Postilhão da América

The remains next to Pedra que Ronca are identified, as a probable hypothesis, with the Postilhão da América, a Maritime Mail brig built in 1797 at Ribeira das Naus in Salvador, by order of governor Fernando José de Portugal e Castro. In February 1799, the Postilhão was seized by privateers near Cabo Frio, but the captain sent the letters ashore in a boat.

On an afternoon of very weak wind, the ship failed to respond to the manoeuvres to avoid the reefs and ended up striking the rocks. In an attempt to refloat her, sailors threw themselves into the sea and one of them drowned. After a dispute on board, the crew abandoned the ship and deserted, despite the commander's orders. The ship was not rescued in time, but the mailbag was saved and taken to Salvador. Among the correspondence was the news that Spain had declared war on Portugal.

Today, on the bottom, there are 39 piled-up cast-iron cannons, iron bars and five anchors, and part of the cannons is thought to have served as ballast. Plenty of algae cover and camouflage the cannons and the structures of the wreck. Around 1987, a spearfisher reportedly found a Portuguese coin from 1800 there after a storm.