Thornton expedition

The area that Thornton considered as a possible site of a Tuscan colony now lies in modern French Guiana, near Cayenne,[1] which would be colonised by France in 1630.

[3] William Davies, a surgeon on the Thornton expedition noted that they expected to find the Amazon by sailing south from the West Indies until "...you shall see the Sea change to a ruddie colour, the water shall grow fresh, by these signes you may run boldly your course [sic].

"[4] Sailing from Livorno in September 1608, Thornton returned to the same port in the end of June 1609, reportedly completing the voyage without losing a man.

[5] Thornton himself corroborated these reports, and asserted that the country was rich in rosewood, wild sugar canes, white pepper, balsam, cotton and many other kinds of merchandise which would form an abundant commerce for the Tuscans.

Thornton was ready to sail back to the area between the Orinoco and Amazon rivers in the summer of 1609 with Italian settlers from Livorno and Lucca, but the project was scrapped.