Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 8.djvu/78

50 It is not a little curious that at the very time these ambassadors from the English sovereign were making their way from Genoa to the Moghul court, that ever-to-be-beloved old traveller Marco Polo was bringing a Tartar bride to Arghun, by sea from China. Marco and his charge found him deceased, that event having occurred in 1291; and he probably died before the English embassy could reach his presence. The death of Arghun did not, however, wholly interrupt the relations between the Moghul and English courts. As late as the year 1303, we find a letter from Edward to Casan, or Gazan, who, after a short interval, succeeded Arghun, acknowledging the receipt of the letter he had sent by "Buscarelli de Giussurfa," apparently the same Italian envoy, and informing him that he was prevented from attending to the affairs of the Holy Land, by the political embarrassments and wars of Europe.

When the embassy started from Genoa, the Moghul court was supposed to be at Cassaria, the ancient Cæsarea, in Armenia; but it was probably constantly on the move, and therefore the route of the envoys was as frequently changed. We find them at Sebaste, or Sebastopolis, in Cappadocia; Tabriz (Taurisium), in Kurdistan; Meredin, in Mesopatamia; Erzeroum, in Armenia; at Coya, the ancient Iconium; at Papertum, the Castle of Baiburt, in Armenia; and they went as far in search of the Moghul sovereign as Sarakana, or Saraij, near the ancient Astracan, on the eastern arm of the Wolga. On the present occasion, however, it is not my intention to give the whole Itinerary. I would rather proceed to some illustrations of the times, which are to be derived from the expenditure of the envoys, and reserve the Itinerary for another communication.

In the first place, the account of monies is made out in aspers, except in some few instances.

At Genoa, the ambassadors, to whom the various climates they were about to encounter must have been well known, bought furs, cloths, armour, carpets, silver plate, fur pelisses; and there one of the attendant squires fell sick, and had 31l. 3s. 4d. allowed to pay his expenses back to England. The silver plate which they bought cost altogether the large