Marco Polo
Venetian merchant (1254–1324) who traveled across Asia to China under Kublai Khan and dictated a famous account of it.
Yuan dynasty: Mongol-ruled dynasty of China, 1271–1368, founded by Kublai Khan. The state Polo claims to have lived in and described, then unknown to Europeans.
The Travels of Marco Polo: The 13th-century travel account dictated by Polo, known in Italian as Il Milione. The book itself: its contents, manuscripts and disputed accuracy are Polo's real legacy.
Niccolò Polo: Marco's father, a Venetian merchant who first reached Kublai Khan's court around 1266. Led the first family journey and returned to take the teenage Marco east.
John Mandeville: Author of a mid-14th-century travel book of marvels, widely read and largely fabricated. The invented traveler who outsold Polo, showing what audiences actually wanted to read.
Catalan Atlas: Major 1375 Majorcan world map incorporating Polo's geographic information on East Asia. One of the earliest maps to absorb the book's data, naming Cathay and its cities.
Shangdu: Kublai Khan's summer capital north of Beijing, later romanticized as Xanadu. Site of the famous marble palace and bamboo garden in Polo's account.
Rustichello da Pisa: Romance writer imprisoned with Polo in Genoa, credited as co-author of the account. His romance style shaped the book's tone and raised questions about embellishment.
Maffeo Polo: Marco's uncle and Niccolò's business partner in the eastern trade ventures. Co-led both expeditions and received the Khan's request for learned men and oil.
Ibn Battuta: Moroccan traveler (1304–c.1369) who covered far more territory than Polo and dictated his Rihla. The era's most traveled explorer; unlike Polo, visited Africa and India, not China's court.
Fra Mauro map: Large 1450 Venetian world map considered the most detailed of its century. Used Polo's account among its sources for the shape and cities of Asia.