🧭 A Reckoning with Coordinates

Let’s pause. The 29°N claim is nowhere in Pinto’s authentic narrative that anyone has produced. Only corrupted copies exist and they are even labeled suspect by those claiming Ryukyu is a fit when it fails every credible criteria. If it actually says 29, then, there is a major conflict in the text which should be obvious to anyone testing the resources and geographic data. It contradicts:

• The Cantino Planisphere (1502), which places Lequios near Zambales at ~17°N

• Barbosa and Rodrigues (1512–16), who locate Lequios in Northern Luzon

• Pinto’s own sailing direction—from Borneo and Luzon, not north toward Japan

• The presence of trade goods from Lequios used in China and Japan—originating from the Philippines

In fact, Pinto never stepped foot in the Ryukyus, nor does his route suggest he ever needed to. The “29 degrees” edit appears in a later manipulated edition (1614), but his navigation, resource lists, and cultural descriptors all scream: Luzon.

⚔️ “Some Writers” vs. Evidence

The problem isn’t simply bad geography—it’s bad methodology.

Rather than interrogating discrepancies, colonial-era compilers stacked ambiguous sources without critical analysis. It would be as if modern historians debated the location of Atlantis based on "something someone once overheard in a bar."

Even the original author seems uncertain, noting:

“They seem to have no land nearer to them than America.”

That’s a red flag. Ryukyu is off the coast of Japan, a short ferry ride from Taiwan. But Lequios—as faithfully recorded in over a dozen original maps and logs—sits at the heart of the Philippine archipelago. Not even close to “no land nearby.”

📌 1. 1714 Vander Aa – "Lossonia 5ve"

Labels the east Luzon isles as Lossonia and places "I. Parta" west of Batanes.A direct resurrection of Pinto’s Five Isles narrative.

📌 2. 1640 Jan Jansson Map

Omits Batanes but names Taiwan as "Lequios"Places "I. de Prata" west of a cluster of 5 yellow islets, very close to the Babuyanes.

📍 3. 1700 Valk Map

Labels “5. Insulae” above Luzon and includes Prata Isle, preserving the Lequios identification.

📌 4. 1774 Dutch Map

Offers fine delineation of the five Batanes isles with Prata just west. Labels Luzon as Luconia.

📌 5. 1706 Thornton Map

• Uses “Five Islands” and places Prata directly west of Luzon.

• The R. Hecos or R. Ilecos stands out as the Lequios River from other maps.
  

📌 6. 1700 Vander Aa Map – Pigafetta-Inspired

Clearly ties 5 Isles of Pinto, Prata, and the Philippines into one cohesive region.

📌 7.

1650 Antoine de Fer Map

• Names Luzon as "Leuconia," echoing Lequios, and situates it above Mindanao just below the Tropic of Cancer where Luzon is.
  

📌 8.

1690 Coronelli Map

• Offers a stunning depiction of Luzon as a bifurcated landmass, with terms like "Lucon creduta favolosa" or "Lucon believed to be fabulous" implying mythical fame—possibly a nod to Zipangu/Ophir myths.

• Notice as well the bifurcated island in 2 sections– North and South just as we referenced previously.
  

📌 9.

1645 Spilbergen Map

• Names the northern part of Luzon as “I. Locos”, a variant of “Lequios”. West of Batanes, an isle labeled “Wateb” appears—possibly a distorted Prata or ghost island.

• Wateb as a label also appears as "or Isla de Prata on other maps.

📌 10.

1644-58 Janssonius Map (Colorized)

• Replaces Ilocos with “ILLECOS”, a near-exact spelling of Lequios.

• Preserves I. de Prata and 5 yellow isles.