Hence my inclusion of the word “different” in reference to the process as it relates to those natives, whom I doubt had difficulty seeing Columbus’ ships in the first place. Although, perhaps the Hispaniola natives were in the habit of counting waves while peering out onto the oceanic horizon, who knows.
There’s a lot of it available. However, the idea that native Americans in the late 15th century had film cameras just blows our mind to the extent that we can’t see it.
That was the last time the stars were right, and they were distracted by Great Cthulhu rising from the depths. Happens more often than you might think.
I’m now imagining a 15th-century Bart Sibrel confronting Columbus, demanding that he admit the so-called ‘New World landings’ were faked. Followed, of course, by Columbus cold-cocking the twerp.
Columbus makes no mention of any such thing happening in his letter to King Ferdinand about the voyage, nor anywhere else. Since the Indians left no accounts, I have to wonder what the source of the information is supposed to be.
Columbus’s account of his initial encounters with the Taino:
Now the Indians were evidently quite impressed with Columbus and his men. But even his flagship the Santa Maria only had a crew of 40; the Indians had canoes that held double that.
I’ve read many accounts of the first encounters between Europeans and native peoples; I’ve never heard of any incident like that mentioned in the OP. Basically it’s just made up out of whole cloth.
IIRC, I first heard this bit of nonsense back in the 70’s.
It could have been Erich von Däniken, Carlos Castaneda, Timothy Leary, Baba Ram Dass or even L. Ron Hubbard who first introduced the anecdote.
Specifically, there’s been a pretty common trope of finding various bizarre things to claim about just how differently those primitive/backwards (or alternatively, mystical/spiritual/noble-savage) Aboriginal North Americans’ minds work. This is just more of the same.
