I learned a LOT about the life and adventures of Marco Polo at the current Marco Polo: Man & Myth exhibition at Fernbank Museum of Natural History. I loved history in school, but my greatest focus was on Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt.
Although...I've long been fascinated with Italy. I was almost stationed in Italy instead of Greece when I was in the Navy; that was my first choice, anyway. I'll make it there one day!
Fortunately, we have museums—learning centers for grownups as much as they are for kids—to reacquaint or enhance what we know about an incredibly wide range of subjects. If you haven't quite figured it out, I love museums!
Imagine my surprise...when exiting the exhibition, I ran into Marco Polo himself! In the spirit of childhood memories—having played many, many games of Marco Polo with my siblings and friends—I cartoon-ized our photo!
The exhibition is filled with artifacts, placards, ceramics, maps, photographs, videos, and much more, and most importantly the stories that chronicle the life of one of the world's most famous adventurers.
One of the more surprising facts of Marco Polo's life that I learned was just how young he was when he left Venice for Asia. He was a teenager when he left Venice and of the many, many years he traveled, he lived in China for 17 years!
There will be some who are tempted to not read while exploring this exhibition—the artifacts are that fascinating, more than 80 of them!
The artifacts indeed tell a story themselves, but not reading the placards in this exhibition would be like sleeping through half a movie and never having read the book—there's no way you'd get the full experience. Read!
It took four years for Marco Polo and fellow travelers to reach China. While their plans were to be in China for only a few years, they were away from home for more than 23 years, and many of those years Marco worked for famous leader Kublai Khan.
Marco impressed Kublai Khan so much that he was appointed to some fairly high positions, including tax inspector and even governor! From his time in Asia, Marco learned four languages.
Polo is credited with bringing quite a few spices back to Italy from along along the Silk Road. Unfortunately, on the four-year journey home, which started with hundreds and finished with less than two dozen people, three-fourths of the family's fortunate was stolen. They still had enough left over that they were fairly wealthy.
So, why is Marco Polo so famous? He's no the only one who ever traveled to Asia in that time period—he had family travel companions along, after all. What are their names? Most couldn't say without looking it up. Myself included.
Well, a short while after returning to Italy (side note: they'd been in Asia so long, they had to re-acclimate to their native tongue!), Marco Polo commanded a ship in a battle against the Italian city of Genoa. He was captured and spent years in a Genoese prison where he befriended a writer who eventually put the stories of Polo's travels to paper.
The stories were later, after released from prison, published in a book titled The Description of the World, which was later renamed to the more familiar The Travels of Marco Polo.
One quick side note. Marco saw things that no one from Venice had ever seen...wondrous things! In his stories, he describes seeing a remarkable unicorn. Yes...a unicorn! There were skeptics, many who didn't believe Polo had ever traveled to Asia, but given his detailed accounts of the culture, many skeptics later changed their minds.
And the mythical unicorn that Polo saw was a...rhino! Oh, the things he saw...he must have been in a constant state of awe and wonderment!
This is one of my favorite vessels (pictured above) from the exhibition...the detail is remarkable! And we're only seeing a few inches here. I was rather impressed with the range of artifacts presented...from leather 'armor', to exquisite ceramics, to intricate silks...there's a lot to take in, so be sure to make ample time to explore.
I wonder what you'll remember most from Marco Polo: Man & Myth. I hope you'll share what that is. Just be sure to get to Fernbank Museum of Natural History before Sunday, January 5, 2014, when the exhibition comes to a close.
Oh, and yes, it's true, the above photo of Marco Polo and I...well, even with modern science being what it is, he'd look more like Dorian Gray's portrait than a 17 year old Italian merchant. That's me with a life-size cutout of Marco...a fun photo-op!
Now, head over to the wanderlust ATLANTA Facebook Page for a few more photos from the exhibition, but remember, there are more than 80 artifacts and LOTS to learn in this fascinating presentation of a man who transcends not only myth, but time as well.
Although...I've long been fascinated with Italy. I was almost stationed in Italy instead of Greece when I was in the Navy; that was my first choice, anyway. I'll make it there one day!
Fortunately, we have museums—learning centers for grownups as much as they are for kids—to reacquaint or enhance what we know about an incredibly wide range of subjects. If you haven't quite figured it out, I love museums!
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| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
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| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
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| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
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| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
The artifacts indeed tell a story themselves, but not reading the placards in this exhibition would be like sleeping through half a movie and never having read the book—there's no way you'd get the full experience. Read!
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
Well, a short while after returning to Italy (side note: they'd been in Asia so long, they had to re-acclimate to their native tongue!), Marco Polo commanded a ship in a battle against the Italian city of Genoa. He was captured and spent years in a Genoese prison where he befriended a writer who eventually put the stories of Polo's travels to paper.
The stories were later, after released from prison, published in a book titled The Description of the World, which was later renamed to the more familiar The Travels of Marco Polo.
One quick side note. Marco saw things that no one from Venice had ever seen...wondrous things! In his stories, he describes seeing a remarkable unicorn. Yes...a unicorn! There were skeptics, many who didn't believe Polo had ever traveled to Asia, but given his detailed accounts of the culture, many skeptics later changed their minds.
And the mythical unicorn that Polo saw was a...rhino! Oh, the things he saw...he must have been in a constant state of awe and wonderment!
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
 |
| Marco Polo: Man & Myth, Fernbank Museum of Natural History |
Oh, and yes, it's true, the above photo of Marco Polo and I...well, even with modern science being what it is, he'd look more like Dorian Gray's portrait than a 17 year old Italian merchant. That's me with a life-size cutout of Marco...a fun photo-op!
Now, head over to the wanderlust ATLANTA Facebook Page for a few more photos from the exhibition, but remember, there are more than 80 artifacts and LOTS to learn in this fascinating presentation of a man who transcends not only myth, but time as well.
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