The Oranjemund shipwreck is the archaeological remains of an early 17th century Portuguese trading ship, discovered by miners working on the Atlantic coast of Africa near the mouth of the Orange River on Namibia's southern border with South Africa.
The Oranjemund mines are diamond mines, where miners dredge the sand to recover diamonds. During a mining episode in 2008, miners discovered two cannons, several copper ingots and pieces of wood, anchors, lead sheeting and other artifacts, leading the NAMDEB mining company to contact the local heritage authorities.
Subsequent excavations produced a large amount of gold, silver and copper alloy coins; elephant ivory tusks; tons of copper, lead, pewter and tin ingots; kitchenware; cannons, muskets and swords; navigational equipment and medical equipment. Some of the copper ingots were inscribed with the Fugger family crest, a prominent family from Augsburg, Germany who were invested in the Portuguese shipping trade. Dates on the coins range from 1525 through the early 17th century.
Although the ship itself was badly destroyed, researchers examining the remaining planks suggest that the ship was a nau, a large, strong ship used by the Portuguese on their India Routes. Ten anchors, all of cast iron, were discovered within the excavations. Three astrolabes and a brass compass gimbal were recovered from Oranjemund.
Oranjemund Shipwreck Archaeology
Initial excavations were undertaken in April 2008 by Dieter Noli and Bruno Werz; larger excavations were conducted by an international team later that year.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guide to Shipwrecks, and the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Chirikure S, Sinamai A, Goagoses E, Mubusisi M, and Ndoro W. 2010. Maritime Archaeology and Trans-Oceanic Trade: A Case Study of the Oranjemund Shipwreck Cargo, Namibia. Journal of Maritime Archaeology 5(1):37-55.
