Maritime Museum.

On the South Shore of Smith's Parish an example of ancient epigraphy was found by early Bermudians, carved into a rock 70 feet above the sea, in an area of Bermuda coastline inaccessible from below. It is much effaced but was clearly visible, if not entirely decipherable, early in this century.

The inscription consisted of two illegible letters followed by a cross, and beneath, the clearly inscribed date of `1543'. How the message came to be carved in this rock was not known but the early Bermudians attributed it to shipwrecked Spaniards who were later able to get away safely.

Bermuda's Governor-Historian Sir John H. Lefroy reported that the two letters might be the monogram `F T', but certainly not `F C' which would have supported the local belief that they were left by Fernando Camelo, a Portuguese who in 1527 proposed an expedition to plant a settlement on the island.

In fact, this proposal came to nothing and Camelo never had the opportunity to leave his mark. Lefroy also felt the location to be inappropriate for the leaving of a commemorative engraving by the leader of an expedition.

Most of the islands in the West Indies discovered in the 16th century by the Spaniards were left unsettled and unoccupied.

When these same islands were rediscovered by the English, French or Dutch, there was no apparent historical background regarding the earlier visits by Europeans and the artifacts they had left behind.

Recourse to Spanish or Portuguese archives and books was not in vogue until recent times, but had they been consulted in the earlier period many of the early mysteries and puzzles would have been capable of explanation.

Nearly 50 years ago Spanish Rock attracted the attention of a Portuguese resident of Caracas, Venezuela, J. Vidago, and he applied himself to answering the questions surrounding this Bermuda landmark.

He felt the date spoke for itself but the cross and two letters required an explanation of how the "chisellers' were cast upon the island.

The historiographer Gonzalo Fernandes d'Oviedoy Valdes, more commonly known as Oviedo, stated he saw a convoy of seven vessels leave the harbour of Santo Domingo on July 20 1543.

A Portuguese vessel in ballast, sailing with the convoy, soon separated from the others and after seven or eight days was caught in a northern gale. In spite of severely reducing sail, and a warning from the pilot, Amador Gonzavez -- that land was near, the ship was cast, upon the northern reef of Bermuda in the night.

In the morning it was apparent to the crew that the ship was fast and could not be gotten off. The long boat was lowered and they rowed the four leagues to land and safely rescued all 30 aboard.

Once the sea moderated they made more than 30 trips to the wreck to recover everything that they could. They saved much of their provisions and implements together with sails and spars.

They hoarded their supplies and lived off the easily available birds, fish, turtles, berries and palmettos. Fresh water was found by digging in the sand near the sea. No mention is made of wild hogs. They found evidence of old camp fires, which Oviedo thought might be from an earlier reconnoitring of the island by Carreno, and an old mast thought to have come adrift from a lost ship.

During their sixty days on the island they built a `fine' boat and the 30 survivors reached Santo Domingo on November 2, 1543, after a voyage of 14 days.

While on Bermuda they had more than ample time to create the inscription at `Spanish Rock' and it was practically an obligation that seafaring people should leave such messages, and in as permanent a form as possible.

The date on the inscription and the date of this wreck are now clearly linked one to the other.

The cross is that of the Portuguese Order of Christ in its variant of stretched arms, as used on Portuguese maritime drawings, maps and engravings of the time. It had become the royal emblem of the King of Portugal, as he was the Order's Grand Master.

The letters were interpreted as `R' and `P' for `Rex Portugualiae', possibly representing an attempt to record a Portuguese claim to sovereignty over the island.

It is by no means certain that these Portuguese knew they had wrecked on Bermuda for in the absence of a means of determining longitude, isolated islands were more often than not misplaced, although Oviedo does refer to Bermuda.

So should Spanish Rock be renamed `Portuguese Rock'?