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Romance and Poetry: John

Sir John Mandeville's account of "the Great Chan of Cathay, of the Royalty of his Palace, and how he sits at meat; and of the great number of officers that serve him," borders on the romantic and the incredible. He prepares the reader, however, in his "Prologue" for what is in store for him. He says, "I, John Mandeville, Knight, albeit I be not worthy, who was born in England, in the town of Saint Albans, passed the sea in the year 1232, on the day of St. Michael; and hitherto have been a long time over the sea, and have seen and gone through many divers lands, and many provinces and kingdoms, and isles, and have passed through Tartary, Persia, Ermony (Armenia) the Little and the Great; through Libya, Chaldea, and a great part of Ethiopia; through Amazonia, India, the Less and the Greater, a great part; and throughout many other isles that are about India; where dwell many divers folks, and of divers manners and laws, and of divers shapes of men." He describes the palace of the Great Chan at Caydon, and his "mountour" in the middle of it, "all wrought of gold, and of precious stones, and great pearls, and at the four corners are four serpents of gold; and all about there are made large nets of silk and gold, and great pearls hanging all about it...the hall of the palace is full nobly arrayed, and full marvellously attired on all parts, in all things that men apparel any hall with. And first, at the head of the hall is the emperor's throne very high, where he sits at meat. It is of fine precious stones, bordered all about with purified gold, and precious stones, and great pearls. And the steps up to the table are precious stones, mixed with gold. And at the left side of the emperor's seat is the seat of his first wife, one step lower than the emperor; and it is of jasper, bordered with gold and precious stones. And the seat of his second wife is lower than his first wife; and is also of jasper bordered with gold, as that other is. And the seat of the third wife is still lower, by a step, than the second wife; for he has always three wives with him wherever he is. And after his wives, on the same side, sit the ladies of his lineage, still lower, according to their ranks. And all those that are married, have a counterfeit, made like a man's foot, on their heads, a cubit long, all wrought with great, fine, and orient pearls...The emperor has his table, alone by himself, which is of gold and precious stones; or of crystal, bordered with gold, and full of precious stones; or of amethysts, or of lignum aloes, that comes out of paradise; or of ivory, bound and bordered with gold. "At great feasts men bring before the emperor's table great tables of gold, and thereon are peacocks of gold, and many other kinds of different fowls, all of gold, and richly wrought and enamelled; and they make them dance and sing, clapping their wings together, and making great noise; and whether it be by craft or necromancy I know not, but it is a goodly sight to behold...Also above the emperor's table and the other tables, and above a great part of the hall is a vine, made of fine gold, which spreads all about the hall; and it has many clusters of grapes, some white, some green, some yellow, some red, and some black, all of precious stones: the white are of crystal, beryl, and iris; the yellow, of topazes; the red, of rubies, grenaz, and alabraundines; the green, of emerald, of perydoz, and of chrysolites; and the black, of onyx and garnets. And they are all so properly made that it appears a real vine bearing natural grapes...And all the vessels that men are served with, in the hall, or in chambers, are of precious stones, and especially at great tables, either of jasper, or of crystal, or of amethyst, or of fine gold. And the cups are of emeralds, sapphires, or topazes, of perydoz, and of many other precious stones. "All the barons (of the Chan's court) have crowns of gold upon their heads, very noble and rich, full of precious stones, and great orient pearls...their robes are embroidered with gold all about, and dubbed full of precious stones and of great orient pearls, full richly...the four thousand barons are divided into four companies, and every thousand is clothed in cloths all of one colour, and so well arrayed, and so richly, that it is marvel to behold. The first thousand, which is of dukes, earls, marquises, and admirals, all in cloths of gold, with tissues of green silk, and bordered with gold, full of precious stones. The second thousand is all in cloths, diapered, of red silk, all wrought with gold, and the orfrayes set full of great pearls and precious stones, full nobly wrought. The third thousand is clothed in cloths of silk, of purple, or of India. And the fourth thousand is in clothes of yellow. And all their clothes are so richly and nobly wrought with gold and precious stones, and rich pearls, that if a man of this country had but one of their robes he might well say that he should never be poor. For the gold, and the precious stones, and the great orient pearls are of greater value on this side the sea than in those countries."

Sir John Mandeville describes the palace of the Emperor, Prester John, in the city of Susa, as "so rich and noble that no man can conceive it without seeing it. And above the chief tower of the palace are two round pommels of gold, in each of which are two large carbuncles, which shine bright in the night. And the principal gates of his palace are of the precious stones called sardonyx; and the border and bars are of ivory; and the windows of the hall and chambers are of crystal; and the tables on which men eat, some are of emerald, some of amethyst, and some of gold full of precious stones; and the pillars that support the tables are of the same precious stones. Of the steps approaching his throne where he sits at meat, one is of onyx, another crystal, another green jasper, another amethyst, another sardonyx, another carnelian, and the seventh, on which he sets his feet, is of chrysolite. All these steps are bordered with fine gold, with the other precious stones, set with great orient pearls. The sides of the seat of his throne are of emeralds, and bordered full nobly with gold, and dubbed with other precious stones and great pearls. All the pillars in his chamber are of fine gold with precious stones, and with many carbuncles, which give great light by night to all people..... The frame of his bed is of fine sapphires blended with gold to make him sleep well." The descriptions given by old travellers of oriental luxury are very curious. In the account of Constantinople by Cornelius Haga, ambassador of the Netherlands in 1612 (Harleian Collection), he describes the state of the Grand Turk at that period. "He sat under a most rich and sumptuous cloth of state supported by four pillars of marble, somewhat elevated from the ground in manner of a bed, and serving for a seat, covered over with most rich and costly cloth of gold, which was set so full of diamonds, rubies, pearls, and other precious stones, that it showed like the sky bedecked with a multitude of stars. Before him there stood a standish of ink, beautified with many precious stones; all the chamber being hung about with most costly hangings, embroidered and embossed with gold," etc.