Rediscovering the sunken Wickedest City
Photo: Barba. SAS-I NAH -- Excavating an 18th Century wreck in the Caribbean Fables have been told and written accounts given about this enigmatic city, whose tales spread far and wide. Frequented by pirates – from the one-eyed to the wooden-leg ones (yes, we are taking some inspiration from Pirates of the Caribbean), sailors, wanderers, navy officers – Port Royal etched a name for itself. The notorious Wickedest City, drowning in rum, loot, and debauchery, was engulfed by the sea – a powerful earthquake at around 11.40 a.m. on June 7, 1692. It is said that Three violent shocks, followed by a giant tidal wave, ripped the ground and within minutes, two-thirds of Port Royal sank under the rising waves. Fast-forward to 2022, Mexican archaeologist Roberto Junco, along with colleagues from Japan, Canada, and the Netherlands, among others, are on a mission. “We are helping the Jamaican Government through the Jamaican National Heritage Trust (JNHT) to prepare the dossier for...