AmerigoThe Man Who Gave His Name to America
Dr. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto
European cartographers of the early 16th century struggled to find names for the growing number of newly discovered lands, and they used an obscure traveller from Florence, Amerigo Vespucci, for the new continent in the far west. In this first ever serious biography of the man, Fernandez-Armesto reveals that far from being a straightforward hero-explorer, Vespucci was in fact a one-time pimp, small-time jewel trader, and generally shady inhabitant of the Florentine underworld, who was, however, adept at self-invention and promotion.