A multidisciplinary team of eleven researchers has reconstructed the sinking of an Italian ship that lay barely eight metres deep under the mud of the Bay of Cadiz.
The ship is the San Giorgio e Sant’Elmo Buonaventura, one of between 30 and 35 ships that the English explorer and privateer Sir Francis Drake destroyed in the port of Cadiz on 29 April 1587, on the express orders of Queen Elizabeth I.
The results of the study (source in Spanish), entitled “Experimental sciences in underwater archaeology: Delta II wreck (San Giorgio and Sant’Elmo Buonaventura)”, have been possible thanks to the combination of genomics, dendroarchaeology, palaeobiology, physicochemistry, archaeology and archival techniques.
The thick layer of mud that covered the remains generated an anaerobic environment that preserved the organic material in an exceptional state of conservation.
A 16th century inventory
Among the finds were the skeletal remains of cows, pigs, goats and chickens, as well as the skull of a woman between 25 and 35 years old with an impact to the forehead.
Sealed jars containing olives in brine with capers, bay leaves, rosemary and oregano were also recovered.
Analysis of DNA extracted from inside the jars identified pathogens associated with pneumonia and skin and respiratory infections caused by Staphylococcus, providing new information on the diseases suffered by the crew.
Oaxaca Cochineal in Baltic barrels
One of the most striking discoveries was a series of wooden barrels containing a dense red substance, identified by the University of La Laguna as Dactylopius coccus costa, the insect from which cochineal is extracted.
This dye, from the Mexican region of Oaxaca, was the third most sought-after product in the Americas during the Modern Age. The barrels, made from Baltic wood, were cut between 1586 and 1601, a date that fits precisely with the date of the sinking.
The study was carried out by experts from the Andalusian Historical Heritage Institute, the consultancy Tanit Gestión Arqueológica, the CSIC, DendroResearch Wageningen (Netherlands), the Aranzadi Science Society, the University of La Laguna and the Doñana Biological Station.