‘Australians face the same dilemma,’ I said. ‘It’s almost a collective amnesia. Out of sight, out of mind. And then you read something that brings it all back – the destruction of a sacred Indigenous rock formation by a mining company, for example. Tens of thousands of years of culture blown up in one moment. And, for a while, everyone’s pissed off because this isn’t new. This erasure has actually been going on for centuries. It’s not just the physical eradication of culture, but the intangible stuff: language, textiles, stories passed down, generation after generation. But time marches on. Companies perform public atonement, removing board members, pay fines, hope everyone will forget again. And they do. The cycle never ends. One of the reasons I chose to pursue dress history was because I wanted to bear witness to the creation of textiles that simply won’t be around in fifty years. The garments deserve better and so do the people who wore them.’

Olivia stared at me a moment longer, nodding in agreement. When she turned back to the computer screen, she seemed to sit up straighter, more determined than ever to help. I felt as if I’d passed a test.

‘There’s a record here of La Dragon’s interactions on Texel. She made three journeys before that final, fatal berthing. Goods traded most often were cinnamon, mace, linen, palmwood, sugar and weapons.’

‘Weapons?’ asked Nico.

‘Machetes,’ Olivia clarified. ‘They were used for cutting paths through the jungles in the colonies. The passengers’ log for the last journey shows mostly crew. VOC fluyts didn’t generally transport passengers unless they were important guests, like senior officers or the Governor and his family. I don’t see any Catharina listed, but there’s a Blanche Horst here. She was Maarten’s wife. There’s a note from her husband, instructing the crew to give Blanche and her companion their own private cabin. He refers to her companion as “Anna Tesseltjeruineren”. Isn’t that an odd name? Tesseltjeruineren. Ruin on Texel! Reminds me of those names the Puritans gave their children during the Restoration. Some of them were so cruel. “Helpless”. “Credence”. “Fear-of-Almighty-God”. It’s a wonder poor Anna didn’t change it.’

Olivia pushed her glasses up her nose. ‘There’s some additional correspondence regarding the loss of the ship. The VOC weren’t happy with Maarten when they learned that he wasn’t with the ship when it went down. He was on the mainland in Den Hoorn overseeing some business on behalf of the Governor when it sank. According to his account, he planned to join La Dragon before it sailed, but the storm hit so quickly he couldn’t reach Texel harbour in time. All the crew drowned, along with Blanche and Anna. The cargo couldn’t be retrieved. What a terrible loss. But there were many similar tragedies in the area, unfortunately.’ She clicked open a new document. ‘Looks like Maarten lived a few years longer. He remarried and died in 1656 on one of the Javanese plantations his family owned. And according to his death notice, he never returned to Holland.’