He was well received by the sultan of Malindi and was provided with food, fresh water and a pilot to take the fleet across the Indian Ocean to 'Calicut' (modern-day Kozhikode).

[1] During the voyage, the explorer was allowed to erect a padrão, which included a cross made of Portuguese limestone bearing the coat of arms of Portugal.

[2] However, Gaspar Correia, who was one of the earliest sixteenth-century chroniclers, suggests the cross was erected at the end of Vasco da Gama's first visit to Malindi.

[8] When Francis Xavier visited Malindi in 1542 he noted that 'The Portuguese have erected near the city a large and very handsome stone cross, which is gilt all over.

'[9] (Junto con esta ciudad hicieron los portugueses una cruz grande de piedra, dorada, muy hermosa.

If ever there existed an inscription upon this pillar it is totally obliterated, as not a line can now be traced; but the marble cross on its summit exhibits the arms of Portugal in full preservation.

An 1834 United Kingdom Admiralty chart, based on Owen's 1823 version but including his own updates, records the padrão as 'Vasco da Gama's Pillar'.

[21] Vasco da Gama's Pillar is also described briefly in nineteenth-century editions of The Africa Pilot, which provided sailing directions for mariners.

[24] This is not surprising since explorers, including Vasco da Gama, typically took along multiple pre-carved padrões to set up on prominent headlands.

Restoration work carried out since 2020 has included reinforcement of the existing seawalls, repairs to the pillar itself, the construction of a paved access route and the provision of on-site washrooms for visitors.