1493

1 About this book

1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created is a nonfiction book by Charles C. Mann first published in 2011. It covers the global effects of the Columbian Exchange, following Columbus's first landing in the Americas, that led to our current globalized world civilization. It follows on from Mann's previous book on the Americas prior to Columbus, 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus.

In his book, Mann argues that Columbus paved the way to the homogenocene, a particular feature of the anthropocene that is marked by a global homogenization of (agricultural) species, diseases, and tools brought about by the migration and transport that set in with the discovery of the new world. Modern global food production largely relies on “invasive species” (crops, livestock) that existed only regionally before the establishment of the new trade and transport paths.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Good for readers who want: history, the environment, and a long read.

• Economic history
• History
• Ecology
• Industrial revolution
• Environmental aspects
• Modern History
• Discovery and exploration
• History, modern