according to pliny the elder, an expedition of mauretanians sent by juba ii to the archipelago visited the islands: when king juba ii dispatched a contingent to re-open the dye production facility at mogador (historical name of essaouira, morocco) in the early 1st century ce juba's naval force was subsequently sent on an exploration of the canary islands, madeira and probably the cape verde islands, using mogador as their mission base.