 This is a map of Ireland and Europe today. This is Abraham Ortelius' map of Ireland and Europe from 1595. Do you notice anything different about these maps? Although there may be a few differences, the main focus of today is this mysterious island depicted just off the coast of Ireland in the 1595 map, Spell Braphil. Although this island has various spellings down through history, it is known most commonly as High Brazil and it is said to lie just off the west coast of Ireland in the Atlantic Ocean. The name is said to come from an Irish name, meaning descendants of Brazil, an ancient clan of Ireland whose name may come from a word meaning beauty or mighty, or it may mean the High King of the world. One of the strange things about this island is that it appeared in numerous maps down through history. As far back as 1325, nautical maps identified an island called Brasil, just west of Ireland. The island appeared in countless maps under slightly different names for centuries, including an Abraham Ortelius' map of Europe in 1595. It is often depicted as being circular, with a river running east to west across its diameter. By 1865, it would refer to as Brazil Rock on many maps, stories and myths about this island abound. One such story is that the island is shrouded in clouds of mist and it can only be seen once every seven years, although it cannot be reached. It has been described as a place where saints lived, or where an advanced civilisation dwelt. Is this island however purely a mythical phantom island that has absolutely no relationship with reality, or is there a seed of truth to this story? My opinion in general is that most of these stories have some sort of seeds of truth. There were numerous expeditions to find this island around the 15th century or so. Many came back empty-handed after months at sea, although there are other stories of people seeing and setting foot on the island. Numerous expeditions left Bristol in the 15th century in search of the island. A letter written by the Spanish diplomat Pedro de Ayala, who was employed by Ferdinand II of Aragon, stated at the 1497 expedition by the Italian explorer John Cabot, found land discovered in the past by the men from Bristol, who found Brassil. Numerous other expeditions left in search of the island, but returned months later with nothing to show. In the 17th century, a Captain John Nisbet claimed to have seen the island when on a journey from France to Ireland, noting that High Brassil was inhabited by large black rabbits and a magician who lived in a stone castle alone. Yet this story turned out to be an invention of Richard Heads, an Irish author and playwright. A sighting of the island was described as late as 1872 by Robert O'Flaquerty and T.J. Westrop, with Westrop claiming that he brought his family on to the island with him. What is interesting is that High Brassil has been linked to the Porcupine Bank, an area of the Irish shelf that is broadly in the location where the island was depicted on maps. Could this be where the seed of truth lies? Did explorers and navigators know that there was something in this general area and someone decided to draw it as an island one day? The Porcupine Bank is a relatively raised area of seabed, around 200 metres below sea level at its highest. The island is often referred to as Ireland's Atlantis, with Atlantis of course being a story of an ancient civilisation, advanced civilisation who lived on an island that was then swallowed up by the sea. As told by the Athenian philosopher Plato in his book Timaeus, published around 360 BC, my next video will go into more detail on the story of Atlantis. Thanks for watching, I'll see you next time.