ph Se eS Eres FS wee erent | By JOHN NOBLE WILFORD ‘Theories about jrumbian contacts between the Old World and the New abound, and now a British ‘amateur historian says he has gath- fred evidence showing that, in a dou ble challenge to accepted history, the Chinese beat Columbus to America by 72 years and also cireumnaviga- fed the globe a century before the ‘Magellan voyage. in the early 15th century, China was the world's greatest naval Pow er and Zheng He (pronounced jung fut), a eunuch who was close to the emperor, was its admiral. He led a ‘eet of huge ships through the indian Ocean, reaching the east coast of ‘Africa. Seholars think the Chinese ould easily have continued around the Cape of Good Hope to Europe and ‘America, if they had stayed their ‘course of exploration, This: much is ‘documented. But Gavin Menzies, a retired Roy- al Navy submarine commander and navigation expert, has taken, the story a global step forward. In & lecture before the Royal Geogr aphi- cal Soclety in London on Friday ‘evening, he backed up his hypothesis with what he said were secret Dre- Columbian ‘raps showing results of the Zheng He voyage, ancient Chi | hese artifacts found far from home ‘on his home computer and with & ‘commercial software package called ‘Starry Night, he reconstructed the ‘Chinese celestial navigation system land traced what he thinks is the epic round-the-world voyage of Zheng He from March 1421 to October 1423 Before Magellan? ‘A British navigator believes that part of a Chinese fleet led by Zheng He Circled the globe from 1421 to 1423. Othe ships from the fleet were said to have exploted the Caribbean and the North American coast . ly showed the Cape of Good Hope, ‘which the Portuguese did not sai) ‘around until the end of the 15th ce-: ‘tury. Hesaid the secret chart was the progenitor of several European ‘mape in the later 18th century and in the early 18th century. ‘Mr, Menzies explained that the map was evidently based on docu- ‘ments that had been spirited out of China by the Venetian merchant and explorer Nicolo da Conti, who sup- posedly salled with Admiral Zheng, ‘Through research in Venice, Spain — Possible route of Chinese fleet |} and Portugal, Mr. Menzies said that he found some of these early maps ‘and also determined how the Chinese porers were able fo measure It (Mr. Menzies said he determined that “Menzies’ shoulders,” said Dr. John estimate longitude in the the first European explorers of the R. Hebert, chef of the map division Southern, Hem! using Cano- [New World, including Columbus and of the Library of Congress, who has Pus a8 he guide star in place of ‘Magellan, ‘carried "maps. derived not studied the evidence on which the from Chinese charts that somehow neW theory is based. “Ihave no prob- found their way to Venice in 128 and Fe™ accepting the voyages if Men- a nie in M28 and pies can provide a convincing, well fae, aa the Gocumented presentation, with suffi- ‘lent contemporary. documents. to Support the claim.” Dr, cilian Hutchinson, curator of the history of cartography at the NNavenal Mariume Museum in Eng- {ands not persuaded that a lnk has ide and those the Envopens toed aps uropeans {in their American vayages. “itis posable," se aid The Dally “Telegraph London last week, "that Chinese eographical knowledge had reached Europe before the Age of Discovery. But Mr. Menzies 1S abso- history of cartography sald this right be the most controversial part of the new theory. But the fact that Mr. Menzies was fiven a respectful bearing at the ‘venerable geographical society ind- cated that his ideas were not being ‘lsmissed as those of a crank. The Challenging the story of world exploration. Using the program Starry Night, hhe recreated the star positions of ‘maps suddenly line up with current Coastlines to an uncanny degree,” he ‘sai, showing the Chinese must have ‘gotten tht far west and south. Mr. Menzies also described nine ‘wrecked Chinese ships that he said Intely certain oft and that makes it had been detected in the Caribbear Liffigut to separate evidence from Sea, which he said were further evi- ‘wishful thinking” ‘dence of global voyaging by the Chi- hese fleet. He would not disclose 1m the lecture, Mr. Menzies sald ‘thelr whereabouts. Scholars noted ‘if people disagree with me they ‘audience of diplomats, naval offi- ave got to come up with an alterna- ‘cers, geographers and other scholars tive scenario. I say there is none.” ‘ralsed no immediate objections to Adm." Sir John Woodward, who the evidence or reasoning. Publish served on submarines with Mr. Men- fers were also there, inanticipation of zies In the 1960's, said that he “Is not fplanned auction of rights toa book some mad eccentric but a rational Mr. Menzies is writing. ‘man, good at analysis — and he ‘The most current histories of cartog- raphy have no references to Zheng Mr. Menzies issued 17 pages of certainly knows all out charts." He voyages beyond the east coast ot what he said was supporting evi- — Inbislecture, Mr. Menzies said the Africa ‘ence to back his findings He said primary evidence for his theory In any event, after the admira! ‘there was more evidence but it would stemmed from his chance discovery country inward, World discovery be- ame a European enterprise.