Questions tagged [marco-polo]
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The Sumatrans told Marco Polo that there was an island to the Southeast. Were they referring to Australia? [closed]
In 1292, Marco Polo was waiting for the winds to shift so he could leave Sumatra and return to Venice. He spent his time learning about an island called Java, in the southeast. Everyone said that it ...
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How much of Marco Polo's accounts were actually the first Western record?
While there's already an answered question here about Marco Polo and fireworks, he is often credited with being the first Western record of many other innovations. One website, for example, credits ...
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What motivated Marco Polo to share his trade knowledge?
In his book written with the help of Rustichello da Pisa, The Travels of Marco Polo, Marco Polo (c. 1300) spent much time describing the various products available at different places. Such knowledge ...
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Did Marco Polo write about or bring back fireworks from his travels?
I have read a lot of anecdotal accounts claiming that Marco Polo was "impressed" with fireworks he saw in Cathay, and other stories that he "brought back fire crackers" or "introduced gunpowder" to ...
