PINZN, MARTN ALONSO; AND PINZN, VICENTE YEZ

born c. 1441, , Palos, Seville died 1493, Palos born c. 1460?, , Palos died c. 1523? brothers from a family of Spanish shipowners and navigators who took part in Christopher Columbus' first voyage to America. Martn, part owner of the Pinta and Nia, helped prepare them, procured crews for the expedition of 1492, and commanded the Pinta, on which his brother Francisco was pilot. His suggestion to change course on October 7 brought the fleet to a landfall in the Bahamas on October 12. Near Cuba, however, he left the fleet, to search for the land of gold and spices. He rejoined Columbus a few months later but, returning with the fleet to Spain, he left once again, hoping to be the first to arrive with news of the discoveries. Columbus reached Spain first, however, and Martn is remembered only for his disloyalty. Vicente commanded the Nia in 149293 and remained with Columbus throughout the expedition. A successful and capable explorer in his own right, he sailed in late 1499 and landed on the Brazilian coast at a cape he named Santa Mara de la Consolacin. From there, sailing northwest, he reached and explored the Amazon River estuary before continuing to the Gulf of Paria (northeastern Venezuela). He made two additional voyages to the New World before 1508. In that year, having been commissioned to discover a passage to the Spice Islands, he sailed with Juan Daz de Sols along the coast of Central America. Historians are not sure whether he discovered Honduras and Yucatn on this voyage or went south to Venezuela and Brazil. Trouble developed with Daz de Sols, and they returned to Spain in August 1509. No records exist of Vicente after 1523.