CARAVEL UNDER CONSTRUCTION COLUMBUS 1492

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aukepalmhof
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CARAVEL UNDER CONSTRUCTION COLUMBUS 1492

Post by aukepalmhof » Mon Jan 14, 2019 7:12 pm

Of the many stamps and miniature sheets used for the 500th anniversary that Columbus discovered America, most of this stamps and miniature sheet have almost all the same design, only the miniature sheet issued by the Bahamas in 1990 is quite different.

The image is a woodcut from the book “Liber Chronicarum” of the chronicler Hartmann Schedel (1414-1514).

The book describe the Latin world history from the creation till the year 1493.
The book of 650 pages was printed in 1493 by Anton Koberger in Nürenberg. A German translation made by S. Alt is published in the same year.

The 645 (in a other edition over the 1000) woodcuts were made by Michel Wohlgemut (1437-1519) and Wilhelm Pleydenwurff (1462-1494).
On the miniature sheet of the Bahamas is depict the building of Noah’s Ark, the part with the Latin text is omitted.

If we pay attention to the following.
Columbus discovered Cuba on 28 October 1492, he returned to Spain were her arrived on 15 March 1493. At that time the chronicle of Hartmann Schedels was already by the printer, so this woodcut can’t represent the vessel of Columbus.
So this image can’t document the journey of Columbus.
The Post of the Bahamas is free to illustrate the life of Columbus with the Ark of Noah, if the image of the Ark is a caravel.

The artist who made this woodcut went into the wrong when he took a caravel as an example for the construction of Noah's Ark, and did not portray the Ark as a square box as most artists from that time portray the Ark.

This woodcut was made in the time of Columbus, while the miniature sheet has the imprint of a “Caravel under construction”. That the picture of the construction of a caravel fits in with the time of Columbus, and is therefore not from the time of the Arch of Noah.

So anyhow a good design of the Bahamas Post.

Source: Translated from Navicula.
Bahamas 1990 $1.50 sgMS 874, scott 692
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