Venice opens big Marco Polo show to mark 700 years since the death of merchant who travelled to China

The Worlds of Marco Polo exhibition, in the Doge’s Palace, in Venice, celebrates the life of the explorer and merchant, who travelled to Asia in 1271, aged 17

Maps, books and manuscripts are among 300 artefacts which help tell his story. Perhaps surprisingly, there is still no monument to the explorer in the city

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Venice remembers the famous traveller and merchant Marco Polo, 700 years after his death. An exhibition in the Doge’s Palace has 300 artefacts, including books, maps and manuscripts. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 11:15am, 11 Apr 2024Updated: 11:45am, 11 Apr 2024

Venice is commemorating its most famous son, Marco Polo, with a major exhibition to mark the 700th anniversary of his death.

The show, which opened in early April, features excavated finds, maps and books, and can be seen in the Doge’s Palace until September 29. It also includes loans from countries that the merchant from the lagoon city visited, from Armenia to Mongolia and China.

The exhibition – “The Worlds of Marco Polo” – is one of the highlights of a year of Marco Polo events in Venice. This year’s annual carnival (which ran from January 27 to February 13) was also organised under the motto of “The Amazing Journey of Marco Polo”.

The city, which now has fewer than 50,000 permanent residents, is trying to attract even more visitors, even as Venice grapples with the problem of mass tourism.

Text from Marco Polo’s will, dated January 9, 1324, on display in the Doge’s Apartments of the Palazzo Ducale, part of the The Worlds of Marco Polo exhibition. Photo: EPA-EFE

The most famous Venetian is believed to have been born into a family of merchants in 1254. His father and uncle were already doing business in the Far East.