Marco polo facts biography definition

The two brothers then went to the port city of Soldaia now Sudak, Ukraine , where they owned a house. Did you know? The Byzantine re-conquest of Constantinople in , along with upheavals in the Mongol Empire, may have blocked their way home. After spending three years in Bukhara in present-day Uzbekistan, they were encouraged by a Mongolian embassy to visit Kublai Khan , grandson of Genghis Khan , who controlled a huge swath of Asia.

Kublai quizzed them on European affairs and decided to send them on a goodwill mission to the pope. At the request of Kublai Khan, they secured some holy oil from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and then backtracked to Acre to pick up gifts, papal documents and two friars from newly elected Pope Gregory X. The friars quickly abandoned the expedition, but the Polos continued on, possibly by camel, to the Persian port city of Hormuz.

Over the next three years they slowly trekked through deserts, high mountain passes and other rough terrain, meeting people of various religions and cultures along the way. Those skeptics point out that among other omissions, his account fails to mention Chinese writing , chopsticks , tea , or the Great Wall although in the last case, this should not be surprising given that the wall was not built at its present location until the Ming Dynasty.

Marco polo facts biography definition

Also, Chinese records of the time do not mention him, even thought he claimed to have served as a special emissary for Kublai Khan. This is puzzling, given the careful record-keeping in China at that time. On the other hand, Marco describes other aspects of Far Eastern life in much detail: paper money , the Grand Canal , the structure of a Mongol army, tigers , and the Imperial postal system.

He also refers to Japan by its Chinese name "Zipang" or "Cipangu. In his defense, there are no known arguments today that disprove any of Marco's written descriptions. This mission is mentioned both in the Chinese and Persian records, including the names of the envoys, but Marco provides additional information about the journey which could only have been known by his being present on the trip.

Marco Polo is also believed to have described a bridge that later was the site of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, a battle that marked the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War. Although the Polos were by no means the first Europeans to reach China by land for example, Radhanites traded and Giovanni da Pian del Carpine explored in Asia , thanks to Marco's book, their trip was best-documented.

That is why Marco Polo is the person most people think of when they think of explorers of the Far East. Marco Polo's description of the Far East and its riches inspired Christopher Columbus 's decision to try to reach those lands by a western route. Columbus owned a copy of Polo's book with many markings and comments. The fastest ship of her day, the Marco Polo was the first ship to sail around the world in under six months.

Several ships of the Italian navy were named Marco Polo. A species of sheep called the Marco Polo sheep is named for the explorer, who described it during his crossing of Pamir ancient Mount Imeon in Marco Polo's travels may have brought about European cartography , ultimately leading to the European voyages of exploration a century later.

The Fra Mauro map famous map of the world is said to have been an improved copy of the one brought from China by Marco Polo. Why is Marco Polo so famous? He was a famous merchant who wrote about his travels. The Western world was fascinated by them, especially his travels in Asia. Elvin concludes that "those who doubted, although mistaken, were not always being casual or foolish", but "the case as a whole had now been closed": the book is, "in essence, authentic, and, when used with care, in broad terms to be trusted as a serious though obviously not always final, witness.

Other lesser-known European explorers had already travelled to China, such as Giovanni da Pian del Carpine , but Polo's book meant that his journey was the first to be widely known. Christopher Columbus was inspired enough by Polo's description of the Far East to want to visit those lands for himself; a copy of the book was among his belongings, with handwritten annotations.

He never found the kingdom but ended his travels at the Great Wall of China in , proving that Cathay was what Matteo Ricci — called "China". Marco Polo's travels may have had some influence on the development of European cartography , ultimately leading to the European voyages of exploration a century later. That fine illuminated world map on parchment, which can still be seen in a large cabinet alongside the choir of their monastery [the Camaldolese monastery of San Michele di Murano] was by one of the brothers of the monastery, who took great delight in the study of cosmography, diligently drawn and copied from a most beautiful and very old nautical map and a world map that had been brought from Cathay by the most honourable Messer Marco Polo and his father.

