Portugal began to build, since 1518, vessels with autonomy to sail to the Indian and Pacific Oceans. This new type of ship was called galleon and was inspired by Mediterranean typologies; It was probably a three- or four-masted sailing ship, mounting artillery that covered 360º of its surroundings, and which allowed an effective defense against galley attacks. One of these galleons, S. Jorge, captained by D. Fernando de Monroy, was lost in Melinde 500 years ago, in 1524, close to the coasts of Kenya, on its way to India. 

In 2003, the Kenyan Marine Archaeologist Caesar Bita found a sunken ship on Ngomeni Reef, off Melinde, which is probably the Portuguese galleon. Since 2013, a collaborative project led by the National Museums of Kenya has been developed, which has already led to the identification of an important set of sunken vessels along this coast. The researcher Filipe Castro, from the University of Coimbra, has collaborated with the exploratory work and, in this context, has joined the marine robotics group of the University of Porto – Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering (INEGI) and the Atlantic International Research Centre (AIR Centre), which will conduct a monitoring operation using acoustic and image sensors mounted on autonomous underwater vehicles, which will allow the three-dimensional digital reconstruction of sunken vessels,  This includes the identification of artifacts, naval structures or objects with archaeological value. 

It should be noted that this is a non-destructive identification and that all possible recoveries will follow the most demanding practices of naval archaeology, including respect and cooperation with local communities. It is also the beginning of the cooperation between the National Museums of Kenya with the AIR Centre in underwater and coastal heritage research.

This action, which recently received journalistic coverage by the Portuguese edition of National Geographic, will be conducted in close cooperation with local communities and with full respect for the preservation of the maritime heritage they have preserved.

[MM, 25 June 2026]