The many landfalls of John Cabot / Peter E. Pope.

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Pope contrasts what we know about Cabot with what we think we know, and shows how the invention of various traditions has shaped debates about his landing in North America.

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CHOICE Review

Pope's book focuses on the 1497 voyage of John Cabot from England to landfall on the east coast of North America. The position of landfall is still the subject of argumentation, but Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and Labrador are central to the discussion of its location. The transatlantic crossing was made in the frail craft the Matthew: 65 feet long, carrying three masts, a crew of 13 (most of them from Bristol), and equipment probably including the quadrant, astrolabe, and the cross-staff. Cabot's was not the first known passage around the Atlantic, but it remains the stuff of derring-do and still captures the imagination. Pope (Memorial Univ. of Newfoundland) based his study of the Cabot voyage on known and newly discovered documents. He assesses the alleged accomplishments of Cabot's son Sebastian and summarizes the arguments for a number of landfall sites. The author also provides an interesting summary of the 400th anniversary of the Cabot journey, and he compares the mariner with Columbus and Cartier. The study is well illustrated and includes 50 pages of endnotes. All levels. G. J. Martin emeritus, Southern Connecticut State University