The Lost Caravel"On 26 May 1526, four Spanish ships under the command of Garcia Jofre de Loaisa passed intio the Pacific from the Strait of Magellan bound for the spice-rich East Indies. Six days later they were separated by a storm and one ship, the caravel San Lesmes, was never heard of again. Now, after a lapse of four and a half centuries, historian Robert Langdon has put forward the theory that the caravel was wrecked on an atoll to the east of Tahiti, that the crew survived and intermarried with the local women, and that over the next 250 years they and their descendants spread to many Polynesian islands. He claims that the castaways established Hispano-Polynesian dynasties, that they grafted elements of Iberian culture onto the existing Polynesian culture, and that much that has previously been attributed to the genius of the Polynesians, was, in fact, derived from Europe. ... Two of his most remarkable conclusions are that the mysterious inscribed tablets of Easter island owed their origin to the castaways' writing system, and that the so-called fleet that has ling been thought to have carried the Maoris [sic] from eastern Polynesia to New Zealand about 1350 A.D., was, in fact an expedition of sixteenth-century Spaniards trying to get home by way of the Cape of Good Hope!" -- Book jacket. |
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added Amanu American Anaa Anaans ancient appearance arrived ashore atoll Banks Basque Beaglehole became boats brown called cannon canoes Captain carried castaways century chapter chief cloth colour Cook crew culture descendants described discovered dogs early Easter Island Ellis Emory English European evidence example expedition explorers eyes fact Fangatau five Forster four French further hair hand inhabitants journal known land language later learned light lived Maori Markham means miles missionaries months Museum Napuka native Navarrete never noted officers origin Pacific passed Polynesian probably published Raiatea reached recorded reef remarkable returned sailed San Lesmes seems seen ships side similar skin Society Islands soon South Spain Spaniards Spanish Stimson Tahiti Tahitians things thought Tonga took traditions Tuamotuan Tuamotus vessel visited voyage women wrote Zealand