Three hundred years after Alexander Selkirk, the castaway who was the inspiration for the fictional Robinson Crusoe, was marooned on an island off the coast of Chile, archaeologists believe that they have unearthed evidence of his campsite.

Daniel Defoe’s Crusoe spent years on a tropical island, surviving by hunting and foraging, scouring the azure horizon for any sign of a ship to rescue him.

Selkirk, a sailor born in Fife in 1676, was stranded in 1704 on the island of Más a Tierra — now renamed Robinson Crusoe Island — part of the Juan Fernández group 470 miles off Chile, after an argument with the master over the seaworthiness of the ship Cinque Ports.

In a fit of pique he decided to stay behind on the island where they had stopped to repair the boat.

Archaeologists have found evidence of what they believe to be Selkirk’s presence in a part of the island known as Aguas Buenas, uncovering the remnants of a campsite constructed by an early European occupant. An article published in the journal Post-Medieval Archaeology reports the discovery of a fragment of copper alloy from a pair of navigational dividers, which would have belonged to a ship’s navigator or master. Reports from the 18th century from Selkirk’s rescuer, Captain Woodes Rogers, suggest that Selkirk fulfilled one of these roles.

David Caldwell, Keeper of Scotland and Europe for National Museums Scotland and leader of the dig, said: “The evidence uncovered at Aguas Buenas corroborates the stories of Alexander Selkirk’s stay on the island. I am satisfied that this is the place where Selkirk set up his camp. The discovery of the divider was crucial.”

Other compelling finds include two holes for posts, which suggest that Selkirk constructed two shelters by a freshwater stream and set up a viewpoint to watch for — and assess the friendliness of — approaching ships. In the end, five years passed before an English ship visited the island.

Published ten years after the rescue, Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe is thought to have been inspired by Selkirk’s ordeal. Accounts written soon after Selkirk’s rescue, and probably read by Defoe, told how the stranded sailor had used a gun taken from his ship to hunt goats. Later, presumably after ammunition ran out, he reportedly learnt to outrun the goats.

Times Recommends

• Do footballers keep luxury car market alive?
• Little Boots on the path to stardom
• Triplets split between three hospitals