IIIF Color HighRes
National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
| |||||||||
|
| IIIF Color HighRes |
| The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Citation Information
CHAP. VII. THE ISLANDS OF SONDUR AND CONDUR
277
so just that I have followed Pauthier in substituting Champa for Java in the text.
NOTE 2. —There is no reason to doubt that these islands are the group now known as that of PULO CONDORE, in old times an important landmark, and occasional point of call, on the route to China. The group is termed Sundar Fúlát (Fzrlát representing the Malay Pzzlo or Island, in the plural) in the Arab Relations of the 9th century, the last point of departure on the voyage to China, from which it was a month distant. This old record gives us the name Sondor; in modern times we have it as I ondvr; Polo combines both names. [" These may also be the ` Satyrs' Islands ' of Ptolemy, or they may be his Sindai ; for he has a Sinda city on the coast close to this position, though his Sindai islands are dropt far away. But it would not be difficult to show that Ptolemy's islands have been located almost at random, or as from a pepper castor." ( Yule, Oldest Records, p. 657.)] The group consists of a larger island about 12 miles long, two of 2 or 3 miles, and some half-dozen others of insignificant dimensions. The large one is now specially called Pulo Condore. It has a fair harbour, fresh water, and wood in abundance. Dampier visited the group and recommended its occupation. The E. I. Company did establish a post there in 1702, but it came to a speedy end in the massacre of the Europeans by their Macassar garrison. About the year 172o some attempt to found a settlement there was also made by the French, who gave the island the name of Isle d' Orldans. The celebrated Père Gaubil spent eight months on the island and wrote an interesting letter about it (February, 1722 ; see also Lettres Edjantes, Rec. xvi. ). When the group was visited by Mr. John Crawfurd on his mission to Cochin China the inhabitants numbered about Soo, of Cochin Chinese descent. The group is now held by the French under Saigon. The chief island is known to the Chinese as the mountain of Kunlun. There is another cluster of rocks in the same sea, called the Seven Cheu, and respecting these two groups Chinese sailors have a kind of Incidit-in-Scyllan saw :-
" Slzany la Tsi-clzczt, hia pa Kun-lun, Chen mi t'uo shilz, jin chuen mo tsun."
" With Kunlun to starboard, and larboard the Cheu, Keep conning your compass, whatever you do, Or to Davy Jones' Locker go vessel and crew."
(Ritter, IV. 1017 ; Reinaud, I. 18 ; A. Hamilton, II. 402 ; Mém. conc. les Chinois, XIV. 53.)
NOTE 3.—Pauthier reads the name of the kingdom Soucat, but I adhere to the readings of the G. T., Loclzac and Locac, which are supported by Ramusio. Pauthier's C and the Bern MS. have le chac and le that, which indicate the same reading.
Distance and other particulars point, as Hugh Murray discerns, to the east coast of the Malay Peninsula, or (as I conceive) to the territory now called Siam, including the said coast, as subject or tributary from time immemorial.
The kingdom of Siam is known to the Chinese by the name of Sien-Lo. The Supplement to Ma Twan-lin's Encyclopaedia describes Sien-Lo as on the sea-board to the extreme south of Chen-ching. " It originally consisted of two kingdoms, Sien and Lo-hoh. The Sien people are the remains of a tribe which in the year (A. D. 1341) began to come down upon the Lo-hoh, and united with the latter into one nation. . . . The land of the Lo-hoh consists of extended plains, but not much
agriculture is done." t
Meaning :—
* [ From the Hsing-ck'a Shêng-Ian, by Fei Hsin.]
t The extract of which this is the substance I owe to the kindness of Professor J. Summers,
formerly of King's College.
..•
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Copyright (C) 2003-2019 National Institute of Informatics and The Toyo Bunko. All Rights Reserved.