Cape Agulhas, the continent's rugged, southernmost tip, about three hours' drive from the city of Cape Town, South Africa, is currently under the international spotlight owing to the discovery of one such sailing ship. Braving the coastline en route from the Far East to the Cape of Good Hope in the 18th Century, with a large cargo of Chinese porcelain and other precious goods, she met her end after striking an undetected reef.

She is the ill-fated 'Brederode', a wreck pursued since 1982 when she first caught the attention of her salvors. Built in Amsterdam by the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in 1780, she was to enjoy a very short life at sea.

It is owing to the expertise - not to mention perseverance - of an international team of researchers and salvagers that her story and treasures will soon be known to historians, collectors and the curious in the very near future.

Renowned South African salvaging expert Charlie Shapiro and his group, Aqua Exploration - the country's most prominent, professional salvage group - had spent many years combing the area for a sign of her remains, contracting, at intervals, several different survey companies to assist them in their search. But in 1997, when the Group had a chance meeting with Sverker Hallstrom while he was on a working visit to the country, the fate of the project shifted into a new direction.

A joint venture between the two parties was to prove a huge success. In 1998, the wreck of the 'Brederode' was finally discovered and, after a long process of licensing and negotiation*, announced to the world at a press conference in Cape Town on 23 September 1999 (the day before National Heritage Day in that country).

*The project has been carried out in close collaboration with the South African National Monuments Council, the South African Natural History Museum and the Maritime Museum in Cape Town.

It was on the return leg of her maiden voyage, to the Far East, that the 'Brederode' suffered her tragic end.

Under the command of Captain Gottlieb Mulder, the 'Brederode' began her journey by calling at the VOC's victualing station at the Cape of Good Hope in November 1783, departing the following January for Batavia and China, where her holds were filled with a great variety of valuable goods - tea, fine silk and linen cloth, exotic spices, Chinese porcelain, tin and gold. She began her journey home on 27 January 1785.

It is possible to re-live the events leading to the disaster owing to a detailed report written, in Dutch, by Captain Mulder for the attention of the VOC "Politieke Raad". Around sunset on 3 May, headed on a westerly course towards the Cape of Good Hope, the eastern and southern corners of Cape Agulhas had been charted as north-east by east and north-west by west respectively. At 1am on 4 May, the south point of Agulhas could be seen as expected - the distance estimated to be 2 to 2.5 miles. The captain and officers came to the conclusion that, since sunset, the ship had drifted 3.5 miles west by south in the strong current. She was turned very strongly around the north, making it extremely difficult to steer her round the south.

Another attempt led to disaster; the 'Brederode' struck against a concealed reef, which no-one had seen owing to an absence of any surf or breakers in the sea. According to the officers, it was possible that the distance of the reef shown on the chart was less than 1.5 miles off the shore, or that the reef was more to the east and to the south, or an uncharted reef altogether.

Again and again, in quick succession, she was dashed against it, the fourth time causing her to sound. The crew tried in vain to turn their ship's head towards the shore, hoping that she might be run onto a good beach, thus allowing them to salvage as much as possible of the Company's valuable cargo. But she remained in her position, lying with her head to the south. When the water rose to 10 feet, it was decided to launch both big and small boats in preparation for abandoning the vessel before it became too sluggish for them to put the boats out. Throughout the chaos, three pumps were put to continuous work, while continued - although fruitless - attempts were made to turn her towards the shore.

By 4am, the water had risen to 14.5 feet and the weather had begun to change for the worse. At 4.30am, the decision was made to abandon the 'Brederode'.

The morning's horror was not over, however. Daylight revealed to those safely in the life boats signals from the sinking ship, indicating that there had been people left on board. Even though it was through their own neglect that they had not made it to the boats - all had sufficient knowledge that the ship was being abandoned - the captain and officers saw no possibility of returning to the far-off vessel. They decided, rather, to land everyone on shore, after which they would return for the others.

At 10 am, after battling through dangerous surf, the 'Brederode's' 80 survivors reached the shore, meaning - after a count - that there were 12 people left on board the ship. But they were not to be saved; on landing, the heavy breakers prevented the boats going back into the water.

Nine days later, Captain Mulder and his officers were called upon to give an account of the circumstances which led to the sinking of his ship.The wrecking of the 'Brederode' saw 12 lives lost and 80 lives saved.

Aqua Exploration - comprising Charlie Shapiro, Micky Shapiro, Erik Lombard, Andre Hartman, Traill Witthuhn and Mike Keulemans (who passed away in 1991) - has an excellent track record. Among other discoveries, the group was actively involved in finding the first English East Indiaman, the 'Johanna', wrecked on the South African coastline in 1682. They were also chiefly responsible for excavating the famous wreck, the 'Birkenhead 1852'.

Like all reputable salvaging companies, Shapiro's group believes the prerequisite to the success of any shipwreck search is comprehensive research and analysis. Charlie Shapiro had years before begun delving into the Netherlands' and South Africa's archives for information pertaining to the location of the 'Brederode'. Enough was written for him to learn that the ship sank off Agulhas, and a search was commenced in 1982.

Over a 16 year period, the group had had little opportunity to investigate the area for more than two months of every year. Off Agulhas, the sea and weather conditions are generally treacherous.

In 1991, they came into contact with a local fisherman who, trawling the ocean floor in the area, had caught a wooden pulley block in his net. With an approximate position, they tried their luck again, joined by Mike Keuleman on his last trip out to sea. This time they were more successful, capturing a side-scan image of a possible site in 65 meters of water. However, up until 1997, none of the professional survey companies they had contracted had managed to identify this site positively.

