock face), consisted of a coarse white sand up to approximately 5-7 centimeters deep followed by a finer layer of sand which was darker, a mix of black and white sand, this was 3-5 centimeters in depth. Below this was a dense layer of black clay up to 7 centimeters in depth in places. The final layer that we excavated down to was of white round “Worm casts” approximately 5 centimeters in diameter, this layer was excavated down to about 10 centimeters but due to the fact that there were no 196 finds in this layer and that it proved extremely difficult to operate an airlift, as the end would be clogged up, no attempt was made to go any further. On the grid itself the basic layers started with a fine dark sand which was extremely variable in depths due to heavy swell. This would be anything from 1 meter to 3 centimeters in depth and in the area of “D7” and up to 9 meters north of this there were areas where the clay was exposed. The next layer of clay was approximately 10-5 centimeters deep. This was followed by “Worm cast” as above but also smaller broken up pieces and shells. The deeper the site from about “E or F” towards “Q” the more consistent the depths of the layers, of sand, clay and “worm casts” as there was little movement of the sea floor. Seven meters off “E 7” there was an area with rocks and pottery shards, this extended down to “H 7” and was approximately 6 meters wide, below the rocks and shards there was the dark sand layer. Depths on this site ranged from 18 meters at “A” down to 24 at “E” and 27 meters at “Q”. Further north of the grid in line with “D” and “E” approximately 15 meters away there is a bank which reaches up to about 16 to 18 meters. The main type of finds on the grid were pottery shards, bone, intact pottery pieces (olive jars and smaller pots). The bones were found all over the grid and against the rock face in the first layers of sand and occasionally in the clay layer. The intact pottery and shards were concentrated in the areas “A – F” and as far south as AGO – 051. These finds were excavated on top of the sand in the sand itself and in the clay layer, but none were found in the layer of “Worm casts”. Most intact pieces were found on the surface or in the first 10 centimeters, this was due to the sand movement on the site. 197 East of the grid and on the rock area were numerous anchors, mainly large Admiralty type anchors about 4 meters in length but also smaller anchors about 2 meters in length. These anchors may be considered as modern contamination by anchorage. Artefacts recovered from AGO-025 wreck site This site is complex to understand. The debris field from AGO-051 and AGO-049 are overlapping certain parts making the interpretations quite confusing. We recommended complete excavation after finishing the current one and a comparative study of the finds in both sites. Historic references The typology of the recovered pottery suggests a wreck of the second half of the 17th century and probably of Portuguese origin. There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. 198 AGO-038. “The Cemetery Wreck” (c. 1700) Description of the site This wreck site was found on April 1996 and is also known as “The Cemetery Wreck”. In 1999 we re-visited it with the aim of conducting a wider survey as the original data was insufficient. It is located close to the shore in the East end of Cidade Velha cemetery. The site consists in 13 iron cannons inside surge gullies at an average depth of 2 meters. No anchors were observed in the site nor the immediate surroundings. This site is close to the coast, very shallow (between 2 and 4 m depth) and the seabed is solid rock. Some gullies are filled with loose boulders and in general everything present on the site is badly corroded and damaged by the mechanical action of the waves. A brass handle was found beneath one cannon as well as a broken rim of a bronze bell. During the survey we also found birdshot plus one carronade. This find would place the date of the wreck in the 18th or 19th century, although the rest of the iron cannon look more likely from end of the 17th century. Ceramics fragments recovered from AGO-038 for identification purposes Few fragments of glazed ceramics were found in the bottom of the gullies. The manufacture resembles the Portuguese faiança but we will need to send them to a specialist. 199 This wreck site is quite damaged by the action of the waves. Large objects are much eroded and fragments of artefacts of many different materials (including metals) are present. In our opinion it is unlikely that any significant amount of cultural material would have survived. Historic references The typology of the observed artefacts, mainly the carronade suggests a wreck of the second half of the 18th century. There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. AGO-050. “The Crucifix Wreck” (c. 1650) Description of the site This wreck was found in 1996 and revisited by our team in June 1999. Due to its location is one of the sites in Cidade Velha which is less mixed with other wrecks and therefore easier to understand. It is located right on the rocks at 160m in front of the beach of Cidade Velha. There are visible 10 iron cannons in gullies north and south of the rocks. It was called “The Crucifix Wreck” after the recovery of dozens of copper crucifixes. There were also several belt buckles, glass beads and lead shot recovered. This site consisted of a layer of light coarse sand and shells on and near the area of rocks and a layer of dark fine sand under this just below the area of rocks, with a dark clay layer beneath this. To the north west of the area worked at about 15 meters the layers are dark sand and clay, beneath this was not excavated. 