Gavin Menzies to Discuss His New Book, 1421: The Year China Discovered America at the National Press Club 1/9/2003
From: Laura Falacienski of the National Press Club 202-662-7564 or lauraf@press.org News Advisory: Amateur historian, Gavin Menzies will speak at a Book Rap at the National Press Club on Tuesday, January 14, 20003. Gavin Menzies' extraordinary story of Chinese exploration begins in 1421 when four huge fleets set sail from the country's new capital, Beijing. The ships, 450 foot long junks made from the finest teak, were led by the Emperor's loyal Eunuch admirals, first among whom was the 'Admiral of the Western Sea', Zheng He. Their mission was to discover and unite the whole world in the benefits of Confucian harmony - or, put another way, to bring the whole world into the Chinese trade system. Their journeys would last over two years and circle the entire globe encountering many previous unknown territories. Gavin Menzies has rewritten history with his extraordinary findings. His remarkable research has turned our understanding of the history of exploration on its head: -- The Chinese were the first to discover America, 70 years before Columbus -- They reached Australia, 350 years before Cook -- They discovered Antarctica and the South Shetland Isles -- The fleets of Admiral Zheng He sailed through the Magellan Straits 60 years before Magellan was born -- They charted both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America, bringing back artifacts -- They established trade routes with Africa and India -- They understood the concepts of longitude way before the Europeans -- The whole world was charted by 1428 -- European explorers set sail armed with maps copied from the Chinese The event begins at 6:30 p.m. and includes a discussion, Q&A session and a book signing. Books will be provided for sale and signing by: Olsson's Books & Records. Please call 202-662-7129 or e-mail lauraf@press.org for reservations. The Club is located at 14th and F Streets, NW, one block west of Metro Center, on the thirteenth floor. | |