I am reading a book by Gavin Menzies entitled "1421 - The Year China 
Discovered America". It suggest that Columbus, as a cartographer knew or 
suspected that there was a large land mass in the western Atlantic Ocean. He 
may have though the chart, obtained by one "de Conti" who supposedly sailed 
on a Chinese Junk around the Cape of Good Hope, up the western coast of 
Africa to the bulge, and then across the Atlantic to South America. From the 
introduction to the book, the Chinese, a eunuch named Wang Hi, sailed 
completely around both North and South America and down the western coast of 
Europe. He also sailed in the Antarctic Ocean, and the Antarctic 
(Southern)Ocean and mapped the coast of Antartica.

I've been told this book is bogus, and the ancient map that the author said, 
sent him on his quest, was a hoax. The author mentions other maps before 
Colubus, in various European Libraries, and he mentions stones carved in 
many medieval languages that were found by European Explorers.

In any event, if anything of the tale is correct, it limits Columbus' role 
to that of discoverer of American ONLY for the Europeans, who were late at 
discovery.

Anne

Anne Pemberton
[log in to unmask]
http://www.erols.com/apembert
http://www.educationalsynthesis.org