The story is that on one of his voyages, when attacked by the natives, Columbus noted that Zacuto had predicted an eclipse for that day, and used this information to threaten the natives and convince them that he could extinguish the Sun and Moon and deprive them of all light. Based on this story, Zacuto's work saved the Admiral's life and that of his crew. Other publications In 1504, while in Tunisia, Abraham Zacuto wrote a history of the Jewish people, Sefer yuḥasin, starting with the Creation of the World and going to 1500, and several other astronomical/astrological treatises. The History was highly regarded and was reprinted in Cracow in 1581, in Amsterdam in 1717, and in Königsberg in 1857, while a complete, uncensored, edition was published by Herschell Filipowski in London in 1857. Legacy Abraham Zacuto might have an uncredited appearance in Luís de Camões's 1572 epic poem, Os Lusíadas, as "the Old Man of Restelo", a Cassandra-like character that comes forward just before Vasco da Gama's departure to chide the vanity of fame and warn of the travails that await him (Canto IV, v.94-111). This may be Camões' poetic interpretation of an alleged meeting reported by Gaspar Correia between Vasco da Gama and the old Abraham Zacuto at a monastery near Belém beach just before his fleet's departure, in which Zacuto reportedly gave Gama some final navigational tips and warned him of the dangers to avoid. The small Abraham Zacuto Portuguese Jewish Museum (), founded in 1939 and located in the former Synagogue of Tomar, is named after Zacuto. The crater Zagut on the Moon is named after him. Bibliography 1478, Ha-ḥibbur ha-gadol (La Compilación Magna), his first astronomical book, translated into Castilian 1481 by himself and Juan de Salaya from the University of Salamanca. In 1496 the work was translated into Latin translation by José Vizinho and published in Leira as Almanach Perpetuum or Tabule tabularum celestium motuum astronomi zacuti. This work became important for the contemporary explorers. 1486, Tratado breve en las ynfluencias del cielo, and De los eclipses del sol y la luna. 1498, Sefer yuḥasin, historical text for the Jewish people. Digital edition: Zacuto, Avraham. Sefer yuḥasin. Brooklyn, NY: Renaissance Hebraica, 1994. 1498, astrological text predicting that the Messiah would come in 1503/4. after 1498, Mishpetei ha-'istagnin (Judgments of the astrologer) References Further reading (PDF version) External links Biography, introduction and partial English translation