L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2024 www.italoamericano.org 32 L'Italo-Americano understanding of how Marco P o l o ' s w o r k e v o l v e d o v e r time and across different regions. Over the coming m o n t h s , r e s e a r c h e r s w i l l continue to analyze the man- uscript and position it within t h e b r o a d e r c o n t e x t o f Polo's Il Milione tradition. The discovery also came j u s t b e f o r e a n i m p o r t a n t c o n f e r e n c e t i t l e d M a r c o P o l o , i l l i b r o e l ' A s i a o r g a n i z e d b y C a ' F o s c a r i University, which took place last week to celebrate Polo's legacy. A significant part of the event also focused on the first digital edition of Il M i l i o n e , n o w a v a i l a b l e through Ca' Foscari Univer- sity: for the first time, multi- ple versions of Polo's text— spanning different languages and historical periods—are being presented side-by-side in an open-access format. T h i s a l l o w s s c h o l a r s t o e x p l o r e t h e e v o l u t i o n o f Polo's work across centuries and regions, offering valu- able insights into how the t e x t w a s i n t e r p r e t e d a n d adapted in different cultural contexts. The digital edition a l s o i n c l u d e s i n t e r a c t i v e maps, tracing Polo's journey from Venice to the court of work known as "VA," likely made in northeastern Italy during the early 1300s. What makes this version stand out is its extensive influence, as it served as a foundation for numerous Latin and vernac- ular translations, with many s u b s e q u e n t m a n u s c r i p t s tracing their lineage back to it. Researchers also believe that "VA" was primarily read in religious settings, given t h a t t h e t r a n s l a t o r m a d e careful edits to exclude con- tent that might have been s e e n a s i n a p p r o p r i a t e o r controversial. Early copies o f t h i s t e x t c i r c u l a t e d i n regions such as Emilia and Lombardy, though the exact circumstances of its produc- tion remain somewhat mys- terious. The discovery of Jacobilli A.II.9 is part of a broader research project led by schol- ars Eugenio Burgio, Marina B u z z o n i , a n d S a m u e l a Simion from Ca' Foscari Uni- versity of Venice, along with Antonio Montefusco from the University of Nancy. The study is of great academic importance as it offers new insights into thetransmission of Il Milione and its many v e r s i o n s , e n r i c h i n g o u r Kublai Khan and back, each of them offering readers geo- graphical context and help- i n g t h e m v i s u a l i z e t h e i m m e n s e d i s t a n c e s P o l o traveled. Everything is com- pleted by glossaries of key terms related to the places, people, and cultures Polo e n c o u n t e r e d , f u r t h e r enhancing its educational value. If you are interested, y o u c a n e a s i l y a c c e s s i t online at: https://risorse- esterne.edizionicafoscari.it/ main/index.html. Il Milione remains a cru- cial text not only for histori- ans but also for those study- i n g t h e t r a n s m i s s i o n o f knowledge across cultures; it r e f l e c t s a p e r i o d w h e n Europe's understanding of the wider world was expand- ing dramatically and Polo's a c c o u n t s , t h o u g h o f t e n embellished or misunder- stood, were one of the few sources of information about distant lands like China and Mongolia available. Today, its study continues to yield new insights into medieval European perceptions of the East, trade routes like the Silk Road, and the early con- nections between Europe and Asia. Ludovico Jacobilli, had been cataloged in the past but had eluded scholars until now, with no mention made of it i n a n y m a j o r s u r v e y s o f Marco Polo's texts. Thanks to it, the count of known m a n u s c r i p t s o f I l Milione rises to 145, each contributing uniquely to our understanding of how Polo's t a l e s s p r e a d t h r o u g h medieval Europe. Indeed, this latest find offers crucial clues into the manuscript's transmission and the evolu- tion of its various versions. L a b e l e d J a c o b i l l i A.II.9, the document con- s i s t s o f 1 1 0 h a n d w r i t t e n pages, though it is missing a few introductory and inter- nal sections. While its exact o r i g i n s a r e u n c l e a r , i t i s believed to have been part of a c o l l e c t i o n d o n a t e d b y Ludovico Jacobilli to the library in the 17th century. T h e f i n d w a s m a d e b y Fabio Soncin, a doctoral student at Ca' Foscari Uni- versity in Venice, during a visit to Foligno, with the first public announcement m a d e b y l i b r a r i a n I v a n Petrini. The manuscript belongs to a translation of Polo's N newly discov- e r e d m a n u - s c r i p t o f I l M i l i o n e , Marco Polo's famous account of his trav- els, has been found in the B i b l i o t e c a D i o c e s a n a L u d o v i c o J a c o b i l l i in Foligno, a historic town in the Umbria region of cen- tral Italy. The discovery is significant also due to its timing, as it coincides with t h e 7 0 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y o f Marco Polo's death (1254– 1324), an event being com- memorated through acade- mic conferences and cultural events across the country, b u t e s p e c i a l l y i n P o l o ' s hometown, Venezia. Polo was a Venetian mer- chant and explorer whose accounts of travels to Asia, particularly to the Mongol Empire under Kublai Khan, c a p t u r e d E u r o p e a n d reshaped perceptions of the E a s t . H e t r a v e l e d f o r 2 4 years, visiting regions that were, at the time, largely u n k n o w n t o t h e W e s t e r n world. His detailed descrip- tions of the customs, cul- tures, and wealth of Asia — especially China — fascinat- ed readers upon his return. His Il Milione (often referred to as The Travels of Marco Polo), gave Europe one of its earliest and most compre- h e n s i v e v i e w s o f t h e S i l k R o a d , t h e G r e a t W a l l o f China, and the court of the Mongol emperor. Polo's con- tributions, however, extend b e y o n d s t o r y t e l l i n g : h i s accounts provided key infor- m a t i o n t h a t i n f l u e n c e d f u t u r e e x p l o r e r s , m o s t n o t a b l y C h r i s t o p h e r Columbus, who carried a copy of Il Milione on his voy- age to the New World; more- o v e r , h i s d e s c r i p t i o n s o f C h i n a ' s v a s t w e a l t h a n d technological advancements inspired Europeans in estab- lishing trade routes to Asia, laying the groundwork for the Age of Exploration. Let us return, though, to the recent discovery made in Foligno. The manuscript, preserved, as we said, in the B i b l i o t e c a D i o c e s a n a Marco Polo traveled through the East for 24 years (AI image created with the assistance of DALL-E 2) Seven hundreds years after Marco Polo's death, a rare manuscript emerges from Foligno CHIARA D'ALESSIO HERITAGE MEMORIA IDENTITÀ STORIA RADICI

• Cover