Uploaded August 2018 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Whilst in prison at the end of the Thirteenth Century Italian writer Rustichello da Pisa began to hear extraordinary tales from his cell mate. That man turned out to be a Venetian merchant named Marco Polo. The tales that Polo then narrated to Rustichello eventually became the ‘Book of the Marvels of the World’. Usually known to us today as ‘The Travels of Marco Polo’.
This is Part One of the Preface entitled ‘How the Two Brothers Polo Set Forth from Constantinople to Traverse the World’ It concerns the travels of his father and his uncle and provides the necessary backdrop to the later journeys he embarked upon.
Music:-
Kevin MacLeod - Ascending the Vale
youtube.com/watch?v=yD_TX8LqOTU
Battle Lines
purple-planet.com
This is an original work by the Thirteenth Century writer Rustichello da Pisa and Venetian trader and explorer Marco Polo. Written over seven hundred years ago to record Polo’s extraordinary travels for posterity it remains one of the most important chronicles of the Medieval World, especially in regards to European involvement in the rest of Eurasia.
The words of this video come directly from Rustichello and Polo themselves, translated in the Nineteenth Century by Sir Henry Yule and slightly revised by Henri Cordier .
You can read the full text here:-
en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Travels_of_Marco_Polo#Preface
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Are you a budding artist, illustrator, cartographer, or music producer? Send me a message! No matter how professional you are or even if you’re just starting out, I can always use new music and images in my videos. Get in touch! I’d love to hear from you.
I try to use copyright free images at all times. However if I have used any of your artwork or maps then please don't hesitate to contact me and I’ll be more than happy to give the appropriate credit.
Whilst in prison at the end of the Thirteenth Century Italian writer Rustichello da Pisa began to hear extraordinary tales from his cell mate. That man turned out to be a Venetian merchant named Marco Polo. The tales that Polo then narrated to Rustichello eventually became the ‘Book of the Marvels of the World’. Usually known to us today as ‘The Travels of Marco Polo’.
This is Part One of the Preface entitled ‘How the Two Brothers Polo Set Forth from Constantinople to Traverse the World’ It concerns the travels of his father and his uncle and provides the necessary backdrop to the later journeys he embarked upon.
Music:-
Kevin MacLeod - Ascending the Vale
youtube.com/watch?v=yD_TX8LqOTU
Battle Lines
purple-planet.com
This is an original work by the Thirteenth Century writer Rustichello da Pisa and Venetian trader and explorer Marco Polo. Written over seven hundred years ago to record Polo’s extraordinary travels for posterity it remains one of the most important chronicles of the Medieval World, especially in regards to European involvement in the rest of Eurasia.
The words of this video come directly from Rustichello and Polo themselves, translated in the Nineteenth Century by Sir Henry Yule and slightly revised by Henri Cordier .
You can read the full text here:-
en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Travels_of_Marco_Polo#Preface
This is a History Time production. Become a patron for as little as a dollar a month to vote on upcoming videos & help keep the channel going:-
patreon.com/historytimeUK
—Join the History Time community on social media:-
Facebook Page:-
facebook.com/HistoryTimeOfficial
Facebook Group:-
facebook.com/groups/410224606007519
Instagram:-
instagram.com/historytime_ig
Twitter:-
twitter.com/HistoryTimePete
History Time is now a podcast. You can find us on iTunes.
Are you a budding artist, illustrator, cartographer, or music producer? Send me a message! No matter how professional you are or even if you’re just starting out, I can always use new music and images in my videos. Get in touch! I’d love to hear from you.
I try to use copyright free images at all times. However if I have used any of your artwork or maps then please don't hesitate to contact me and I’ll be more than happy to give the appropriate credit.
![Roman Scholar Describes Ancient China // 1st century AD // Pliny the Elder on the Seres
In recognition of the enthusiasm surrounding last weeks video on Chinas perspective, here we have a video exploring the reverse.
There are however very few Roman accounts of China that have survived to us - and those that we do have are very limited. Here we have two short extracts from Plinys magnum opus Naturalis Historia, in which he describes what he knows of the people of Serica and its surroundings far to the east, and how they in turn affected the Rome he knew at the time. In the second extract he describes a mysterious people (who he again dubs Seres) whom the people of Taprobane (modern day Sri Lanka) apparently crossed a mountain range to trade with.
