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0021 Notes on Marco Polo : vol.1
Notes on Marco Polo : vol.1 / Page 21 (Color Image)

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doi: 10.20676/00000246
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2. ABAGA   5

from Hsü-lieh. But, in my opinion, the only plausible solution is the Alep proposed as an alternative to Shiraz by MOULE (p. 13). If Talib, as it seems, is another name of Isma'il (curiously enough, D'OHSSON, Oh, II, 391, names the sons, but not the father), Rasid, it may be noticed, is not sure of his origin, as he mentions both Ba'albek and Damascus. But we may admit that the man came from that region; and Hsü-lieh is a fairly accurate transcription of „,.. Haieb, Alep; I do not think that we here have to take into account the « Areg » which designates Ba'albek in Steph. Orbelian (cf. PATKANOV, Istoriya Mongolov, I, 33). Under 1296, a text of

YS, 19, 3 b, mentions, just before « the gunner » Isma'il, a name yliJ   Pieh-ma-ii-ssû-
tan the final of which is certainly -stan and refers to a country; but the rest of the name remains obscure, and it is not even certain that there is a connection between Pieh-ma-ii-ssû-tan and Ismail. As to 'Ala'u-'d-Din's native place Mu-fa-li, its identification with Mosul has been accepted by numerous authorities, from QUATREMERE (Hist. des Mongols, 155) to BLOCHET (BI, II, 513). But I am much more in favour of BRETSCHNEIDER'S « Moaferin » (Br, I, 273), which is also YULE'S « Miafarakain» (Y, u, 167), that is to say Maifärkat; the people of Maifärkat were good catapult-makers (cf. QUATREMÉRE, ibid., 360, 369). In 1282, the Chams also used « Mussulman » (Hui-hui) guns against the Chinese, and so did probably the Burmese in 1300 (cf. YS, 210, 3 b; BEFEO, ix, 676; T'u Chi, 92, 7 b-8 a).

  1. (YS, 210, 7 a) : « From Ch'üan-chou (see « Çaiton »), to reach that kingdom [of Ma'abar; see « Maabar »], there are about 100,000 li. From that kingdom to the city of the great prince (ta-wang) A-pu-ha (Abaya), by sea, with a favourable wind, it is possible to arrive in about 15 days ». Abaya's city must be Bagdad.

  2. (YS, 8, 1 a) : «In the tenth year [chih-yüan], the first month, ... on the day chi-mao

(February 14, 1273), an Imperial edict sent 4L if    Cha-shu-k'o (*Jajur) a?), pp   Ya-shih-

han (*Yasyan?; or Jaju-qaya and *Sigan?) and 1Z   Ts'ui Shao, with 100,000 ounces of gold
(? 100,000 ounces of silver) to the prince A-pu-ha (Abaya), in order to buy drugs in the Lion's Kingdom (Shih-tzû-kuo, Ceylon) ». I know nothing of these three men.

  1. (YS, 85, 2 a) : « Originally, more than 7,000 families of hunters and falconers had been gathered by T'ai-tsu (Chinghiz-khan) in the various districts, and put under the authority of the great prince Hsü-lieh (Hülägü). The office in charge of them was first established in the second year chung-t'ung (1261). In the twelfth year chih-yiian (1275), the great prince A-pa-ha (Abaya) sent an envoy with a memorial [asking] that they should be under the direct authority of the Court; they were attached to the Ministry of War. » For the later fate of these people in China who belonged to the ilkhans of Persia, see « Cagan ». The various branches of Chinghizkhanids seem to have kept their appanages in China proper almost to the end of the dynasty.

  2. (Yuan tien-chang, 57, 16 a-17 a) : This is a long text dated January 27, 1280, relating to Mussulmans who had brought gerfalcons from Baryu and who used to slay sheep according to the rules of their religion (for this text, closely connected with Polo's and Ragid's, see Bargu »).

  3. (YS, 11, 1 b) : On March 31, 1280, silk and paper-money were given, among others, to subordinates of the Prince A-pa-ha (Abaya).