Anne,

You wrote regarding Gavin Menzies book,  "1421 - The Year China 
Discovered America :  ".(that) . .  if anything of the tale is correct" it limits Columbus to an also-ran.   Trouble  is, that's a pretty big IF.

Dr Geoff Wade of the National University of Singapore believes calling this book "history"  is a violation of the British Trade Descriptions Act of 1968. He sent a long complaint to the Consumer Complaints body of the United Kingdom on 21 October, 2005, against Transworld Publishers of Britain.  His complaint is available at  http://maritimeasia.ws/topic/1421bunkum.html

 Dr. Wade lists a number of Claims/Facts to debunk the book. One fact he points out is this:

"...the currents, winds and dates Menzies cites in support would not have carried the ships anywhere near where he claims" 

 One historian commented, "It is undisputed that the Chinese reached as far as East Africa. What is new and controversial is whether they reached West Africa, the Americas, Antarctica, and Australia. Either way, it would make a great movie."

Part of Menzies  "proof" is supposedly based on medieval languages,  but historical linguists  Bill Poser and Kevin Ryan made short work of the examples cited in the book.  For more of what Bill Poser had to say, see http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/000409.html

This book did make a splash a couple years ago, and I think is coming out as a 2- Part PBS --or BBC?-- movie.   Good story, but fiction. 

Joanne





Anne Pemberton <[log in to unmask]> wrote: 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 


       
---------------------------------
Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV.