Christopher Columbus 1492 Expedition flagship Santa Maria Painting by Chris French
The flagship of the expedition led by Christopher Columbus in 1492, Santa Maria was a medium-sized merchant vessel of around 60ft (18.5mtr). By the time of the voyage the ship, like all in the Columbus fleet, was around twenty-five years old and had already served with at least two other owners. Despite her size, she performed well on the long Atlantic crossing but would be wrecked on 25th December 1492 off the coast of Haiti.
Chris French's maritime painting shows the ship on the voyage that shrank the world.