200 The crucifixes, copper pins, buckles and beads were found in about 6 meters and were in the first layers of light and dark sand. The pewter was found near the rock face in a concretion. The concretion at the base of the rock face yielded plates, beads, musket, and bird shot. There were also areas below the rock face where bird shot and beads were found loose. Crucifixes, concreted lead shot, Portuguese glazed ceramics and glass beads from AGO-050 This is a very interesting wreck. It seems to have been a Portuguese ship from the late 17th century transporting religious iconography to Cabo Verde or other African country. It was most probably anchored in front of Cidade Velha (Ribeira Grande at that time) and a sudden storm through her into the rocks. As it has been evident that some cultural material has survived under the soft sediment, it is recommended that controlled excavation be performed in this site. 201 Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. AGO-060. “The Deep Wreck” (c. 1600) Description of the site This wreck site was found on the 30th of June 1999 when conducting a visual survey in deep waters off Cidade Velha. The information came from our Dive Supervisor, Alain Hurtebize, who told me he had seen wreck remains in about 70m of depth when spearfishing in the past in this area. We decided to do a visual survey by diving at depths of 50m along the drop-off of the platform in the indicated area and spotted the wreck in the second survey day. The wreck is lying at 75m of depth, few meters away from the 40m high steep rock wall and going deeper until 82 meters in the stern section. Due to the depth at which is located there is very little dispersion of wreck material and the site is amazingly conserved for such an old ship. It is probably a late 16th century or early 17th century Portuguese ship. This could well be one of the oldest shipwrecks ever found in Cabo Verde and certainly the deepest. It was immediately known as “The Deep Wreck” The wreck consists in a large, well assembled, wood structure of the hull, partially buried in the sand with the entire ballast stones mound on top of it. Over the ballast stones one can observe a cargo of olive jars and other small ceramics containers, literarily covering the ballast. In the close vicinity of the wreck there are 6 iron cannons of medium size as well as 3 stockless anchors. Due to the short bottom time at that depth (only 7 minutes in each dive), we didn’t do any excavation and the dives were only exploratory, therefore is very well possible that more cannons are buried in the sand around the wreck. 202 During the inspection of what seems to be the stern section of the ship, various large copper cooking pans were found and one of them recovered for study. Also, a sample of the olive jars and a piece of lead sheathing of the hull were recovered. Sample artefacts recovered from AGO-060 wreck site This is an extremely important wreck from the archaeological point of view. It is a unique opportunity to learn from the building construction of Iberian ships of the 16th and 17th 203 centuries as well as the life on board of their crews and passengers. The depth at which is located had allowed for some organic materials (like wood), which normally degrades very fast under the influence of luminosity and marine growth, to remain for centuries. The depth and relative stability of the environment in the wreck has also produced little dispersion of cultural material, and that will allow for spatial distribution studies of artefacts within the wreck. We recommended a careful and highly technical excavation of this wreck when the means are available, otherwise to let it untouched for the use of appropriate technology in the future. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. AGO-064. “The Ponta Lobo Wreck” (c. 1700) Description of the site This wreck was found on October 1999 during the ongoing excavation of a nearby wreck. The site is located South of Ponta Lobo, just outside of Kingfisher Bay, at a depth of 7m. It was found when surveying the vicinity of AGO-063 (further North). It consists in 6 large stockless anchors (4m long), iron bars, two iron squares, and a big amount of lead sheathing fragments. Survey in the surroundings did not produced more information as no other artefact nor ship’s structural parts were located. We recommend more survey to be done in this site. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and this period. 204 SANTO ANTÃO ISLAND 205 ANT-015. “The Ponta Brejo Wreck” (c. 1650) Description of the site This wreck site was found by a previous team on the 12th of December of 1996 and visited during our expedition on 27th of October 2001. It is located (16° 59.777'N; 25° 5.989'W) 2 miles to the South of Porto Novo in Santo Antão Island, more precisely at Punta do Brejo. It is very shallow (from 2 meters depth to 4 meters) and close to the shore, what make it quite difficult to work due to the heavy swell and current running in the place. Approximately 250 meters to the North is a small reef that is likely the one who caused the accident, but no wreck debris was found in between the two places. The area is under heavy sedimentation, the water always murky and with abundant small particles in the water column all the time. On the first inspection of the site 7 iron guns, 3 anchors and some iron objects scattered in a hard-volcanic rock seabed were located. Only one spot, a kind of pool filled with sand, had potential to contain wreck material in better condition, because out of it, every remains of artefacts are badly broken and fragmented due to the adverse condition of the sea there. Inside this pool and under several centimeters of sand the 8th iron cannon was found. The excavations were done in the rock bottom, finding lead shot and olive jar fragments very deep into the rock, but the main effort was done in the sand “pool” in order to reach the bedrock there and search for intact artefacts. 