Though Marco Polo never produced a map that illustrated his journey, his family drew several maps of the Far East based on the traveller's accounts. These collections of maps were signed by Polo's three daughters, Fantina, Bellela and Moreta. Benjamin B. Olshin a historian who wrote for the University of Chicago Press has been unable to "establish the authenticity" of these maps once owned by Marcian Rossi, an Italian immigrant living in California during the s known for peddaling hoaxes.

These maps have been compared to the Zeno Map hoax. However Olshin made no mention on the improbability they are real. There is a legend about Marco Polo importing pasta from China; however, it is actually a popular misconception , [ ] originating with the Macaroni Journal , published by a food industry association with the goal of promoting the use of pasta in the United States.

Pasta had already been invented in Italy a long time before Marco Polo's travels to Asia. The Marco Polo sheep , a subspecies of Ovis ammon , is named after the explorer, [ ] who described it during his crossing of Pamir ancient Mount Imeon in In , a three-masted clipper built in Saint John, New Brunswick also took his name; the Marco Polo was the first ship to sail around the world in under six months.

Croatian state-owned shipping company 's Jadrolinija ship connecting Split with Ancona in Italy is named after Marco Polo. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read View source View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikisource Wikidata item. Venetian merchant — This article is about the trader and explorer.

For other uses, see Marco Polo disambiguation. Venice , Republic of Venice. Donata Badoer. Agnese Polo ill. Nickname Milione. Early life and Asian travel. Genoese captivity and later life. The Travels of Marco Polo. Main article: The Travels of Marco Polo. Further information: Franco-Mongol alliance and Byzantine-Mongol alliance. A miniature from Il Milione.

Role of the Dominican Order. Authenticity and veracity. Allegations of exaggeration. Mario Eusebi, p. Arts, entertainment, and media. If this is not the case, a more likely date for their arrival is or , according to the research of Japanese scholar Matsuo Otagi. Britannica , p. They are fine fat beasts, and afford capital mutton.

Stubbs, Robert G. Istituto Geografico DeAgostini in Italian. Archived from the original on 9 June Retrieved 24 August Glick; Steven Livesey; Faith Wallis ISBN Treccani in Italian. Istituto Treccani. Retrieved 17 October Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani in Italian. Nacque a Venezia nel Encyclopedia Britannica. Enciclopedia dell' Arte Medievale in Italian.

Dizionario di Storia in Italian. Journal of Marine and Island Cultures. Bibcode : JMICu II , Giunti, Venezia, Zorzi, Alvise La Repubblica del Leone. Storia di Venezia [ The Lion's Republic. History of Venice ] in Italian. Milan: Bompiani. Marco Polo. New Word City. A Critical Appraisal by I. The Australian National University. Retrieved 20 August Office of Shaanxi Local Chronicles.

Retrieved 13 October The Travels of Marco Polo , p. New York: Penguin Books. Ca' Foscari University of Venice in Italian. Retrieved 1 June National Geographic. Archived from the original on 5 February For details, see, A. Retrieved 25 November Translated by John Frampton Second ed. Marco Polo, The Description of the World. Arriving in Cathay at age 21, he served in Kublai Khan 's court for 17 years.

He left the Far East and returned to Venice by sea. There was sickness on board and passengers and crew died. Nevertheless, Marco Polo survived the journey. He brought noodles back from China and the Italians invented different sizes and shapes and called it pasta. Polo returned to Venice with treasures like ivory, jade , jewels, porcelain and silk.

Some scholars believe that while Marco Polo did go to China, they doubt that he went to all of the other places described in his book. Soon after Polo returned from his journeys he fought in a war against Genoa , got captured and put in prison. When he was in prison, he became friendly with a fellow prisoner, Rusticello, who was a writer of romances and novels.

He told the writer about all his adventures, which became a book called The Travels of Marco Polo. The published version was written by Rustichello da Pisa, based on what Polo had told him.