Exploration: Did you mean...?

One of the major motivating factors in the European Age of Exploration was the search for direct access to the highly lucrative Eastern spice trade. In the 15th century, spices came to Europe via the Middle...

The French exploration of New Zealand has been overshadowed by the achievements of British navigator Captain James Cook (1728-1779), but French navigators who visited Aotearoa's (New Zealand) shores named over...

The Portuguese built an empire from 1420 onwards that was largely composed of trade centres dotted around the coasts of three continents. This colonial enterprise was driven by a search for African gold, Asian spices...

Ancient peoples were as curious as ourselves about the wider world and even if the transport at their disposal meant travel could be long, arduous and dangerous, they still managed to get about and visit different...

Arctic exploration represents one of humanity’s most formidable quests for discovery, driven by scientific curiosity, commercial ambition, and geopolitical competition. From the early voyages of Henry Hudson...

This map illustrates the exploration of the continent of Antarctica from the first voyages of the 18th century to the research stations of the 21st century. The map...

From the voyages of the Portuguese navigators under the patronage of Henry the Navigator in the 15th century to the transcontinental expeditions of Henry Morton...

The Age of Exploration (15th–16th centuries) was propelled by a revolution in shipbuilding and navigation that transformed the limits of human travel. Innovations such as the caravel and carrack, the adoption of the magnetic...

This map illustrates the sweep of Viking exploration between the late 8th and early 11th centuries, charting longship routes from Scandinavia to the British Isles, Normandy, Iberia, Russia, the Mediterranean...

Spain’s rapid expansion into South America followed the consolidation of its Caribbean footholds by 1512, marking a decisive shift from exploration to imperial conquest. Under the reign of Ferdinand...