The Voyage of the Vizcaina: The Mystery of Christopher Columbus's Last Ship

What really happened to the last voyage of Christopher Columbus? This is a great story of history, politics and exploration.

This book is not the easiest read. That said, it contains amazing detail about Columbus and his several voyages to the new world. I felt the book delivered a good feel for the man and for the times. A tremendous amount of research has been done on Columbus over the centuries and this book seems to touch on the major findings and integrates them well into the overall story. I was amazed at the amount of information to be had and how little I actually knew about Columbus and the history surrounding his discovery of the new world.

In the mid-1990s, divers discovered the wreck of a large ship just off the coast of Panama, feeding the rumors that this might be the remains of one of the ships from Columbus's final voyage. Columbus was able to persuade Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castille to give him a fleet of four ships in 1502 to return to the New World in search of more riches. Although he reached the Americas, his ships, all victims of shipworms eating through the hulls' wood, began to sink one by one. Columbus reported abandoning the fourth ship, the Vizcaina near Portobelo. It was said that this ship has three masts and a loading capacity of fifty tons. But when divers went searching, they couldn't immediately determine that the abandoned ship off the bay in Playa Damas was the Vizcaina because of the contents of the ship and the relative integrity of the ships structure. The authors combine Columbus's history, and the discovery of the ship buried beneath the ocean for decades. Divers and archeology experts are quoted throughout the book, which makes it a bit of a hybrid historical read. The past and present converge by finding the Vizcaina. Yet, it's a true adventure whether you like history or archeology. The history of the man who founded the New World is fascinating as he was a true adventurer. Armchair Interviews says: Thrilling historical, yet scientific reading that leaves you satiated with a host of historical facts and awe about modern archeology.

This is a truly exciting read. Although the title and subtitle both suggest that the book is mainly about the Vizcaina, in fact, only about 20% of it contains discussions that directly pertain to that ship; most of these discussions deal with efforts towards determining whether the wreck that was found in the Bay of Playa Damas (Panama) is indeed the Vizcaina. Naturally, when something of such historical importance is found, some form of politics must step in to play its important frustrating role of slowing down, with utmost efficiency, any exciting archaeological progress; this case is no exception. However, the main bulk of the book is about Christopher Columbus: his life, his travels and his adventures. Also presented are fascinating outlines of current disputes as to his true origins as well as where his bones are currently located. Published in 2006, this is an English translation of a book that was originally published in German in 2004. Although the original German title seems to be more appropriate than the current English one, the translation is well done in the sense that the writing is so clear and engaging that the book is very difficult to put down. It will likely be indispensable reading for most history buffs, but it can be enjoyed by anyone.