Columbus and the three mermaids
Christopher Columbus's ship's journal, in an entry for 9 January 1493, describes three mermaids he saw the day before near Haiti.
Christopher Columbus was six months into his first voyage across the Atlantic, hoping to reach Asia by sailing west, when his ship's journal recorded a sighting. The entry is dated 9 January 1493 and describes the previous day, 8 January. History.com places him sailing near the present-day Dominican Republic.
Strange History quotes the journal text: on 8 January, at Rio del Oro in Haiti, the Admiral saw three mermaids lift clear of the water. He judged them less beautiful than their reputation, because their faces had masculine traits. He added that he had earlier seen such creatures off Guinea, where manequeta is found.
History.com and Wikipedia both read the sighting differently from Columbus: History.com calls the creatures manatees, and Wikipedia says the sightings may have been manatees or similar sea mammals.
"The Western concept of mermaids as beautiful, seductive singers may have been influenced by the sirens of Greek mythology, which were originally half-birdlike, but came to be pictured as half-fishlike in the Christian era. Historical accounts of mermaids, such as those reported by Christopher Columbus during his exploration of the Caribbean, may have been sightings of manatees or similar aquatic mammals. While there is no evidence that mermaids exist outside folklore, reports of mermaid sightings continue to the present day."
- Columbus mistakes manatees for mermaids, History.com
- Christopher Columbus and Mermaids, Strange History (2010)