Flor de la Mar Flor do Mar or Flor de la Mar ( Flower of the Sea ) , often spelled Frol de la Mar , was a Portuguese " nau " ( carrack ) of 400 tons , which over nine years participated in decisive events in the Indian Ocean until her sinking in November 1511 . Nobleman Afonso de Albuquerque was returning from the conquest of Malacca , bringing with him a large treasure trove for the Portuguese king , when the ship was lost off the coast of Sumatra . A replica of the " Flor do Mar " is housed in the Maritime Museum in Malacca . History . Career . The " Flor do Mar " was built in Lisbon in 1502 , being one of the finest vessels of the time . It was built for the Portuguese India run . At 400 tons , it was the largest carrack yet built , nearly twice the size of the largest ships that had gone on previous runs . She took her maiden trip from Portugal to India in 1502 , under the command of Estevão da Gama , a cousin of Vasco da Gama . However , her return trip in 1503 met some complications - once loaded with spices , her large size and weight made her hard to maneouver , particularly in the fast currents of the Mozambique Channel ( notably , around Cape Correntes ) . Eyewitness Thomé Lopes reports her springing leaks and being forced to stop for repairs on Mozambique Island for nearly two months . She finally arrived in Portugal in late 1503 . The " Flor do Mar " went out again on another India run in March 1505 under the command of João da Nova , as part of the 7th Portuguese India fleet of 22 ships , carrying D . Francisco de Almeida as the first viceroy of Portuguese India . On the return trip in 1506 , she once again ran into difficulties in the Mozambique Channel . Springing leaks , she was forced to dock once again in Mozambique island for lengthy repairs . This time , she would stay stuck in the channel for some ten months . Nova attempted take her out repeatedly , but the heavy - laden ship kept running into problems , forcing him to return to the island , repair and try again . The ship and her frustrated captain were still stuck in Mozambique when they were found in February 1507 - almost exactly one year after the " Flor do Mar " left India - by the outgoing 8th India armada under the command of Tristão da Cunha . Cunha ordered his crews to help repair the ship back to seaworthy shape , unload the ship ' s spice cargo onto another Portugal - bound transport ( under the command of António de Saldanha ) and then annexed the empty " Flor do Mar " and her captain into his own India - bound armada . She was never to return to Portugal . The " Flor do Mar " and her captain João da Nova participated in Cunha ' s conquest of Socotra . In the aftermath , to Nova ' s surprise , Cunha ordered her to remain in the western Arabian Sea , integrated into the patrol squadron of Afonso de Albuquerque . Nova and the ship participated in the Albuquerque - led conquest of the cities of Curiati ( Kuryat ) , Muscat in July 1507 , Khor Fakkan , ( accepting also the submission of the cities of Kalhat and Sohar ) and Ormuz in the same year . Two years later in India , she was commandeered to serve as the flagship of D . Francisco de Almeida in the 1509 battle of Diu . João da Nova died that same year in Cochin , and Almeida ( ending his term as vice - roy ) planned to bring the " Flor do Mar " back to Portugal himself , taking special care to repair it into shape . But his successor , Afonso de Albuquerque , forbade it and retained the ship in India , giving Almeida another ship to take home instead . Under Afonso de Albuquerque ' s orders , the " Flor do Mar " supported the conquest of Goa in 1510 as well as the conquest of Malacca in 1511 . Capacity . The " < nowiki > Flor do Mar ' < / nowiki > " s longevity was remarkable . At a time when India ships were built for only three or four years of useful service , the " Flor do Mar " was one of the longest - lasting ships of the India run . However , her service as a cargo ship left a lot to be desired . Dangerously unseaworthy when fully loaded , she only completed one full India run , and not without difficulties . Nonetheless , much was learned from the ship ' s experience . Although several larger ships - 600t , 900t , 1500t - would be occasionally built , the average India nau would hover around 400t - 450t . As such , the " Flor do Mar " can be considered the prototype of what would become the typical 16th - century India nau . The ship ' s experience also led to the institutionalization of the " outer route " , i . e . captains of heavy - laden large ships were ordered to avoid returning via the fast Mozambique Channel , but rather sail a longer but calmer course east of Madagascar . Shipwreck . Despite already being deemed unsafe , she served to support the conquest of Malacca , then the largest commercial center of East of Indias . Given her large capacity , Afonso de Albuquerque wanted to give the court of King Manuel I a show of its treasures , and used it in the return voyage , by the end of 1511 , to transport the vast treasure amassed in the conquest with the offers from the Kingdom of Siam ( Thailand ) to the king of Portugal . When the " Flor do Mar " came out of Malacca towards Goa and sailed along the north - east Sumatran state of Pasé , in the Strait of Malacca , she was caught in a storm and wrecked on some shoals , causing numerous casualties . The ship did not survive the storm and sank during the night of 20 November 1511 . Afonso de Albuquerque was saved in the most difficult conditions , using an improvised raft , but the cargo was irremediably lost . Today the " Flor do Mar " lies in the seabed . The ship and its location have been the cause of controversy , which states that the dispute with Indonesia Malaysia the salvage of the Strait . Robert Marx , an American treasure hunter , is said to have spent 20 million dollars attempting to recover the riches of the wreck . According to his statement , " it ' s the richest vessel ever lost at sea , with its hold loaded with 200 coffers of precious stones , diamonds from the small half - inch size to the size of a man ' s fist . " Today a replica of the " Flor do Mar " is housed in Malacca ' s Sea Maritime Museum .