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Amerigo Vespucci
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Amerigo Vespucci Marble statue of Amerigo Vespucci standing in a niche, one hand on his chest, at the Uffizi Gallery courtyard in Florence, Italy. Map showing the transatlantic and global routes of major early voyages of discovery and exploration by Spain, Portugal, England, and France during the 15th and 16th centuries. The map traces the journeys of explorers such as Columbus, Cabot, Magellan, da Gama, and others, with labeled paths crossing the Atlantic and encircling Africa and South America, as well as lines of demarcation dividing Spanish and Portuguese exploration zones.
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Amerigo Vespucci
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Buzz Aldrin. Apollo 11. Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin Aldrin, photographed July 20, 1969, during the first manned mission to the Moon's surface. Reflected in Aldrin's faceplate is the Lunar Module and astronaut Neil Armstrong, who took the picture.
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Amerigo Vespucci
Amerigo Vespucci Amerigo Vespucci, portrait by an unknown artist; in the Uffizi Gallery, Florence.

Amerigo Vespucci

Italian navigator
Written by
Roberto Almagià
Professor of Geography, University of Rome, 1915–59. Author of Il mondo attuale and many others.
Roberto Almagià
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Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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History

Amerigo Vespucci (born 1454?, Florence, Italy—died 1512, Sevilla, Spain) was a merchant and explorer-navigator who took part in early voyages to the New World (1499–1500 and 1501–02) and occupied the influential post of piloto mayor (“master navigator”) in Sevilla (1508–12). The name for the Americas is derived from his given name. Vespucci was the son of Nastagio, a notary. As a boy Vespucci was given a humanistic education by his uncle Giorgio Antonio. In 1479...

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