I know, I know, I know. We've all heard ad nauseum that educated people in 1492 all believed/knew that the earth is roughly a sphere.
But what about José Schmoe in Toledo, or Jean Doe in Lyon? Did they know--were they aware--that the world was round? Would the average, poorly educated "man on the street" in Europe have agreed that a voyage west to India was at least theoretically possible? In 1492's Wikipedia, would they have listed "the earth isn't actually flat" in the "List of common misconceptions"?
Or is this something that's just unknowable?
Thanks!
The general consensus by 1492 was that the Earth was, indeed, round. The two pronged mission that Columbus set out to prove was not that it was a sphere, but just how big it was, and that sailing West was a quicker way to the Indies.