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Post-Classical Civilizations: World Travelers and Traders: Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo

Ibn BattutaDirections: Read the following selections and write down the BIG IDEAS and HIPPO TONE the documents.

Then fill out the chart for your section. You should use additional sources (bonus points). Be prepared to present your travelers personal background, the areas to which they traveled, and their description of those areas.

Consider: How did your assigned traveler describe the regions they saw? Was their description influenced by their background? Explain. Is their description similar to what we know? Explain. Which of these travelers was more “well-traveled?” Why?

Section I: Ibn Battuta was a Muslim explorer who began his travels during his pilgrimage to Mecca. After leaving his home of Morocco, Ibn was exposed to the wider world. Curious by different cultures and traditions he set off to explore different regions of the world, making note of their local or regional traditions.

Document 1: BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

Section II: The following documents are from various sources, but are adapted from The Travels of Ibn Battuta, compiled by court scholars after Ibn Battuta’s death in 1368 or1369. Ibn Battuta traveled across the Middle East or Southwest Asia and all the way to China. His journals reveal an emphasis on Muslim traditions, art and architecture in the regions that he traveled to, in addition to noting the customs of the region.

Document 2: From Travels of Ibn Battuta 1325-1354, Translated by C. Defremery (1994) BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

IntroductionAbu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta was born at Tangier, Morocco, on the 24th

February 1304 C.E. He left Tangier on Thursday, 14th June, 1325 C.E, and made a holy pilgrimage, or hajj, to Mecca and Medina on the Arabian peninsula when he was twenty one years of age. His travels lasted for about thirty years, after which he returned to Fez, Morocco at the court of Sultan Abu 'Inan and dictated accounts of his journeys to Ibn Juzay. Ibn Battuta became a scholar and visited Islamic centers of learning and traveled to new areas seeking employment, adventure and honor. These are known as the famous Travels (Rihala) of Ibn Battuta. He died at Fez in 1369 C.E.

Ibn Battuta was the only medieval traveller who is known to have visited the lands of every Muslim ruler of his time. He also travelled in Ceylon (present Sri Lanka), China and Byzantium and South Russia. The mere extent of his travels is estimated at no less than 75,000 miles, a figure which is not likely to have been surpassed before the age of steam.

IBN BATTUTA IN CHINAThe Chinese are infidels. They worship idols and burn their dead as the Indians do. The king is

a Tatar of the lineage of Tankiz khan [Chinggis khan]. In every city in China is a quarter where the Muslims live separately and have mosques for their Friday prayers and other assemblies. They are highly regarded and treated with respect. The Chinese infidels eat the meat of pigs and dogs and sell it in the bazaars. They live comfortably and in affluence but take little care about their food and clothing. You will see an important merchant whose wealth is beyond reckoning wearing a tunic of coarse cotton. The Chinese are of all peoples the most skillful in crafts and attain the greatest perfection in them.... No one, whether Greek or any other' rivals them in mastery of painting.

When we had crossed the sea [to China] the first city to which we came was Zaitun [Ch'uan-chou]... The Muslims live in a separate city. On the day I arrived I saw there the amir [high official] who had been sent to India as ambassador ... had been in our company and had been in the junk which sank. He greeted me and informed the head of the customs about me, and he installed me in handsome lodgings.... As these merchants live in infidel country they are delighted when a Muslim arrives among them. They say: "He has come from the land of Islam....

China, for all its magnificence, did not please me. I was deeply depressed by the prevalence of infidelity and when I left my lodging I saw many offensive things which distressed me so much that I stayed at home.


Section III: Aside from exploring into East Asia and Southwest Asia, Ibn also traveled through other regions in Africa.



Ibn Battuta travels overland from Algiers to Tunis At Bijaya I fell ill of a fever, and one of my friends advised me to stay there till I

recovered. But I refused, saying, "If God decrees my death, it shall be on the road with my face set toward Mecca." "If that is your resolve," he replied, "sell your ass and your heavy baggage, and I shall lend you what you require. In this way you will travel light, for we must make haste on our journey, for fear of meeting roving Arabs on the way." I followed his advice and he did as he had promised--may God reward him!

