17th-century ship drawing overlooked on museum column in Barcelona

Barcelona, Spain – A schematic drawing of a 17th-century ship, previously unnoticed despite being in plain sight on a column in Barcelona's Maritime Museum, has been discovered and recognized for its historical value.

Museum director Enric Garcia expressed his astonishment at the find, admitting he had passed the drawing countless times without noticing it. He collaborated with Gemma Garcia Hernando, a doctor specializing in historical graffiti, who confirmed the discovery. The drawing, rendered in red pigment and measuring about 40 centimeters, depicts a vessel with a prominent figurehead and at least two masts.

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When I saw it for the first time, I couldn't believe it. How is it possible, after all the times I've passed by, that I didn't notice it?

Experts suggest the drawing resembles a galleon similar to one found nearly forty years ago in another part of the Reales Atarazanas, the historic shipyard complex that now houses the museum. The column itself is part of the original structure, leading researchers to speculate that the artist may have built or witnessed the construction of a similar ship.

Alternatively, given the building's history as a prison during wartime, the drawing might have been created by an inmate yearning for freedom. "Whoever painted it felt fascination or longed for the freedom that ships symbolize," Garcia reflected. The discovery was aided by Garcia Hernando's new classification methods for ship graffiti, detailed in her doctoral thesis, which provides a framework for identifying and categorizing such historical markings worldwide.

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Whoever painted it felt fascination or longed for the freedom that ships symbolize. A fascination that we also feel now when interpreting it. The author could never have imagined that 500 years later we would be speculating about his work.