The book's publisher EFFEMME Milan soon in bookstores.
In the fifteenth century, a handful of European navigators opened the routes that led to the great geographical discoveries, by connecting civilizations from one end of the globe. This meeting laid the foundations of civilization to the birth of today's society, leading to a crucial stage in history to understand the complexities of globalization today.
Between the fifteenth and sixteenth century, few European sailors embarked on an undertaking at that time, with small boats and little scientific knowledge, it seemed crazy: to find the route to the Orient by sailing around Africa, or even , pointing the bow to the West.
With visionary projects Henrique, Lusitanian Prince who drove her sailing on the ocean up to win the mile after mile route to the Indies, starting with the great English and Portuguese explorations.
The book traces the routes of Cadamosto, Cao, Dias, Columbus, Cabot, Da Gama: the men, the strong support of the first modern states eager for real riches such as gold and spices, changed the balance of society and redefine the boundaries of the world.
The author examines this era fascinating comparison of the various European and historiographical current exploits the opportunities offered by new computer technology and satellite mapping to investigate and maybe solve a lot of points remained unsolved until now. The rigorous study of the documents results in a nice narrative that supports the testimony of the fifteenth century to those of the sailors of the last century to confirm once again that the sea does not divide people, but unites them.
Martino Sacchi has recovered many original sources and translated them for the first time in Italian. In particular: Azurara, Barros, Castanheda, Pacheco Pereira, Alvaro Velho, and more. The reconstruction comes from the stereotypes that reigned as the current manuals, especially as regards the role of Portugal in the age of exploration.
Much of the volume in each case is dedicated to the efforts of Gil Eanes, Diogo Cao, Bartholomew Dias, ending with the great voyages of Vasco da Gama which is described in detail.
The song "Ocean front, the stern. Ocean also on the starboard side, as far as the eye can see. Just to the left, in the distance, an uncertain thin strip of land between the gray, ocher and brown. The Portuguese caravel held off because the coast, when you get too close, you see long strips of white breakers that surround all the beaches, the sea begins to break away from the shoreline, and this means that approach is dangerous, because the bottom is too low. The large eyes painted on the bow of the ship seem to really scrutinize the route to protect the sailors from the dangers of the sea still almost unknown. On the coast there is absolutely nothing: the sand of the desert reaches the sea, there is a tree or a house, nor any sign of life. Every now and maybe you can see the mounds, perhaps simple dunes, in some way to mark the skyline. On board the pace is slow and monotonous rhythms of the sailors: one clean, someone else arranges halyards and shrouds, the helmsman of guard move the bar to take the route carefully. Even the nine horses that are transported on board have become accustomed to that environment are strange and quiet on the bridge. The wind is favorable, and fills the sails of the ships on which the board a young, little more than a boy, not a Portuguese, is the great and rich Venice, and his name is Alvise Ca 'da Mosto.
The author
Martin Sacks, history teacher, journalist, translator and scholar of culture and history of sea navigation, writes for several magazines. He was born in 1960 and lives near Milan with his wife and two children.
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