Towards the end of the 15th century, two luxury products were in great demand in Europe: Gold and spices.
Europeans wanted more than anything to have access to these materials from the East.
While everyone else was travelling East, it was Columbus who differed and dared to look West.
However, he had problems convincing financial backers to accept his notion that reaching the lands of gold and spice could be achieved travelling across the Atlantic.
Most people accepted the world was round at the time he set sail, but his calculation were incorrect in that they placed Japan in the middle of the Caribbean!
Anyway, he set off after eventually earning the backing of the King and Queen of Spain, but no-one considered there might be a massive new continent between him and his desired destination!
And yet, we celebrate him for this "discovery", even though he was simply interested in the financial gain of gold and spice from the Orient.