Final answer:
In the context of European colonization of the Americas, some Europeans may have initially thought that the new land held potential for exploration, wealth, and expansion of their empires.
Step-by-step explanation:
In order to answer this question, it is important to specify which new land is being referred to, as there are multiple references to different lands in the provided information. If we consider the context of European colonization of the Americas, it is difficult to generalize the thoughts of all the people within that time period and diverse group. However, some Europeans may have initially thought that the new land held potential for exploration, wealth, and expansion of their empires.