The 'great galleon' S. Jo?o was built in 1550 in Lisbon's shipyards and sunk in 1552 on its way back to Portugal before concluding its first voyage to India.
Described as having 900 tons burden, it probably displaced over 2,500 tons and was one of the largest India Route naus built in its time.
The account of its loss is included in Bernardo Gomes de Brito's 18th century anthology Hist?ria Tr?gico-Mar?tima and stands as one of the best-known stories of the period of Portuguese expansion overseas.
It left Cochin on 3 February 1552 under the command of Manuel de Sousa Sep?lveda with a load of 12,000 quintais of pepper, a great quantity of Chinese porcelain, and other merchandise. A heavy storm damaged its rigging and hurled it against the coast, breaking its hull into three parts against the rocky bottom near today's Port Edward in South Africa.
Perhaps 120 of the more than 600 passengers perished in the shipwreck. The survivors endured a grueling five and a half month march to the mouth of the Maputo River, during which the majority died of starvation, disease, and attacks from the indigenous populations. Out of almost 500 people that undertook the march, only 25 arrived at the Maputo River.
In 1980 a sport diver recovered part of a bronze gun from the place believed to be its wreck site. The area was surveyed in 1983 by a team of sport divers who recovered many artifacts in spite of poor visibility, a difficult rocky bottom, and strong surf and current. No hull remains were ever found. Some of the artifacts recovered were then offered to the Natal Museum, in South Africa, including the fragment of the bronze gun, shards of Ming porcelain from the Jiajing period (1522-1566), coarse earthenware, and glass beads from Cambay, India.
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Described as having 900 tons burden, it probably displaced over 2,500 tons and was one of the largest India Route naus built in its time.
The account of its loss is included in Bernardo Gomes de Brito's 18th century anthology Hist?ria Tr?gico-Mar?tima and stands as one of the best-known stories of the period of Portuguese expansion overseas.
It left Cochin on 3 February 1552 under the command of Manuel de Sousa Sep?lveda with a load of 12,000 quintais of pepper, a great quantity of Chinese porcelain, and other merchandise. A heavy storm damaged its rigging and hurled it against the coast, breaking its hull into three parts against the rocky bottom near today's Port Edward in South Africa.
Perhaps 120 of the more than 600 passengers perished in the shipwreck. The survivors endured a grueling five and a half month march to the mouth of the Maputo River, during which the majority died of starvation, disease, and attacks from the indigenous populations. Out of almost 500 people that undertook the march, only 25 arrived at the Maputo River.
In 1980 a sport diver recovered part of a bronze gun from the place believed to be its wreck site. The area was surveyed in 1983 by a team of sport divers who recovered many artifacts in spite of poor visibility, a difficult rocky bottom, and strong surf and current. No hull remains were ever found. Some of the artifacts recovered were then offered to the Natal Museum, in South Africa, including the fragment of the bronze gun, shards of Ming porcelain from the Jiajing period (1522-1566), coarse earthenware, and glass beads from Cambay, India.
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