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For years, researchers tried to prove that Christopher Columbus’ encounters with “cannibal marauders” during his trip to the Caribbean in 1492 were just myths. A new study, however, suggests that Columbus’ stories may have been the truth.
The research, published in Scientific Reports, notes that the “Caribs,” a group of South American people who were also rumored to be cannibals, invaded Jamaica, Hispaniola and the Bahamas in 800 A.D., hundreds of years before previously believed.
“I’ve spent years trying to prove Columbus wrong when he was right: There were Caribs in the northern Caribbean when he arrived,” said William Keegan, Florida Museum of Natural History curator of Caribbean archaeology, in a statement. “We’re going to have to reinterpret everything we thought we knew.”
Columbus described the Carib raiders originally as “Caniba,” a group that terrorized the native Arawaks, abducting their women and eating their men. Eventually, Columbus’ Spanish successors corrected the name to “Caribe.”
Researchers analyzed some of the skulls of the early inhabitants using facial recognition technology to uncover the relationships between the groups. In particular, they looked at facial “landmarks” (eye socket size or nose length) to determine how closely the groups were related to each other.
Carib skulls were identified thanks to their practice known as “skull flattening” which warped their skulls, the researchers wrote in the study.
nypost.com
The research, published in Scientific Reports, notes that the “Caribs,” a group of South American people who were also rumored to be cannibals, invaded Jamaica, Hispaniola and the Bahamas in 800 A.D., hundreds of years before previously believed.
“I’ve spent years trying to prove Columbus wrong when he was right: There were Caribs in the northern Caribbean when he arrived,” said William Keegan, Florida Museum of Natural History curator of Caribbean archaeology, in a statement. “We’re going to have to reinterpret everything we thought we knew.”
Columbus described the Carib raiders originally as “Caniba,” a group that terrorized the native Arawaks, abducting their women and eating their men. Eventually, Columbus’ Spanish successors corrected the name to “Caribe.”
Researchers analyzed some of the skulls of the early inhabitants using facial recognition technology to uncover the relationships between the groups. In particular, they looked at facial “landmarks” (eye socket size or nose length) to determine how closely the groups were related to each other.
Carib skulls were identified thanks to their practice known as “skull flattening” which warped their skulls, the researchers wrote in the study.
Christopher Columbus likely encountered âmarauding cannibalsâ 500 years ago, shocking study says
For years, researchers tried to prove that Christopher Columbus’ encounters with “cannibal marauders” during his trip to the Caribbean in 1492 were just myths. A new study, h…
nypost.com
