Juan Ponce de Leon - Sculpture - Melbourne Beach, FL, USA
N 28° 00.656 W 080° 31.823
17R E 546169 N 3098502
A stunning, larger than life bronze sculpture of 'Juan Ponce de Leon' Discoverer of Florida. Located at the vicinity of Ponce de Leon's landing on the Atlantic Coast in 1513. He is now believed to have landed here at Melbourne Beach, Florida.
Waymark Code: WMMKF5
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 10/02/2014
Views: 8
A small rest stop along Hwy A1A, an American Byways - National Scenic Byway & Florida Scenic Highway, known as 'Indian River Lagoon' has been dedicated, as a historic location, and a memorial in memory of Juan Ponce de Leon.
Rafael Picon - Artist Web Site, States:
"The 10-foot-tall bronze statue was transported from artist Rafael Picon's studio in Rockledge to a Melbourne Beach site commemorating the landing of the explorer on Florida's East Coast 500 years ago." Text Source: (
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A historic marker located near the sculpture reads as follows:
"While there is disagreement among scholars, it is believed that this site may be in an area where Juan Ponce de Leon made landfall in April 1513. It has long been thought that this event took place near St. Augustine, based upon studies of de Leon's compass headings that did not account for the inability of 16th century navigators to accurately determine longitude, magnetic compass deviations, or the effects of the Gulf Stream and prevailing winds. Professional navigator Douglas Peck re-traced Juan Ponce de Leon's route in a sailboat, however, and found a more likely landing site. Peck, who sailed the same waters for 30 years, has an "intimate geographical knowledge of the route" Juan Ponce de Leon took. When he re-sailed the route at the same time of year as the 1513 voyage, he reached Florida's eastern shore at 28 degrees North Latitude and 80 degrees 29 minutes West Longitude, just south of Melbourne Beach. He can place the accuracy to within 5 to 8 Nautical Miles on either side of this navigational fix. Many historians now conclude that an area south of Melbourne Beach, such as this site, was a more probable location for Juan Ponce de Leon's first landing. This Brevard County Park, Juan Ponce de Leon Landing, was created in 2005."
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