On reaching Kustantinah [Constantine] we camped outside the town, but a heavy rain forced us to leave our tents during the night and take refuge in some houses there. Next day the governor of the city came to meet us. Seeing my clothes all soiled by the rain he gave orders that they should be washed at his house, and in place of my old worn headcloth sent me a head cloth of fine Syrian cloth, in one of the ends of which he had tied two gold dinars. This was the first alms I received on my journey.

Arrival at Alexandria and Egypt Another of them was the pious ascetic Burhan ad-Din, whom I met during my

stay and whose hospitality I enjoyed for three days. One day as I entered his room he said to me "I see that you are fond of travelling through foreign lands." I replied "Yes, I am " (though I had as yet no thought of going to such distant lands as India or China). Then he said "You must certainly visit my brother Farid ad-Din in India, and my brother Rukn ad-Din in Sind, and my brother Burhan ad-Din in China, and when you find them give them greeting from me." I was amazed at his prediction and the idea of going to these countries having been cast into my mind, my journeys never ceased until I had met these three that he named and conveyed his greeting to them.

At the age of 21, Ibn Battuta left Tangier to make the hajj. It was both a holy journey and an adventure. The trip by land from Tangier to Mecca was a 3,000 mile journey across the coastal plains, deserts, and mountains of Mediterranean Africa. Ibn Battuta joined a caravan and spent eight to nine months reaching Egypt.

Ibn Battuta in Mongolia and ChinaWhen Ibn Battuta met Ozbeg Khan, the Mongol ruler of Kipchak, he was seated in

a huge golden yurt on a silver throne surrounded by his four wives, or khatuns. Ibn Battuta was struck by the equality Turkish and Mongol women enjoyed with men. The khatuns owned lands of their own and sometimes made administrative decisions or signed decrees. When the senior khatun entered the golden tent, the khan went to the entrance of the pavilion, greeted her, escorted her to her couch, and did not sit himself until she was seated. Unlike the secluded women of Southwest Asia, the khatun was in full view and unveiled.

The Rihla describes Ibn Battuta’s journey to China, but some historians questions whether he really made the trip or is reporting on voyages made by other merchants. The trip to China was possible because the Mongol dynasty favored international trade. Cities on China’s southern coast teemed with Muslim merchants and Ibn Battuta would have found a welcoming community.

Ibn Battuta sailed from the Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, then to the Chinese harbor city of Ch’uan-chou. He described silks, porcelains, and a variety of foods. He thought the Chinese clever for using paper money and found the travel safe, but was uncomfortable living among people who were not interested in being Muslims.




Ibn Battuta in Persia, Arabia, East Africa In 1326, Ibn Battuta left Mecca in a caravan to Mesopotamia (present day Iraq). In

Basra, on the Persian Gulf, he hired a boat and explored the marshes of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Ibn Battuta was a Sunni Muslim. Sunnis believe that Qur’anic revelation are to be interpreted by consensus of the community.

Traveling on to Baghdad, Ibn Battuta found a city recovering from the Mongol invasion of 1258. Mosques were being restored and scholarly learning was progressing as Mongols adopted Persian and Islamic culture. Ibn Battuta was invited to travel with the Sultan of Persia. On one trip he went to Tabriz, a city in northwestern Persia, inhabited by two to three hundred thousand people. This town was the main intersection for the Mediterranean, Central Asia and Indian Ocean trade routes.

Southwest Asia was a hub connecting Africa, Asia and Europe. Goods moving among these regions had to pass this bottleneck. Ibn Battuta took advantage of this trade to travel East.

Ibn Battuta in Persia, Arabia, East Africa In 1326, Ibn Battuta left Mecca in a caravan to Mesopotamia (present day Iraq). In

Basra, on the Persian Gulf, he hired a boat and explored the marshes of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Ibn Battuta was a Sunni Muslim. Sunnis believe that Qur’anic revelation are to be interpreted by consensus of the community.

