by James Hickman
Schiff Sovereign
Marco Polo never actually set foot on Japanese soil. But that didn’t stop him from writing the most wildly exaggerated tales about the immense, incredible wealth of Japan– which he called Cipangu.
Supposedly Marco Polo had spoken to merchants and traders who’d been there, but it’s entirely possible he made it all up—typical for Marco Polo and his tall tales.
Nevertheless, about a century and a half later, a young Italian sailor devoured Polo’s writings and became convinced he had to lead an expedition to Cipangu and exploit the unimaginable wealth described in Polo’s stories.
That sailor, of course, was Christopher Columbus. After years of struggling to secure the necessary investment, he finally set sail in 1492. When he landed in Hispaniola, he thought he’d found Asia.