206 Olive jar neck and stone “marbles” from ANT-015 wreck The kind of anchors and guns as well as the iron bolts, lead sheathing and the olive jars fragments, suggest a wreck of about 1600’s or very early 1700’s, what makes it interesting from the archaeological point of view. But within the scarce artefact finds there was one that helped us narrow down the dates and possible origin of the ship. It was a small copper square that, only after conservation in the laboratory, showed a mark of a crowned XX-S in its reverse and a sort of coin-like image in the obverse. English coin weight with Crown over value of XX, S below corresponding to 20 shillings. 207 Further research identified this interesting artefact as an English coin weight. During the reign of King John coin weights were first mentioned in Statutes of 1205 to be used as a “deterrent against the passing of light or clipped coins”. Coin weights of English origin were only available for gold coins until the reign of Charles I. Early English coin weights were round with a design that was usually similar to the coin it represents. In the early 16th century square coin weights were introduced with the value in Roman numerals in shillings (S) or pence (D) on the reverse side. Roman numerals last appear on English coin weights under James II (1685-1688). During the reign of Queen Elizabeth (1558-1603), it was ordered that only true weights, produced by the Mint in the Tower and marked with a crowned 'E' were allowed. In 16171618, James I issued a similar proclamation for the provision of official balances and weights. Most of the contemporary square coin weights from James I are counterstruck with a certification mark of a crowned letter 'I'. Under Charles I (1625-1649), an act of Parliament banned all square coin weights. (Ancient coins & Antiquities, s.f.) This information will place our squared coin weight of 20 shillings as manufactured in the first half of the 17th century, before 1649. The assessment of the wreck took place for 5 diving days, 81 dives were done amounting to 110.46 diving hours. Only 7 artefacts were recovered, mostly for identification purposes and they were lead shot, a coin weight, olive jar necks and stone balls. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location, period and provenance. 208 Site sketch 209 SÃO NICOLAU ISLAND 210 A monitoring expedition with the aim of updating the information about the conditions of various wreck sites discovered in previous years in São Nicolau was organized in 2001. The expedition took place in the month of October, taking the chance of being near the isolated island of São Nicolau because our work in Le Dromedaire. We used 4 days of very strong winds from the North which forced us to stop the works in VIC-004 and, as the three known wrecks in the neighbour island are located in the South coast, we moved the expedition ship there. The team was on-board MV Polar and the dives were done from the auxiliary boats. Following are the descriptions and conditions of the mentioned sites by the end of 2001 in the order they were visited: NIC-001. “The Barril Wreck” (c. 1800) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in February 1996 by a previous team. It is located almost under the cliff of the coast near the lighthouse of Barril (130°- 0.25 Nm), South coast of São Nicolau Island. The seabed is made by flat hard rock with surge gullies filled with loose boulders. The average depth of the site is 6m. It consists of remains of a wooden ship, with copper fastenings and a large grapnel lying nearby the surviving structure. There are no artillery pieces in the wreck nor the surroundings, leading us to think that was a coastal trader instead of an international merchant ship. The results of the survey can be considered reliable as the visibility during the dives was excellent and this type of seabed cannot conceal large objects. The lack of cultural material in this site makes it of low interest for further studies. The wreck site does not appear to have been recently disturbed by human activity. There are no signals of excavation or anchorage in the place. 211 Wood structure of NIC-001 wreck site Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. NIC-003. “The Praia Branca wreck” (c. 1750) Description of the site This site was found in February 1996 and now re-visited by our expedition. It is located in the north end of the Baixo de Praia Branca, few meters away from a prominent rock which washes over the surface in the Southern coast São Nicolau Island. It is a typical copper pins, galley fire brick and copper sheathing wreck site from mid1700. No anchors or cannon are present in the site nor the surroundings. The average depth of the site is just 3m, so most probably salvaged. Further investigation revealed nothing more. Copper pins and a galley brick recovered from NIC-003 wreck site 212 The same criteria for NIC-001 applies here. Visibility conditions and type of seabed make it very unlikely that we had missed anything of reasonable big size in our inspection. The fact that the wreck is very shallow, and that the seabed is mostly flat, makes it unlikely that would still contain cultural material in quantity and quality to justify further intervention. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. NIC-004. “The Ponta Carriçal wreck” (c. 1800) Description of the site This site was found in May 1996 during the survey of São Nicolau Island. It is located very close to the coast below Ponta Carriçal at an average depth of 5 to 6 metres. Further to the west a massive modern merchant ship can be seen wrecked against the coast. The diving conditions in the place were quite friendly, with good visibility and little swell. The seabed is of hard rock with surge channels perpendicular to the coastline, filled with pebbles and broken shells. The wreck consists in the typical array of remains for a 19th century whaler, the same we had seen in the Island of Maio and in Fogo. