Who is Gines de Mafra?

Vic asked:


What was his contribution in solving the riddle of Mazaua, Magellan’s port in the Philippines?

Paul

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One Response to “Who is Gines de Mafra?”

1. aidan402 Says:
   March 23rd, 2009 at 4:56 pm

   He was an explorer in his own right, though he did accompany both Magellan and Villalobos.
   Magellans expedition was the one that proved the spherical earth.

   The puzzle came in the island named Mazaua, which Mafra reported as his port in the Phillipines…..which is not on any map now.
   De Mafra wrote that Magellan’s port was an isle with a circumference of 3-4 leagues or 9-12 nautical miles. Because the shape of the isle is almost circular, 3-4 leagues translate to an area of from 2,214 up to 3,930 hectares.He also said they anchored west of the isle:Mazaua is officially, by Philippine law, declared Limasawa, an isle without anchorage, and the port is officially located east of the isle. In contrast, Limasawa is only 698 hectares. His most clarifying testimony is that Mazaua was 15 leagues, roughly 45 nautical miles, below Butuan of 1521. This puts the port of Mazaua at 9° N, the exact latitude for it by the Genoese Pilot, one of those who wrote an eyewitness account. All these revolutionize geographical conception of Mazaua. What is most telling is that Limasawa has no anchorage! which as stated by the Coast Pilot, Limasawa is fringed by a narrow, steep-to reef, off which the depths are too great to afford anchorage for large vessels.
   Armed with the insight from De Mafra’s account, a team of geologists and archaeologists led by a geomorphologist went to work to validate the hypothesis Mazaua is in 9°N. In January 2001 an incredible discovery met the earth scientists: the geo-political entities composed of Pinamanculan and Bancasi inside Butuan in northern Mindanao was in fact an island. From that point on the archaeologists went to work to find artefacts that would identify the isle as the port of Magellan. Age of Contact ceramics, Sung ceramics, disarticulated human bones have been found that show the isle was inhabited. Corroded iron, metal bracelets, and a brass pestle have been dug up that however have yet to be dated. All the diggings however were done in places outside the suspected village where the Mazauans lived.

   However scientists have not yet examined the entire isle including it’s ocean waters and coastal regions. At the moment no physical evidence of Magellan and De Mafra landing in the isle has been found. As of today, geologists and archaeologists are still digging and investigating the site.