Bom Jesus (ship)

The Bom Jesus was a Portuguese nau and Indiaman that set sail from Lisbon, Portugal, on Friday, March 7, 1533. Its fate was unknown until 2006, when its remains were discovered during diamond mining operations on the coast of Namibia, near Oranjemund.[1][2]

Discovery

In 2006, a geologist working for the De Beers diamond company discovered a copper ingot. An unusual trident-shaped mark on this aged metal was later identified as the hallmark of Anton Fugger, one of Renaissance Europe's wealthiest merchants. The ingots were used in trading for spices in the Indies in the first half of the 16th century. The shipwreck is the oldest and most valuable ever discovered on the coast of sub-Saharan Africa. The discovery was unusual in that all of the ship's contents were able to be recovered and cataloged without interference from scavengers due to the highly secure nature of De Beers mining operations.

The cargo included 44,000 copper ingots, which are credited with weighing the ship down and deterring insects and decaying organisms, all of which helped to preserve the remains of the Bom Jesus.[3][4][5][6][7] Examination of ivory from the ship has helped to reveal the genetic diversity of African elephants around the date of its loss.[8]

Identification and preservation

The identification of the ship is approximate, due to the Portuguese archives being completely destroyed in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. Rare Portuguese coins were discovered in the wreck which were only minted from 1525 and 1538, helping to date and identify the vessel.[9] Work is underway to preserve and display the remains of the ship and all of its cargo in a public museum.[10]

Research and studies

See also

References
  1. "Shipwreck in the Forbidden Zone". Magazine. 2009-10-01. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  2. "African World Heritage Fund award to Namdeb". www.observer.com.na. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  3. Page, Tom (2016-05-10). "The diamond rush that revealed an ancient secret". CNN Travel. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  4. dhwty. "The Misfortune of the Bom Jesus, the Diamond Shipwreck". www.ancient-origins.net. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  5. "In Namibia, 1533 Portuguese shipwreck's relics hidden". www.apnews.com. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  6. "Miners find 500-year-old shipwreck filled with gold in desert". The Independent. 2016-06-09. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  7. Zeitung, Allgemeine. "Museum könnte in Kürze stehen - Lokales - Allgemeine Zeitung". www.az.com.na. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  8. Gill, Victoria (2020-12-17). "Ivory: Elephant decline revealed by shipwreck cargo". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-12-19.
  9. Namibian, The. "Diamond coast shipwreck gets spot in National Geographic". The Namibian. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  10. Namibian, The. "Sunken ship treasure successfully rescued". The Namibian. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
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