Galleon Shipwreck 02 Square
by Weston Westmoreland
Title
Galleon Shipwreck 02 Square
Artist
Weston Westmoreland
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
San Juan whaler Galleon shipwreck remains model. Square version.
Close view of the model of the remains of the San Juan Galleon, which have been selected as the icon for the UNESCO Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage organization.
The San Juan Galleon (Nao San Juan) was a 16th century Basque Whaler Galleon (actually it is a "nao", a slightly different and older design which does not translate to English) that sunk in the by the Canadian coast of Red Bay in Labrador in 1565. By the time the French "discovered" Newfoundland and Labrador, the Basque had been whaling there for half a century. They had established commercial relations with the local tribes, who, to their astonishment on arrival, greeted the French in Basque.
The long and thorough archaeological investigation of Selma Huxley discovered this forgotten part of history during which the Basque shipyards led the vanguard in shipbuilding and the Basque whalers held the de facto monopoly of whale oil and other derivatives in Europe.
Selma Huxley's investigation also led to the location of the remains of the San Juan Galleon in Red Bay, Labrador, and a whaling boat that belonged to it. The shipwreck remains protected underwater. The boat can be visited at the museum in Red Bay.
Ships were not built following plans at this time so the finding of this so well preserved shipwreck allowed the scientists to determine the accurate design of these naos, of which we only knew from paintings.
The final result of this discovery has been the building of a real size replica of the galleon in the Albaola shipyard school in Pasajes San Juan, Basque Country, where the original galleon was built 450 years ago. The new San Juan was begun in 2014 and will be finished by 2022. It is being constructed using 16th century techniques. You can visit the museum shipyard and watch its construction in real time any given day. Once finished, the new San Juan will sail across the Atlantic Ocean and pay a visit to its original counterpart in Red Bay, Labrador.
Taller than a Galleon, the Nao (the actual type of ship we are talking about here) was a sturdy ocean traveler. The Santa Maria, Columbus's captain ship in the expedition that discovered the Americas to Europe, was a Nao. So was the Victoria, the vessel Juan Sebastian Elcano used to circumnavigate the Earth for the first time.
A historial ship design that had a first role in events that would change the world, built by the Basque and recovered by the Canadian.
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February 15th, 2020
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