Subject, but to the standard
work of Heyd, Commerce du Levant, Vol. 2, pp. 77, 78. The itinerary,
Tabriz, Sultania, Kashan, Yezd, was the usual route later on, at the
beginning of the fourteenth century, and it was followed, among others, by
Fra Odorico, of Pordenone. Marco Polo, on his way to the Far East - you
must not forget that he was at Acre in 1271 - could not have crossed
Sultania, which did not exist, as its building was commenced by Arghun
Khan, who ascended the throne in 1284, and was continued by Oeljaitu
(1304-1316), who gave the name of Sultania to the city." Cf. Lieut.-Col.
P.M. SYKES, A History of Persia, 1915, 2 vols., 8vo; II., p. 181 n.
Introduction, p. 21. M. Pauthier has found a record in the Chinese Annals
of the Mongol dynasty, which states that in the year 1277, a certain POLO
was nominated a second-class commissioner or agent attached to the Privy
Council, a passage which we are happy to believe to refer to our young
traveller.
Prof. E.H. Parker remarks (Asiatic Quart. Review, 3rd Series, Vol.
XVII., Jan., 1904, pp. 128-131): "M. Pauthier has apparently overlooked
other records, which make it clear that the identical individual in
question had already received honours from Kublai many years before
Marco's arrival in 1275. Perhaps the best way to make this point clear
would be to give all the original passages which bear upon the question.
The number I give refer to the chapter and page (first half or second half
of the double page) of the Yuan Shi: -
A. Chap. 7, p. 1-2/2: 1270, second moon. Kublai inspects a court pageant
prepared by Puh-lo and others.
B. Chap. 7, p. 6-1/2: 1270, twelfth moon. The yue-shi chung-ch'eng
(censor) Puh-lo made also President of the Ta-sz-nung department. One of
the ministers protested that there was no precedent for a censor holding
this second post. Kublai insisted.
C. Chap. 8, p. 16-1/2: 1275, second moon. Puh-lo and another sent to look
into the Customs taxation question in Tangut.
D. Chap. 8, p. 22-1/2: 1275, fourth moon. The Ta-sz-nung and yue-shi
chung-ch'eng Puh-lo promoted to be yue-shi ta-fu.
E. Chap. 9, p. 11-2/2: 1276, seventh moon. The Imperial Prince Puh-lo
given a seal.
F. Chap. 9, p. 16-2/2: 1277, second moon. The Ta-sz-nung and yue-shi
ta-fu, Puh-lo, being also suean-wei-shi and Court Chamberlain, promoted
to be shu-mih fu-shi, and also suean-hwei-shi and Court Chamberlain.
"The words shu-mih fu-shi the Chinese characters for which are given on
p. 569 of M. Cordier's second volume, precisely mean 'Second-class
Commissioner attached to the Privy Council,' and hence it is clear that
Pauthier was totally mistaken in supposing the censor of 1270 to have been
Marco.
