The Niña and Pinta were engulfed by a “perfect storm”—multiple violent storm fronts colliding from different directions—that began on February 12 and continued for three days. The ships were separated, the men on both nearly perished, and the world-changing event of 1492 that we know about almost went to the bottom of the sea—to become at best a footnote to history. But the ships survived due to Columbus’s and his crews’ skills as mariners.
As depicted in Encounters Unforeseen, Columbus repeatedly summoned the Niña’s crew to appeal to the Virgin Mary by vowing pilgrimages to shrines dedicated to her. The ten Taínos aboard would have worshipped their own spirits, seeking both the protection of their friendly spirits Yúcahu and Attabeira and forbearance of the destructive spirit Guabancex, the female spirit of hurricanes. See October 9, February 22, and March 3 for these spirits’ images.
When the appeals failed to subdue the storm, Columbus composed a final message to his sovereigns on parchment summarizing the voyage and indicating that a portion of the crew remained stranded in Española, whereupon the parchment was set in wax cake, sealed in a barrel, and thrown overboard.