In 1722, the Dutch Mariner, Jakob Rogovin, found himself in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Rogovin was in command of a small fleet of three ships who were on a mission to open

a safe westward route to the profitable spice islands near what is today Indonesia.

By Rogovin's time, the promise of a westward route to the spice islands had been animating

European voyages across the Pacific for exactly two centuries.

Ferdinand Magellan's chaotic and deadly circumnavigation, which concluded in 1522,

minus a living Magellan, had been motivated by the exact same goal.

Rogovin's mission also had the added goal of discovering the legendary southern continent,

known as Terra-Australius.

On Easter Sunday, 1722, after two weeks at sea since departing the western shores of South America,

one of Rogovin's lookouts spotted land.

Perhaps this was the low and sandy island, scouted by an earlier European expedition,

led by a certain captain William Damper.

If so, that would mean that they had entered an island chain that would guide them on their

way to the spice islands.

But this island looked neither low nor sandy.

This was a rocky island punctuated by volcanic peaks.

It also seemed to locate too far to the east to be the previously scouted sandy island.

Perhaps this island was something new.

Perhaps it was the gateway to the mythical Terra-Australius.

What's more, plumes of smoke could be seen rising from the island.

Clearly, it was inhabited.

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