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 213 BOA VISTA ISLAND 214 A monitoring expedition with the aim of updating the information about the conditions of various wreck sites discovered in previous years in Boa Vista was organized in 1999. The expedition took place in the month of July, right after the expedition in Santiago Island, alongside with some excavation ongoing in wrecks off Riffona reef in Boa Vista. The team was on-board MV Polar and the dives in shallow wrecks were done from the Zodiacs. Following are the descriptions and conditions of the mentioned sites by the end of July 1999 in the order they were visited: BOA-006. The Santo Andre, 1856 Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in July 1996 and now visited 3 years later. It is located westward on the north flank of Cabeça da Rifona, North coast of Boa Vista Island. There are about 6 iron cannons (some concreted shapes in the seabed suggest another two), two anchors, fittings and the water tank made of steel. There are remains of the keel (or keelson) and few wooden planks from the hull. It is believed to be the Santo Andre, sunk in 1856 in this location. Our team did an inspection of the site and the surroundings until 100m distance in every direction. Various artefacts were located and recovered for identification purposes. There were copper parts of stocked weapons (trigger guards and butt plates), bullets, bases of candle holders, silver coins, cutlery, and glass wine bottles. Candle holders’ bases and bullets from BOA-006 215 It is difficult to be completely sure about the identity of this ship, as there are more than 20 shipwrecks reported in that reef, but the typology of the recovered artefacts and the dates on the coins, suggest a mid-19th century ship from Iberian origin. Historic references The reference in our research that better matches with this location, provenance and period is the following: “Santo André, galera espanhola naufragada em 25 de Julho de 1856 na Ilha da Boavista junto á ilha do Cascalho. A sua carga compunha-se de dinheiro e bebidas, sendo apontado como um dos navios mais importantes naufragado nesta Ilha.” (Fortes, 1909) (Santo André, Spanish galley wrecked on 25th July 1856 at the Boa Vista Island, by the Cascalhos islet. Its cargo was made of money and drinks, being referred as one of the most important ships wrecked at this island) BOA-008. “The Ponta Antonia Wreck” (c.1800) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in July 1996 and now visited 3 years later. It is located close to the coast in the second cape going East from Ponta Antonia at an average depth of 4 to 6 metres. The diving conditions in the place are hard as it is open to the swell coming from the NE against the shore. The seabed is of hard rock with surge channels perpendicular to the coastline, filled with pebbles and broken shells. The description of the moment of the finding mentioned some anchors and 8 cannons. During our exploration of the site and its surroundings we confirmed this information and additionally found lead ingots and copper sheathing of the hull. 216 Copper buttons with military emblem and a gin stoneware bottle from BOA-008 Based on the facts that the ship was carrying military items from the English crown, the presence of stoneware bottles used to transport gin and the copper sheathing of the hull, we estimate this wreck to be a ship from the first half of the 18th century, possibly of English origin. Diving in this site was quite difficult. No accurate measurements were possible to get and therefore there is no site plan of it. Few artefacts were collected in the bottom of the surge channels and recovered for study. The site is quite damaged by the mechanical action of the swell in the area. It is not possible to determine if there has been much human intervention on the site but does not seems likely. This is an interesting wreck and we recommend further assessment and survey in the future. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. BOA-010. “The Ponta Rodrigo Wreck” (c.1750) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in July of 1996. It is located north-eastward of Ponta Rodrigo, in the North coast of Boa Vista Island. There are some rocks breaking surface about 100m far from the coastline. The seabed is mostly made by hard rock and loose 217 boulders produced by the action of the waves. In terms of diving the conditions are quite similar to BOA-008. There are one anchor and two iron cannons visible, small lead bars, blue glass and yellow colored stoneware. One of the lead bars was recovered for identification purposes as it bears a mark (MDOC & CO). It seems to be a wreck from the first half of the 18th century judging by the typology of the cannons and the manufacture of the lead bars. Possibly English. The adverse weather did not allow for proper measurements of the site nor survey in the vicinity, as the waves were wildly breaking over the site posing danger to the dive team. Lead ingot with mark “MDOC & CO” recovered from BOA-010 This could be an interesting wreck site, but the conditions of the sea in the area will make any intervention very difficult. