Mapmakers are currently discussing the authenticity of a map that might prove a Chinese sailor, admiral Zhu Di, was the first person to discover America. Gavin Menzies, a British amateur historian, wrote a book called 1421 ?The Year China Discovered the World. In it, he writes that Zhu Di sailed around the world in the fifteenth century and discovered new lands. His claims are now supported by the recent discovery of an ancient map in Shanghai. The map dates back to 1418, seventy years before Columbus stepped foot on American shores. Scientists are currently testing the age of the map.

日前，制图师正对地图真假进行辨别，若地图为真，朱棣将成为首位发现美洲的君主。英国史学家孟席斯曾出版《1421：中国发现世界》。15世纪，朱棣曾派遣航海家环游世界，并发现新大陆。近日，上海发现中国古代地图，他的此番言论获得了有力证据。这张地图可以追溯到1418年，比哥伦布发现美洲早了70年。科学家正在对地图年代进行验证。

Mr. Menzies makes further claims about Zhu Di that turn our knowledge of history upside down. He states that the Chinese sailor sailed around the globe a century before Magellan, discovered Antarctica and reached Australia three hundred and fifty years before Captain Cook. Menzies says the admiral抯 maps were never used by his country抯 navy, as China had little interest in the world beyond its borders. Until now, Chinese experts have said there is little truth in Mr. Menzies?book. However, the new map clearly shows America, Africa and Europe. It was bought for $500 in a Shanghai antiques shop.

此外，孟席斯的进一步论证更加颠覆历史。他称中国的环球之旅比麦哲伦足足早了一个世纪，对于发现南极和澳洲，中国比库克船长早了350年。孟席斯表示称，由于大明王朝对外界事物漠不关心，明朝海军曾未使用过地图。到目前维持，仍有许多国内人士认为《1421：中国发现世界》不可信。然而，这张地图清晰地绘制了美洲、非洲以及欧洲。在上海古董店，收藏家以500美金购得此图。