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| The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1 |
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Citation Information
THE CORTE DEL MILLIONI 27
his father, his mother, and himself, though after the successor
the annuity is to pass on the same condition to the senior
priest of S. Giovanni Grisostomo. Marco Polo the Elder is
in his will described as of S. Severo, as is also his sister-in-
law Fiordelisa, and the document contains no reference to
S. Giovanni. On the whole therefore it seems probable that
the Palazzo in the latter parish was purchased by the Tra-
vellers after their return from the East.*
24. The Court which was known in the i6th century as the
Corte del Millioni has been gener.ally understood to be that now
known as the Corte Sabbionera, and here is still pointed Relic of the
out a relic of Marco Polo's mansion.
[Indeed it is Casa Polo inthe Corte
called now (1899) Corte del Milione ; see p. 3o. H. C.] Sabbionera.
M. Pauthier's edition is embellished with a good engraving
which purports to represent the House of Marco Polo. But
he has been misled. His engraving in fact exhibits, at
least as the prominent feature, an embellished representation
of a small house which exists on the west side of the Sabbionera,
and which had at one time perhaps that pointed style of
architecture which his engraving shows, though its present
decoration is paltry and unreal. But it is on the north side
of the Court, and on the foundations now occupied by the
Malibran theatre, that Venetian tradition and the investigations
of Venetian antiquaries concur in indicating the site of the
Casa Polo. At the end of the 16th century a great fire
destroyed the Palazzo, f and under the description of " an old
•
* Marco Barbaro's story related at p. 25 speaks of the Ca' Million as built by the travellers.
From a list of parchments existing in the archives of the Casa di Ricovero, or Great Poor House, at Venice, Comm. Berchet obtained the following indication :-
" No. 94. Marco Galetti invests Marco Polo S. of Nicolo with the ownership of his possessions (beni) in S. Giovanni Grisostomo ; io September, 1319 ; drawn zip by the Notary Nicolo, priest of S. Canciano."
This document would perhaps have thrown light on the matter, but unfortunately recent search by several parties has failed to trace it. [The document has been discovered since : see vol. ii., Calendar, No. 6.—H. C.]
t " Sua casa che era posta nel confin di S. Giovanni Chrisostomo, che hor fá
l'anno s'abbrugiò total/nente, con gran danno di molti." (Doglioní, Hist. Venetiana, Ven. 1598, pp. 161-162.)
" 1596. 7 Nov. Senato (Arsenal . . . . ix c. 159 t).
" Essendo conveniente usar qualche ricognizione a quelli della maestranza del-l'Arsenal nostro, che prontamente sono concorsi all' incendio occorso ultimamente a S. Zuane Grizostomo nelli stabeli detti di CA' MILION dove per la relazion fatta nell collegio nostro dalli patroni di esso Arsenal hanno nell' estinguere il foco prestato ogni buon servitio. . . ."—(Comm. by Cay. Cecchetti through Comm. Berchet.)
VOL. L
Z 2
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