Hallstrom was in Durban, South Africa, with his ship, 'Scorpio', in late 1997. He had completed the preliminary phase of a search in Madagascar and, while in this country, was interested in pursuing a closer look at some local projects he had in his files. One of these was the 'Brederode'. Hallstrom, learning of Shapiro's involvement in the search for the missing wreck, decided to meet him to discuss the possibility of a collaboration. When they did meet, they agreed that the combination of Hallstrom's expertise and Aqua Exploration's research on the wreck's potential position, as well as their familiarity with the local authorities, was worth their joining forces.

An agreement was signed and the team set out on the 'Scorpio' on 22 May 1998. This entailed, firstly, verifying Aqua Exploration's three proposed positions before searching any new areas. Two of these positions were discarded within a day, the remaining one of particular interest to Shapiro's group. Three side-scan searches were subsequently conducted in this area, each time proving unsuccessful.

Frustrations were high, and even Hallstrom - used to this repetitive process of returning to an area again and again from previous experience - felt his optimism wane. By this time he had fulfilled his contractual obligation, searching the areas given to him as well as several of his own determined positions. Also, it would soon be time for the arrival of winter storms, a factor causing further reluctance to start the search anew.

Determination won, however, and it was decided that the team would bolster its search with the use of Hallstrom's magnetometer, which was air-freighted from Sweden. The dense expanse of rocks in the area had not allowed for an optimal performance by the side-scan sonar on its own. With the arrival of the magnetometer, the operation began to show positive results, renewing the hopes of all involved.

Hallstrom scoured "his" area for 24 hours a day, weather permitting, until at last two interesting readings had been obtained. One of them was a geological anamoly of some sort, the other - what appeared to be a shipwreck dating to the early 19th Century. But the Aqua Exploration team were keen for Hallstrom to return to their primary location and, owing to the camaraderie between them, it was agreed. However this time the search effort was concentrated in another area, adjacent to the area already searched.

This time - after a few hours - a target was recorded, and the next few hours spent attempting to pinpoint its exact position. Late that night the weather drastically deteriorated and the 'Scorpio' had to take shelter in nearby Struisbaai (Struis Bay). By morning the conditions had not yet abated and - despite the mounting excitement - the day's work was put on hold. By the 28 June, the wind and swell in the Bay had increased to the extent that the Scorpio had to weigh anchor and steam up and down in the area until the early hours of the following morning.

By the early morning of 30 June the weather forecast verified that the storm had run its course. Charlie and Karen Shapiro, along with team member Erik Lombard, joined Hallstrom on the 'Scorpio', and the ship set out for what was firmly believed to be the "real" site. High optimism ruled the journey, and soon after finding a place to anchor, the 'Sea Owl' ROV was sent down to comb the sand dunes.

After about an hour's navigation, a thrilling image appeared on the monitor - a wreck! Indeed, the wreck of the elusive Brederode, unseen since she went down in 1785! Within moments, shards of blue and white porcelain, scattered across the sand, appeared on the monitor, followed by images of tin ingots, a heavily encrusted cannon, an anchor and rows of boxes of the exquisite Chinese porcelain.

The historic moment, captured on video, had been a long time coming. However, when the sea current and a mounting swell.began to change the ship's position, a degree of patience had to be restored. Heading back to Struisbaai, the team decided to wait no longer to celebrate their success, and the champagne (standing by in the wings) was finally opened.

The discovery made at last, the team of Aqua Exploration and Hallstrom Holdings began the long process of obtaining a license for her excavation. The license was eventually signed and sealed on 6 August 1999, its outcome highly positive for all. The team, in conjunction with South African maritime archaeologists, will soon begin the careful recovery of the Brederode's cargo, bringing to light - and preserving - a fascinating fragment of history.

According to an agreement with the South African Government and the National Monuments Council, the team has been granted all the porcelain and tin - except for representative samples of each category of porcelain, which will be kept and displayed at the South African Maritime Museum.

The South African Maritime Museum
The South African Maritime Museum is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the preservation of South African maritime heritage.

Jaco Boshoff - chief maritime archaeologist (CMA)
E-mail: jboshoff@sachm.org.za

South African National Monuments Council (SANMC)
The SANMC is a statutory organisation established under the National Monuments Act (act 28 of 1969) as the administrative body responsible for the protection of the country's cultural and historical heritage.

• The principal objects of the NMC are:
• to preserve and protect the historical and cultural heritage
• to encourage and promote the preservation and protection of that heritage, and
• to co-ordinate all activities in connection with national monuments and cultural treasures in order that they will be retained as tokens of the past and may serve as an inspiration.

Historical wrecks are a valuable maritime archaeological resource and are protected by the NMC against unauthorised salvage. In issuing salvage permits, the NMC ensures that archaeological methods are used and that valuable cultural material recovered from the wrecks is housed in suitable museums.

No person shall destroy, damage, alter, disturb or export from the Republic…….any wreck or portion of a wreck, known or generally believed to have been in South African territorial waters longer than 50 years…….without a permit from the National Monuments Council.

John Gribble - maritime archaeologist
E-mail: jgribble@sahra.org.za

Watch this space to read all about the excavation of the 'Brederode' as well as for details pertaining to her treasure, exhibitions, merchandise for sale and more!