Marco Polo

The Venetian merchant and traveller journeyed overland from Europe to China between 1271 and 1295, spending 17 years in the court of Kublai Khan as a trusted envoy and official. His account of his travels, Il Milione (known in English as The Travels of Marco Polo), introduced Europeans to the wealth, sophistication, and culture of Asia and remained the primary European source on China for centuries. His descriptions of the Silk Road, the spice trade, and the cities of Cathay directly inspired the generation of explorers — including Columbus — who would later seek sea routes to Asia.