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Martin Behaim: Erdapfel (Potato) (1492)

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Taken from: On Martin Behaim’s Globe, and his Influence upon Geographical Science by Mytton Maury.

The Erdapfel, also called Globe of Martin Behaim. Nuremberg 1492 by Georg Glockendon The Elder

Diplomatische Geschichte des portugiesischen berühmten Ritters Martin ...By Christoph Gottlieb von Murr

 

Madagascar island.

The ship's crews from India where St. Thomas is buried, and from the land called Moabar (Malabar in SW India) genuinely travel with their ships till the Island called Madagascar normally in twenty days, and when they return again to Moabar, it will be hardly possible for them to do it in three months, for the sake of the Moors, without a break. This writes Marco Polo in his third book in the 39th chapter.

 

Zanzibar Island.

This island called Zanzibar has a circumference of  2000 mile. They have their own king and their own speech and the people pray to idols. They are big people and as strong as four of our people. And each of them eats as much as five other people. They are all naked, and they are all the black people, almost of the same shape, with large long ears, big mouths, great terrible eyes, this because they are four times bigger than other people: The women look also as cruel as the men. The people are fed with dates, milk, rice and meat; no wine is found, but they make a good drink of rice and sugar. Big business is going on in Ambergris and elephants. Many elephants and whales are caught while alive and leopards, and also giraffes, and lions, and many other animals, which are totally different from our animals. This describes us Marco Polo in the third book in the 40th chapter.