Marco Polo s Travels Over The Maritime Route - 1009 Words

Introduction Thirteenth century Europe was marked by a period curiosity of life outside the western world. Little was known of the cultures in Asia and Southeast Asia. This changed when Venetian trader and explorer, Marco Polo published his travelogue accounting for his voyages in the east. Polo was extremely influential to geography, Europe’s trade industry, as well as to future curious travelers. He was the first explorer to travel as far as China and report of his findings. Consequently, seldom was known of the customs and cultures abroad. Marco traveled from Venice to China using both the Maritime route, as well as the Silk Road. For this paper however, I am solely focusing on Marco Polo’s travels over the Maritime route. More specifically, his reports of the coastal trade, customs, and cultures he encountered through this journey. Provinces of India, the coastal islands of Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and China will be discussed, along with background i nformation of Polo, his itinerary, and an analysis of his findings. II. Background Marco Polo was born in Venice in 1254 to a noble merchant family. His mother passed away when he was a child and his father, Nicolo, spent much of Marco’s childhood traveling. In 1260 Nicolo and his brother Maffeo traveled to Mongolia where they met the Mongolian ruler, Kublai Khan. Khan welcomed the Polos and took great interest in the information they shared with him regarding Europe. Kublai was especiallyShow MoreRelatedEurope and the New World: New Encounters4462 Words   |  18 Pagescurious about lands outside of Europe Economic Motives ⠝â€" Although Muslim control of Central Asia cut Europe off from the countries farther east, the Mongol conquests in the 13thc reopened the doors ⠝â€" Marco Polo went to the court of Kublai Kahn in 1271 âž ¢ His account of his experiences, the Travels was the most informative of all descriptions of Asia by ME travelers ⠝â€" In the 14th, the conquests of the Ottoman Turks and then the breakup of the Mongol Empire reduced Western traffic to the East