SAHRA Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage
April 24:
“This day in our shipwreck and aeronautical wreck history”
1554: São Bento, this wooden Portuguese carrack wrecked near the intertidal island at the Msikaba River mouth in the Eastern Cape. It had been trading, overloaded with cargo between Europe and the East and was in need of urgent repairs.
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| A monument that was erected using props, in honour of those that perished during the wrecking of the São Bento (1554), by Mark Auret and Boris Rivett-Carnac (located near the wreck site) |
On the voyage, whilst passing southern Africa, it was clear that the carrack was in a sinking state in a storm, so the captain made the call to run it aground rather than risk foundering at sea. Several people perished during the wrecking and the survivors camped on the banks of the Msikaba River for a few nights before deciding to undertake the arduous, overland journey to the Portuguese trading post setup in Inhambane (in modern day Mozambique). Although records are incomplete, like records of most Portuguese wrecks are because of the fires of the 1755 Earthquake in Lisbon, it is estimated that there were approximately 450 lives on board the ship before it wrecked.
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| An image of "tiré de l'História trágico Maritima," by Bernardo Gomes de Brito 1735, which is a woodcut depicting the wrecking of the São Bento (1554) |
Of those, 224 enslaved people and 98 Portuguese survived the wrecking, but ultimately only 3 enslaved people and 20 Portuguese reached Inhambane. However, not all of the remaining people died during the overland journey, as some chose to settle and live in the areas that they were hiking through instead of attempting to reach the Portuguese outpost. As for the wreck site, it was discovered in 1968 and identified after years of studies by Tim Maggs and Chris Auret, which they published on in 1982.
1883: Sierra Palma, this British sailing barque wrecked after striking a submerged rock near the Inchara River mouth at Morgans Bay in the Eastern Cape. One man drowned during the wrecking.
