Voyages and travels of Marco Polo

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Chapter I. Introduction

It is with ancient writers as with ancient coins, such as understand them value them above measure, while such as will not be at sufficient pains to examine them, not only despise them, but also such as admire them. Thus none are more governed by prejudice than those who declaim against it, and none greater bigots than such as are attached to their own opinions from a notion that they think freely. Yet this zeal for freedom of thought ought to be amended rather than discouraged, as being in itself commendable, though sometimes dangerous, by being misapplied. It may, and to say the truth, to many it does seem a tedious

* Taken chiefly from the accurate edition of Ramusio, compared with an original manuscript in His Prussian Majesty’s library, and with most of the translations hitherto published.

and disagreeable labour to look so far back as the first springs and dawnings of knowledge; yet, however they may colour this with pretences to refined taste, it is in fact no better than an excuse for idleness, and a dislike to the taking those pains which are requisite to succeed in such inquiries.

The travels of Marco Polo are indeed very old, and are come into our hands with considerable defects, but they are very valuable for all that, and very well worthy of our attention. He was the Columbus of the East Indies, the first that gave a certain and distinct account of the sea beyond China, and of the free passage thereby through all the islands of the Hast Indies back into those countries that are very well known. It is true that a great part of what he related, though delivered with much solemnity, and confirmed by the strongest asseverations, was much called in question, and thought in some measure beyond all belief. But subsequent discoveries have banished this incredulity, and what were once esteemed fables have been since found true relations ; and the discourses of Marco Polo, that were rejected by the supercilious wits of his own time, have been raked out of the dust of old libraries, deciphered, in a manner, from the barbarous Latin of monkish translators, and brought into the form we now have them by the indefatigable pains of the learned Ramusio; a man whose countenance alone might be sufficient to give credit to this or any other work; though from the notes we have added, it will appear that there are intrinsic marks of its value in the performance itself: yet we owe to

Ramusio the being able to discover these, and, therefore to him we willingly ascribe all glory that results from the vindication of this curious piece, and the honour of its illustrious author. To the same excellent person is due the account we have received of several particulars relating to the personal history of Marco Polo and his family, of which, in as few words as possible, we shall give the reader a relation; which, though not absolutely necessary to the understanding of the book, will be found useful and entertaining.

Chapter II. ‘an Account Of The Author

S1eanror Nrcoto Poo, the father of our author, and his brother Signior Maffio, began their travels from Constantinople in the year 1250, and having proceeded to the court of the Grand Khan of Tartary, resided there for many years, and returned, as the reader will see, to Venice about the year 1269, where they found the wife of Signior Nicolo deceased, and her son, of whom she was left big at the time of their departure, a well accomplished youth of nineteen years of age. Him they carried back with them to the court of the Khan, and after having spent twentysix years more without any news being heard of them by their friends at Venice, returned safely thither in the year 1295. On their arrival at their own house in St. John Chrysistom’s Street, they found themselves in a strange situation, being not only worn entirely out of the memory of their family and acquaintance, but having lost, in a manner, the very tokens of their ‘country, being become Tartars in their speech as well as their habit, and, therefore, under a necessity of taking somé extraordinary steps to recover the respect and reverence due to them, by convincing the world that they were really noble Venetians, and the individual persons who. had been so long lost to their country and friends.

It was with this view that they gave a magnificent entertainment to their relations, at which they all three came forth in rich suits of crimson satin; of which, when the guests were seated, they stripped themselves, and gave them to the servants; appearing next in erimson damask, these also they put off at the last service, and bestowed likewise on the servants, being then dressed in crimson velvet. When dinner was over, and all'who waited withdrawn, Mareo Polo brought out their coats of Tartarian cloth or felt, and out of their foldings produced an incredible quantity of rich jewels, among which there were some well known to those present, and which indisputably proved these strangers of the Polo family. Signior Maffio Polo became a worthy magistrate of Venice, and lived and died in peace.

As for our author Signior Marco, a few months after his return, the Genoese Admiral Lampa Doria coming with a fleet of seventy galleys to the island of Curzola, they fitted out from Venice, under the command of Andrea Dandolo, a great naval force, in which he had the command of a galley, and was so unlucky as to be taken prisoner and carried to Genoa, where he remained in spite of all the offers that were made for his ransom several years; so that his father, despairing of his return, and desirous that his own offspring might inherit his riches, married a second time, and had three children. In the time of this imprisonment all the young nobility of Genoa resorted to our Marco to hear the recital of his voyages and adventures, which gave them so great satisfaction, that one of them preyailed upon him to send for his notes from Venice ; and when thus assisted, wrote from his own mouth the following history in Latin; from whence it was translated into Italian; and this Italian was again translated into Latin, and abridged; whence grew that prodigious corruption so justly complained of in the first printed copies. This work of Marco’s was supported by the testimony of his father, and by that of his uncle on his death-bed. At last Marco himself obtained his liberty, returned to Venice, married, and had two daughters, Moreta and Fantina,* but had no male issue. He died as he lived, beloved and admired by all who knew or conversed with him; for with the advantages of birth and fortune he was humble, and made no other use of his great interest in the state than to do good.

