Marco Polo's Voyages
The Conflict Between Confirmation and Observation
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20055642 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Martin Gosman (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1994 |
| Pages | 72-84 |
| Publication date | 1994-01-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | CHAPTER |
| Venue | Travel Fact and Travel Fiction (SOURCE_BOOK) |
| Publisher | Brill (PUBLISHER • NL) |
| DOI | 10.1163/9789004247093_007 |
| OpenAlex | W2239144423 |
| ISBN | 9789004247093 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
During a banquet in honour of his safe return to Venice in 1295, Marco Polo opened the hems and linings of his unsightly cloak, and pulled out a quantity of precious stones, demonstrating the truth of at least some of his assertions about the Orient. This event, mentioned by the geographer Giovanni Battista Ramusio in his Navigazioni e viaggi is not to be found Marco's account. Whether or not Marco was aware of the possibility that he might not be believed, his account ends with the traditional protestations of reliability one finds in many medieval travel stories. Marco gives no reason whatsoever for his journey to the Mongol empire. This is surprising, as commerce must have been their motive for returning to Khubilai Khan's court. This chapter shows the essential difference between Marco's account of the oriental world and the many traditional descriptions of the thirteenth century. Keywords: Giovanni Battista Ramusio; Khubilai Khan; Marco Polo; medieval travel story; Mongol empire; Navigazioni e viaggi ; oriental world
Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Art history · Banquet · Cartography · Empire · Geographer · Geography · Honour · Byzantine Studies and History · Classics · Eurasian Exchange Networks · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics · History
| Citations per year | 0.11 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1998 - 2023 (26) |
| Highly cited | No |