Historian Laurence Bergreen discusses Marco Polo’s journey to China along the Silk Road.
In 1271, Marco set off on a trading journey with his father and uncle to the heart of the Mongol empire established by Genghis Khan. They travelled to the court of the great Khan. Marco hit it off so well with the emperor that he stayed with the Mongol ruler for the next 17 years, earning his keep as a tax assessor and trusted adviser. Acting as Kublai Khan’s eyes and ears, Marco roamed Asia and Africa and reported back to the emperor on the people and taxable commerce he encountered. Shortly before Kublai Khan’s death in 1294, Marco returned to Venice, assumed his place as a prominent merchant, fought the Genoese at Curzola and eventually wrote his famous memoir.
Recorded 10/24/2007.