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The Travels of Marco Polo: Kara Khoja

March 29, 2018 / Shannon Nolan / 0 Comments

En route to Cathay, Marco Polo relays the histories of different Great Khans as he reaches the cities that they impacted. Following a description of Mongu Khan, Polo introduces the city of Kara Khoja along the desert road.

While here, Polo’s observations center on the religious practices of the city’s people. Rather quickly he notes that the city is comprised of mostly idolaters, with some Nestorian Christians, and that “the Christians often intermarry with idolaters” (Polo, 89). In recording this, Polo draws attention to the unusualness of Christians marrying outside of their own religion. Being from Venice, close enough to the epicenter of the Catholic church, and from a city of mostly Christians, interfaith marriages would have been a foreign concept to Polo.

In most cases, when Polo records that a city is predominantly occupied by idolaters, that is the most information we get about their religion. Occasionally he’ll record burying practices or one particular practice of the group, that may not even be grounded in their religion. However, in Kara Khoja, we’re given the origin story of the idolaters’ religion. Polo explains that “they declare that the king who originally ruled over them was not born of human stock, but arose from a sort of tuber generated by the sap of trees, which we call esca; and from him all the others descended” (Polo, 89). A group of desert dwellers believing their origins come from the sap of a tree illustrates the importance of vegetation in the life of those with so few plants. Plants provide nourishment through sap and water. Any plants that survive in the desert must be sturdy, rare, and determined. Therefore if a people believe they come from something so rare, they recognize the harshness of their environment and the difficulties that come along with living there.

Alongside their religious practices, the idolater’s education is made note of; “The idolaters are very well versed in their own laws and traditions and are keen students of the liberal arts” (Polo, 89). This description shows that Polo is surprised by their level of education. In Venice, a majority of the population would not have been able to read, and would have received a low level of education if any at all. Therefore a population of “keen students of the liberal arts” would have been impressive.

The Book of the Wanderings of Felix Fabri: Ower

March 29, 2018 / Kara Smith / 0 Comments

Felix Fabri describes his party’s journey through Ower, Italy in the account of his second pilgrimage to the Holy Land. In the account, Fabri writes that his party left the previous town, Feltre, in the evening of the 24th of April, crossed a “great river” and passed through a “Venetian guard-house” before stopping for the night in Ower (19). They left Ower for Treviso, Italy after Mass on the 25th of April. Fabri’s account of Ower focuses on the geography around the town, the history of nearby castles and towns, and the festival of St. Mark’s Day. Additionally, the interaction between Fabri and his lords sheds light on their relationship from Fabri’s point of view.

The first thing that Fabri writes about the town of Ower is that it “lay at the foot of a delightful grassy hill,” which Fabri and his party decide to climb in order to see the Mediterranean (19). Fabri notes that the Mediterranean Sea is directly south of them at this point in their journey, beyond mountains and the “plain country” of Italy. In writing about the appearance of the Mediterranean on that day, Fabri highlights that the journey ahead of them is ominous, as most of the Mediterranean in their view is covered by a “lofty, thick black cloud, of the colour of darkling air (19). Their turning away from the ominous omen of the dark sea faces Fabri’s party towards more of the surrounding mountains that encircle the plain Ower is situated in.

In viewing the surrounding mountains, Fabri notes that they can see “many ancient castles in ruins,” and follows with a recounting of the history of the placement of the castles and other ruins (19). According to Fabri, the castles were built in the hills by Antenor the Trojan’s army to defend the city of Padua, which was located on the plain, from the people who lived beyond the surrounding Alps. Fabri highlights that the people who lived beyond the Alps “at that time were still savages, dwelling in the woods like wild beasts” (19). Fabri’s syntax shows that he supports Antenor the Trojan over the people living beyond the Alps and also hints that the people who live beyond the Alps may no longer be the savages that he depicts them as. At this point, the reader may start to question how Fabri seems to know the history of many of the towns his party passes through, especially because he notes little interaction with the people of the towns.

