Meridona first mysteriously appeared on a map (The Vazimba Map) in 1258 by an unknown cartographer under the name of Vana Pulchritudo (Latin: Worthless Beauty). However, it wasn’t until 1307 that the first known visitor, Italian explorer Drago Nicastro, arrived. Nicastro spent 3 weeks on the island making repairs to his ship, San Fortunatas. Geological evidence has shown that the island suffered an extreme drought during the 14th century, which could explain the name, as well as the lack of any settlement attempts on the island until the mid 1600's.
