The Travels Of Marco Polo - Volume 2 Of 2 By Marco Polo And Rustichello Of Pisa











































 -  An embassy from this Kaunchi is
mentioned as having come to the court of Kaikhatu at Siah-Kuh (north of - Page 469
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An Embassy From This Kaunchi Is Mentioned As Having Come To The Court Of Kaikhatu At Siah-Kuh (North Of Tabriz) With Congratulations, In The Summer Of 1293.

Polo may very possibly have seen the members of this embassy, and got some of his information from them.

(See Gold. Horde, 149, 249; Ilkhans, I. 354, 403; II. 193, where Hammer writes the name of Kandschi.)

It is perhaps a trace of the lineage of the old rulers of Siberia that the old town of Tyuman in Western Siberia is still known to the Tartars as Chinghiz Tora, or the Fort of Chinghiz. (Erman, I. 310.)

NOTE 2. - We see that Polo's information in this chapter extends over the whole latitude of Siberia; for the great White Bears and the Black Foxes belong to the shores of the Frozen Ocean; the Wild Asses only to the southern parts of Siberia. As to the Pharaoh's Rat, see vol. i. p. 254.

[Illustration: The Siberian Dog-sledge.

"E sus ceste treies hi se mete sus un cuir d'ors, e puis hi monte sus un mesaje; e ceste treies moinent six chiens de celz grant qe je vos ai contes; et cesti chienz ne les moine nulz, mes il vont tout droit jusque a l'autre poste, et trainent la treies mout bien."]

NOTE 3. - No dog-sledges are now known, I believe, on this side of the course of the Obi, and there not south of about 61 deg. 30'. But in the 11th century they were in general use between the Dwina and Petchora. And Ibn Batuta's account seems to imply that in the 14th they were in use far to the south of the present limit: "It had been my wish to visit the Land of Darkness, which can only be done from Bolghar. There is a distance of 40 days' journey between these two places. I had to give up the intention however on account of the great difficulty attending the journey and the little fruit that it promised. In that country they travel only with small vehicles drawn by great dogs. For the steppe is covered with ice, and the feet of men or the shoes of horses would slip, whereas the dogs having claws their paws don't slip upon the ice. The only travellers across this wilderness are rich merchants, each of whom owns about 100 of these vehicles, which are loaded with meat, drink, and firewood. In fact, on this route there are neither trees nor stones, nor human dwellings. The guide of the travellers is a dog who has often made the journey before! The price of such a beast is sometimes as high as 1000 dinars or thereabouts. He is yoked to the vehicle by the neck, and three other dogs are harnessed along with him. He is the chief, and all the other dogs with their carts follow his guidance and stop when he stops. The master of this animal never ill-uses him nor scolds him, and at feeding-time the dogs are always served before the men.

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