Posted on 05/12/2014 6:44:30 PM PDT by Fractal Trader
The ship that led Christopher Columbus' mission to discover America has been found after 500 years, it has been claimed.
A recent expedition has left experts 'confident' a wreck found off the north coast of Haiti is the the Santa Maria.
The 58foot ship was the flagship of the expectation, but its final whereabouts have never been known - until now.
The Santa María was belived to be a 58 ft (17.7 m) long boat, described as 'very little larger than 100 toneladas' (About 100 tons, or tuns). It was used as the flagship for the expedition, along with the smaller ships Santa Clara, remembered as La Niña ('The Girl'), and La Pinta ('The Painted').
All three of the ships were second-hand (if not third or more) and were not intended for exploration.
The wreck was found off the north coast of Haiti during an expedition led by Barry Clifford, an explorer most famously known for his discovery of a complete pirate ship.
'All the geographical, underwater topography and archaeological evidence strongly suggest that this wreck is Columbus famous flagship, the Santa Maria,' said Clifford, who led a recent expedition to the wreck as part of a History Channel TV show.
'The Haitian government has been extremely helpful and we now need to continue working with them to carry out a detailed archaeological excavation', he told the Independent.
Clifford has spent over a decade tracing the origins of the wreck. During The first voyage of Columbus in 1492, near Hispaniola, Columbus' flagship, the Santa María ran aground, and the waves smashed it to pieces.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
The main deck was 58 feet. The overall length was 98 feet. She had a crew of 39.
Don’t think that holds a crew of 90
The Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria.
Replica of the Santa Maria.
Tired of hearing the mantra that Columbus discovred the New World or America.
Asians and Vikings were here in North America long before him.
You forgot to mention the dinosaurs.
Yeah, I think he meant “expedition”. And I also think he meant, in the next line, “believed” and not “belived”.
I guess it is too much to ask, these days, for so-called journalists to proofread.
:)
“Tired of hearing the mantra that Columbus discovred the New World or America.
Asians and Vikings were here in North America long before him.”
Well I disagree, I was here when they all came. Columbus was first; I awarded him a ceremonial flower arrangement.
Spain built three replica ships for the 500th anniversary of Columbus 1492 voyage. They claimed they used the same plans found in the Spanish archives and even built them from wood from the same forest.
I got a chance to go see them in Corpus Christi and like most people was amazed at their small size. You read it and just ignore it, but when you see the actual ship with the relatively tiny space below decks, it hits you about how adventuresome these sailors were and the hardships they faced.
There are now several locations which have replicas of Columbus’ ship(s), but the only ones in the US are still in Corpus Christi, I think.
Probably some kind of distinguishing feature of naval architecture. Any wreck from that era would be totally encrusted or deteriorated to the point where ID would be difficult. Still it has been done with many treasure galleons.
"The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision
of what is before them, glory and danger alike,
and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it."~Thucydides
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Yep... Probably nothing but a ballast heap. But, a coin or two would identify her - It isn't like there were many ships on this side of the pond back in her day...
There is a reproduction of one of Columbus’ ships on display in Columbus, OH. I believe it is the Santa Maria. You can go aboard and experience how small it actually is.
My daughter and grandkids took a day voyage on the reproduction sailing vessel in DE, the Kalmar Nyckel. The KN was a sailing ship brought to the colonies by Swedes who founded New Sweden near present day Philadelphia around 1640. My 11th great grandfather was one of them. He actually made the voyage twice, once upon the KN. Anyway, my daughter was shocked at how small the ship was. People had to take turns for beds. There was no place to sit. I cannot imagine embarking on that voyage twice — the second time with a wife. Life must have been pretty grim in Europe of the day for our ancestors to have risked everything to come here.
Yes, this was during the Thirty Years War. Sweden was a belligerent, but its territory was never invaded. Still, it was a bad time for much of Europe. Rural poverty was bad enough in peacetime, but that hard, brutal war just made it worse.
By the time of the Revolution, the average American was taller, healthier, better fed and more prosperous that the Average European and American women gave birth to more children. Yes, the voyage was worth it.
People left farms for urban tenements and industrial jobs that worked them 10-16 hours a day. Life on a farm is that bad and the days are 24/7. We’re always moving from worse to better, if government lets us.
Replicas of Columbus’ ships Pinta and Nina to arrive in Stuart
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2014/jan/30/columbus-ships-pinta-and-nina-to-land-in-stuart/
http://media.tcpalm.com/media/img/photos/2009/04/14/Q-15SNINA1-c-8377_t607.JPG
https://www.google.com/search?q=santa+clara+nina+replica&tbm=isch
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