Abstract
This paper analyzes the very real possibility that Amerigo Vespucci did not write all of the copy in the published letters that were attributed to him. The paper contends that Vespucci may have originally written portions of those letters, but their final form was likely edited and blatantly expanded upon by unscrupulous individuals seeking profit rather than the promotion of legitimate history.

From the Paper
"Indeed, in the first place, Vespucci most certainly did not, and in particular, this paper attempts to show, could not have penned the frequently tawdry and lewd-laced letters that were attributed to him. Moreover, beyond the sex-saturated, kinky copy mixed in with the quasi-anthropological information in his letters, there are so many inconsistencies in style and reporting the letters smack of falseness. If Vespucci didn't write " or final edit " the letters as they exist today, then who did?"

Tags:america, columbus, journalism

Abstract
The paper discusses the background and history of Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci. The paper attempts to answer the question of why Columbus is so well know and Vespucci is often overlooked in the presentation of historical facts and in popular culture itself. The paper compares and contrasts these two men and explains why although both men achieved great things, Vespucci never gained the fame that Columbus achieved. The paper shows how their respective achievements differ in their ability to provide exciting source material for tales of bravery and adventure. The paper also dispels popular myths about Columbus.

Outline:
Introduction
Columbus and Vespucci Compared
Justification for Columbus Day?
Why Isn't Vespucci Famous?
Vespucci Also Discovered America
Vespucci's Claim to Discovering America Before Columbus
Honors Afforded Columbus and Vespucci in Life
The Knights of Columbus
Dispelling Myths About Columbus
Closing Thoughts

From the Paper
"Columbus started on his second voyage in 1493 The first land sighted, and on November 3 of that year, he reached and discovered the Caribbean Islands and Jamaica. Columbus started his third voyage in 1498, discovering the Island of Trinidad which was so named by him, but falsely believed by him to be a portion of Asia as before.
"As the years went by, Columbus eventually found himself placed under arrest and jailed for allegations of mistreatment of the natives of the lands he explored and discovered, although these charges were eventually dropped and Columbus freed (Order Of The Sons Of Italy In America). By 1502, the year of Columbus' last voyage, he was in poor physical an mental health, and as a result, the voyage suffered."

Tags:expedition, voyage, Indies, adventure

Abstract
The paper looks at how the concept of America as Enlightenment era ideology and the birth of republican government can be found in these engravings by Paul Revere and the scientific symbolism of Johannes Stradanus. The paper discusses how the scientific themes of the astrolabe in Vespucci's hand represent the growing idea of science being the symbolic birth of new ideas, as American awakens at his arrival in the New World.

From the Paper
"This study will examine the two engravings: "Amerigo Vespucci and Awakens a Sleeping America from Nova Reperta" by Johannes Stradanus and "The Able Doctor, or American Swallowing the Bitter Draught" in their conceptuality as American images of freedom and new discoveries in the Enlightenment Era. For Revere's engraving, the idea of America being born out of the tyranny of English taxation without representation is a similar concept to the discovery of the idea of America that evolved out of Amerigo..."

Tags:revere, stradanus, engraving

Abstract
This paper discusses the legacy of Sandro Botticelli, known as one of the best and most spiritually enlightened of the Neo-Platonic Renaissance painters who was eventually hired by the Pope to work on the Sistine Chapel. He was born to an artisan-class family of tanners where his artistic temperament was ignored and started his working career as a goldsmith until he received his first apprenticeship as an artist. Eventually he rose to fame, gained more commissions, both creating panels and the like for rich merchant families and frescoes and other church decorations. He became known for his dreamy and melancholic mythic religiosity and implications of human form and feature and ranked among the greatest of the allegorical and mystical painters of his time.

From the Paper
"Sandro's original apprenticeship as an artist was under the legendary Fra Filippo Lippi. In many ways this was a fortunate choice in masters; Botticelli's mystical and dreamy nature fit well with Lippi's penchant for the ideal and devotional. An apprenticeship in one of the more modern, naturalistic studios might have created a far different Sandro Botticelli, or hidden his actual talent. (Botticelli, 13) Lippi's influence is obvious in most of his student's early work, to such a degree that most of the earliest Botticelli paintings are virtually recreations of Lippi pieces, keeping content and design and scene in common while changing method and form ever so slightly. The resemblance between Botticelli's Madonna Guidi and Lippi's Madonna and Child with Angel is far from accidental."

Tags:medici, neo-platonic, sistine, chapel, pope, vespucci, apprenticeship