In a remarkable discovery, researchers might have found the vessel that took the famous Portuguese explorer on his last voyage into the Indian Ocean. The shipwreck lies close to Malindi in Kenya and has attracted the attention of many archaeologists. Although the ship was found in 2013, on a coral reef around 500 m off the coast of Kenya, it sank 500 years ago and could be Vasco da Gama’s ship, Sao Jorge. Scholars from the University of Coimbra, the National Museum of Kenya and the Bergen Maritime Museum are working to ascertain the ship’s identity. The shipwreck has yielded many artefacts and the findings were published in the Journal of Maritime Archaeology. Prominent artefacts found in the wreck include elephant tusks and copper ingots and timbers from its hull. For more information, click here.