Traveling on to Baghdad, Ibn Battuta found a city recovering from the Mongol invasion of 1258. Mosques were being restored and scholarly learning was progressing as Mongols adopted Persian and Islamic culture. Ibn Battuta was invited to travel with the Sultan of Persia. On one trip he went to Tabriz, a city in northwestern Persia, inhabited by two to three hundred thousand people. This town was the main intersection for the Mediterranean, Central Asia and Indian Ocean trade routes.

Southwest Asia was a hub connecting Africa, Asia and Europe. Goods moving among these regions had to pass this bottleneck. Ibn Battuta took advantage of this trade to travel East.

Ibn Battuta visits MaliOn certain days the sultan holds audiences in the palace yard, where there is a platform under

a tree, with three steps; this they call the "pempi." It is carpeted with silk and has cushions placed on it. [Over it] is raised the umbrella, which is a sort of pavilion made of silk, surmounted by a bird in gold, about the size of a falcon. The sultan comes out of a door in a corner of the palace, carrying a bow in his hand and a quiver on his back. On his head he has a golden skull-cap, bound with a gold band which has narrow ends shaped like knives, more than a span in length. His usual dress is a velvety red tunic, made of the European fabrics.

The sultan is preceded by his musicians, who carry gold and silver guimbris [two-stringed guitars], and behind him come three hundred armed slaves. He walks in a leisurely fashion, affecting a very slow movement, and even stops from time to time. On reaching the pempi he stops and looks round the assembly, then ascends it in the sedate manner of a preacher ascending a mosque-pulpit. As he takes his seat the drums, trumpets, and bugles are sounded. Three slaves go out at a run to summon the sovereign's deputy and the military commanders, who enter and sit down. The nakedness of the women

Among their bad qualities are the following. The women servants, slave-girls, and young girls go about in front of everyone naked, without a stitch of clothing on them. Women go into the sultan's presence naked and without coverings, and his daughters also go about naked.. Another reprehensible practice among many of them is the eating of carrion, dogs, and asses.

Section IV: The route of Ibn Battuta throughout Africa, Anatolia, Southwest Asia and East Asia

Document 9: From Ibn Battuta: Travels in Asia and Africa BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:


Marco Polo

Marco Polo, a Venetian explorer is most famous for his accounts of China, but specifically of Kublai Khan’s court. Marco traveled along the Silk Road, with his father, uncle and a group of priests as a trader and religious missionary. After reaching East Asia, Marco traveled solely around Asia for almost two decades.

Directions: Read the following selections and write down the BIG IDEAS and HIPPO TONE the documents. Then fill out the chart for your section. You should use additional sources (bonus points). Be prepared to present your travelers personal background, the areas to which they traveled, and their description of those areas.


Section I: From various histories and sources it is certain that Marco grew up in Venice, and after the death of his mother was raised in a religious setting, waiting the return of his father (a merchant traveling throughout Asia).


Section II: According to Marco’s personal account, his first journey to Mongolia took him across the Silk Road and some of the geographic boundaries that made trade difficult. Upon reaching Kublai Khan’s court, he was ensnared (caught) and would travel around the region for 17 years, mastering East Asian geography and studying their culture thoroughly.


Beginnings 1254-1324The place Marco Polo grew up, Venice, was the center for commerce in the

Mediterranean. Marco had the usual education of a young gentleman of his time. He had learned much of the classical authors, understood the texts of the Bible, and knew the basic theology of the Latin Church. He had a sound knowledge of commercial French as well as Italian. From his later history we can be sure of his interest in natural resources, in the ways of people, as well as strange and interesting plants and animals.

Marco Polo was only 6 years old when his father and uncle set out eastward on their first trip to Cathay (China). He was by then 15 years old when his father and his uncle returned to Venice and his mother had already passed away. He remained in Venice with his father and uncle for two more years and then three of them embarked the most courageous journey to Cathay the second time.

