In 1565, over four decades after Magellan was killed in the Battle of Mactan, Miguel Lopez de Legazpi entered Cebu and wrote a report that read in part:“…One of the soldiers went into a large and well-built house of an Indian, where he found an image of the child Jesus (whose most holy name I pray may be universally worshiped). This was kept in its cradle, all gilded, just as it was brought from España; and only the little cross which is generally placed upon the globe in his hand was lacking. This image was well kept in that house, and many flowers were found before it, no one knows what object or purpose. The soldier bowed before it with all reverence and wonder, and brought the image to the place where the other soldiers were. I pray to the holy name of this image which we have found here, to help us and grant us victory, in order that these lost people who are ignorant of the precious and rich treasure which was in their possession may come to a knowledge of him.”

In 1566, an unsigned printed document on the Legazpi expedition came off the press in Barcelona that made this reference to the image:

“In a poorly built house was found an image of the Child Jesus, such as come from Flanders, with his veil and the globe in his hand, and in as good condition as if it were just made…They began construction of a fort, outside of which they erected a church, wherein the child Jesus was placed, and they called the church [Santissimo] Nombre de Jesus [Holy Name of Jesus].”

Based on the above and other contemporary documents, we all know the story of the Santo Niño de Cebu. Is the one venerated in Cebu today the exact same one found by Legazpi in 1565? Is it the same one presented by Magellan to the wife of Humabon in 1521? I checked the Skelton translation of the Pigafetta manuscript preserved in Yale University and promptly got confused. Relating the conversion of the king and queen of Cebu, Pigafetta wrote:

“After dinner our chaplain and some others…went on shore to baptize the queen. And she came with forty ladies and we led them on to the platform, then we caused her to sit on a cushion…until the priest was ready. Meanwhile we showed her a lady carved in wood, holding her child (which was very well made) and a cross. The sight of this gave her a greater wish to be a Christian, and asking for baptism, she was baptized, and named Joanna, like the emperor’s mother…Then she begged us to give her that wooden image to put in place of her idols. Which we did.”

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