The
ABCD of Dighton Rock
By
Manuel Luciano da Silva, M. D.
By means of the Internet, I consulted many archaeologists across the United States of America, Canada, England, Germany, Holland, and Portugal, to help me to make the diagnosis of the original inscriptions engraved on the 55 square feet surface of Dighton Rock, in Berkley, Massachusetts.
All the answers I received, so far, from all the specialist, informed me that “they did not know, or that it was not within their archaeological specialty”. But these responses are not going to stop my perseverance in searching for some Epigraphist, in the entire world, who specializes in Portuguese Epigraphy of the XV and XVI centuries. I am going to continue to use the Internet and at the same time invite anyone in the world to help me solve the mystery of the Dighton Rock inscriptions. I think we all can learn a lot in the process of making the differential diagnosis of Dighton Rock inscriptions. A true scientist never stops looking for the truth, and is always willing to learn more and more! It is, indeed, lots of fun searching for the truth!
For anyone to be an epigraphist has to know many languages. The greatest epigraphist of all time was Jean-Francois Champollion, who deciphered the Rosetta Stone. He knew fourteen languages! An epigraphists has to know the various alphabets (Phoenician, Hebrew, Greek, Roman, Runic, Ogam), but also the Hindu-Arabian numerals and the National and Religious Symbols of all nations. Unfortunately the American archaeologists-epigraphists are not familiar with these icons.
Even though I am opened to any other diagnosis of Dighton Rock inscriptions, I present here to all the readers, the basic information for the Portuguese connection of Dighton Rock inscriptions. One just needs to know the Portuguese ABCD of Dighton Rock!
The Portuguese ABCD of Dighton Rock
(A)The numeral 5 is like a capital S
(B)The Portuguese National symbols: “U” and “V” shaped
(C)The unique Portuguese Cross of the Order of Christ, with 45 degree branches
(D) The different types of letting in Portugal, in XV and XVI centuries
(A) The numeral 5 is like a capital S
The
Arabs when they conquered the Iberian Peninsula in 711A.D.,
left the Hindu-Arabic
numerals, which started
to be used instead of the
Roman letters for numbers.
Through
out Portugal and Portuguese
overseas colonies, during the XVI century,
all the 1500 dates were engraved with
the numeral 5 in a shape of
a capital S, as we use today.
Photographs
:
Tomb stone in Continental Portugal with date 1S99
Portuguese Church in Seri-Lanka
with the date 1S01
Now observe the date 1S11 with the five like a capital S, engraved on Dighton Rock
(B) The Portuguese National symbols: “U” and “V” shaped
At
the present time (March 2002) there are in the world 204 independent states, or
nations. Portugal, in the most western part of Europe, will be celebrating NINE
centuries of independence in the year of 2039. In size it is a small country (
equal to the size of state of Maine, in U. S. A.), but because of its great
discoveries which involved more than
2/3 of the oceans, Portugal has a glorious history.
Yet
the major American Encyclopedias (Britannica Encyclopedia, World Book,
Encyclopedia Americana, etc.) do
not have any information about the Portuguese National Symbols. This is a fact
that needs to be corrected! Portugal
has two National Symbols: one “V” and the other “U” shaped. They are
both engraved on the face of Dighton Rock.
Photographs:
Compared the “V” shaped Portuguese Coat of Arms above With the one below engraved on Dighton Rock
(C) The unique Portuguese Cross of the Order of Christ, with 45 degree extremities
If
we consult the “Encyclopedia Heraldica” by William Berry of 1828 (Harvard
University Library, in Cambridge, Massachusets), we can verify that there are
more than 300 different crosses in the world.
One
fact that needs to be corrected in North America
is that, unfortunately, NONE
of the popular American Encyclopedias make any reference to the
Portuguese Cross of the Order of Christ, which, among 300
different crosses, has
the unique characteristics of having its branches terminating in
45 degree angles. This cross
was the symbol of the Portuguese discoveries
and was displayed on the sails of its caravels. There are four of these
crosses engraved on the face of Dighton Rock.
Photographs:
(Above and Left) Note the extremities terminating in 45 degree angles
Vasco da Gama's Nau, right, in the Dighton Rock Museum
Today’s Sagres Ship, Portuguese Nautical School
The Portuguese Cross of the Order of Christ engraved on Dighton Rock
(D) The different types of letting in Portugal, in XV and XVI centuries
The fourth icon we must know, in order
to be able to read the Portuguese
epigraphic findings of the XV and
XVI centuries, is the formats of the lettering
used at that time. The best source
for this letterings are the XV and
XVI centuries Portuguese maps or
cartography.
The Portuguese inherited the Roman alphabet, which was
copied from the Greeks, with a total of 21 letters. Later they added G (derived
from C) and Y (derived from V).
The letters J, U, and W were not used by the Romans at all. Because the
Roman alphabet did not have the letter U, the V was used instead.
During the discoveries, the Portugueses stone cutters
had always preferred the V over the letter U. During the Middle Ages, in
Portugal different scribes adopted the shape of the letters which suited their
favored styles, such as Roman, the Uncial, and Gothic forms. The name of the Miguel Corte Real was inscribed on
Dighton Rock with these three type of letters.
Photographs:
The
3 types of letting engraved
on Dighton Rock
Photos taken by Edmund Delabarre in 1924, at night, with light sideways
Three photos by Delabarre with light sideways
Color photo, at night with light sideways, by National Geographic Magazine in 1975
Conclusion of the Portuguese inscriptions
Compare with the Portuguese National Symbols