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
COTTON TREES & LEATHER WORK IN GOÇURAT ,MARCO POLO z a certain drug called tamarind and sea-water, so that the merchants go much below z and pass or vomit all that they have in belly. The corsairs have all that the merchants
pass collected and have it searched[to see] if there are pearls or any other precious
stones . For the corsairs say that when the merchants are taken that they used to eat the pearls and the other precious stones so that the corsairs may not find them. And therefore those wicked corsairs give the merchants that drink for that malice z of which I have told you. And so the merchants can in no way escape without losing TA V everything if they were taken. •Now you have seen íf this is not great malice. • In this kingdom FB LT they have great multitude of pepper; and they have also ginger enough & many z other spices; and they have indigo in abundance. They have also cotton enough, for
they have the trees which make cotton abundantly very large, which are [891] VA VB commonly six paces high, and straight; and these have quite twenty years. But yet it is true that when these trees are so old they do not make cotton which is good to z spin, but they use it for wadding and for the quilts and other coarse things. And this comes about from these trees.' For up to twelve years they make good cotton to TA spin, but from twelve years up to twenty these trees are called old[and]do not make
such good cotton as when they are young. Beyond[twenty years]it is worth nothing.
A very exceedingly great quantity of very good skins are dressed in this kingdom, FB that is to say that they tan leather of goat & of ox and of buffalo and of wild ox and of unicorn and of many other beasts. And I tell you that so great quantity of
them are tanned that very many ships a year are loaded with them and they set out z for Arabie2 and for many other cities and parts, for many kingdoms and many
provinces are supplied with them from this kingdom. And again I tell you that R many beautiful mats of red' and blue leather decorated with birds and with beasts
are made in this kingdom, and they are embroidered very cunningly with thread
of gold and of silver. They are so beautiful that it is a wonder to see them. And z understand that those mats of which I have told you are of leather, upon which
vB z L the Saracens sleep; and they say it is too good sleeping there. And again in the same way
1
nies la ourent a uanter & as trapontes a ce auent de ceste arbres uanter, as Y. understood, is
for uater, ouater, "to wad". P: pro quiltis uel diploydis aut pro opere simili but FG,TA,LT seem to have been puzzled. Some texts (e.g. VB) more plausibly make this a general statement that cotton trees will reach a height of six paces and an age of twenty years. LT says that cotton from trees is good & will last for twelve years.
2 se partent por atabi FA, FB: vont par arabie (arrabe) L (ambiguously): naues que portant TA,LT,P omit. Z: ferruntur V: se portano R: portansi So it is possible that we should read, with B., se portent
3 narces de cure uermoil and below nares ... nates Read nates or nattes in every case.
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