Carthaginian ships across the Atlantic. New considerations on the construction of the image of Cádiz in 16th century historiography from classical sources

Abstract

Ocampo has been a pioneer in the composition of a history of Spain where classical sources were used to ground innovative constructions inspired by the present. In this article, we look into a passage of his work that provides the account of the Cartha-ginian discovery of an island, at the time identified as America, by analyzing the contrast with his usual categorization, according to which the inhabitants of Cádiz were divided into locals and invaders, attributing to the former the responsibility of maritime disco-veries. Finally, we put forward three reasons for this discrepancy, considering the context of the work and the concerns of the author and his contemporaries.