Case file · Apparition / miracle
Quirós's New Jerusalem
In 1606 Pedro Fernandes de Queirós landed at Big Bay on Espiritu Santo, which he believed was the great southern continent, and founded the city of 'New Jerusalem' as a holy land.
1606 CE · -15.13, 166.87 · status: claim
The account
He named the land 'Austrialia del Espíritu Santo' and created an order of knights. Conflict with islanders and illness ended the settlement within weeks.
The sceptical view
It was an island, not a continent; the religious vision did not survive the encounter.