European Explorers

Marco Polo

1254-1324

The Polo family’s goal was to bring back valuable trade goods

from China.

VeniceThe Polo

family was from

Venice. We know it today as

Italy.

Kublai Khan

The orange shows the boundary of the 13th

century Mongol Empire

compared to today’s

boundaries.

Shangdu

The Polos

The Polo

family giving

gifts to the

emperor.

The demand for silk grew so much that is was said that silk was

worth its weight in gold. Demands were coming from Europe

and Africa.

Silk came from the cocoons of moths.

These silk materials are from before 1000 AD.

Silk Road – major trade route (land and sea) between China and other lands.

Legend says that Marco Polo did not know where he was going when he first set out on his travels- hence the game's

name.

Marco Polo’s journey made people in both Asia and Europe want to know more about each other.

13th century Chinese ship

Chinese magnetic compass

The mission of the enormous Chinese naval fleet was to

expand Chinese trade and show great power.

They would use landmarks and stars on clear nights, however they weren’t able to travel far

from land because of this.

Chinese Sailors

Zheng He 1371 – 1435

Zheng He’s ship

compared to the size of the ship

of Christopher Columbus.

Set sail in 1405 Seven

voyages in the next 28

years

The result of these

voyages was that the

demand for Chinese

trade goods grew and

grew.http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSSGenn?feature=mhee#p/c/D98E0E2AC48E5F76

Route of his 7th voyage.

Zheng He’s mapIndia at the topAfrica at the bottom