Clue # 1 Did You Know? Amerigo Vespucci Was the First to Recognize the Americas As Distinct

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Clue # 1 Did you know? Amerigo Vespucci was the first to recognize the Americas as distinct . continents.in 1587

• Amerigo Vespucci was born in Florence, Italy in 1454. Amerigo’s parents were friends with the powerful Medici family who ruled Italy from the 1400s to 1737. As a child, Amerigo became fluent in several languages. He was taught astronomy, cartography, and navigation techniques by his uncle, Giorgio Antonio. • In 1492, Amerigo moved to Spain and worked as a banking clerk for the Medicis. He became friends with a man named Giannetto Berardi. Berardi took Vespucci to see ships being prepared for exploration. Berardi was an investor in Columbus’ journey. He helped get Columbus ships, supplies and food for the journey. Vespucci met Columbus through Berardi. It is believed that Vespucci had the opportunity to prepare Christopher Columbus' ships for the voyage to the New World. Amerigo decided to work with merchants to provide supplies for voyages. Berardi died in late 1495 and Amerigo was left in charge of gathering supplies for the Spanish ships. • When his business started to fail, Amerigo decided to become an explorer and traveled to the New World at least twice. Vespucci set sail on his very first

expedition with other Spanish ships. Question Who taught Amerigo cartography and astronomy? A. Christopher Columbus B. Giorgio Antonio C. The Medici family

Question D. Giannetto Berardi Before he started…

, Think Tank Copyright 2019 Copyright Tank Think Clue # 2 Did you know? Amerigo did very little exploring in North America. . • Some of the voyages, which Amerigo Vespucci is thought to have made, are controversial. Some people believe the letters documenting his journeys are true. Others believe the letters are either exaggerated or not real. • During his first disputed voyage, it took weeks for Vespucci’s fleet to reach South America. Some historians believe Vespucci discovered Venezuela before Christopher Columbus due to a letter that is dated 1497. Vespucci wrote two letters documenting new discoveries, native people, new animals and new constellations. Vespucci returned to Spain in 1498. At the time, Amerigo’s explorations were funded by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. • On the second voyage to South America, Vespucci joined Alonso de Ojeda. Vespucci separated from Ojeda and sailed to the northeastern portion of South America. There, Vespucci discovered the Amazon River, Cape St. Augustine and Brazil. Some historians believe Vespucci’s first voyage did not happen and his second voyage was actually his first. • In 1501, Vespucci left on his third expedition to the Americas. The ships sailed along the coast of South America to Patagonia (present day southern Argentina). On this

expedition, Vespucci discovered Rio de Janeiro and Rio de la Plata. Question During which expedition did Vespucci discover Brazil? A. 2nd Voyage B. 3rd Voyage C. With the Medici family

D. With Christopher Columbus Question

First number of code : ______The year Italy built a ship to honor Vespucci MINUS 1928.

Second number of code : ______The age of Vespucci when he passed away MINUS 53.

Third number of code : What number is represented by “ - - . . . ” ? ______

Last number of code : What number is the letter “T” in clue #1? ______

1. What subject did Giorgio Antonio 4. How many weeks did each voyage teach Vespucci? to the New World take? A. Cartography A. 4 weeks B. Navigation B. 5 weeks C. Astronomy C. 6 weeks D. All of the above D. 7 weeks

2. Which German cartographer 5. Where was Vespucci born? proposed the name America ? A. Italy A. Martin Waldseemüller B. France B. King Ferdinand II C. Portugal C. The Medici Family D. Russia D. Alonso de Ojeda 3. Who was the queen of Spain in 6. How did Vespucci die? 1498? A. No one knows A. Elizabeth B. Shot by natives B. Isabella C. Malaria C. Victoria D. His ship sank D. Mary

1 D B E C

2 K H I/J F

3 P N O M

4 T R Q S

5 Z X V W