Fabri’s interactions with his lords in the town of Ower paint him as the guide he is meant to be on this journey. When looking over the Mediterranean Sea, Fabri characterizes his lords as “delicately-nurtured youths” that could only imagine the “dangers which awaited them at sea,” which Fabri, the wizened guide, “was something cast down at the sight of it, albeit [he] had already had a good taste of its bitterness” (19). The syntax Fabri uses when describing his lords in particular both gives them an excuse for being so frightened of the sea and patronizes them a little, although it is probably completely warranted by their lack of experience with travel.

Ibn Fadlan and the Land of Darkness: Bulghar

March 28, 2018 / heronca / 0 Comments

While in Bulghar, Abu Hamid again focuses on some basic aspects of the city, like the climate of the area and how it affects everything. He first points out that it is mostly built from pine and oak wood, and that it is densely populated with people. He later goes on to say that during the winter, their nights are very long, while the days are short, but during the summer the days are much longer and “hotter than anywhere else in the world,” (66). Some of the interesting things that he focuses on about the weather is how cold it is, and because of the temperature, the ground is almost impossible to dig. Due to the frozen ground, Hamid mentions that he had to wait six months to bury his son, who has died while in the city. He also comments that “the body of the dead are frozen as hard as stone,” (67). Another interesting thing is that during the summer, he says it is also difficult to practice Ramadan and fast in the city because it is so hot. Because of this he then had to “give up and take refuge underground in a room where there was a spring,” (67). Hamid’s focus on the weather seems to be the only negative thing that he has said about the entire city, as the rest of his observations are as he did them before—pure observations with hints of awe at certain features of the city, like the food.

Going back to his normal observations, Hamid then goes on to say that the people are able to survive such a harsh winter is because most of their food and drinks contain honey in it—which he says is very cheap in that area. He also talks about things like finding the bones of the people of Ad and mammoth ivory, as well as the beaver that populates the area near the rivers, and the Aru people that sell the pelts near the city. He focuses a bit on these kinds of observations—things like the beaver and giant birds, imported items like the sword and what they’re sometimes traded for, and the sky.

With all these observations, I believe he continued to express some form of admiration, and again seems to just be taking everything in objectively in most cases. Apart from his comments on the weather that focused on some of the negatives of both extreme seasons, Hamid does not seems to do this with any of the other subjects that he talks about. Even his weather observations barely contained any true harsh language, as Hamid did not outright make any personal affronts apart from pointing out the obvious—the ground was frozen during the winter, and it was too hot to practice Ramadan during the summer. His admiration for everything else however, is made apparent through his long passages focusing on the more basic things, as well as his positive language like, “the beaver is a wonderful animal,” (69). Again, I believe his purpose is to just highlight certain aspects of the city, and learn more about them in an objective manner.

The Book of Wanderings of Felix Fabri: Venice

March 23, 2018 / bohnerc / 0 Comments

Felix Fabri describes Venice as a beautiful and wonderful city, full of old stone and great architecture. Fabri calls Venice, “the mistress of the Mediterranean, standing in wondrous fashion in the midst of the waters, with lofty towers, great churches, splendid houses and palaces” (21). He makes these observations as he and his traveling companions float along the Grand Canal. This section is much more descriptive than his other entries, implying that he has a greater appreciation for architecture than natural scenery such as mountains. Fabri also describes Venice as “famous, great, wealthy and noble” (21). His admiration for the city is quite obvious when compared to his previous descriptions, which lacked such enthusiasm. His previous descriptions differ in other ways as well. For example, he was previously more focused on the people he came across and the churches and festival days of the locals.

