During the last four centuries since the discovery of the Galapagos, the islands have had a rich and varied history. Buccaneers, whalers, fur-seal hunters, scientists and even convicts, have all been very attached to the island's historical background.
Today, during our visit on the island of Tower, we had the opportunity to see the different graffiti left by all of those ships that made it to this island. Traditionally, graffiti had a reason. It was a form to delimit territories among pirates. The duty of writing it was assigned to the lowest ranking man on board, to give him a chance to prove his hardiness. The graffiti had to be placed on the most difficult area of the previously chosen place, to prove that it's sailors were people of courage and bravery. Nowadays, its real purpose has been lost.
Most of the graffiti found on the island of Tower are from the Pre-National Park era, since no one is allowed to write graffiti on the cliffs anymore.
The picture accompanying this text has a graffiti that says "VELERO III, JANUARY 1932". The Velero III was a ship that belonged to Allan Hancock, a multi-millionaire from Los Angeles who played an important role in the tragic events that took place on the island of Floreana, where murder and the disappearance of people happened during the beginning of the 1930's.
The Velero III was not a typical millionaire's pleasure ship, but a vessel that was dedicated to Hancock's dual interests, biological research and music. The foundation of the Hancock wealth was the position of the historic "Rancho la Brea", which subsequently became most of Hollywood and the Wilshire district of Los Angeles. Land bought for $2.50 an acre was sold years later, for $2,500 per foot of frontage. With this wealth, Hancock founded banks and established numerous business corporations in oil, railways, construction, farming and packaging.
As you can tell, graffiti are more than just paint spread on a wall, it is unsaid history and tales that, with a little bit of research, we can enjoy.