Journey to MongoliaWhen the Polos arrived the Taklamakan desert (or Taim Basin), this time they skirted

around the desert on the southern route, passing through Yarkand, Khotan, Cherchen, and Lop-Nor. Marco's keen eye picked out the most notable peculiarities of each. At Yarkand, he described that the locals were extremely prone to goiter, which Marco blamed on the local drinking water. In the rivers of Pem province were found "stones called jasper and chalcedony in plenty" - a reference to jade. At Pem, "when a woman's husband leaves her to go on a journey of more than 20 days, as soon as he has left, she takes another husband, and this she is fully entitled to do by local usage. And the men, wherever they go, take wives in the same way."

It is the Gobi desert where Marco Polo left us the feeling of awe for the vastness of desert and its effects on those hardy enough to penetrate it: "This desert is reported to be so long that it would take a year to go from end to end; and at the narrowest point it takes a month to cross it. It consists entirely of mountains and sands and valleys. There is nothing at all to eat." Despite the dangers encountered during the Gobi crossing, Marco's account suggests that the route was safe and well established during Mongol's reign. After they left Gobi, the first major city they passed was Dunhuang, where Marco stayed for a year.

Document 3: On the Great City of Kublai Khan BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

Document 4: Primary Source Map from Marco Polo’s The book of Ser BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

Now the Great Khan . . . had a new city, near a river in Cathay…Taidu is built in the form of a square with all its sides of equal length and a total circumference of twenty-four miles. . . . The city is full of fine mansions, inns and dwelling-houses. All the way down the sides of every main street there are booths and shops of every sort. . . . In this city there is such a multitude of houses and of people, both within and without, that no one could count their number. Actually, there are more people outside the walls in the suburbs than in the city itself. There is a suburb outside every gate, such that one touches the neighboring suburbs on either side. They extend in length for three or four miles. And in every suburb, at about a mile from the city, there are many lodgings for merchants coming from different parts of the world, with each region assigned its own lodging.

Merchants and others come here on business in great numbers, both because it is the Khan’s residence and because it affords a profitable market. And the suburbs have as fine houses and mansions as the city, except of course for the Khan’s palace. . . .

You may take it for a fact that more precious and costly wares are imported into Khan-balik than into any other city in the world. Let me give you particulars. All the treasures that come from India – precious stones, pearls, and other rarities – are brought here.. It is a fact that every day more than 1,000 cart-loads of silk is woven here. So it is not surprising that it is the center of such traffic as I have described. . . .

Several times a year parties of traders arrive with pearls and precious stones and gold and silver and other valuables, such as cloth of gold and silk, and surrender them all to the Great Khan. The Khan then summons twelve experts, who are chosen for the task and have special knowledge of it, and bids them examine the wares that the traders have brought and pay for them what they judge to be their true value. The twelve experts duly examine the wares and pay the value in paper currency of which I have spoken. The traders accept it willingly because they can spend it afterwards on the various goods they buy throughout the Great Khan’s dominions. And I give you my word that the wares brought in at different times during the year mount up to a value of fully 400,000 bezants, and they are all paid for in this paper currency.

Section III: These documents are from The book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, concerning the kingdoms and marvels of the East, Henry Yule, 1871. This book compiles Marco’s personal accounts of his travels in Asia, in this section focusing upon islands in Indonesia.



Section III: This document is from Marco’s own personal account, adapted in The book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, concerning the kingdoms and marvels of the East, Henry Yule, 1871. On his return journey to Venice he stopped along cities in the Middle East that were part of the Silk Road, knowing he would be welcomed after having received a Golden Travel Permit from Kublai Khan.


The Great Island Of JavaWhen you sail from Champa, one thousand five hundred miles in a course between south and southeast, you come to a great island called Java. And the experienced mariners of those islands who know the matter well, say that it is the greatest island in the world, and has a compass of more than three thousand miles. It is subject to a great king and tributary to no one else in the world. The people are idolaters. The island is of surpassing wealth, producing black pepper, nutmegs, spikenard, galingale, cubebs, cloves, and all other kinds of spices.

