The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 / Page 325 (Grayscale High Resolution Image)

0325	The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2

[We learn from an inscription that in 1265 the King of Champa was Jaya-
Sinhavarman II., who was named Indravarman in 1277, and whom the Chinese called
Che li Tseya Sinho phala Maha thiwa (Çrî Jaya Sinha varmma maha deva). He
was the king at the time of Polo's voyage. (A. Bergaigne, Ancien royaume de
Campa, pp. 39-40 ; E. Aymonier, les Tchames et leurs religions, p. 14.)—H. C.]
There are notices of the events in De Mailla (IX. 420-422) and Gaubil (194), but
Pauthier's extracts which we have made use of are much fuller.
Elephants have generally formed a chief part of the presents or tribute sent
periodically by the various Indo-Chinese states to the Court of China.
[In a Chinese work published in the 14th century, by an Annamite, under the
title of Ngan-nan chi lio, and translated into French by M. Sainson (1896), we read
(p. 397) : "Elephants are found only in Lin-y ; this is the country which became
Champa. It is the habit to have burdens carried by elephants ; this country is to-day
the Pu-cheng province." M. Sainson adds in a note that Pu-cheng, in Annamite
Bó chanh quán, is to-day Quang-bình, and that, in this country, was placed the first
capital (Dong-hoi) of the future kingdom of Champa thrown later down to the
south.—H. C.]
[The Chams, according to their tradition, had three capitals : the most ancient,
Shri-Baneuy, probably the actual Quang-Bình province ; Bal-Hangon, near Hué ;
and Bal-Angoul, in the Bình-Định province. In the 4th century, the kingdom of
Lin-y or Lâm-ấp is mentioned in the Chinese Annals.—H. C.]

Note 2.—The date of Marco's visit to Champa varies in the MSS. : Pauthier has
1280, as has also Ramusio ; the G. T. has 1285 ; the Geographic Latin 1288. I
incline to adopt the last. For we know that about 1290, Mark returned to Court from
a mission to the Indian Seas, which might have included this visit to Champa.
The large family of the king was one of the stock marvels. Odoric says : "Zampa
is a very fine country, having great store of victuals and all good things. The king
of the country, it was said when I was there [circa 1323], had, what with sons and
with daughters, a good two hundred children ; for he hath many wives and other
women whom he keepeth. This king hath also 14,000 tame elephants. . . . And
other folk keep elephants there just as commonly as we keep oxen here" (pp. 95-96).
The latter point illustrates what Polo says of elephants, and is scarcely an exaggeration
in regard to all the southern Indo-Chinese States. (See note to Odoric u. s.)

Note 3.—Champa Proper and the adjoining territories have been from time
immemorial the chief seat of the production of lign-aloes or eagle-wood. Both names
are misleading, for the thing has nought to do either with aloes or eagles ; though
good Bishop Pallegoix derives the latter name from the wood being speckled like an
eagle's plumage. It is in fact through Aquila, Agila, from Aguru, one of the Sanskrit
names of the article, whilst that is possibly from the Malay Kayu (wood)-gahru,
though the course of the etymology is more likely to be the other way ; and Ἀλόη is
perhaps a corruption of the term which the Arabs apply to it, viz. Al-'Ud, "The
Wood."
[It is probable that the first Portuguese who had to do with eagle-wood called it
by its Arabic name, agháluhy, or malayálam, agila : whence pão de aguila "aquila
wood." It was translated into Latin as lignum aquilae, and after into modern
languages, as bois d'aigle, eagle-wood, adlerholz, etc. (A. Cabaton, les Chams, p. 50.)
Mr. Groeneveldt (Notes, pp. 141-142) writes : "Lignum aloes is the wood of the
Aquilaria agallocha, and is chiefly known as sinking incense. The Pen-ts'au Kang-mu
describes it as follows : 'Sinking incense, also called honey incense. It comes from
the heart and the knots of a tree and sinks in water, from which peculiarity
the name sinking incense is derived. . . . In the Description of Annam we find it
called honey incense, because it smells like honey.' The same work, as well as the
Nan-fang Ts'au-mu Chuang, further informs us that this incense was obtained
in all countries south of China, by felling the old trees and leaving them to decay,

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National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books