As with our previous video on China, a lot of the locations (and indeed the peoples) mentioned are still debated by scholars. In the coming weeks we will further explore Ancient Chinas worldview, and descriptions they gave of other cultures that seemed wholly alien to them. Stay tuned for new videos, twice weekly.
How do we actually know about history? Voices of the Past is a channel dedicated to recreating the original accounts from the people who lived through events, or who lived far closer to them than we do today. We do this word for word, with an accompanying soundtrack of rousing music and images.
— Thanks for watching! Don’t forget to subscribe for new videos every single week! & Let us know in the comments what you’d like to see covered in the future.
— Don’t forget to subscribe to our other channel History Time, where we make full length historical documentaries:-
https://www.youtube.com/historytime
— Music courtesy of:-
- Epidemic Sound
— Voice actor & editor:-
David Kelly
Are you a budding artist, writer, illustrator, cartographer, or music producer? Send us an email! No matter how professional you are or even if you’re just starting out, we can always use new music and images in my videos. Get in touch! I’d love to hear from you.
We try to use copyright free images at all times. However if we have used any of your artwork or maps then please dont hesitate to contact me and we’ll be more than happy to give the appropriate credit.
Thanks to:
Yeu Ninje [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)]
Gabagool [CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)]
Gary Lee Todd [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)] Roman Scholar Describes Ancient China // 1st century AD // Pliny the Elder on the Seres](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vCSZQj8yvD4/mqdefault.jpg)



![Ancient Chinese Historian Describes The Xiongnu // Before The Mongols // Book of Han (111 AD)
A thousand years before the Mongols, China had to build the worlds longest wall to defend against incursions from a truly ancient enemy: The Xiongnu. Here we have an extract from the Book Of Han that describes their customs and origins - a people amongst whom the strong and robust were held in esteem, while the old and feeble were treated with contempt.
https://depts.washington.edu/silkroad/texts/hantxt1.html#beginning
If this channel is something you like, if you think saving primary sources is important, head over to the patreon and join up!
patreon.com/voicesofthepast
— Don’t forget to subscribe to my brothers channel History Time, where he makes full length historical documentaries:-
https://www.youtube.com/historytime
— Music courtesy of:-
- Epidemic Sound
— Voice actor & editor:-
David Kelly
We try to use copyright free images at all times. However if we have used any of your artwork or maps then please dont hesitate to contact me and we’ll be more than happy to give the appropriate credit.
Thanks to:
Thomas Lessman
Philg88 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27876174
https://worldhistorypics.weebly.com/about.html
JesseW900
Khiruge [CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)] Ancient Chinese Historian Describes The Xiongnu // Before The Mongols // Book of Han (111 AD)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wnNEAQkADFM/mqdefault.jpg)


![Japanese Historian Describes First Contact With Europeans // 16th cent. Teppo-ki // Primary Source
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Here we have something special - the Japanese perspective of the first Europeans in Japan. In 1543 two Portuguese traders - men whose physical features differed from the locals - arrived on a Chinese junk, with a gift that would change the course of Japanese history. Recorded for posterity by Nanpo Bushi half a century later, this account gives us the view of a people coming into contact with Europe for the first time.
Translated by Olof G Lidin in his book Tanegashima: The Arrival Of Europe In Japan and published by NIAS press: http://www.niaspress.dk
If this channel is something you like, if you think saving primary sources is important, head over to the patreon and join up!
patreon.com/voicesofthepast
— Don’t forget to subscribe to my brothers channel History Time, where he makes full length historical documentaries:-
https://www.youtube.com/historytime
— Music courtesy of:-
- Epidemic Sound
— Voice actor & editor:-
David Kelly
We try to use copyright free images at all times. However if we have used any of your artwork or maps then please dont hesitate to contact me and we’ll be more than happy to give the appropriate credit.
Thanks to:
Image Credit: NASA Goddard/MODIS Rapid Response Team
alisdair [CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]
ryochiji [CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]
みっち
PHGCOM Japanese Historian Describes First Contact With Europeans // 16th cent. Teppo-ki // Primary Source](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/xZnaCel6LdU/mqdefault.jpg)
