Marco Polo

Marco Polo & The Description of the World : 

Marco Polo & The Description of the World

Venice : 

Venice Marco Polo was born into a wealthy merchant family in Venice (Italy) in 1254 At that time Venice was a powerful city trading with the whole known world such as Egypt and Persia Venice is a city built on many small islands, which are connected by canals Gondoliers take tourists from place to place in their gondolas

The Polo Family : 

The Polo Family Marco’s father, Niccolo, was a merchant who had previously travelled to China and met Kublai Khan Marco’s father had promised Kublai Khan to return to China with 100 priests who could teach Kublai Khan about the West and Christianity

The Journey : 

The Journey In 1271 Marco Polo, his father and uncle, Maffeo, set out for China They took with them some priests as promised. However, they could not stand the hardships of the journey and soon turned back Kublai Khan had given Niccolo a ‘golden tablet of command’, which ensured safe passage through dangerous regions On their way to China they stopped in Jerusalem to take some oil from a famous church to give to Kublai Khan Marco Polo and his companions reached China three and half years later

Asia – A Place of Wonders : 

Asia – A Place of Wonders Before Marco Polo travelled to Asia many people in the West believed that Asia was inhabited by monsters such as sciopods Instead of encountering monsters Marco Polo discovered many new and amazing things in Asia such as black stones that could burn, paper money, stones that attracted metal, cloth that didn’t burn, great cities, and many other things

China : 

China During Marco Polo’s time China was occupied by the Mongols Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, welcomed his guests and let them stay in China for seventeen years During this time Marco Polo worked as an administrator for Kublai Khan and learned many things about Asia Genghis Khan / Khagan of the Mongol Empire Khubilai, Khagan of the the Mongol Empire

Back in Italy : 

Back in Italy On his return to Europe Marco Polo was taken prisoner by the city of Genoa In prison, Marco Polo met Rustichello, who was a writer Marco Polo told Rustichello about his adventures in Asia who wrote them down and published a book

Marco Polo’s Legacy : 

Marco Polo’s Legacy Marco Polo’s book called ‘The Description of the World’ was later translated into many languages It told about great civilizations in China and beyond (e.g. it mentioned the existence of Korea and Japan for the first time) Many people didn’t believe the things Marco Polo described And what is more, some translators added their own ideas or deleted passages from the book to make it more interesting!

Marco Polo’s Last Words : 

Marco Polo’s Last Words On his deathbed a priest asked Marco Polo to confess the lies he had written in his book, but Marco Polo said: “All I have said is true and I have only told you half of what I know!”