Fabri notes that they are staying in the inn of St. George and that he’s stayed there before. He calls the innkeepers by name, Master John and Mistress Margaret, as well as describing them in warm and friendly terms. Fabri writes that the inn is completely inhabited by German speakers, quipping that “no word of Italian was to be heard in the house” (22). Fabri informs the reader that he and his companions arrive at the inn by boat and had to hike up sixty-two steps with their luggage. He also goes on to list off all twelve of his traveling companions, their titles, and personality traits. In a very interesting section, Fabri spends a while describing the innkeepers’ dog, who by his account, loves all Germans and dislikes Italians.

Fabri’s description of the German-loving dog isn’t just fascinating, but it’s also very revealing. Fabri writes that the dog greets all Germans with “joy”, but “when Italians or Lombards, Gauls, Frenchmen, Slavonians, Greeks, or men of any other country except Germany […] he becomes so angry you would think he was gone mad” (22). Aside from it being impossible that a dog could know whether someone was German or not on sight alone, this reveals that Fabri has a very strong sense of nationalism and prides himself in being a German. He even goes on to say that this dog is proof that Germans and Italians will never agree, stating that “each nation has a hatred of the other rooted in its very nature” (22). Fabri goes on to insist that humans restrain their feelings of hatred with reason, but animals can’t deny their nature which includes a hatred for other countries. This particular view of nationalism is very aggressive and confrontational. While most other travel narratives define themselves and other people through religion, Fabri divides people based on where they are from. Fabri’s insistence that it is natural to hate people of other nationalities is a little bizarre, but helps explain his disdain for people living in the Italian countryside and Italians who can’t speak German. Maybe Fabri’s vehement nationalism stems from existing conflicts. It would be interesting to contextualize this information with the contemporary political climate.

The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela: Damascus

March 22, 2018 / Molly / 0 Comments

After Benjamin’s time in Banias, he traveled two days to Damascus, which he described as “the great city.” As with many other cities he visited, Benjamin was concerned with Damascus’ geographic location, landmarks, and terrain. He noted that the city was surrounded by walls, with lots of greenery, about fifteen miles of it on each side. Benjamin mentioned that no other city has fruit as spectacular as Damascus. To continue with his observations about the terrain, Benjamin also talked about the rivers flowing from Mount Hermon, such as Amana and Pharpar. The city is located at the bottom of the mountain and the Amana River flows through the city while the Pharpar flows through the gardens and plantations. As with many other cities, Benjamin talked about its trade and access to other parts of the world. He did not speak extensively about it, he just mentions that they carry on trade with “all countries.”

As is characteristic of Benjamin of Tudela, he noticed architecture in the city. Specifically the architecture of the city’s mosque, the Gami of Damascus. He was never judgmental of other religious in his accounts, he usually just mentioned them matter of factly. He was so amazed by the Gami of Damascus that he said there was no other building like it in the world, with its “crystal glass of magic workmanship”, gold and class chambers, columns of gold, silver and marble, and a supposed rib of a giant. Benjamin’s descriptions usually seem very matter of fact, as if he has seen everything before, but it is apparent that he is impressed with this building given the amount of detail he supplied.

Then, as was customary for Benjamin in his travels, he mentioned the Jewish population, for that was the purpose of his travels. He learned that there were 3,000 Jews in Damascus and that most of them were “learned and rich men.” Also, the Academy of the land of Israel lived in Damascus and names other members of the Academy.

The last few sentences of Benjamin’s account of Damascus are interesting because they mention populations of other religions, which he did not normally do with other cities. Benjamin said that 100 Karaites lived in Damascus and 400 Cuthim. It was important to Benjamin that they all lived peacefully but did not intermarry.

What was interesting to me about Benjamin’s account of Damascus was his fascination with buildings and the inner-workings of a city. After reading many of Benjamin’s accounts of various cities, I know that Benjamin paid close attention to terrain and buildings and other structures. The purpose of his journey was to learn more about Jews on his way to Jerusalem, but he was able to see and learn about other things he was interested in as well.

Mapping the Global Middle Ages