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 218 BOA-011. “The Ilheu do Galeão Wreck” (c.1700) Description of the site This site was found in July 1996 during the general survey of Boa Vista Island. It is located at eastside of Ilheu do Galeão (islet of the galleon) on a hard rock seabed with loose boulders. During our monitoring visit in 1999, we confirmed the reported two anchors and the absence of cannon in the site and the surroundings. It seems to be an 18th century wreck at depths between 6 and 9m. The visual survey of the site produced new information. A copper rudder gudgeon was found and recovered, several small fragments of copper were observed on the seabed as well as lead sheathing from the hull. The wreck seems to have been extensively salvaged, judging by the absence of cannons and the presence of only two anchors. The finding of the rudder gudgeon and the lead sheathing from the hull come to confirm that a ship actually wrecked on this point, and it was probably salvaged soon after the accident. We do not recommend further action to be taken in this site. Copper rudder gudgeon from BOA-011 wreck site Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 219 BOA-012. “The Ilheu do Cascalho Wreck” (c.1862) Description of the site This site was also found in July 1996 during the first survey of Boa Vista Island. It is located to the south of Ilheu do Cascalho (islet of the pebbles) at depths between 3 and 6m, in the Northeast corner of Boa Vista Island. It presents one anchor (medium size), 4 iron cannons and a large amount of copper nails scattered on the seabed. Exploration was done in the surrounding of these evidences but no other wreck material was located. An interesting lead object, shaped as a coin but much thicker, was found and recovered for study. Later, after treatment in the Conservation Centre in Praia, the date “1862” was visible. It seems to have been a seal of some sort. This artefact places the wreck in or after 1862. Obverse and reverse of the seal with the date 1862 recovered from BOA-012 Not much of this wreck is left. The conditions in the area make very unlikely that cultural material other than solid metal objects could have survived. Hopefully, the date in the seal will narrow down the historical research to be able to identify the ship. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 220 BOA-013. “The Glass Wreck” (c.1800) Description of the site This wreck site was found on July 1996 and is also known as “The Glass Wreck” after the cargo she was carrying. Now we re-visited it to conduct a wider survey as the original data was not too explicit. It is located eastward of Baixo de Fora in the North coast of Boa Vista Island. The site consists in remains of wood structure of the hull and frames with copper pins and sheathing. No anchors nor cannons were observed in the site nor the immediate surroundings. The most interesting find in this wreck is the cargo of pressed glass, typical from English ships of the 19th century. Also, an intact wine bottle was recovered bearing the mark “MACEDO”, suggesting Portuguese origin. A “case” gin bottle, more consistent with the 18th century, was found under some timbers, ruling out the possibility of contamination from another site. Various artefacts excavated from BOA-013 wreck site. Note the “MACEDO” mark in the wine bottle 221 Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. BOA-015. “The Holanda Reef Wreck” (c.1800) Description of the site This wreck was found in October 1998 and revisited by our team in July 1999. It is located on the Eastern tip of Hollanda reef, Rifona area. It presents a mixture of artefacts from the 1700’s and 1800’s making it difficult to narrow down the date of the ship. Among the artefacts located we found copper pins and bolts, large quantity of copper religious medallions, a neck of a case gin bottle and fragments of pressed glass objects. Also, remains of structural parts of the ship (rigging pulley blocks) and a wooden handle of a knife were recovered. Sample of artefacts recovered from BOA-015 222 This site is quite interesting. The fact that there are artefacts which not necessarily belong to the same century makes it more intriguing. Based on the geographical location where it is, is not completely ruled out the possibility of more than one wreck in this spot. We recommended more historical research and archaeological survey to be done in this area. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. BOA-001. “The Vauban shoal Wreck” (c.1800) Description of the site This wreck was found in December 1995 and was the first historic wreck site discovered in Boa Vista Island. It is located in the North end of Vauban shoal in the West coast of the island. It consists in copper fastened remains of wood structure with some other concreted parts of a large sailing ship. No heavy objects like cannons were observed in the site, but it worth noticing that there is a modern steel wreck sitting almost on top of the historic one. This situation, not totally new to us, makes it quite likely that part of the debris field of BOA-001 is buried under the modern ship, making impossible to observe it. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 223 BRAVA and FOGO ISLANDS 224 The following are the results of the exploration carried out in the island of Brava and a visit to a known wreck site in Fogo Island during the month of February 2001. The team was made by three elements: Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebize, diver Gigi Correia and me. We departed from Praia Harbor in Santiago Island by ferry on the night of the 17th of February arriving next morning in Furna, Brava Island. Survey started after organizing a fishermen boat to go around the island and visit the islets to the North of the main island. Bad weather, rough seas, strong currents, and bad visibility were the protagonists of this trip. The first 3 wrecks we found were quite modern. BRV-001 was a whaler, BRV-002 a small coastal trading vessel at 42m deep and BRV-003 a modern fishing vessel. The wreck that could have archaeological and historical importance are as follows: BRV-004. “The Furna Wreck” (c. 1850) Description of the site This wreck site is located near Furna, on the East coast of Brava, around 800m to the South and close to the shore at 19m of depth. In the site is visible an iron debris of structural parts of the ship and one bronze pintle. From the wreck were reportedly recovered 2 bronze bells by fishermen and sold some years before our visit. The entire wreck is deeply sunk under a sand-mud sediment, therefore it has probabilities to contain an important amount of cultural material. The visible evidences suggest a mid-19th century ship. