IIIF Color HighRes
National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
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| IIIF Color HighRes |
| Marco Polo : vol.1 |
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Citation Information
| THE DESCRIPTION OF THE WORLD. THE LADIES BREECHES of cotton cloth and • of very fine silk, with musk inside. . And they put much cloth into their VL VA trousers. There are some ladies who in one pair of breeches, that is the covering of the legs, [Zia] put quite a hundred ells of very fine stuff made of flax and of cotton vL cloth, wrapped about the body like swathing-bands, and some there are who put ninety, VL LT and some eighty of it, and some sixty, some forty, and some thirty, • and some less, • TA FB according to their power; • and they make them pleated all round. And they do this to show R V that they have large hips to become beautiful, because in that region their men delight in VL VA fat women, and she who appears more stout • below the waist • seems to them more beautiful, • z LT Z and more glorious among other women. Now we have told you all the affairs of this LT FB kingdom and we shall leave it then and shall tell you of a different people who are towards midday & are distant ten days journeys from this province. y HERE HE TELLS OF THE GREAT PROVINCE OF PASCIAI. It is true that a good VA ten days journeys distant from Badascian towards midday is a province which is called Pasciai, and they have a language for themselves . And all y the people of the province are idolaters' who worship the idols,' and they are dark' VA V people. And they know much of enchantments and of the diabolical arts, spending V P time in invocations of demons. • And here the men wear hung in their ears rings and V z buckles of gold and of silver and of pearls and of precious stones enough according VB to their means, • worked with great skill. • And they are very malicious people and cunning R V and cruel and clever in their customs. And this province is in a very hot place. Their z y z food is nothing but flesh and rice and spices; whence the vice of sensuality reigns there in VL It such manner as I will not write.' Now let us leave this and we will tell you of another province which is seven days journey distant from this province towards sirocco, L which has the name Chescemir. HERE HE TELLS OF THE PROVINCE OF CHESCEMIR. Chescemir is a province where again they are all idolaters like the others above and the inhabitants LT VB P have a language of their own.' They know so much more than all others R of the enchantment of the devils that it is a wonder; for they make the dumb and z deaf idols speak, and receive answers when they consult them. By enchantment they make P the weather change' at their will, and have great [21bl darkness made over the light L z | .4-7. 48 | |||||||
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| 1 V: son chiamadi indiani et adora leidole cf. pp. 295 n. 2,5; 297 n. 3. 2 TA: niaumetto 3 P: nigros V,VA: bruna VB: bruta 4 It indicates the Italian text printed at Venice in 1496. 5 G: Chesiniior ist eyn provincie ouch in Persida unde hot di selbe sproche als di Persi This is an early and elaborate example of the misunderstanding of lingua perse which is found all through S. e S: & mouer los templos ("and do make their Temples seeme to moue") misunderstanding VL: mouer i tempi | ||||||||
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