Researchers move a step closer to one of the most important archaeological finds in history.
In July of 1519, in a bold act that changed the course of history, Spanish conquistador, Hernán Cortés, ordered his men to sink all but one of the 11 ships they sailed from Cuba to what is now Mexico. It was a remarkable act of “all or nothing” commitment that has become legend, and Cortés’s subsequent conquest of Mexico irrevocably altered the New World and set world geopolitics on a course that continues today. The remains of those scuttled ships have never been found. But five hundred years later, new clues are bringing an international team of researchers tantalizingly closer.
In the summer of 2018, The Lost Ships of Cortés Project, whose participants hail from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the University of Miami, and the non-profit Submerged Archaeological Conservancy International (SACI), spent six weeks surveying a 30-square-kilometer area offshore of the first Spanish town in North America established by Cortés, Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz, where the scuttling event took place. Utilizing modern science and technology, local community knowledge, and resources provided by INAH, the team located an anchor buried in the seabed, in more than 10 meters of water. Dating techniques, wood species identification, and morphological analysis determined the anchor dated to the correct era and exhibited the style of those Cortés would have used aboard his ships.
And just this year, in July of 2019, the team returned to the area and found two more anchors whose form and construction are consistent with the first one. More intriguingly, these anchors were found buried and aligned along a north-south axis, placing them in an orientation consistent with the hypothesis that the ships were anchored offshore and systematically scuttled in place.
“Understanding the scuttling event is essential as it provides a window into the mindset and urgency Hernán Cortés likely felt as he prepared his company of men to march to Tenochtitlán, the Aztec capital” said Christopher Horrell, President of SACI and Co-Principal Investigator of The Lost Ships of Cortés Project. Volunteer diver and SACI Board Member Peter Tattersfield stated “the sinking of the fleet set in motion the events that ultimately shaped Mexico into what it is today”.
The discovery of three 16th century anchors is providing valuable archaeological data to the team. The anchor discovered in 2018 measures just over 2 meters long and may represent a bower anchor. The anchor is buried fluke-down at an angle with its ring laid out as if it were still moored to a vessel. The two anchors located in 2019, however, are larger in size. The largest of the anchors was found approximately 300 meters north of the anchor discovered in 2018, and measures 3.68 meters in length. The third anchor, found only 100 meters to the north of the largest anchor, is the second largest in size measuring 2.60 meters in length.
As for the reasons for the scuttling event, there are a few hypotheses based on the archaeological data. Frederick “Fritz” Hanselmann of the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and co-Principal Investigator suggests “Cortés had a mutiny he had to quell from men who wanted to return to Cuba, so scuttling those ships was his way of sealing their fate and forcing their allegiance to him and his cause.” Both Horrell and INAH’s Roberto Junco, also a Co-Principal Investigator of the project and Director of Underwater Archaeology at INAH, also believe that there are more complicated behavioral processes at work in understanding the scuttling event. While it is documented by chroniclers that Cortés gave the order to destroy the vessels, a structure and chain of command as well as an understanding of basic seamanship and planning were considered in carrying out Cortés’ order. Leaving the vessels on the beach only to be repaired and sailed back to Cuba by a number of disgruntled sailors and soldiers would have proven problematic. Moving them offshore and sinking them would not only serve as a lesson, it would also prevent potential salvage efforts while providing a man-made hazard to navigation for other ships and conquistadors that might attempt to usurp Cortés and his cohorts.
For now, the anchors remain where they were found—several kilometers offshore in more than 10 meters of water. Without the means to analyze and preserve the artifacts, the project team followed archaeological protocol and reburied them after detailed documentation efforts. Upon acquiring additional funding, the team plans to recover and conserve at least one of the anchors, and explore dozens of other magnetic anomalies in their vicinity, some bearing similar magnetic signatures to the three anchors. The most promising anomalies are clustered together, which could indicate multiple components of a shipwreck site, exactly what the team is hoping to find.
Given that they weren’t laden with gold or other riches, the ships of Hernán Cortés haven’t attracted treasure hunters who scour the seas for Spanish shipwrecks. But to the Lost Ships of Cortés Project team, the sunken fleet offers a glimpse into the beginning of the conquest that ushered in a new era of globalization, connecting and reshaping different cultures, peoples, and nations across time. Importantly, “the discovery of the wooden hulls would offer archaeologists an unprecedented opportunity to study early 16th century Iberian ship construction represented by more than one vessel type” said Melanie Damour, Vice President of SACI and Co-Principal Investigator of the project.
The Lost Ships of Cortés Project was supported by Marine Magnetics and Aquadive Watches.
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For more information or comment about The Lost Ships of Cortés Project, contact:
Christopher Horrell, President, SACI: chris@sacint.org (1.504.473.0412)
Melanie Damour, Vice President, SACI: melanie@sacint.org
About SACI:
Submerged Archaeological Conservancy International’s mission is to promote conservancy and sustainability through the exploration and preservation of underwater archaeological resources in our planet’s oceans.
With more than 40 years of combined experience spanning Federal and State government, academic, private cultural resource management, and philanthropic sectors, our team identifies, documents, and preserves submerged archaeological sites with the goal of promoting ocean conservation. Our work has included projects throughout the eastern and southwestern USA, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Belize, Guatemala, and the Caribbean.
Our submerged archaeological expertise includes high-resolution remote sensing surveys, diver visual investigation of potential sites, archaeological excavation, mapping, documentation, underwater photography and cinematography, archival research, artifact conservation and curation, site management, developing best management practices, conservation planning, site interpretation, and long-term preservation.
Website: https://www.sacint.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sacint.org/
Instagram: @saci_org
About INAH:
The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) investigates, preserves and disseminates the archaeological, anthropological, historical and paleontological heritage of the nation in order to strengthen the identity and memory of the society that holds.
INAH has full regulatory authority and leadership in the protection and conservation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage, and is at the forefront thanks to its excellence in research and in the training of professionals in the area of competence. Its activities have high social impact, as with the different levels of government and society is involved in decision making for the conservation and knowledge of heritage and national memory.
The National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) is the federal government agency established in 1939 to ensure research, technical definitions, protection and dissemination of prehistoric, archaeological, anthropological, historical and paleontological heritage of Mexico. Its creation has been essential to preserve our cultural heritage.
Website: https://www.inah.gob.mx
Instagram: @inahmx