* There was another daughter named Bellela.

Chapter III. The Several Editions Of These Travels

We have already shown that this work was originally written in Latin, and if not by the author’s hand, at least from his mouth; but after the Italian version that was made of it, the copies of the Latin manuscript became extremely rare, insomuch that the Italian translation was taken for the original. One Francis Pepin, a monk, translated it into Latin, and abridged it at the command of his superiors; and it is a copy of this manuscript that is in the library of the King of Prussia. It was printed at Basil by the care of the celebrated Reinecius, and afterwards in other places. It was from one of these copies that it was translated by Hakluyt, of which Purchas so heavily, and at the same time so justly, complains. Ramusio took a great deal of pains, as well in restoring the sense of the text of our author, as in justifying his character, and supporting the credit of his work by his learned discourses. He was assisted therein by a copy of the original Latin manuscript, which was lent him by his friend Signior Chisi, without which it had been impossible for him to have brought it into so good order as we now see it. There has been, besides the translations already mentioned, at least two in the German language. It was printed in Portuguese at Lisbon in 1502, and it has been several times translated into Dutch. I have been the more particular in the account of these additions and translations because they differ very much from each other; so that the only way to come at a complete view of the author, is by collecting and comparing these; a work of infinite pains and labour, in which, however, we have the assistance of Andrew Miller, a learned German critic, and of Peter Bergeron, a Frenchman, who, next to Ramusio, was, of all others, the most capable of such an undertaking, and has succeeded in it the best.

There was, however, one thing wanting, which was the justifying the dates, verifying the facts, and explaining the obscure names of places which oceur in these travels; and this we have done to the best of our ability in this translation, so that the reader may be satisfied that he has the work of this ancient writer as entire, and in as good condition as it was in our power to give it him.

Chapter IV. The Objections Raised Against Them

THERE have been abundance of objections raised against the credit and authority of this writer, many of which, as they were founded on the errors of transeribers and translators, are taken away by restoring our author’s genuine sense, and therefore we need not mention them particularly ; but there are others which deserve more regard. It is said, that our author mentioned some countries and many places that were never heard of before or since. A shrewd objection this, inasmuch as it seems to represent all the pains that has been taken about his writings as entirely thrown away. In answer to this we must observe, that he wrote aceording to the lights he received, and those lights were chiefly from the Tartars; whence it might very well,happen that the names of places mentioned by him should appear strange and uncouth in this part of the world. But it so happens, that we have since received such helps as enable us to get pretty well clear of this difficulty ; for though we have retained in the text the names used by our author, yet we have afforded, from the assistance given us by oriental writers, such explanations as remove, in every respect, these geographical obscurities, so as to leave no sort of doubt either as to the capacity, or the ) NORA of Marco Polo.

Another charge against him is, that he does not agree with other writers, or rather other writers do not agree with him: but when examined to the bottom, this charge will not be found to have any great weight, as having chiefly arisen from the mistakes made as to the true sense of what this writer delivered ; so that very often, what was imputed as ignorance to him, was, in fact, no more than temerity in those who pretended to find fault. with them. The last, and, indeed, the greatest objection is, that he has related many things that are absurd, some that are. incredible, and not a few that are impossible. Against this charge we cannot pretend to vindicate him, though much may be said to excuse him. The facts he tells us of his own knowledge are surprisingly verified. by authentic and indisputable evidence; and grant that he might be imposed upon in what he gives us on the authority of others, we must be content, the rather because it is our happiness to live in an age when men are less liable to be cheated and misled; therefore, this ought to make us the more ready to bear with failings in one who wanted this advantage, who lived in a time of darkness and obscurity, when credulity passeth for faith, and when consequently errors of this sort were rather a man’s misfortune than his fault.

CHAPTER YV.

THE OPINIONS OF SEVERAL EMINENT CRITICS.

