On his last voyage in 1502, Christopher Columbus encountered a large canoe in the Bay Islands of the Gulf of Honduras which was full of Mayan trade goods, and presumably from the Yucatan. Its ~40 passengers included well dressed merchants, their families, and about 25 oarsmen. It was eight feet wide, 'as long as a galley' (~50ft), with a cabin in the middle. He compared it a Venetian gondola and was impressed with their seamanship. Mayan murals display boats with raised, curved bows and sterns. He described their fine textiles, weapons made of flint (probably actually obsidian), and copper goods including cups, bells and hatchets. The Mayan merchants carried a type of beer made from fermented corn, now called "Cheba", which young Fernando Columbus enjoyed. The Europeans also had their first exposure to chocolate. Maya trade routes on land & sea The blue lines are commercial sea routes, red are comm...
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