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Venetian
merchant and traveler who journeyed from Europe to Asia (1271-95).
Born into a Venetian merchant family, he joined his father and
uncle on a journey to China, traveling along the Silk Road and
reaching the court of Kublai Khan c.1274. The Polos remained in
China for about 17 years, and the Mongol emperor sent Marco on
several fact-finding missions to distant lands. Marco may also
have governed the city of Yangzhou (1282-87). The Polos returned
to Venice in 1295, after sailing from E China to Persia and then
journeying overland through Turkey. Captured by the Genoese soon
after his return, Marco was imprisoned along with a writer,
Rustichello, who helped him to write the tale of his travels. The
book, Il Milione, was an instant success, though most medieval
readers considered it an extravagant romance rather than a true
story.
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