Depicting Cuba, Not North America: Solving the Enigma of America on Early Maps

Abstract The most important map in American history is the famous Martin Waldseemüller world map of 1507. Despite this position, its geography contains an unanswered mystery: “What current-day geography is represented by its large northwest landmass?” It appears to mimic the coast of North America, and many contemporary authors agree. There is a problem with this conclusion. The coast of North America was not explored until years after this map’s publication. This enigma has been debated for centuries. With the reexamination of maps and information that predates this map (some of which were unavailable to earlier historians), the authors disagree with conventional wisdom and conclude that the continental-sized landmass that superficially resembles North America is actually the island of Cuba, as imagined by Christopher Columbus. Although this has been a minority opinion in the past, the current authors present important new information that leaves their conclusion in little doubt.