Vasco da Gama Pillar

The Vasco da Gama Pillar stands on a coral bluff above the sea at the southern end of Malindi Bay, where it has been since the Portuguese navigator erected it in 1498 during his pioneering voyage to India. The pillar is made of Lisbon limestone — shipped from Portugal for exactly this purpose — and topped with a cross. The views from the headland over the bay and the blue Indian Ocean are excellent.

The site is small but the historical resonance is considerable. Malindi's willingness to cooperate with the Portuguese, unlike Mombasa which initially resisted, gave the town a period of importance in the early Indian Ocean trade networks before Portuguese power waned. The pillar is a UNESCO-listed monument and sits within a small heritage park. Entry is inexpensive.

things to do sight monument
A story
When Vasco da Gama arrived in Malindi in April 1498, the Sultan of Malindi was the one African ruler who welcomed the Portuguese willingly, providing them with a skilled navigator (believed to be Ahmad ibn Majid) who guided the fleet across the Indian Ocean to India. The coral pillar da Gama erected as a navigational aid and a symbol of Portuguese sovereignty still stands where it was placed over 500 years ago — one of the oldest European monuments in sub-Saharan Africa.

Other places in Things to Do