The classic work by the great German historian on the contributions of the Jews to the epic voyages of Christopher Columbus, Prince Henry the Navigator, Vasco Da Gama, and other explorers who transformed the world.

The invaluable assistance provided to Columbus by certain prominent Jews of his day--the cartographer Jehuda Cresques, the astronomer Abrajham Zacuto, the scholar Isaac Abravanel, and the Converso financier Luis de Santangel whose family suffered at the hands of the Inquisition, and others--makes for captivating reading.

Using original documents, Kayserling also demonstates how Columbus's second voyage was made possible through the gold and silver confiscated from the Spanish Jews expelled in 1492. One such list of confiscated items includes jars of gold, Torah mantles made of silk, silverware, pearl strings, bracelets and brooches, and even silver buttons.

It is this scholarly mastery of the subject material that makes Kayserling's book such a informative reading experience.

ISBN 0-9620772-2-4

Library of Congress 89-061324

Paperback, 189 pp.