The Sierra de la Plata legend likely corresponds to the Cerro Rico de Potosí in Bolivia, and the White King to the Inca Huayna Cápac. When Aleixo Garcia explored the region and discovered precious metals in the early 16th century, Spain had barely begun colonizing the coasts of Panama and Colombia, and Portugal had barely begun colonizing the coast of Brazil. Neither of the two crowns knew about the existence of the Inca Empire until Francisco Pizarro encountered it in 1528, traveling from the Pacific coast. King Charles I tried to solve conflicts between conquistadors by dividing South America into several governorates: New Castile, under Francisco Pizarro, which reached from the Santiago River, Ecuador to Pisco, Peru; New Toledo, under Diego de Almagro, from Pisco to Taltal, Chile; and New Andalusia, under Pedro de Mendoza, two hundred leagues south. Of these three, it was Almagro's men who first found the Cerro Rico de Potosí, leaving New Andalusia without any claim to the Sierra de la Plata.