Geelong Keys: The Geelong Keys were a set of five keys discovered in 1845 or 1846 in the time of Governor Charles La Trobe at Corio Bay in Victoria, Australia. They were embedded in the stone of the beach in such a way as to make him believe that they had been there for 100-150 years (1700 Ad). Since the earliest proven English exploration of the area was by Matthew Flinders in 1802, it was suggested the keys may have originated with some earlier European explorers of the region, possibly Portuguese explorations. The study of these keys was the subject of two pamphlets published by the Royal Society of Victoria in the 1870s. The first of these pamphlets suggested that the depth at which the keys lay indicated an age closer to 200-300 years. The second pamphlet repudiated this claim and was based on an interview with a limeburner, who said that the keys may have been dropped down a hole to that depth. The Geelong Keys are often connected to the Mahogany Ship further west on Victoria's Shipwreck Coast, also claimed to be a relic of early European exploration of the area. The keys themselves, and all original drawings of them, have been lost. The two original pamphlets [Melbourne, 1874-75]. (2 items)