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 225 BRV-005. “The Fajã de Água Wreck” (c. 1700) Description of the site This wreck site is located near Fajã de Água bay, right under the end of the airport tarmac, almost under the coastline. At first inspection were visible 7 iron cannons, one big object of iron, copper nails (few), lead shot and a sounding lead. The shallower part of the wreck is in 7m of depth but the seabed falls abruptly to 17 - 25m very near to the site, so is our opinion that more survey in that area is need to try to find other debris in the deeper part. The observed artefacts point to an 18th century ship. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. FOG-001. “The Carlota Wreck” (c. 1800) Description of the site This wreck site was discovered in 1995 and is located at 250° from Fortim Carlota lighthouse, approximately 400m from São Filipe harbor. It is a typical 19th century whaler with an Admiralty pattern anchor in the vicinity. The seabed is quite steep in the place and although the main depth of the wreck is only 8m, the seabed starts falling down very close to it. We cannot rule out that other wreck material could be located at greater depths. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 226 MAIO ISLAND 227 The following are the results of the exploration carried out in the island of Maio during 10 days in the month of October 2001. The team was made by three elements: Dive Supervisor Alain Hurtebize, diver Gigi Correia and me. The aim was to check on some fishermen information about possible wreck sites and visit other known wrecks to monitor their condition. Some sites with wreck material were discovered but either they do not have enough context to be considered historic wrecks so far, or they were obviously too modern for that category. These sites are as follows: 1. A large steam ship circa 1890-1900’s in Ponta de Pau Seco in about 8m depth (15˚ 16’ 44’’ N, 023˚ 13’ 79’’ W). The area is virtually covered with steel planks and many wreck debris. Three anchors were seen as well as an axis and a curious cannon-shaped object (but not a cannon) that could be part of a crane or something similar. 2. A broken historical anchor, just the flukes are there, in about 12m depth at SE of Ponta de Pau Seco, in (15˚ 15’ 34’’ N, 023˚ 13’ 78’’ W). A survey of 300m in diameter was done around the anchor but no wreckage evidence was found. There is a report of two iron guns in the proximities but were not found in this survey. 3. An isolated historical anchor in 11m depth, in the NW of Baia da Calheta (15˚ 15’ 12’’ N, 023˚ 13’ 78’’ W). No other visible wreckage evidence, but more survey should be conducted in the area as the visibility was very poor when we found it. 4. An area with some wreckage evidence (iron nails, remains of a copper lamp, etc.) but not major objects like anchors or structure. Is in the SE of Ponta de Pau Seco, in about 8m depth and pos (15˚ 14’ 95’’ N, 023˚ 13’ 67’’ W). It looks quite modern. 228 5. Two steel wrecks in Pta dos Flamengos in the East coast of Maio. 6. An historical wreck in Pta Rica that could be associated with MAI-015, but still to confirm. Four large iron guns were found (3.30m each), lead sheathing and one copper pin in about 6m depth, GPS (15˚ 18’ 86’’ N, 023˚ 11’ 99’’ W). As the visibility was almost 1m and the surge very strong, I think more survey should be done in this site with better conditions. Also, an exploration was done further to the North of Ponta Banconi in about 12m depth, where wreckage evidence was reported by our Dive Supervisor (iron concretion and 2 cannons), but nothing was found so far. GPS pos (15˚ 12’ 11’’ N, 023˚ 13’ 91’’ W). More survey is required in this area. After these days of exploration, we started the visits to some wreck sites we had already found in the past but that required a second look. Through Alain´s contacts in the island we rented a slightly bigger fishermen boat to be able to circumnavigate Maio. First visit was in the North coast. MAI-013. “The Five Cannon Wreck” (c. 1600) Description of the site This site was found on the 16th of October 1999 by our team when conducting visual survey with a sledge in the inner side of the Galeão Reef. It is located almost 1Nm from the North coast of the island, at 6m of depth on a seabed of seagrass and pebbles. When we found it two years ago, we observed 5 relatively small iron cannons (around 1.8m long each), curiously close to one another forming a pile. Our first thought was that the cannons were placed on the seabed to lighten a ship in distress and that later the ship was re-floated and saved. 229 Two of the cannons on MAI-013 During the survey conducted in this visit we were able to find a bronze rudder pintle and several fragments of lead sheathing from the hull. These finds prove that our first theory was wrong and that actually a ship wrecked in this point. It could have been a relatively small armed ship from the 17th century judging by the size of its cannons and pintle. No other wreckage evidence was observed in the vicinity of the cannons. Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. MAI-008. The Missouri, 1826 Description of the site This site was originally located in 1998 by another team. It is located in front of Morro town in the West coast of Maio Island at a depth of 8m. The visible remains are extensive, including structural parts of the ship, fittings, rigging pieces, an anchor, capstan, and a considerable amount of pottery and pressed glass fragments. There are also abundant screws, bolts, and pieces of machinery in general, all 230 in a 19th century context. This site could be used as a perfect training camp for students of archaeology due to the shallow depth, transparent waters and relatively calm conditions of the sea in the area during summer. Pressed glass ewer recovered from MAI-008 with the manufacturer mark and “BOSTON” and “MASS(achusetts)” in the bottom Historic references These seems to be the remains of a whaler ship named Missouri which sank in this location in 1826. The historical records consulted show that she was built in New Bedford, Massachusetts, probably in 1824. She made a whaling voyage in 1825 sailing from New Bedford. Her captain was Moses Samson on this first voyage. Captain Samson was also in charge of ship when she wrecked. He survived and went on to captain another whaler, the Minerva. 231 American whalers from New Bedford visited the islands beginning as early as the 1790s and began more regular trade in the early 19th century, mostly for fruit (principally oranges, bananas, coconuts and watermelons) as well as hogs, chickens and goats. (New Bedford Whaling Museum, 2020) The Missouri is listed as being a "ship" that is a three masted fore and aft rigged vessel of 370 tons. Only three ships from New Bedford of the 28 that sailed in 1826 were larger. She was headed for the Pacific whaling grounds when lost. MAI-009. “The South Maio Wreck” (c. 1900) Description of the site This wreck was also found in 1998 by another exploration team. It is located around 200m off the South coast of Maio Island at depths between 5 and 12m. It is a large steel cargo vessel from end of the 19th century, which independently of being more than 100 years old, does not seems to possess much archaeological interest. Few artefacts were recovered for display at the CCM (Centro de Conservação Marítima). Inspecting the wreck in 1998 when it was found and copper nails recovered in 2001 visit Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. 232 MAI-012. “The Brick Wreck” (c. 1800) Description of the site The site MAI-012 (15° 19.599'N, 23° 10.075'W) was found the 11th October 1999. It is located at the SW of Ponta Pipa inside a small bay in the North coast of Maio. The place is shallow but not very rough as is protected from the main swell of the NE by the point. The only objects found in the survey were 4 pintles, 1 anchor, 1 iron bar several bricks and copper pins. The wreck was named due to the abundance of bricks, some of them with the mark “DAVIDSON”. Brick with the “DAVIDSON” mark, copper bolt and military button recovered from MAI-012 wreck site Due to the scarcity of artefacts and ship remains, it is quite difficult to properly assess the date of the wreck, but based on the bricks, the copper bolts and the copper button with military design, we can guess that is a wreck of the first half of the 19th century (1800 to 1850). The diving operations took 4 days, 33 dives were done amounting to 41.25 dive hours and 14 artefacts were recovered. 233 Historic references There is no reference in our research that matches with this location and period. MAI-015. The Conceição, 1625 Description of the site The site MAI-015 (N 15 18 87, W 23 11 95) was found the 24th of September 2000, during an exploration performed near Ponta Rica, following an information from a fisherman who said that saw some wreck debris there. It is located in the Northwest coast of Maio Island on the Southern end of Porto Cais, in 4 meters of depth. The place is shallow and consequently very rough. The seabed is made by big boulders accumulated against the shore and further out from there the bottom falls to 8m depth, where is made of sand but in a very thin layer. A wide survey was done around that point and 4 iron cannons were found in 3m of depth and approximately 50m from the coast. We made a circle of about 50m from the centre of the cannons and found 2 small iron swivel guns (not berços) very close to them. The cannons (the six of them) are much eroded and the iron in very poor condition. Few lead sheathing and one copper pin were located. No excavation was performed on this site or any artefact recovered. Diving Operations took place for only 3 days and 21 dives were done amounting to 26.25 diving hours. Wider exploration with better visibility conditions should be performed in the future. This place looks quite interesting because the type of guns it has, made us think of a wreck of the 1600’s, but the absence of any other visual evidence (pottery, sheathing, etc) is suspicious and I am inclined to think that other parts of the wreck might be located in the vicinity. 