Historic 1493 letter on Columbus voyage is returned to Italy

The eight-page letter conveys Columbus’ marvel at the fertile islands he found, “full of the greatest variety of trees reaching to the stars,” and the timid natives who Columbus believed were ripe for conquest by Spain and conversion to Christianity.

The letter had been stolen from Florence’s Riccardiana library and replaced with a forgery that no one noticed until Italian authorities in 2012 launched a broad investigation across Italy into plundered rare books following some high-profile thefts.