In spite, however, of all these charges, there have been some great men in all ages who have done justice to our author’s merit. Among these we may reckon the famous Vossius in his account of the Latin historian, the great geographer Sebastian Munster, the learned naturalist Conrad Gesner, the accurate historian Leunclavius, the celebrated Joseph Scaliger, and many others. The learned German critic William Schickard, in his history of the Kings of Persia, gives our author this character: ‘‘Marco Polo, the Venetian, says he, is a very good writer, and those things which he reports, and were heretofore thought incredible, are now verified daily by later discoveries.” But of all who have undertaken the cause of our author, none has done it with greater capacity, with more good will, or better success, than Father Martini, to whom we owe the best description of China, and who was consequently a better judge than any other of the merit or démerit of this work. He assures us, that there is not the least reason to doubt the truth of our author’s relations on account of the obscurity of the names of places; for, says he, he wrote them after the Tartar pronunciation, whereas later writers study to imitate as well as they are able the pronunciation of the Chinese.

I will add to these but one testimony more, which is that of an author very able to have detected him, if he had caught him in untruths, and who was far enough from being tender of men’s reputations if he thought them to blame. The author I mean is Athanasius Kircher, who in his account of China, confesses, that - none of the old authors have more fully or more accurately described the remotest countries of the east than Marco Polo has done; yet he readily admits, that there are many things in him so very dark, that they may be in a manner styled inexplicable ; but then, with great good sense and candour, he attributes this to the author’s want of skill in geography and astronomy ; and if we consider how young he was when his father carried him into Tartary, and how little opportunity he had of acquiring that sort of knowledge that was most necessary for preventing those mistakes, we may easily concur in opinion with so many eminent and learned writers, that in consideration of the many curious and useful passages in his writings, these blemishes, especially as they were in a manner unavoidable, may very well be forgiven. After having ~

EG thus cleared the way, we will no longer detain the reader from the perusal of these travels, which their author has thus digested. He first gives a succinct account of his father’s and uncle’s peregrinations, and then of his own; after which, he enters into a more particular description of the countries and places through which they passed, and relates also such remarkable things as he was informed of in the course of his voyages.

Chapter VI. The Author's Introductory Account

At the time that Baldwin was Emperor of Constantinople, in the year of our Lord 1250, two gentlemen of the most illustrious family of Paolo or Polo, at Venice, embarked on board a vessel freighted with various kinds of merchandize on their own account ; and having traversed the Mediterranean and the Bosphorus, they came with a fair wind, and the blessing of God, to Constantinople. There they continued for some time to repose themselves, aud then crossing the Pontus Huxinus, arrived at a certain port called Soldadia, from whence they went to the court of a great Tartar prince, called Barha, to whom they showed the fine jewels they had brought, and presented him with some of the most valuable. That monarch was far from being ungrateful; he kindly accepted their presents, and in return gave them others of greater value. They remained a full year at his court, and then disposed all things for their return to Venice. But before they had an opportunity of departing, there broke out a war between this Prince Barha and another Tartar king, whose name was Alan; and this dispute being decided by a battle, the army of Barha was defeated. This unlucky accident exceedingly embarrassed the Venetians, who knew not what measures to take, or how to get safely back into their own country. At length, however, they took a resolution of escaping, as well as they could, out of the country where they were, and by several by-roads escaped to a city called Guthacam, seated on the river Tygris. They continued their journey from hence through a great desert, where there were neither inhabitants nor villages, till at last they arrived at Bochara, a considerable city on the confines of Persia. — It was, at the time of their arrival, the residence of a prince called Barach, in whose court, meeting with a good reception, and not knowing how otherwise to dispose of themselves, they remained three years. At that time a certain person of distinction was sent ambassador from the said Prince Alan to the Great Khan, who is the superior monarch of all the Tartars, residing in the remotest countries of the earth, betwixt the north-sast and the east, called Cublai Khan; who coming to Bochara, and finding there these two brethren, who were now well versed in the Tartarian language, he rejoiced exceedingly, and persuaded these men to go with him to the great Emperor of the Tartars, knowing that he should gratify him in this, and that they also should be entertained with great honour, and rewarded with large gifts, especially seeing, through the econ-

OF MARCO POLO. PAE ference had with them, he perceived their pleasing behaviour. These men therefore considering that they could not easily return home without danger, consulting together, agreed to go with the said ambassador, and accompany him to the Emperor of the Tartars, having certain other Christians in their company, whom they brought with them from Venice; and departing towards the north-east and the north, were a whole year in going to the said court of the said king.

