Whilst the original French texts were unknown, the king here spoken of
figured in the old Latin versions as King Darius, and in Ramusio as Re
Dor. It was a most happy suggestion of Marsden's, in absence of all
knowledge of the fact that the original narrative was French, that this
Dor represented the Emperor of the Kin or Golden Dynasty, called by the
Mongols Altun Khan, of which Roi D'Or is a literal translation.
Of the legend itself I can find no trace. Rashiduddin relates a story of
the grandfather of Aung Khan (Polo's Prester John), Merghuz Boiruk Khan,
being treacherously made over to the King of the Churche (the Kin
sovereign), and put to death by being nailed to a wooden ass. But the same
author tells us that Aung Khan got his title of Aung (Ch. Wang) or king
from the Kin Emperor of his day, so that no hereditary feud seems
deducible.
Mr. Wylie, who is of opinion, like Baron Richthofen, that the Caichu
which Polo makes the scene of that story, is Kiai-chau (or Hiai-chau as it
seems to be pronounced), north of the Yellow River, has been good enough to
search the histories of the Liao and Kin Dynasties,[1] but without finding
any trace of such a story, or of the Kin Emperors having resided in that
neighbourhood.