The Kingdom Of MalabarMalabar is a great kingdom lying towards the west. The people are idolaters; they have a language of their own, and a king of their own, and pay tribute to nobody.There is in this kingdom a great quantity of pepper, and ginger, and cinnamon, and turbid, and of nuts of India. They also manufacture very delicate and beautiful buckrams. The ships that come from the east bring copper in ballast. They also bring hither cloths of silk and gold, and taffetas; also gold and silver, cloves and spikenard, and other fine spices for which there is a demand here, and exchange them for the products of these countries.Now I have told you about the kingdom of Malabar; we shall now proceed and tell you of the kingdom of Guzerat. And you must understand that in speaking of these kingdoms we note only the capitals; there are great numbers of other cities and towns of which we shall say nothing, because it would make too long a story to speak of all.

Tabriz. "Tabriz is a large city in a province called Iraq, which has many cities and towns. Since Tabriz is the most splendid city in the province, I will tell you about it. The people of Tabriz live by trade and industry; for cloth of gold and silk is woven here in great quantity and of great value. The city is so favourably situated that it is a market for merchandise from India and Baghdad, from Mosul and Hormuz, and from many other places; and many Latin merchants come here to buy the merchandise imported from foreign lands. It is also a market for precious stones, which are fouind here in great abundance. It is a city where good profits are made by travelling merchants . . . The city is entirely surrounded by attractive orchards, full of excellent fruit."


Directions: Read the following selections and write down the BIG IDEAS and HIPPO TONE the documents. Then fill out the chart for your section. You should use additional sources (bonus points). Be prepared to present your travelers personal background, the areas to which they traveled, and their description of those areas.


Ibn Battuta

During his travels, Ibn Battuta was particular in noting cultural practices, the way of life and religious practices. His background growing up in Tangier, Morocco (born 1304), being raised as a Sunni Muslim and the fact that his life of exploration began after this young lawyer undertook a pilgrimage to Mecca.

Section I: The following documents are from various sources, but are adapted from The Travels of Ibn Battuta, compiled by court scholars after Ibn Battuta’s death in 1368 or1369. Ibn Battuta traveled across the Middle East or Southwest Asia and all the way to China. His journals reveal an emphasis on Muslim traditions, art and architecture in the regions that he traveled to, in addition to noting the customs of the region.

Document 1: From Travels of Ibn Battuta 1325-1354, Translated by C. Defremery (1994) BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:


IBN BATTUTA IN CHINAThe Chinese are infidels. They worship idols and burn their dead as the Indians do. The king is a

Tatar of the lineage of Tankiz khan [Chinggis khan]. In every city in China is a quarter where the Muslims live separately and have mosques for their Friday prayers and other assemblies. They are highly regarded and treated with respect. The Chinese infidels eat the meat of pigs and dogs and sell it in the bazaars. They live comfortably and in affluence but take little care about their food and clothing. You will see an important merchant whose wealth is beyond reckoning wearing a tunic of coarse cotton. The Chinese are of all peoples the most skillful in crafts and attain the greatest perfection in them.... No one, whether Greek or any other' rivals them in mastery of painting.

When we had crossed the sea [to China] the first city to which we came was Zaitun [Ch'uan-chou]... The Muslims live in a separate city. On the day I arrived I saw there the amir [high official] who had been sent to India as ambassador ... had been in our company and had been in the junk which sank. He greeted me and informed the head of the customs about me, and he installed me in handsome lodgings.... As these merchants live in infidel country they are delighted when a Muslim arrives among them. They say: "He has come from the land of Islam....

