SEASON 13, EPISODE 23, “ISLAND HOPPING” EPISODE ANALYSIS BY DANIEL SPINO
- 5 hours ago
- 6 min read
In this week’s episode, “ISLAND HOPPING”, the show began with the Oak Island team arriving in the AZORES and started their visit at Igreja De Sao Sebastiao Church on Terceira Island. This is the oldest Catholic Church in the Azores which was built in 1545. The team met archivist and Researcher, Francisco Noguiera and Templar Historian Manuel Gandra at the Church to see if there were any clues there that could connect the Knights Templar/Order of Christ and Oak Island Theory. It was mentioned that the Knights Templar continued through the Order of Christ in Portugal and could have moved a theoretical treasure to Oak Island. The first clue that was presented was what Researcher Corjan Mol believed was a Goose Paw Symbol carved in the church architecture. He has found this symbol in other locations, and he believes it ties to the Knights Templar and their tradition.
The action shifted to LOT 8, where the Oak Island Team continued to work on the Cradle area where the large boulder was located. A Bobcat was brought in to dig around where the cradle is located, creating a trench in an adjacent spot. The Archeologists did not want to dig in the actual cradle yet because they still have more excavation to do. There is still a belief by the team that a tunnel could be located under the Cradle, although Marty did say it was an “Off Chance”. After digging, they noticed a lot of rocks in the ground and also slate. This confused the team because it was higher than the other slate found in the Cradle. They said they would leave this feature for now until the rest of the team returns from the Azores. It should be noted as previously, stated by Geologist Dawn Herrington to the Compendium, it is “slate bedding planes in the Meguma.” There should not be anything found below this layer.
We were then taken back to the AZORES, with the team meeting in Serreta, where archivist and historian Francisco Noguiera showed the team this area. The Mata da Serreta (Serreta Forest Reserve) is a protected natural area located on the western coast of Terceira Island. Stone walls that are similar to the construction of the wall on Lot 26 on Oak Island are visible through the landscape. These walls seem to have been made for agricultural and property line reasons. It was stated that the wall on Lot 26 was dated to 1475, but it should be noted that the carbon dating of charcoal that was found within it has revealed that was created between 1474 and 1638. The walls in Serreta are believed to have been built starting in the late 1400’s and into the 1500’s.
The action then took us back to the CENTER ROAD AREA, where the Oak Island team continued to locate evidence that there was a previous road under Center Road. The team planned to take a cross section of the road to confirm that a road was there before the modern road was built. The team was looking for sand and found this spot to be unsuitable because it had too much gravel, rocks, and sand to make a determination. They felt this area would not give them an accurate assessment so they decided they would check another spot.
We were then taken to back to the AZORES, where the Oak Island Team traveled to Angra Do Heroismo Mueseum on Terceira Island. The team met with Archeologist Tiago Rodrigues. Rodrigues presented them with a very old stone carving from the 1450’s, which is believed to be the oldest carving on Terceira. The team noticed a ribbon design that they claimed resembled the copper piece that was discovered on Lot 8. This piece was also compared to items found in Scandinavia when the team visited there as well. Rodrigues then examined some artifacts found on Oak Island. The stone shot that was determined to originate in Labrador, an alleged hand cannon found in the Swamp, a Deck Spike found on Lot 5 and the “Salomon Coin” that was allegedly found on Oak Island. Rodrigues stated that all these items could suggest that the Portuguese were on Oak Island.
The episode concluded back on CENTER ROAD where the Oak Island team continued its investigation into the extension of the Sand Road. The Oak Island team located another spot to investigate. After some digging, they found evidence of sand that went under the modern Center Road which suggested that the Sand Road was there before it. While digging, Metal Detectorist Gary Drayton found an Ox Nail. This is the second one that has been found along this Sand Road that suggests that oxen were moving on it at one time. The team wonders if this road was there before the 1762 Survey of Oak Island. In this author’s opinion it is clear that the Sand Road is the boundary marker between lots of that survey. If that is the case, it leads to the Stone Road in the Swamp area. It is most likely that this area was part of the marking the lots for the 1762 Survey by Charles Morris.
DANIEL’S ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARY:
During this week’s episode, the Oak Island Team suggested that the Knights Templar had a treasure that was transferred through the Azores by the Portuguese Order of Christ and then on to Oak Island in the 1300’s. The question that must be asked is why would the Knights Templar and Order of Christ do this? The Knights Templar in 1307 were arrested in France. Some fled to other countries that were still friendly to the order. In 1312, the order was officially disbanded by the Vatican. King Denis of Portugal in 1318, created the Order of Christ that absorbed all of the Portuguese Templars and their lands in Portugal. The Oak Island team suggested that a Knights Templar treasure that was in Portugal was transferred to the Azores then on to Oak Island during the 1383–1385 Portuguese Interregnum (War of Succession). In this author’s opinion this theory has some historical problems.
The first problem with this theory is that the Portuguese Interregnum war was based on who would succeed the Portuguese throne. After the death of King Ferdinand I of Portugal in 1383, his only heir was his daughter Princess Beatrice who married King John I of Castile (Spain). This meant that Portugal would be under Spanish rule. Many Portuguese objected and their claimant was John of Aviz; Illegitimate son of King Peter I of Portugal. John was the Grandmaster of the Military Order of Aviz and closely aligned with the Order of Christ. In fact, the Order of Christ financially backed John of Aviz and assisted with him winning the Portuguese Crown in the short war. John was crowned King John I and began the Portuguese House of Aviz that reigned uninterrupted for 200 years. There is no evidence that the Order of Christ ever had a secret Templar treasure or it was moved during this time period.
Another historical problem with this theory is that the Azores was not founded by the Portuguese until 1427 and not settled until 1439. Earlier charts listed the archipelago of the Azores, but there has been nothing that connects these charts to the Portuguese Order of Christ or the Knights Templar. Evidence does exist that the Azores had early visitation and possible habitation but it was much earlier in history which will be talked about in next week’s Analysis. There is no known evidence that suggests that the Order of Christ was in the Azores before their documented visitation beginning with Prince Henry the Navigator, who was the Grandmaster of the Order in 1427.
The biggest problem with this theory is the so called “Pitblado Coin”. It is a Portuguese Tornês coin from the reign of Portuguese King Ferdinand I which was minted between 1367 and 1383. It appears never to have been circulated. The provenance of the coin is a major question mark. It was located in Steve Salomon’s mother-in-law’s jewelry box and said to have come from Oak Island. This author understands that Mr. Salomon is just going by information that was told to him. Although, the idea that the coin was brought up on an auger bit and put in James Pitblado’s pocket is pure speculation by Mr. Salomon and there’s no evidence that suggests it was brought up from underground on the auger bit. The Templar/Order of Christ Treasure Theory sounds very exciting, but it comes up short when it's put under a historical microscope. Until Next Week…
Please follow our weekly episode analyses during Season 13, along with articles from the original “Compendium/Blockhouse Blog”, and special investigations and features involving Oak Island. Feel free to reach out to us for questions, comments, information and any theories to our email, theoakislandcompendium@gmail.com
Good day from Daniel of the Compendium!
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