Santa Maria

[Short John Bronze]

Why does Santa Maria get such a high profile? She made a short, one-way hop across the Atlantic and then got wrecked. It was the Nina that brought Columbus back with news of his discovery. Left to the Santa Maria alone he would have just disappeared and the Aztecs, Incas etc might have remained undisturbed for several more decades.

 

[Graham]

Fair points. I am currently building the Mamoli Santa Maria (arguably the worst kit on the market), but building it as a generic Carrack which was at the forefront of the Age of Discovery - a period which greatly interests me.
So many epic voyages into the unknown by Spain and Portugal.

 

[TheGatzby]

Why does Santa Maria get such a high profile?

Folklore. Religion.

Columbus' exploits and his flagship were/are a big part Catholic rhetoric for hundreds of years.
Never mind, that it heralded the exploitation and decimation of indigenous cultures all over the world.

 

[kuba91nt]

You only need to read Columb log from december 25 to 26, 1492.
Local Tainos simply wept out of genuine compassion and sorrow over sunk disaster that befell ship of Columbus and his seacrew, next all were slaughtered. Then Tainos, then again...
It is simply fame bought with blood.

Columbus's 1492 Journal Excerpts | PDF | Christopher Columbus | Voyages Of Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus' journal from his first voyage in 1492 describes the challenges and discoveries of the expedition. He documents sailing west from Spain hoping to reach Asia but instead finding islands in the Caribbean. The crew grows fearful and complains about the length of the journey as...

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