China, for all its magnificence, did not please me. I was deeply depressed by the prevalence of infidelity, when I left my lodging I saw many offensive things which distressed me that I stayed at home.Ibn Battuta in Mongolia and China

When Ibn Battuta met Ozbeg Khan, the Mongol ruler of Kipchak, he was seated in a huge golden yurt on a silver throne surrounded by his four wives, or khatuns. Ibn Battuta was struck by the equality Turkish and Mongol women enjoyed with men. The khatuns owned lands of their own and sometimes made administrative decisions or signed decrees. When the senior khatun entered the golden tent, the khan went to the entrance of the pavilion, greeted her, escorted her to her couch, and did not sit himself until she was seated. Unlike the secluded women of Southwest Asia, the khatun was in full view and unveiled.

The Rihla describes Ibn Battuta’s journey to China, but some historians questions whether he really made the trip or is reporting on voyages made by other merchants. The trip to China was possible because the Mongol dynasty favored international trade. Cities on China’s southern coast teemed with Muslim merchants and Ibn Battuta would have found a welcoming community.

Ibn Battuta sailed from the Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, then to the Chinese harbor city of Ch’uan-chou. He described silks, porcelains, and a variety of foods. He thought the Chinese clever for using paper money and found the travel safe, but was uncomfortable living among people who were not interested in being Muslims.

Section III: Aside from exploring into East Asia and Southwest Asia, Ibn also traveled through other regions in Africa.


Marco Polo

Marco Polo, a Venetian explorer is most famous for his accounts of China, but specifically of Kublai Khan’s court. Marco traveled along the Silk Road, with his father, uncle and a group of priests as a trader and religious missionary. After reaching East Asia, Marco traveled solely around Asia for almost two decades.

Section I: Marco Polo was born in 1254 to a Venetian merchant family. He had learned much of the classical authors, understood the texts of the Bible, and knew the basic theology of the Latin Church. In 1271, he joined his father for a journey to China, which his father had already visited once. The two spent the next twenty years on travels in the service of Kublai Khan, the Mongol ruler of China.


Ibn Battuta visits MaliOn certain days the sultan holds audiences in the palace yard, where there is a platform under

a tree, with three steps; this they call the "pempi." It is carpeted with silk and has cushions placed on it. [Over it] is raised the umbrella, which is a sort of pavilion made of silk, surmounted by a bird in gold, about the size of a falcon. The sultan comes out of a door in a corner of the palace, carrying a bow in his hand and a quiver on his back. On his head he has a golden skull-cap, bound with a gold band which has narrow ends shaped like knives, more than a span in length. His usual dress is a velvety red tunic, made of the European fabrics.

The sultan is preceded by his musicians, who carry gold and silver guimbris [two-stringed guitars], and behind him come three hundred armed slaves. He walks in a leisurely fashion, affecting a very slow movement, and even stops from time to time. On reaching the pempi he stops and looks round the assembly, then ascends it in the sedate manner of a preacher ascending a mosque-pulpit. As he takes his seat the drums, trumpets, and bugles are sounded. Three slaves go out at a run to summon the sovereign's deputy and the military commanders, who enter and sit down. The nakedness of the women

Among their bad qualities are the following. The women servants, slave-girls, and young girls go about in front of everyone naked, without a stitch of clothing on them. Women go into the sultan's presence naked and without coverings, and his daughters also go about naked.. Another reprehensible practice among many of them is the eating of carrion, dogs, and asses.

Journey to Mongolia It is the Gobi desert where Marco Polo left us the feeling of awe for the vastness of

desert and its effects on those hardy enough to penetrate it: "This desert is reported to be so long that it would take a year to go from end to end; and at the narrowest point it takes a month to cross it. It consists entirely of mountains and sands and valleys. There is nothing at all to eat." Despite the dangers encountered during the Gobi crossing, Marco's account suggests that the route was safe and well established during Mongol's reign. After they left Gobi, the first major city they passed was Dunhuang, where Marco stayed for a year.


Section II: These documents are from The book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, concerning the kingdoms and marvels of the East, Henry Yule, 1871. This book compiles Marco’s personal accounts of his travels in Asia, in this section focusing upon islands in Indonesia.


