1-155-358 - Art Media/Heritage Images

Kublai Khan paying for purchases, c1260s, (early 15th century). Marco Polo (1254-1324) Venetian traveller and merchant, left Venice with his father and uncle in 1271. Seventeen years later he returned with tales of his experiences, particularly at the court and in the service of Kublai Khan (1214-1294), Great Khan of the Moguls and Emperor of China. Here Kublai Khan sits on his throne while members of his entourage pay for goods with paper money made from the bark of the Mulberry tree. Miniature from "Le Livre des Merveilles de Marco Polo" ("Book of Marvels of Marco Polo"), illuminated manuscript in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris.