Character Catalog

Crossing of the Atlantic with three ships (Santa María, Pinta, Niña) resulting in the European discovery of the Bahamas, Cuba, and Hispaniola. A founding event of modern history.

Expedition of 17 ships and 1,500 men to establish a permanent colony on Hispaniola. Discovery of Guadeloupe, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica.

Voyage during which Columbus reached the coasts of Venezuela, touching the South American continent for the first time. He was sent back to Spain in chains for mismanagement.

Final voyage exploring the coasts of Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. Columbus was still searching for a passage to Asia.

A foundational document for the history of the Age of Discovery, known through the transcription made by Bartolomé de Las Casas. It describes day by day the crossing and the first encounters.

A compilation of biblical and prophetic texts through which Columbus sought to justify his voyages as a divine mission of Christianization.

At two hours after midnight the land appeared, from which we were about two leagues distant. We took in all the sails and lay to, waiting for daylight Friday, on which we arrived at a small island of the Lucayos.

I reached the Indies with the fleet which the most illustrious King and Queen our sovereigns gave me, and there I discovered a very great number of islands, peopled with inhabitants beyond number.

Your Highnesses appoint from this time forward the said Don Cristóbal Colón their Admiral in all those islands and mainlands which by his activity and industry shall be discovered or acquired in the said oceanic seas, for the duration of his life.

I have always read that the world, both land and water, was spherical. But I have now seen so much irregularity that I have come to hold another view of the world — not round, but shaped like a pear.

Christopher Columbus's birthplace, a major merchant port on the Mediterranean where he discovered navigation and maritime trade from childhood.

Andalusian port from which Columbus's three ships departed on August 3, 1492, for his first transatlantic voyage.

Bahamian island where Columbus landed on October 12, 1492, marking first contact with the New World. He named it San Salvador.

Large Caribbean island where Columbus established the first permanent European settlement in the Americas, La Isabela, during his second voyage.

Franciscan friary near Palos where Columbus found support from the monks in championing his project before the Spanish court.

Castilian city where Christopher Columbus died on May 20, 1506, in relative disgrace, still convinced he had reached Asia.

Astronomical instrument used to measure the altitude of stars and the sun to determine latitude at sea. Columbus used it during his Atlantic crossings.

Essential navigation instrument for maintaining a heading on the open sea. Columbus noted with concern the magnetic variations of the compass during his first voyage.

Fast and maneuverable lateen-rigged sailing ship, like the Niña and the Pinta. This type of Portuguese vessel was ideal for coastal exploration and long ocean crossings.

Used on board to measure time; a cabin boy had to turn it every half hour. It was the primary timekeeping instrument at sea.

Nautical chart detailing coastlines and ports, used by Mediterranean navigators. Columbus studied many such charts before conceiving his plan for a transatlantic crossing.

Daily record of navigation observations, distances traveled, and discoveries. Columbus's log, known through Las Casas's transcription, is a major historical document.

Banner bearing the arms of the Catholic Monarchs that Columbus planted on each newly discovered land to claim possession in the name of the Spanish crown.