Cannons on Sal Rei
Ancient cannons atop the tiny fort on the Cape Verdean island of Sal Rei. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries they guarded the salt-pans and prevented unwanted visitors from anchoring in the bay.
Since the fort was abandoned the cannons have lain here, unwanted and forgotten. The tireless tradewind, with its cargo of sand has blasted their rusted barrels until the windward faces of the guns are pocked and pitted. Some bear, on their sheltered leeward faces, faint traces of coats of arms and other insignia, but time and that tireless wind has erased all meaning from the symbols.
(Watercolour - 15 x 11" / 38 x 28cm)