12 October 1492

There is no doubt that Christopher Columbus and Spain gained some prestige in history from his landing on a world which was neither new nor undiscovered.  Indeed, his aimless wandering of the western seas was not more than a leisurely journey to find an alternative route to India and the Far East. Nevertheles, his epical first voyage and first landing on foreign soil earned him, in Spain and the rest of the civilized world, the title of "The new world's discoverer." It is a fact that Columbus was not primarily concerned with the latter as his source of interest was full of inquisitive diversity which might lead to a rich life for himself and his own flesh and blood. Certainly, his travels and public notice remain oddities in some respect since the man lived and died not knowing that he landed on a continent that was nor India nor the Far East as he thought he had. It is worth remembering that the American continent was named after an Italian expeditioner and cartographer named Americo Vespucio whose findings demonstrated that the new world was not connected to Asia and therefore a continent as defined by its physical features and  boundaries. Clearly, Columbus' voyage of discovery were more legendary than an accurate representation of an event that did not happen as the new world was not new but ancient.

P.Figueras