The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1 / Page 361 (Color Image)

0361	The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.1

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CHAP. VI.

TII E GREAT CITY OF BAUDAS 6

CHAPTER VI.

OF THE GREAT CITY OF BAUDAS, AND HOW IT WAS TAKEN.

BAUDAS is a great city, which used to be the seat of the

Calif of all the Saracens in the world, just as Rome is

the seat of the Pope of all the Christians.' A very great

river flows through the city, and by this you can descend

to the Sea of India. There is a great traffic of mer-

chants with their goods this way ; they descend some

eighteen days from Baudas, and then come to a certain

city called Kisi, where they enter the Sea of India.2

There is also on the river, as you go from Baudas to

Kisi, a great city called BASTRA, surrounded by woods,

in which grow the best dates in the world.3

In Baudas they weave many different kinds of silk

stuffs and gold brocades, such as nasiclz, and nac, and

clramoisy, and many another beautiful tissue richly

wrought with figures of beasts and birds. It is the

noblest and greatest city in all those regions.

Now it carne to pass on a day in the year of Christ

1255, that the Lord of the Tartars of the Levant, whose

name was Alai", brother to the Great Kaan now reigning,

gathered a mighty host and carne up against Baudas and

took it by storm.' It was a great enterprise ! for in

Baudas there were more than i oo,000 horse, besides

foot soldiers. And when Alaii had taken the place he

found therein a tower of the Calif's, which was full of

gold and silver and other treasure ; in fact the greatest

accumulation of treasure in one spot that ever was

known.' When he beheld that great heap of treasure

he was astonished, and, summoning the Calif to his

presence, he said to him : " Calif, tell me now why thou

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