Why didn't they believe Marco Polo? Detailed answer

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Why didn't they believe Marco Polo? Detailed answer

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Why didn't they believe Marco Polo?

The famous Venetian traveler Marco Polo, who visited China, was mistaken for an inventor in his homeland when he told in his book that the Chinese junks he saw took on board 300-400 people. However, the existence of such large ships was also confirmed by the XNUMXth-century Arab geographer Ibn Battuta, who reported that he had seen ships in China that could carry up to a thousand people.

The distrust of Europeans is quite understandable. At that time, in Europe that considered itself civilized, there were only small naves and cogs, while the Nanjing navy consisted of more than 2000 ships and was the largest in the world! It also included the nine-masted junk "Zheng He" with a displacement of 3100 tons and a length of 164 meters. Apparently it was the longest sailboat in the world.

The Chinese junks had a very beautiful hull, distinguished by a high stern, a sharp bow and a flat bottom. Instead of a keel, they had a large rudder. On the masts were lug sails made of mats, which folded like blinds.

Author: Cellarius E.Yu.

Random interesting fact from the Great Encyclopedia:

What is the significance of the Gulf Stream?

This is one of the most powerful sea currents in the world. The Gulf Stream determines the climate of all of Europe, bringing warmth to this continent. It originates in the Gulf of Mexico and carries warm water masses across the North Atlantic between Iceland and Scotland to the western coast of Norway, and from there to the North Cape and the Barents Sea, making polar Murmansk an ice-free port.

Without the Gulf Stream, our climate would become much colder: winters would become more severe, and summers would be cooler and rainier. Its influence can be traced to the Ural Mountains and even to Western Siberia. Changes in water temperature and the speed and direction of this current could lead to significant cooling in Europe.

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