Memoriale toscano: Viaggio in India e Cina (1318-1330)

by Odorico da Pordenone, Luca Monaco

Odoric, a Franciscan monk from northeastern Italy, spent much of the early 14th century traveling throughout Asia. His adventures provided one of the most important Western accounts of life and culture in what is present-day Iran, India, Indonesia, China, Nepal, and Russia.


Setting off only twenty years after Marco Polo's historic trip to the East, Odoric was the only religious traveler to the East whose voyage was recorded, making his account one of unparalleled importance for scholars and historians. Interestingly, Odoric noted the religious and cultural customs of the places he visited, treating their practices with tolerance, respect, and curiosity. Odoric frequently took pains to tell of spectacular thingsùmountains of salt, impenetrable deserts, mice as big as dogs, trees that produced bread, magic fish, sensational pearls, gigantic tortoises, men with the head of a dog, hens covered in wool, and women equipped with fangsùmaking this fantastic reading even for those with casual interest.



The description of Odoric's journey to the East comes from the account he dictated upon his return to Italy, which was translated and widely circulated throughout Europe. It is one of the finest examples of 14th-century literature extant. The account used in this printing comes from Sir Henry Yule's translation, prepared in 1866 and still unsurpassed for its historic value and its faithfulness to the original Latin text.

Genres: Travel, History, Medieval

191 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1330

Reviews

[Karl Steel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pathetic. It's clear from the forward that this volume aims to support the canonization of Odoric and that scholarship or, for that matter, thought matters much less (see in particular the introduction's embarrassing description of the Mongol invasion). The intro treats his travels as real, trying, as so many folks have done before, to map his travels onto the actually existing world (suspend, please, your theoretical objections: you know what I mean). The translation is, once more, the Henry Yule translation, now 150 years old or so, even though better editions* of this very popular work (translations from Latin into Italian 7 times, French twice, and German) have appeared since the middle of the 19th century. Why Franciscans couldn't get someone to do a new translation from the Latin, I don't know.

Nonetheless, this is essential reading for anyone writing on what may be the most famous adaptation, namely, the Travels of John Mandeville. Read this here or, better yet, read the Yule trans for free via here.

* this volume claims the current standard edition is A. Van den Wyngaert, Sinica Franciscana I (Florence-Quarecchi, 1929), 413-95

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you get this edition, and I believe it's the only edition currently available, read Friar Odoric's travels before the introduction. That way it'll make more sense, believe me. I adore first hand accounts of medieval travellers, and here's one to rival Marco Polo. The good Friar is also less prone to telling porky pies than M. Polo I reckon. Nevertheless his travels needed little embellishment. A real snapshot of a bygone and lost era.

[Isabella · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because a relative wrote the introduction and also because Friar Odoric was born in Pordenone, Italy where some of my family ended up after WWII. Friar Odoric is an interesting and holy man who travelled far and wide to evangelize. Sadly, the descriptions of his writings are a bit tedious but the actual writings of Friar Odoric are pretty interesting. People did strange things in faraway countries before Christianity found them!

[brian bixby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had read Marco Polo and ibn Battuta before Odoric, so was sadly disappointed. Any time he was somewhere interesting he would list a few of the more pedestrian aspects of the local culture and then say, "There is far more that these people do but if I were to recount it you would find it unbelievable." Over and over.

[Pieter · Rating 3 out of 5]

In deze korte kroniek vertelt minderbroeder Odoric van Friuli over zijn jarenlange reis naar het Verre Oosten, van het huidige Irak tot diep in China. Een aardig verslag, dat verhaalt over allerhande welvarende steden en opzienbarende zaken die Odoric gezien of gehoord heeft. De grootste onhebbelijkheid die hij heeft is zijn neiging constant te benadrukken hoeveel meer wonderlijkheden er wel niet te melden zijn, die hij echter niet gaat vertellen. Toch staat er nog genoeg boeiends in zijn verslag opgetekend om een beeld te geven van de kijk van deze Franciscaanse broeder op zijn reis en wat hij tegenkwam.

[The Esoteric Jungle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Euro went through the silk road into China way before Marco Polo. Ever heard of him? Probably not
: )