|
|
|
 |
Amerigo Vespucci
Italian Sailor, Merchant & Explorer
Vespucci’s first
connection to exploration was as a supplier of goods to Columbus. He
became chief navigator for the Medici Bank, making maps of the lands
discovered by Christopher Columbus and other explorers.
During his lifetime, Vespucci openly claimed to have made four voyages
to the West, although most scholars dispute this claim. Historians do
agree, however, that on the expedition led by Alonso de Ojeda in
1499-1500, Vespucci did explore a large section of the northern coast of
South America. During a second trip, sponsored by Portugal, he explored
much of the coast of Brazil.
An important historical point to recognize is that Vespucci’s report of
his voyages, which he entitled ‘Mundus Novus’ (“New World”), predates
his first voyage. He may have created this act of fraud in an attempt to
prove that it was he, and not Columbus, who first reached the mainland
of North America. His travel report became wildly popular in Europe for
it’s sensationalist descriptions of the people and wildlife of the New
World. His writings showed that he was one of the first to realize that
the explorers had found a new continent, and not just an un-explored
section of Asia.
Mondus Novus attracted the interest of cartographer Martin Waldseemuller,
who published a new map incorporating many of Vespucci’s features and
theories. When the map was published in 1507, Waldseemuller named the
southern part of the continent “America,” a Latinized version of “Amerigo.”
Eventually, this name was given to both North and South America.
Vespucci’s later years were spent as Chief Pilot for Spain. |
Click on the Piece of Eight to return to the Main Page
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
