Cod's Impact on the Push for Exploration
- Vikings wanted to gain a lot of cod and followed the range of the Atlantic cod, leading them to discover Iceland, Greenland, and Canada
- Basques were looking for mother load of cod so they explored Atlantic Ocean for best source of cod
- Basques discovered America but didn't tell anyone to protect their trade as it was where they were obtaining all their cod
- The preservation of codfish was major in creating expeditions because cod wouldn't rot as fast as other fish, so longer expeditions were able to be made and explorers could stay in places for a longer period of time
- Bristol merchants, John Jay and Thomas Croft, were looking for Hy-Brasil, an island in the Atlantic where cod was extremely abundant and basically did the same thing as the Basques
- Enormous amounts of cod were one thing that drew John Cabot to explore New World
- Once Cabot confirmed these reports, many wanted to explore North America for even more cod
"...salt cod, spreading itself before the drab, hefty shop keepers, making them dream of departure, of travel." Emile Zola, "The Belly of Paris," 1873