Section III: This document is from Marco’s own personal account, adapted in The book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, concerning the kingdoms and marvels of the East, Henry Yule, 1871. On his return journey to Venice he stopped along cities in the Middle East that were part of the Silk Road, knowing he would be welcomed after having received a Golden Travel Permit from Kublai Khan.


The Great Island Of JavaWhen you sail from Champa, one thousand five hundred miles in a course between south and southeast, you come to a great island called Java. And the experienced mariners of those islands who know the matter well, say that it is the greatest island in the world, and has a compass of more than three thousand miles. It is subject to a great king and tributary to no one else in the world. The people are idolaters. The island is of surpassing wealth, producing black pepper, nutmegs, spikenard, galingale, cubebs, cloves, and all other kinds of spices.

Tabriz. "Tabriz is a large city in a province called Iraq, which has many cities and towns. Since Tabriz is the most splendid city in the province, I will tell you about it. The people of Tabriz live by trade and industry; for cloth of gold and silk is woven here in great quantity and of great value. The city is so favourably situated that it is a market for merchandise from India and Baghdad, from Mosul and Hormuz, and from many other places; and many Latin merchants come here to buy the merchandise imported from foreign lands. It is also a market for precious stones, which are fouind here in great abundance. It is a city where good profits are made by travelling merchants . . . The city is entirely surrounded by attractive orchards, full of excellent fruit."

The City of the Great KhanNow the Great Khan . . . had a new city, near a river in Cathay…Taidu is built in

the form of a square with all its sides of equal length and a total circumference of twenty-four miles. . . . The city is full of fine mansions, inns and dwelling-houses. All the way down the sides of every main street there are booths and shops of every sort. . . . In this city there is such a multitude of houses and of people, both within and without, that no one could count their number. Actually, there are more people outside the walls in the suburbs than in the city itself. There is a suburb outside every gate, such that one touches the neighboring suburbs on either side. They extend in length for three or four miles. And in every suburb, at about a mile from the city, there are many lodgings for merchants coming from different parts of the world, with each region assigned its own lodging.

Merchants and others come here on business in great numbers, both because it is the Khan’s residence and because it affords a profitable market. And the suburbs have as fine houses and mansions as the city, except of course for the Khan’s palace. . . .

Marco Polo and Ibn BattutaSection I: The following documents have been compiled from various sources to produce a broad timeline

and map of the travels and lives of Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo.

Document 1:Ibn Battuta Timeline

1304 Born Tangier, North Africa1325-26 Travels from Tangiers to Egypt, Syria and Arabia1326-32 Travels from Mecca to Iraq, Persia, Arabia and East Africa1330-35 Travels to Anatolia, the Black Sea region, and the Asian

Steep1333-45 Travels to India and Ceylon1345-46 Travels to Southeast Asia and maybe China1349-54 Travels in North Africa, Spain and western Africa1368 or 1369

Ibn Battuta dies, probably in Tangiers, North Africa

Document 2:Marco Polo Timeline1254: Marco Polo is born 1269: Nicolo and Maffeo Polo return to Venice after 15

years: Nicolo's wife has died leaving a son, Marco1271: Marco Polo’s travels begin 1275: Marco arrives in Peking 1292: The Polo’s settle in Kaikhatu in the Levant for seven

months 1295: Marco Polo returns to Venice 1324: Death of Marco Polo

Document 3: Primary Source Map from UC Davis BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

Ibn Fadlan: Observations on the Vikings and Russians (Tenth Century) & Chen Pu, A Record of Musings on the Eastern Capital of the Song Empire 13 th

century

Section I: The following document is Excerpted from Mujam al Buldan, or Compendium of Countries (10th century CE), in Beyond A Thousand and One Nights: A Sampler of Literature from Muslim Civilization. It is an account of the behavior and culture of the Vikings.


