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. REWARDS & PUNISHMENTS 8 I
had been, and his army. Now you have heard how the great Kaan only goes this v
one time to war in person after he was king. For in all his other needs and wars he sent FB VA
now his sons and now his barons, but in this he was unwilling that any should go TA TA
there but himself alone, because the arrogance of that disloyal man Naian seemed to FB Fß
him too great a deed and evil and perilous. Now we will leave you this matter and FB
will come back to tell you of the very great doings of the great Kaan. And we have FB
told you of what line he was and his age. Now we will say what he did—of the R
rewards and honours which he gives for this victory—to the barons who bear themselves L
well in war and in battle, when he came back;1 and again I will tell you what he did vA FB TA
to those who were mean and cowardly . You must know then that the great Kaan has R
twelve wise barons who have charge of learning and informing themselves of the operations which
the captains and soldiers carry out particularly in the expeditions and battles where they are;
and those then report to the great Kaan. I tell you that to those captains who prove VA
themselves well in war and in battle, him who at first was lord, that is head, of a hundred VA L V
men he makes him lord of a thousand, and him who • at first •was lord of a thousand he FB L FB
makes him lord of ten thousand and thus he gave to each according to his rank as he saw that FB
they deserved; and with all this he makes him a great gift of gold and fair silver vessels v FB
and of many fair jewels, and a superior tablet having or denoting authority, that is with v FB FB L
orders of authority. And he presented them also with fair jewels of gold and of silver and FB
with pearls and with precious stones & with horses; and he gave so many of them to each that
it was a marvel. For they had deserved it very well, for never afterwards were men seen who
did so much in arms for the love of their lord as those did on the day of the battle. For the FB
tablets of authority are so arranged that he who has command of a hundred has a silver FB
tablet; and he who has command of a thousand a tablet of gold, or really of silver L
gilt; and he who has command of ten thousand has a tablet of gold with a lion's L
head. And I will tell you the weight of these tablets, and what they mean. Those FB
who have command of a hundred and of a thousand men, • their tablets each weigh v FB
120 saggi, and that with a lion's head [36b] engraved on it, who have command of ten FB
thousand, also weighs 2202 saggi. And on all these tablets is written an order in this L
manner, and they say, By the power and strength of the great God and of the great R
grace which he has given to our emperor, blest be the name of the great Kaan, and TA
may all those who shall not obey him be slain and destroyed. And again I tell you
•
1 FA,FB,LT,L seem definitely to take this following passage to refer to the rewards given after the battle with Naian. The context, and the wording of F,TA,VA, seem to make the reference general, and this view is supported by P, R.
2 L, R: 220 FA, FB,TA': 120 LT,P omit; TA': altrettanto
203
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