The cause of their long time spent in this journey, was the snows and waters being much increased, so that they were forced in their travel to stay the wasting of the snow, and decreasing of the floods. Being therefore brought before the presence of the Great Khan, they were most courteously received by him. He questioned them concerning many things; as of the countries of the west, the Roman Emperor, and other kings and princes, how they carried themselves in government, and in warlike affairs; how peace, justice, and concord continued among them: also what manner of life and customs were observed among the Latins, and especially of the Pope, of the Christians, of the Church, and of the religion of the Christian faith; and M. Nicolo and M: Maffio, as wise men, told him the truth, always speaking well to him, and orderly, in the Tartarian tongue; insomuch that he often commanded they should be brought to his presence, and they were very acceptable in his sight ; having well understood the affairs of the Latins, and resting satisfied with their answers.

The Great Khan intending to send them his ambassadors to the Pope, first consulted with his great lords, and then calling to him the two brethren, desired them to go to the Pope of the Romans, with one of his barons ealled Chogatal, to pray him to send an hundred men learned in the Christian religion unto him, who might show his wise men that the faith of the Christians was to be preferred before all other sects, and was the only way of salvation, and that the gods of the Tartars were devils, and that they, and others, the people of the east, were deceived in the worship of their gods. He gave them also in charge, to bring, in their return from Jerusalem, of the oil of the lamp which burneth before the sepulchre of our Lord Jesus Christ, towards whom he had great devotion, and held him to be the true God; they therefore yielded due reverence to the Great Khan, promised that they would faithfully execute the © charge committed unto them, and present the letters which they received from him, written in the Tartarian tongue, according to his command, unto the Bishop of Rome.

He, according to the custom of the kingdom, commanded a golden tablet to be given them, engraven and signed with the king’s mark; carrying which with them throughout his whole empire, instead of a passport, they might be everywhere safely conveyed through dangerous places, by the governors of provinces and cities, and receive their expenses from them ; and lastly, how long soever they would stay in any place, whatsoever they needed, for them or theirs, should be furnished them. Taking their leave therefore of the Emperor, they took their journey, carrying the letters and golden tablet with them; and when they had ridden twenty days’ journey, the lord who was associated with them, began to fall grievously sick; whereupon consulting and leaving him there, they prosecuted their intended journey, being everywhere courteously received by reason of the Emperor’s tablet ; yet in many places they were compelled to stay, occasioned by the overflowings of the rivers, so that they spent three years before they came unto the port of the country of the Armenians, named Giazza; from Giazza they went to Acre, about the year of our Lord 1269, in the month of April.

But having entered into the city of Acre, they heard that Pope Clement the Fourth was lately dead, and that no other was substituted in his place, for which they were not a little grieved. At that time there was a certain legate of the Apostolic See at Acre, viz., Master Tibaldo Nisconti di Piacenza, to whom they declared all they had in commission from the Great Khan, and he advised them to expect the creation of a new Pope. In the mean space therefore departing to Venice to visit their friends, Master Nicolo found that his wife was dead, whom at his departure he had left with child, but had left a son named Marco, who was now nineteen years of age. This is that Marco who composed this book, who will manifest therein all those things that he hath seen. The election of the Pope of Rome was deferred two years. They fearing the discontent of the Emperor of the Tartars, who expected their return, went back again to Acre to the legate, carrying with them Marco aforesaid, and having gone to Jerusalem, and fetched the oil with the legate’s letter, testifying their fidelity to the Great Khan, and that a Pope was not yet chosen, they went again towards Giazza.

In the meantime messengers came from the cardinals to the legate, declaring to him that he was chosen Pope, and he called himself Gregory. Hearing this, he presently sent messengers to call back the Venetians, and admonishing them not to depart, prepared other letters for them, which they should present to the Great Khan of the Tartars, with whom he also joined two preaching friars, men famous for their honest conversation and learning. The one was called Friar Nicholo Davicenza, the other Friar Gulielmo de Tripoli; to these he gave letters and privileges, and authority to ordain priests and bishops, and of absolution in all cases as if himself were present, with presents also of great value, to present to the Great Khan, together with his benediction. They came to Giazza, a sea-port in Armenia, and because Bentiochdas and the Sultan of Babylon, leading a great army, then invaded the Armenians, the two friars above mentioned began to be afraid of themselves, and delivering the letters and presents to Signiors Nicolo, Maffio and Marco, desiring to avoid the danger of the ways and peril of wars, remained with the master of the temple, and returned with him.

