The Odyssey of Christopher Columbus' Remains

 

Christopher Columbus, the famed explorer whose voyages reshaped the world, died in 1506 in Valladolid, Spain. Yet, the journey of his remains across continents and centuries is a saga as complex and contentious as his life.

After his death on May 20, 1506, at the age of fifty-four, Columbus was buried modestly in Valladolid, Spain. His remains were soon moved to a monastery in Seville, Spain, per the wishes of his family. By 1537, his body was shipped to the island of Hispaniola (modern-day Dominican Republic and Haiti), where Columbus had requested to be buried before his death. He was interred in the cathedral of Santo Domingo.

When Spain ceded Hispaniola to France in the early 1790s. Spanish authorities, unwilling to leave Columbus’ remains under French control, exhumed his bones and shipped them to Havana, Cuba. There, the remains were placed in a grand monument in Havana’s cathedral, reflecting Spain’s desire to maintain Columbus as a national hero.

In 1877, workers in Santo Domingo’s cathedral uncovered a lead box inscribed with Columbus’ name, containing bones. This discovery sparked a heated dispute. The Dominican Republic claimed these were the true remains, arguing that the Spanish had mistakenly taken someone else’s bones to Havana in the 1790s. Spain, however, insisted that the Havana remains were authentic. The debate raged without resolution, as both nations clung to their claims for cultural and historical prestige.

When Cuba gained independence from Spain in 1898 following the Spanish-American War, Columbus’ Havana remains were moved again, this time back to Seville, Spain. They were placed in the Seville Cathedral, where they remain today in a grand tomb carried by statues representing the four kingdoms of Spain. Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic continues to assert that the bones in Santo Domingo are Columbus’, housing them in a monumental lighthouse, the Faro a Colón, built in 1992.

Modern science has attempted to settle the dispute. In 2003, Spanish researchers conducted DNA analysis on the Seville remains, comparing them to the known DNA of Columbus’ brother Diego and his son Hernando, both buried in Spain. The results confirmed a mitochondrial DNA match, strongly suggesting that the Seville bones are indeed Columbus’. However, the Dominican Republic has not allowed similar testing on the Santo Domingo remains, citing their national heritage status, leaving the question open to speculation.

Further complicating matters, some historians suggest Columbus’ remains may have been fragmented, with parts left in Santo Domingo and others taken to Havana, then Seville. Without comprehensive testing, this theory remains unproven. The lack of definitive evidence fuels ongoing debate, with both Spain and the Dominican Republic maintaining their claims.

U.S. Intervention in Latin America 1898-1948