The Travels Marco Polo

by Marco Polo

Book Overview

Marco Polo was the most famous traveller of his time. His voyages began in 1271 with a visit to China, after which he served the Kubilai Khan on numerous diplomatic missions. On his return to the West he was made a prisoner of war and met Rustichello of Pisa, with whom he collaborated on this book. The accounts of his travels provide a fascinating glimpse of the different societies he encountered: of their religions, customs, ceremonies and way of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140440577
• ISBN13: 9780140440577
• Release Date: September 1958
• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.57 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.2" x 7.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

The Size of the World

It has been a pleasure to revisit the travels of Marco Polo. I was transfixed by these stories of travel and adventure when I was a child, and never questioned the veracity of the narrative. I know today that the narrative has been corrupted over the centuries, that "The Travels" can scarcely be used as an historical reference, and that a more tantalizing and complete manuscript has probably been lost to the ages. Still, there are glimpses and insights within the narrative that could only have come from first-hand experience, and these describe an enormous, exotic world that titillates even today, while readers in the 13th and 14th centuries must have been enthralled. I was most keen this time around to Polo's descriptions of the cultures and wildlife he encountered, of the whales and lions and leopards and bears--he even describes a white bear, and the people who hunted it were surely of the group often called Eskimos. He describes dog-sledding in the far north and the cannibalistic practices of the people of Java far to the south, both of which are extant in our current era. There are also the fascinating observations of the Mongol Empire, of that group of nomadic people who somehow rose up, like an event in an Isaac Asimov novel, to conquer much of the known world. Somewhat depressingly, though, are Polo's observations of the tensions that existed between the Islamic and Christian worlds, tensions rooted in the competition for hegemony over trade in the Far East. Seven hundred years later, these tensions are still acting themselves out. This translation by Ronald Latham from 1958 includes an introduction that puts Marco Polo's life in context with events and includes footnotes to help the reader make sense of the myriad manuscripts that make up the travels of Marco Polo. This is a somewhat dry read; even Latham comments on the paucity of skill employed by Polo's chronicler. Once I put my mind in context with the narrative, however, I was able to roll with the repetition and sycophancy and enjoy the text.

We are all Marco Polos now

In the late 13th century, three Venetian merchants, two brothers and the son of one of them, visited China, which was then ruled by the Mongols. The Mongols distrusted the native Chinese and hired foreigners such as the young man as minor officials. The Venetian merchant-turned-official traveled extensively through North and South China, South-East Asia and India. After he returned to Venice, he took part in a war between Venice and Genoa, was taken prisoner, and in prison met a professional writer who wrote a book based on his memoirs and embellished it with the stock devices of late medieval romances. Among various Asiatic curiosities Messer Polo describes asbestos, coal, tigers, musk deer, sago and coconuts. He tells the story of the Buddha, describes the Mongol postal system (I was surprised that yamb, which is obviously the root of the Russian word yamshchik, a postal courier, is a Mongol word), Chinese paper money and the life of Indian yogis. For him, the Shinto "idols" of Japan are offensive for a Christian to read about, but the virginity test administered to prospective daughters-in-law in South China isn't. Marco Polo is no Jonathan Spence; he is not trying to get the reader inside the heads of people belonging to an alien culture; he is a merchant, and cares much more about the crops that grow in a certain kingdom or a region, and the crafts its inhabitants practice. Anyway, it is an enjoyable read if you liked Herodotus or the Russian Primary Chronicle. When I read it on the bus, the white man in the seat to the left of me was reading a textbook of Mandarin, and the white man to the right was practicing his Kanji - we are all Marco Polos now.

Rediscover the wonder

There is so little a reviewer could say about a classic that has not already been said. But, whether your interest is in travel literature, ancient history, military history, or anthropology, this book will excite and inspire you. The writing is conversational, witty, and addicting. Though the author repeats some stories, each telling seems to bring out nuances and connections that would have been missed otherwise and each telling takes you deeper into the Asian frontiers and its people. A fascinating traveller's story that never grows old. Must have for any serious student of history especially with regard to the Asian steppes and the empire of the great Khan. Rediscover the wonder of the travels for yourself, not second-hand but from the traveller himself.

Go to the Source

This volume will enthrall anyone interested in true adventure. Marco Polo was the original Indiana Jones and then some. Please do not waste time on Gary Jennings' The Journeyer. This is the real deal and needs no dramatic embellishments. The Travels takes you on a trip from 13th century Venice to "Cathay" and back again. You will learn how Europeans found out about fireworks, paper currency, printing and pasta. The harrowing journey across the Gobi desert is particularly well reported. Marco Polo was more than an explorer. He was one of the world's first anthropologists. This is an exciting read, an account of how medieval Europe initially perceived China and the far east, and of how the Mongol rulers and Chinese emperors perceived them. Highly recommended. As to the print quality of the Penguin edition, I have had my copy since the early eighties and it has yellowed only slightly. Viking is now printing on acid-free paper. One must remember that these editions were printed primarily to reach the widest audience for the least amount of expense at the time. For years, Penguins were accessible to students and to the collector who couldn't afford an elaborate, fully illustrated, fully mapped volume of a particular work. I couldn't have read as many of them as I did in my late teens and early twenties if that were not the case. I owe a lifelong debt to the editors for their efforts. I've also never read a bad translation of any Penguin Classic.

Makes History come alive!!

You may have heard in school about Marco Polo and his journey to China and India. But this book describes the sites and people he and his group saw during their travels in the Middle Ages. This is one of the first travel guides that have inspire people from Christopher Columbus to modern tourist.