The Travels of Marco Polo in the Land of Buddhism

Marco Polo’s expedition to the east between 1271 and 1295 was written up on his return in his book The Travels of Marco Polo. It was looked upon as being a collection of fables as much as facts, but did much to shape European perceptions of Asia.  His accounts of Buddhism in Sri Lanka are particularly interesting for religious and cultural history, both in what he found to be note-worthy, and in what he omitted. He was clearly fascinated by Buddhism and the life of the Buddha, and described certain religious rites in detail.