That was almost 530 years ago. On October 12, 1492, more than a month later, Christopher Columbus first landed on an island in the Bahamas, today commonly described as the “Invention of America”. However, research over the past decades has produced a different version of the story.
They showed that the American continent was completely unknown to the Europeans. Long before the famous explorer, the Vikings had already embarked on voyages west of Greenland, now reaching lands located on the island of Newfoundland, Canada. A land where they were baptized Vanland.
Hypotheses suggest that other navigators may have been in contact with Native American peoples centuries before the arrival of Christopher Columbus. But it is difficult to confirm them. A study Published in last July’s issue Earthquake Today brings new arguments.
He says Italian sailors knew of America’s existence at least 150 years before it was “discovered” by Christopher Columbus. This report was written in Latin by the Milanese cleric Calvinius Flama in 1345 and was first discovered in 2013.
Was invited Chronicle Universalis The text was understood by Professor Palo Cisa.Amazing“Part One.”The land known as Markalada ” Located in the west of Greenland it is no other Markland Mentioned in Icelandic sources to describe a part of the Atlantic coast of North America.
“We are in the presence of the first reference to the American continent, albeit in embryonic form, in the Mediterranean.“, Professor Sisa, an expert in medieval literature at the University of Milan, confirms in his report.
“Another land […] Where giants live “
Calvinius Flama was a Dominican monk who lived in Milan. He was associated with the Wisconsin family who ruled the region until the 15th century. He wrote many literary works in Latin, mainly in history subjects. Chronicles This last – his last – work would be one and was unfinished.
According to the study, its goal is to describe the history of the world in fifteen books from the time of creation to the time of the Calvinist Flama but the story ends in the middle of the fourth book. The Markalada All three are mentioned, including a long passage that evokes “exotic” geographical areas such as the Middle East or the Arctic.
It says there: “Also to the west, there is another land called Markalada where giants live; There are buildings with stone slabs on this earth that no one but the giant giants can carry. There are also green trees, animals and a large number of birds.“.
In his analysis, Professor Sisa points out the similarities between Flama’s description of this land and that land. Markland In two Icelandic sagas, the The saga of the Greenlanders And this Eric the Red Saga. The monk, as he writes in another paragraph, thinks that it is based on the claims and rumors heard by the sailors.
There is no evidence that Italian sailors reached Iceland or Greenland at that time. However, Genoa, located 200 km from Milan on the Mediterranean coast, once occupied an important shipping and commercial route to the British Isles and the North Sea coast.
Sailors’ “very vague” rumors
“The sailors referred to by Calvanius may apply to this dynamic: the Genoese may have brought strange news about these lands back to their city, some real and some imaginary, they may have heard that they traded from Scottish, British, Danish or Norwegian sailors.“, The Italian expert notes.
If the paragraph “Exceptional“As the study describes it, it is precisely because of its geographical origin. Unlike the Saga, it does not come from the northern regions but from northern Italy.”This testifies to the spread of stories about lands beyond Greenland (outside the Nordic region and 150 years before Christopher Columbus).“, He insists.
Chronicles “Information about the American continent from Nordic sources provides unprecedented evidence for the hypothesis that it spread to Italy more than a century and a half ago. The visit of the researcher further supports the author in his report highlighting Christopher Columbus Day.
The “The rumors to find consistency in graphic and scientific representations were very vague“, He notes. This explains why Markalada Was born Nowhere is it officially mentioned as a new territory at this time. However, they may have reached Columbus’ ears and encouraged his journey.
Currently there is only one copy Chronicle Universalis Written by a particular Pietro Gioldi at the end of the 14th century. This copy was sold in 1996 at Christie’s home to a private American collector. The latter agreed that photographs should be taken to read the manuscript and publish the modern version.
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