Document 2: Account of a Song Dynasty trade city Hanzhou BIG IDEAS/HIPPO TONE:

In the year 921 CE, Ibn Fadlan set out with a party on a journey from Baghdad to the north as ambassadors of the Abbasid Caliph (Khalifa) al-Muqtadir (908-932 CE) to the King of the Slavs, in the cold, forested land of long rivers that is now northern Russia. The Caliph had received a letter from that king, asking him to send someone who could teach them about Islam, along with funds to help build a masjid (mosque). Along the great Dneiper and Volga rivers and through the Black and Caspian Seas Viking ships carried amber, furs, honey, and handicrafts, trading these goods for textiles, pottery, spices, metal, and glassware from Muslim and Byzantine lands. From this trade, many Arabic coins have been found in archaeological sites in Scandinavia. The Vikings say to their god ‘I wish that you bless me with a buyer who has plenty of gold and silver pieces, who buys all that I desire him to buy, and meets all of my demands.’ To their gods they offer as many wooden statues as it takes to have a successful trade.

Vikings traded and settled in these lands and intermarried with Slavic- and Turkic-speaking communities, producing the ‘Rus.’ I had never seen people of such tall stature—they are as tall as palm trees, blond, and ruddy of complexion. They do not wear shirts or caftans[robes]. Their custom is to wear a length of coarse cloth that they wrap around their sides and throw over the shoulder so that one arm remains bare. Each of them carries with him an ax, a dagger and a sword. Their swords are broad with wavy stripes on the blade. Frankish silver coins are fashioned into a chain made for his wife; and if he has twenty thousand, she gets two necklaces; and so she receives one more each time he becomes ten thousand richer. In this way the Rus woman acquires a great number of necklaces. Women live in great wooden houses on its banks…waiting on a bench to be determined for sale.

In general, the capital attracts the greatest variety of goods and has the best craftsmen. For instance, the flower company at Superior Lane does a truly excellent job of flower arrangement, and its caps, hairpins, and collars are unsurpassed in craftsmanship. Some of the most famous specialties of the capital are the sweet-bean soup at the Miscellaneous Market, the pickled dates of the Ge family, the thick soup of the Guang family at Superior Lane, the fruit at the Great Commons marketplace, the cooked meats in front of Eternal Mercy Temple, Sister Song's fish broth at Penny Pond Gate, the boots of the Peng family, the fine clothing of the Xuan family. Teahouses

In large teahouses there are usually paintings and calligraphies by famous artists on display. Often many young men gather in teahouses to practice singing or playing musical instruments. To give such amateur performances is called "getting posted." A "social teahouse" is more of a community gathering place than a mere place that sells tea.Warehouses

Today, having been the "temporary capital" for more than a hundred years, the city has over a million households. The suburbs extend to the south, west, and north; all are densely populated and prosperous in commerce as well as in agriculture. The size of the suburbs is comparable to a small county or prefecture, and it takes several days to travel through them. This again reflects the prosperity of the capital. In the middle of the city, surrounded by water to protect it from thieves as a “special convenience,” are the warehouse complexes of five Wealthy families. Each of these consists of several thousand rooms for the storage needs of the various businesses or merchants.

World Travelers and Traders: Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo


On the Travelers Journey…

Ibn Battuta Marco Polo Other Explorers and Other Information

…Personal Background

…Descriptions of regions

travelled to

Politics, Economics,

Social Structure, Religion,

Gender Roles

Ibn Battuta Marco Polo Other Explorers and Other Information

Additional Information

Additional Sources and Information:

Source: Information: Big Ideas/HIPPO TONE

COMPARISON: WRITE A THESIS: Compare the political, economic and/or social achievements of the post-classical civilizations. (At Least 3 Examples!!)

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Judges OnlyWorld Travelers and Traders: Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo


Traveler QUESTIONS: RESPONSES: (Based on your understanding and the group responses)

Ibn Battuta

Marco Polo

Other Explorer

s

Additional Sources and Information:

Source: Information: Big Ideas/HIPPO TONE

COMPARISON: WRITE A THESIS: Compare the political, economic and/or social achievements of the post-classical civilizations. (At Least 3 Examples!!)________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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