Travels of Marco Polo

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LEAVING the city of Yachi, and travelling ten days in a
westerly direction, you reach the province of Karazan, which
is also the name of its chief city.
1 The inhabitants are idol
aters. The country belongs to the dominion of the grand
khan, and the royal functions are exercised by his son, named
Kogatin.
2 Gold is found in the rivers, both in small particles
and in lumps; and there are also veins of it in the mountains.
In consequence of the large quantity obtained, they give a
saggio of gold for six saggi of silver. They likewise use the
before-mentioned porcelain shells in currency; which, how
ever, are not found in this part of the world, but are brought
from India. As I have said before, these people never take
virgins for their wives.
Here are seen huge serpents, ten paces in length, and ten
spans in the girt of the body. At the fore part, near the head,
they have two short legs, having three claws like those of a
tiger, with eyes larger than a fourpenny loaf (pane da quattro
denari) and very glaring. The jaws are wide enough to swallow
a man, the teeth are large and sharp, and their whole appear
ance is so formidable, that neither man, nor any kind of animal,
can approach them without terror.3 Others are met with of a
smaller size, being eight, six, or five paces long; and the follow
ing method is used for taking them. In the day-time, by
reason of the great heat, they lurk in caverns, from whence,
at night, they issue to seek their food, and whatever beast they
meet with and can lay hold of, whether tiger, wolf, or any other,
they devour; after which they drag themselves towards some
lake, spring of water, or river, in order to drink. By their
motion in this way along the shore, and their vast weight, they
make a deep impression, as if a heavy beam had been drawn
along the sands. Those whose employment it is to hunt them
observe the track by which they are most frequently accus
tomed to go, and fix into the ground several pieces of wood,
armed with sharp iron spikes, which they cover with the sand
in such a manner as not to be perceptible. When therefore
the animals make their way towards the places they usually
haunt, they are wounded by these instruments, and speedily
killed.1 The crows, as soon as they perceive them to be dead,
set up their scream ; and this serves as a signal to the hunters,
who advance to the spot, and proceed to separate the skin
from the flesh, taking care immediately to secure the gall,
which is most highly esteemed in medicine. In cases of the
bite of a mad dog, a pennyweight of it, dissolved in wine, is
administered. It is also useful in accelerating parturition,
when the labour pains of women have come on. A small
quantity of it being applied to carbuncles, pustules, or other
eruptions on the body, they are presently dispersed ; and it is
efficacious in many other complaints. The flesh also of the
animal is sold at a dear rate, being thought to have a higher
flavour than other kinds of meat, and by all persons it is
esteemed a delicacy.