Life story
Marco Polo was born on 15 September 1254 in Venice. A merchant of that great trading city, he carried within him the restless curiosity that would draw him far beyond the familiar shores of the Mediterranean.
Between 1271 and 1295 he travelled through Asia along the Silk Road, journeying across lands few Europeans had ever seen. His path led him to the court of the Mongol Empire and into the heart of China under the Yuan dynasty.
His travels were recorded in The Travels of Marco Polo, a book that described the then-mysterious culture and inner workings of the Eastern world. Through its pages Europeans gained their first comprehensive look into China, Persia, India, Japan and other Asian societies, learning of the wealth and great size of the lands he had crossed.
Marco Polo died on 8 January 1324 in Venice, the city of his birth, and was laid to rest at the Church of San Lorenzo. He is remembered as an explorer and writer who joined the distant ends of the world in the imagination of his readers.
Životopisné údaje z verejných zdrojov. Portrét: Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).
Constellation of Life
Important milestones that shaped their journey.