http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16644634%255E30417,00.html
Relics reveal vigil of real-life Crusoe
Richard Lloyd Parry
September 19, 2005
BRITISH, Japanese and Chilean archeologists have discovered the spot
where Alexander Selkirk, the model for the castaway Robinson Crusoe,
survived in solitude for four years and four months.
After a 13-year search, the team, led by Daisuke Takahashi, a Japanese
explorer, believe they have identified where the 18th-century sailor
camped, cooked and kept a lonely lookout.
The breakthrough was the discovery of a fragment of one of Selkirk's
navigational instruments.
The real-life Crusoe's place ofexile was Mas a Tierra in the Juan
Fernandez archipelago, 750km off Chile. The identity of the island has
long been known; the Chilean Government renamed it Isla de Robinson
Crusoe in the hope ofattracting fans of Daniel Defoe's novel. But
until now, no one has known exactly where Selkirk had lived.
Last January, Mr Takahashi took a team of four scientists to the
remote spot where he suspected Selkirk's camp had been. There they
found traces of a fire, animal bones and holes in which Selkirk
appears to have placed poles to support a shelter.
But the decisive evidence was a 6mm piece of copper, discovered by
David Caldwell of the National Museums of Scotland, and identified by
him as the point of a pair of 17th-century dividers.
Dr Caldwell said: "Selkirk was a navigator, and the account of his
discovery states that he had his navigational equipment with him. In
archaeological terms, that is as good evidence that you are going to
get."
Alexander Selkirk was born in Fife in 1676 and ran away to sea as a
teenager after being charged with indecent behaviour.
He joined William Dampier, the explorer and privateer, but fell out
with a senior officer. Doubtful also about the seaworthiness of the
ship, he had himself put ashore on Juan Fernandez in October 1704 in
the belief that he would be picked up by another ship.
His fears about the vessel were well-founded - it sank soon after with
the loss of most of its crew. But his optimism about rescue was
misplaced. It was not until February 1709 that he was found by a
British captain, who published a book describing the discovery.
Selkirk survived on a diet of wild fruit and vegetables, and a colony
of goats. Unlike Crusoe, he had no Man Friday.
By the time of his rescue, he had lost his command of English, but was
in reasonable health.
Dr Caldwell, who spent a month on the island this year, said: "If
you're going to be a castaway, that's the place to choose. It's a warm
climate all the year round, there are berries you can eat safely, and
abundant fish and other resources."
The team lived with the island's 600 Chilean inhabitants, descendants
of Spaniards who settled on the island 40 years after Selkirk had
left.
The Times
--
Contempt of Congress meter reading-offscale.
Hello, theocracy with a fundamentalist US Supreme
Court who will ensure church and state are joined
at the hip like clergy and altar boys.
America 1776-Jan 2001 RIP
"As democracy is perfected, the office of president
represents, more and more closely, the inner soul
of the people. On some great and glorious day the
plain folks of the land will reach their heart's
desire at last and the White House will be adorned
by a downright moron." --- H.L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)
Religion is the original war crime.
-Michelle Malkin (Feb 26, 2005)
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