Discovery of the Americas, 1492-1800

in overseas enterprises. They already traded
in northern African countries, France, and
England, but were prevented by treaty with
Portugal from trading anywhere on the long
West African coast. Commercial developers
and investors from Columbus’s home state of
Genoa and other European countries such as
Germany were also active in Spain. Like all
European merchants, they stood to benefit
by finding a way to purchase valuable spices
and silk directly from Asian suppliers, at
cheaper prices than those controlled by the

Arab traders who sold transported goods to

Europeans in Egyptian markets. In 1492 the

Portuguese crown was preoccupied with

finding such a route by rounding Africa into

the Indian Ocean and had no interest in a

dreamer like Columbus.

SHIPS AND MAPS

At the end of the 1400s, the port cities of both

Spain and Portugal had many experienced

shipbuilders. One recent invention that

One of the three ships Columbus sailed during his first journey was the Pinta,a caravel. This replica was built

for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition.(Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division [LC-D4-5516])

The World in 1492 B 15