Columbus’ Eyes
Description
The image shows Christopher Columbus under a threatening sky, such as those that he had to look up to, when, in an almost endless journey, in harsh conditions, and quite possibly, filled with doubts, he crossed the great Atlantic Ocean for the first time in history. In addition to abandoning his roots for an indefinite period, it blew against him a common idea, since the success of the journey would be the irrefutable proof of a diametrically different conception of space: that Earth was not flat but round.
Columbus’ stance in this statue (Jeronimo Suñol and Arturo Mélida, 1885) seems the perfect resting place for a white-bellied sea eagle. There is also a tiny bird, seeking shelter from the spectacular eagle in the discoverer’s footwear. This small bird represents Queen Isabella the Catholic, for the shelter and rights she gave to the indigenous people of the discovered territories.Try it!