Did Marco Polo Go To China? - Softcover

Wood, Frances

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0813389992 ISBN 13: 9780813389998

Publisher: Perseus, 1997

Synopsis

Did Marco Polo go to China? Published to mark the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's journey, this work questions whether he ever reached China, the country he described in his book "A Description of the World". It examines the Polo family history, Marco Polo's activities as a merchant and the preparation of his book.

About this title

Synopsis:

We all "know" that Marco Polo went to China, served with Ghengis Khan for many years and returned to Italy with the recipes for pasta and ice cream. This work argues that Marco Polo not only never went to China, he probably never even made it past the Black Sea, where his family conducted business as merchants. Marco's Polo's epic book describing his extraordinary adventures, "A Description of the World" ranks among the most famous books ever published. This work, marking the 700th anniversary of Polo's journey, questions whether Marco Polo ever reached the country he so vividly described. Why, in his seemingly detailed account, is there no mention of such fundamentals of Chinese life as tea, foot-binding or even the Great Wall? And why, given China's extensive record-keeping, is there no mention of Marco Polo anywhere in the archives. This work tries to solve these and other inconsistencies by examining the Polo family history, Marco Polo's activities as a merchant, the preparation of his book and the imperial Chinese records.

About the Author:

Frances Wood is head of the Chinese Department at the British Library and author of A Companion to China and The Blue Guide to China, among many other scholarly works.

About this edition

• Publisher: Perseus
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0813389992
• ISBN 13: 9780813389998
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 208