Former trade

In the summer of 1981, the crew of dredger “Odin” salvaged the remains of a sunken ship from the early 17th century. Its cargo consisted of muskets, knives, brass jars, as well as various types of copper and tin ingots. Almost all of the copper sheets and ingots show stamp marks which indicate the places of production or trading houses of that time. The composition of the cargo suggests the ship was on its way to Portugal, where metal armlets, so-called manillas, were to be produced from the copper. These were bartered by Portuguese traders for gold, ivory, spices, and slaves because manillas were accepted as a means of payment for a long time, especially on the west coast of Africa.