But the three Venetians exposing themselves to all danger, with many labours and much difficulty, travelled many days always towards the north-east and north, till they, after three years and a half, came to the Emperor of the Tartars great city of Clemenisu ; for in the winter time their journey had often long hindrances by reason of the snow and extreme cold, with inundations of waters. However, King Cublai hearing of their coming, though they were yet very far off, sent messengers forty days’ journey to meet them, who should conduct them, and furnish all necessaries for their journey. Going therefore to the King’s court, and being brought to his presence, they fell down before him on their faces, yielding the accustomed reverence; of whom being courteously received, they were ordered to rise, and he commanded them to declare how they passed the many dangers of the ways, and what they had treated with the Bishop of Rome; then they related it distinctly and at large, and gave the Emperor the Pope’s letters and presents, which they brought; at which the Khan wonderfully rejoicing, commended their faithful cares. The oil also brought from the Lord’s sepulchre, and offered unto him, he reverently received, commanded it should be honourably preserved, and asking of Marco, who he was? Master Nicolo answered, that he was his Majesty’s servant, and his son; he entertained him with a friendly countenance, and taught him to write among other of his honourable courtiers; whereupon he was much esteemed of all the court, and in a little space learned the customs of all the Tartars, and four different languages, being able to write and read them all.

The Great Khan, to make his wisdom more apparent, committed an ambassage unto him to be performed in a city called Carachan, unto which he could scarcely travel in six months’ space; but he carrying himself wisely in all things, discharged what he had in commission with the commendation and favour of the prince, and knowing the Emperor would be delighted with novelties, in the places which he passed through, he diligently searched the customs and manners of men, and the conditions of the countries, making a memorial of all that he knew and saw to divert the Great Khan ; and in sixand-twenty years which he continued one of his court, he was so acceptable to him, that he was continually sent through all his realms and signiories for the affairs of the Great Khan, and sometimes for his own, but by the Khan’s order; and this is the true reason that the said Master Marco learned and saw so many particulars relating to the east, which follow in order in these memoirs; but these Venetians, having stayed in that court many years, and grown very rich in jewels of great value, were inspired with desire to visit their country, fearing that if the Khan (now old) should die, they should not be able to return. One day Master Nicolo, seeing the Khan merry, craved licence to depart in the name of all three: whereat he was moved, and asked why they would put themselves on so dangerous a journey, and if they wanted riches, he would give them twice as much as they had, and out of pure affec. tion would not permit their departure.

Yet not long after it happened, that a king of the Indians, named Argon, sent three of his counsellors unto the court of the great Cublai, whose names were Ullatai, Apusea, and Coza, to treat with him, that he would deliver him a wife; for his wife, named Bolgana, being lately dead, begged this favour of the king at the point of death, and left in her will, that he should not

OF MARCO POLO. oF marry a wife of another family than her own, which was of Catha. King Cublai, therefore, yielding to his request, caused to be sought out for them a fair young maiden of seventeen years of age, named Cogalin, descended of the former queen’s family, to be the wife of Argon. Those ambassadors departing, rode eight months the same way they came, but found bloody wars among the Tartars, so that they were constrained to return, and acquaint the Great Khan with their proceedings. In the mean time Master Marco had returned from those parts of India, where he had been employed with certain ships, and declared to the Khan the singularities of the places, and the security of those seas; which reaching the ears of the ambassadors, they conferred with the Venetians, and agreed, that they with the Queen should go to the Great Khan, and desire leave to return by sea, and to have the three Latins, men skilled in sea affairs, with them, to the country of King Argon. The Great Khan was much displeased with their request, yet upon their petition granted it, and caused Nicolo, Maftio, and Marco to come into his presence, and after much demonstration of his love, would have them promise to return to him after they had spent some time in Christendom, and in their own house; and he caused to be given them a tablet of gold, in which was written his command for their. liberty and security through all his dominions, and that expenses should be given them and theirs, and a guide or convoy for safe passage, ordering also that they should be his ambassadors to the Pope, the kings of France and Spain, and and other Christian princes.

He caused fourteen ships to be prepared, each having four masts, and able to bear nine sails in sailing, the form of which is too long here to be related ; four or five of them had from two hundred and fifty to two hundred and sixty mariners in each of them. In these ships, the' ambassadors, the Queen, with Nicolo, Maffio, and Marco, set sail, having first taken leave of the Great Khan, who gave them many rubies and other precious stones, and their expenses for two years. After three months they came unto a certain island called Java, and from thence sailing through the Indian Sea, after eighteen months they came into the country of King Argon; six hundred men of the mariners and others, and but one of the women, died in the passage, but only Coza of the three ambassadors survived. - When they came to the country of King Argon, they found that he was dead, and that one Chiacato governed the kingdom for his son, who was under age. They sent to acquaint him with their business, who answered that they should give her to Casan, the king’s son, then in the parts of Arbor Secco, in the confines of Persia, with sixty thousand persons for the guard of certain passages against the enemy. Having done so, Nicolo, Maffio, and Marco returned to irs pila and stayed there nine months.