17. Did Africans beat Columbus to America?
Pyramid in Mexico, Central America (Pinterest)
At least according to Columbus himself, the answer is yes, yes, and yes! Columbus noted in his journal that Native Americans had confirmed that “black skinned people had come from the south-east in boats, trading in gold-tipped spears”.
An ancient connection between the two continents makes perfect sense, considering that Pyramids had been built both in Africa (Egypt) and Central America – and only there.
Pyramids in Egypt, Africa
Bonus Fact: while most of us were thought in school that Columbus did not set sails to find America, but rather a new route to India, new research suggests he knew exactly where he was sailing and intently misled King Ferdinand about his goal in order to convince him to fund the trip.
This new theory relies on Chinese scripts that prove that Chinese explorers mapped the Americas as early as 1418 and even left settlers along the west coast. The theory suggests that Columbus got hold of the Chinese maps.
Notably, it has been proven that by the time the Whiteman reached the continent, Chinese settlers in America had already blended in with the local Indian tribes.