234 Historic references By the type of artillery pieces and the location of the remains we think that MAI-015 could be the wreck of the Conceição, 1625, a Portuguese ship part of the fleet bound to Brazil that year. In a letter from priest Sebastião Gomes to priest Estevão de Castro, from the Society of Jesus, in January 1625 it reads: “ A nossa armada que vai para o Brasil chegou a estas Ilhas junto do Natal, entre as quais teve uma briga de vento tão rijo que os fez espalhar, e a nao Conceição foi dar 235 em um baixo de areia junto á Ilha de Maio, onde ficou por uma vez, mas não se perdeu coisa alguma, tirando dizem se lançaram alguns homens a nado e que por não poderem alcançar a terra se perderam, mas da morte deles não é ainda certo. Faltam cem pessoas. ” (Our fleet going to Brazil arrived in these islands by Christmas, and had such a fight with the strong wind that was dispersed, and the nao Conceição ended up in a sand shoal nearby Maio island, where stranded at once, but nothing was lost, some men jumped and swam and not being able to reach land they died, but their dead is not certain yet. One hundred people are missing…) “  Depois desta feita até aqui chegaram os Padres André de Gouveia, e o P. João Nunes, e deram novas que da nao Conceição morreram mais de cinquenta pessoas, aos quais eles acudiram indo por terra quatro ou cinco léguas a pé e levando os mortos que acharam ás costas, a lugar onde pudessem ser enterrados. A nao Charidade não há novas dela, querem dizer que será ida ao Brasil, mas não se sabe. O que me espantou desta nova armada foi vir tão florente de fidalguia, e tão pobre de pilotos, porque não há quem saiba por onde caminha, e além disso com tão fracos aparelhos, porque dizem que a perda da nao Conceição foi não ter com que acudir ás velas, por trazerem fio muito grosso, e agulhas muito delgadas. E que nesta forma vinham os mais aparelhos. Permita Deus N. Senhor dar-lhes bom sucesso, que esta armada vai bem desarmada. ” (After this date priests André de Gouveia and João Nunes, arrived here with the news that from the nao Conceição more than fifty people died, that they went to assist them walking four or five leagues by land and carrying the dead in their backs to a place where they could be buried. There is no news from the nao Charidade, maybe it went to Brazil but is not known. What it shocked me from this new fleet is that it came so flourishing in nobility and so poor in pilots, because there is nobody who knows where is going, on top of it with so weak gear, because is said that the loss of the nao Conceição was for not having with what to fix the sails, as they brought very thick thread and very thin needles. And the rest of the gear was in the same fashion. Allow me God, Our Lord, to wish them good luck, as this fleet is going unhinged) 236 Site sketch 237 Expeditions Teams Dr. Margaret Rule Alejandro Mirabal Julian Van Rensburg Faure Cambiella Bemvindo Soares Delgado Pedro Gomez Francisco Ferreira Martin Woodward Emerenciano da Cruz Semedo Domingos da Cruz Silva Alain Hurtebize Christophe Noyon João Fernandes Corriea (Gigi) Manuel de Pina Fernando Jorge Lopes Soares António Moreira (Toni) Eugénio Moreno (Na) Nadia Ghwedar Charlotte Main Margaret Abraham David Simão Eugénio Lima Duarte Rene Schaffer Arlindo Chantre da Cruz Alex Semedo João da Cruz Abel Nascimento Lima Jose Cupertino Silva Archaeologist Director Archaeologist / OPS Manager / Diver OPS Manager / Diver Surveyor / OPS assistant / Diver Captain expedition vessel Polar Captain expedition vessel Polar Captain expedition vessel Polar Operations Advisor Government Representative Government Representative Dive Supervisor Dive Supervisor Diver Diver Diver Diver Diver Diver/Archaeological Registrar Diver Diver/Nurse Photographer 1st Engineer 1st Engineer 2nd Engineer Deckhand Deckhand /2nd Cook Deckhand Cook Conservation Centre (Centro de Restauração e Museologia CRM) Peter Darracott Manuel Almeida Jose Lima Christian Pauly Piran Johnson Suzanne Deboos Keita Yara de Pina Carlos Lima Director 1st Senior Conservator 1st Conservator assistant Recording Recording Archaeological Drawing Conservator assistant Conservator assistant Conservator assistant 238 Bibliography Ancient coins & Antiquities. 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Stockholm: Lund. 240 Archival Sources • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Actas de la Diputación Provincial de la Coruña for the years 1865-1867 Arquivo Nacional Da Torre Do Tombo (ANTT.), Cartório dos Jesuitas, Maço 36, doc. nº 30, in Monumenta Missionária Africana, 2ª Série, Vol. V, p. 71 Boletín Oficial Provincial de la Coruña for the years 1850-1854, 1857-1866 C4 57 col, 127 - Marine, Archives Nationales de Paris B4 198 fol. 160 - Marine, Archives Nationales de Paris BI 289 Cadix 30-3 - Marine, Archives Nationales de Paris Cx.4 Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.27 Dos.2 Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.28 Dos.27 (30 March 1764) Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.31 Dos.29 (March 1770) Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.31 Dos.32 (12 March 1770) Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.31 Dos.41 (09 April 1770) Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.31 Dos.64 Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.41 Dos.16 (June 1782) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.41 Dos.17 (8 June 1782) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.41 Dos.18 (9 June 1782) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.42 Dos.17 (May 1784) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.44 Dos.20 (27 July 1787) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.44 Dos.41n (29 November 1787) - Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.44 Dos.52- Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. Cx.44 Dos.81- Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Conselho Ultramarino, Cabo Verde. El Miño (Vigo) August 1865 El Pensamiento de Galicia (pub. Ferrol) November 1865 – March 1866 El Progreso (pub. Pontevedra) Extract of a letter from Stephen Lightfoot, castaway surgeon of the 241 • • • • Princess Louisa Indiaman, to Richard Boddicoat, Esq; dated at Barbadoes June 23. Published in the Gentleman’s Magazine, September, 1743. Faro de Vigo (pub. Vigo) for the years 1865 - 1866 Kommercekollegiet 369, no. 967: (1780 36-150) - Public Records Office. Kommercekollegiet 369, no. 968: (1780 36-150) - Public Records Office. Kommercekollegiet 369, no. 969: (1780 36-150) - Public Records Office. 242

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