The historian Peter Whitfield has theorized that Waldseemüller incorporated the ocean into his map because Vespucci's accounts of the Americas, with their so-called "savage" peoples, could not be reconciled with contemporary knowledge of India, China, and the islands of Indies.
Historikeren Peter Whitfield har teoretiseret at Waldseemüller indarbejdet havet ind i sit kort, da Vespuccis beskrivelser fra hans rejser i Amerika, med deres barbariske folkeslag, ikke kunne forenes med samtidig moderne viden om Indien, Kina, og øerne i Vestindien og øerne i Ostindien.