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| Cristoforo Colombo (Christopher Columbus) |
seas Territory of Turks and Caicos.
The reasons for his voyage are warped and forgotten. He did not set out to prove the world was round! That had been known since antiquity. In fact, the idea of the sphericity of the earth has been attributed to both Pythagoras ((c. 570 – c. 495 BC) and Parmenides (flourished late sixth or early fifth century BC).
Eratosthenes (ca. 276 BC – c. 195/194 BC) estimated the earth's circumference at 252,000 stadia. Whilst we cannot be certain of the value of the stadion he used, in 2012, his calculations were done with more accurate data; the result was 40,074 km, which is 66 km different (0.16%) from the currently accepted polar circumference of the Earth.
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| Erdapfel |
The first globe depicting the earth, the Erdapfel (earth apple) was constructed in 1490-1492, before Columbus returned from his first journey.
However, whilst Columbus had studied what Eratosthenes had written about the size of the Earth, he chose to believe, based on a map by Toscanelli, that the Earth's circumference was one-third smaller. Had Columbus set sail knowing that Eratosthenes's larger circumference value was more accurate, he would have known that the place that he made landfall was not Asia, but rather the New World.
Since he underestimated the length of the earth's circumference, and since no one had posited a continent in 'The 'Ocean', he was a bit confused to say the least! Here is the 'Oceanic' area from the Erdapfel, to illustrate what he thought he had navigated.
No, the reasons this Tertiary of St Francis 'sailed the ocean blue' were twofold. One was scientific curiosity, to see if one could sail from Spain to the Indies. But the other, and much more important to Columbus, was to spread the Gospel of Christ in new lands!
Today, in these United States, the day honouring him is kept on the second Monday of October amidst ever increasing attacks from liberals, atheists, anti-Catholics, and SJWs. They pretend that the 'Indigenous Peoples' were Rousseau's 'noble savages', living a simple life in peace and harmony. Of course, this is far from the truth! See my post, Feeding the Gods for some background on some of these 'noble savages' living in peace and harmony.
And here are a couple of simple memes to wish you a happy 'Indigenous Peoples' Day'!
Today, in these United States, the day honouring him is kept on the second Monday of October amidst ever increasing attacks from liberals, atheists, anti-Catholics, and SJWs. They pretend that the 'Indigenous Peoples' were Rousseau's 'noble savages', living a simple life in peace and harmony. Of course, this is far from the truth! See my post, Feeding the Gods for some background on some of these 'noble savages' living in peace and harmony.
And here are a couple of simple memes to wish you a happy 'Indigenous Peoples' Day'!
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