Cathay
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Cathay is a historical name for China that was used in Europe. During the early modern period, the term Cathay initially evolved as a term referring to what is now Northern China, completely separate
A typical early 17th-century depiction of "Cataia" as China's northeastern neighbour, Jodocus Hondius, 1610
Not convinced by the Jesuits, John Speed in 1626 follows Jodocus Hondius' layout: He shows the chain of Silk Road cities visited by de Góis (Cuchia, Chialis, Turfan, Camul) – but has it directed not toward China's Shaanxi Sancii, as shown by de Góis, but toward the mysterious "Cathaya, the Chief Kingdome of Great Cam", northeast of China. Naturally, Cambalu and Xandu are shown in Cathay, while Shuntien (Beijing) is in China.
Empire of the Great Khan according to the Catalan Atlas
Marco Polo
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Marco Polo was an Italian merchant, explorer, and writer from the Republic of Venice who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. His travels are recorded in The Travels of Ma
Cathay
…century thereafter. Originally, this name was the name applied by Central and Western Asians and Europeans to northern China; the name was also used in Marco Polo's book on his travels in Yuan dynasty China (he referred to southern China as Mangi). Odoric of Pordenone (d. 1331) also writes about Cathay and the…
A commemorative plaque on the site of Casa Polo in Venice, part of the Teatro Malibran which was built upon Polo's house
Corte Seconda del Milion, Venice, next to Polo's house, is named after the nickname of Polo, Il Milione
A mosaic of Marco Polo displayed in the Palazzo Doria-Tursi, Genoa, Italy
A close-up of the Catalan Atlas depicting Marco Polo travelling to the East during the Pax Mongolica