Marco Polo, Silk Road

Marco Polo is one of the most celebrated explorers of the Middle Ages, having travelled from Europe along the Silk Road to the court of Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor of China and Genghis Khan's grandson. He was born in 1254 in the Venetian Republic, a maritime state centred around Venice. In 1271, Marco, then 17, along with his father and uncle, both experienced merchants, set out on an arduous overland journey to the Far East that would last 24 years.

Departing Venice, the Polos travelled down the Adriatic Sea, around Greece, and made their first stop in the port city of Acre. They spent a few months there before heading to Jerusalem to meet the newly appointed Pope, who entrusted them with letters for Kublai Khan, inviting him to send emissaries to Rome, likely to establish diplomatic relations.

From there, they crossed the Middle East, heading northeast through Persia, passing through Tabriz, and then south to Baghdad before reaching the Strait of Hormuz on the Persian Gulf, where they planned to sail to China. Searching for a ship for their journey, they abandoned the idea when they concluded none of the vessels were seaworthy, opting to continue overland.

Their path took them through the heart of Central Asia, travelling through Khorasan and Balkh before stopping in Badakhshān for about a year to allow Marco to recuperate from an illness he contracted. Moving on, the Polos ventured into the Pamir Mountains, a rugged and remote region—often called the "Roof of the World". From the mountains, they descended to the vast and arid expanse of the Gobi Desert, enduring its challenges and, at times, facing food shortages. In 1275, after four years of travel, they arrived in Shangdu (Xanadu), the summer capital of Kublai Khan's empire.

The Polos spent several years in the emperor's winter residence in Khanbaliq (modern-day Beijing). Marco swiftly found himself in the khan's service, travelling extensively across China, Myanmar (Burma), and India as a foreign diplomat. Versed in several languages, Marco's adaptability allowed him to access regions and cultures few Europeans had seen before.

After 17 years at Kublai Khan's court, the Polos began their three-year journey back to Venice, this time by sea through the Persian Gulf while escorting a Mongol princess to Persia for a political marriage. The two-year sea journey was difficult, with many passengers dying from illnesses such as scurvy and cholera, as well as encountering pirates and hostile natives.

Once back on land, they moved north to Tabriz, where they boarded another ship over the Black Sea to Constantinople and across the Mediterranean, finally arriving in Venice in 1295. Marco's return came with new challenges. Venice and Genoa were at war, and in 1298, Marco was captured by the Genoese during a naval battle and imprisoned.

In prison, he met Rustichello de Pisa, a writer who helped transcribe Marco's stories of his journeys, which would later be compiled into The Travels of Marco Polo. A year later, Marco was released and returned home. While his book sparked Europe's imagination, some doubted its accuracy. Nevertheless, it strongly influenced future explorers and helped shape how Europeans viewed Asia.