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Secondary sourceBook1871

The Book of Ser Marco Polo

Henry Yule · 1871

A scholarly annotated edition of Marco Polo's travel account, including notes and a list of manuscripts referencing the Mongol world Genghis Khan founded.

This scholarly edition catalogues Mongol history and references Genghis Khan in its study of Marco Polo's travels through his former empire.

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About this source

What it is

This is a two-volume scholarly edition of The Book of Ser Marco Polo, edited with extensive notes by Colonel Henry Yule and published in 1871. Marco Polo wrote his original account centuries earlier, describing his travels through Asia, including lands once ruled by the Mongol Empire.

Why it matters

This edition helps modern readers understand Polo's descriptions of Mongol territory and history, including references to Genghis Khan and his descendants. It shows how later scholars studied and explained historical travel accounts for new generations, connecting Polo's firsthand observations to the broader history of the Mongol Empire.

Look closer

  • Why would a 19th-century editor add detailed notes and manuscript lists to a centuries-old travel account?
  • How might Polo's original descriptions of Mongol lands differ from how later scholars interpreted them?
  • What does the inclusion of maps and illustrations tell us about how this edition was meant to be used?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Genghis Khan on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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