Italian trader and
explorer (c. 1254 to 1323). While Marco was a
teenager in
Venice, his
father and
uncle returned from a
journey to
China where they had become
servants of
Kublai Khan. The Khan had sent them back to
Europe to bring
Christian missionaries, but the recent
death of the
Pope meant the
brothers had to wait before official
papal legates could be dispatched. Two years later, the brothers set off for the
East again, accompanied by Marco and
papers explaining their long
absence. Two other
priests were sent with them, but they soon became
frightened and returned to
Italy.
After over three years of
travel, the Polos arrived at
Shang Tu, the Khan's
summer residence. They were received with
honor, and the Khan was
impressed with Marco, adding him to his personal
staff. Over the next 17 years, Marco traveled all over the
empire on
errands, as far as
Vietnam,
Java,
India,
Ethiopia, and
Persia, and he gained Kublai's
favor by taking
notes and telling
stories about his travels. He may also have been made the
administrator of
Yangchow, one of the Khan's
provinces.
When the Polos finally returned to
Venice in 1295,
no one believed they were who they
claimed -- everyone believed they had died long ago. The family had to put on a lavish banquet and show off all the wealth they had acquired in the East before they were accepted as the Polos returned.
Venice was at
war with
Genoa, and Marco was captured at
sea and thrown into a
Genoese prison. There, his
wild stories made him
popular with the other
prisoners and the
guards. Someone suggested he
write his
stories down, so he
collaborated with another prisoner,
Rustichello, a
professional writer. "
The Description of the World" was completed in 1298, one year before the
war ended and Marco was
released. He returned to Venice as a trader, and when his father and uncle died, he
inherited most of the family's
wealth. He continued
trading and telling
stories about his time in the
East for the rest of his life, though he eventually lost most of his
wealth.
When he was alive, Marco's stories were not actually
believed, but people liked him anyway, partly because of his great
charisma and partly because everyone
appreciated his
storytelling skill. After his
death and after other explorers traveled to China, his stories were
believed more. However, some modern
scholars believe that he never
ventured any further
east than the
Black Sea -- really, no one knows for sure...
Research from GURPS Who's Who 2, compiled by Phil Masters, "Marco Polo" by Brian C. Smithson, pp. 36-37.