(A Note On The Chinese Atlas In The Magliabecchian Library, With
Reference To Kinsay In Marco Polo.)
Mr. P. von Tanner, Commissioner of Customs at Hang chau, wrote in 1901 in
the Decennial Reports, 1892-1901, of the Customs, p. 4:
"While
Hangchow owes its fame to the lake on the west, it certainly owes its
existence towards the south-west to the construction of the sea wall,
called by the Chinese by the appropriate name of bore wall. The erection
of this sea wall was commenced about the year A.D. 915, by Prince Ts'ien
Wu-su; it extends from Hang Chau to Chuan sha, near the opening of the
Hwang pu.... The present sea wall, in its length of 180 miles, was built.
The wall is a stupendous piece of work, and should take an equal share of
fame with the Grand Canal and the Great Wall of China, as its engineering
difficulties were certainly infinitely greater.... The fact that Marco Polo
does not mention it shows almost conclusively that he never visited Hang
Chau, but got his account from a Native poet. He must have taken it,
besides, without the proverbial grain of salt, and without eliminating the
over-numerous 'thousands' and 'myriads' prompted less by facts than by
patriotic enthusiasm and poetical licence."
LXXVI., p. 194 n.
BRIDGES OF KINSAY.
In the heart of Hang-chau, one of the bridges spanning the canal which
divides into two parts the walled city from north to south is called Hwei
Hwei k'iao (Bridge of the Mohamedans) or Hwei Hwei Sin k'iao (New
Bridge of the Mohamedans), while its literary name is Tsi Shan k'iao
(Bridge of Accumulated Wealth); it is situated between the Tsien k'iao on
the south and the Fung lo k'iao on the north. Near the Tsi Shan k'iao
was a mosk, and near the Tsien k'iao, at the time of the Yuen, there
existed Eight Pavilions (Pa kien lew) inhabited by wealthy Mussulmans.
Mohamedans from Arabia and Turkestan were sent by the Yuen to Hang-chau;
they had prominent noses, did not eat pork, and were called So mu chung
(Coloured-eye race). VISSIERE, Rev. du Monde Musulman, March, 1913.
LXXVI., p. 199.
KINSAY, KHANFU.
Pelliot proposes to see in Khanfu a transcription of Kwang-fu, an
abridgment of Kwang chau fu, prefecture of Kwang chau (Canton). Cf. Bul.
Ecole franc Ext. Orient, Jan.-June, 1904, p. 215 n., but I cannot very
well accept this theory.
LXXX., pp. 225, 226. "They have also [in Fu Kien] a kind of fruit
resembling saffron, and which serves the purpose of saffron just as well."
Dr. Laufer writes to me: "Yule's identification with a species of
Gardenia is all right, although this is not peculiar to Fu Kien. Another
explanation, however, is possible. In fact, the Chinese speak of a certain
variety of saffron peculiar to Fu Kien. The Pen ts'ao kang mu shi i (Ch.
4, p. 14 b) contains the description of a 'native saffron' (t'u hung hwa,
in opposition to the 'Tibetan red flower' or genuine saffron) after the
Continued Gazetteer of Fu Kien, as follows:
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