Marco Polo Episode 3 and 4 Review, Part 2

Episode 4 [Spoilers Ahead]

This episode seems to deal more with bringing the historical background of the world of the Yuan Dynasty and the Mongol Empire to the foreground through the actions of the characters.

First, we begin with the major focus of the episode: The parley between the Yuan and Song Dynasty representatives. This scene, which features Prince Jingim and Finance Minister Ahmed demanding tribute from the Song Dynasty as terms of peace, has a historical precedent in the histories of previous relations between Chinese Dynasties and Nomadic tribal powers to the north. The Han Dynasty histories are filled with complaints about the amount of tribute demanded by and paid to the Xiongnu Confederation, which usually took the form of bolts of silk and other Chinese goods, but also included requests for marriage to Chinese Imperial Princesses. For all their complaining, the Han usually complied with these requests, for trading with the nomadic peoples usually resulted in the horses that the Chinese military hungrily desired for campaigns. It was a love/hate relationship that was a necessary evil, where raiding and battle were all a part of negotiation and business between the two powers. This process repeated itself through various successive regimes, notably in interactions of the Uighur Khaganate and the Tang Dynasty, but it played a role in most all interactions between nomadic and sedentary peoples. These sorts of symbiotic relationships were essential to the economies of both nomads and agriculture-based societies, and indeed, the payment of tribute from the Chinese Dynasties to the nomadic empires resulted in the Silk Road's very formation.

Another aspect of this episode is return of Marco Polo's father and uncle, who are [Spoilers] caught trying to smuggle silkworms out of the empire. This is where it gets complex, folks, so bear with me here. "Knowledge about silk production was very valuable and, despite the efforts of the Chinese emperor to keep it a closely guarded secret, it did eventually spread beyond China, first to India and Japan, then to the Persian Empire and finally to the west in the 6th century AD. This was described by the historian Procopius, writing in the 6th century"(1):

    About the same time [ca. 550] there came from India certain monks; and when they had satisfied Justinian Augustus that the Romans no longer should buy silk from the Persians, they promised the emperor in an interview that they would provide the materials for making silk so that never should the Romans seek business of this kind from their enemy the Persians, or from any other people whatsoever. They said that they were formerly in Serinda, which they call the region frequented by the people of the Indies, and there they learned perfectly the art of making silk. Moreover, to the emperor who plied them with many questions as to whether he might have the secret, the monks replied that certain worms were manufacturers of silk, nature itself forcing them to keep always at work; the worms could certainly not be brought here alive, but they could be grown easily and without difficulty; the eggs of single hatchings are innumerable; as soon as they are laid men cover them with dung and keep them warm for as long as it is necessary so that they produce insects. When they had announced these tidings, led on by liberal promises of the emperor to prove the fact, they returned to India. When they had brought the eggs to Byzantium, the method having been learned, as I have said, they changed them by metamorphosis into worms which feed on the leaves of mulberry. Thus began the art of making silk from that time on in the Roman Empire. (2)

There is also the famous legend of the Princess who smuggled silkworms and mulberry seeds in her headdress out of China to the kingdom of Khotan. Xuanzang, the Buddhist Monk, wrote his report of this legend:

To the south-east of the royal city...is a convent called Lu-shi, which was founded by a queen of a former ruler of the country. In old time this country knew nothing about mulberry trees or silkworms. Hearing that the eastern country had them, they sent an embassy to seek for them. At this time the prince of the eastern kingdom kept the secret and would not give the possession of it to any. He kept guard over his territory and would not permit either the seeds of the mulberry or the silkworms' eggs to be carried off. The King of Kustana sent off to seek a marriage union with a princess of the eastern kingdom (China), in token of his allegiance and submission. The king being well-affected to the neighboring states acceded to his wish. Then the king of Kustana dispatched a messenger to escort the royal princess and gave the following direction..."Our counry has neither silk or silken stuffs. You had better bring with you some mulberry seeds and silkworms, then you can make robes for yourself". The Princess...secretly procured the seed of the mulberry and silkworms' eggs and concealed them in her head-dress. Having arrived at the barrier, the guard searched everywhere, buthe did not dare to remove the Princess' head-dress. Arriving then in the kingdom of Kustana, they stopped on the site afterwards occupied by the Lu-shi [monastery]; thence they conducted her in great pomp to the royal palace. Here then they left the silkworms and the mulberry seeds.(3) 

This tale ends with silk production flourishing in Khotan, though Khotan also made it illegal to smuggle silkworms, so precious were they to the local economy.

A depicition of the Silkworm Smuggling Princess in the British Museum.

Trying to smuggle anything without paying the various fees and taxes levied by each ruler along the Silk Routes was a serious offense. Revenues from trade were very important sources of income. Wars were fought, empires built and destroyed, and people slain for the power to control and exact tolls from these lucrative passes, and anyone caught trying to evade these payments were punished severely. This is evinced by the fate of Marco Polo's father and uncle landing themselves in the Khan's prison. It is a nice nod by the show to Procopius' history that the Polo brothers attempt to smuggle silkworms via walking stick. This is another one of those little details that pleases me so much about this show.

This staff totally isn't filled to the brim with silkworms happily munching on Mulberry leaves.

The third and final matter in this episode is the horrific and insane foot-binding scene at the end of the show. Chancellor Jia Sidao spares no details in explaining to his niece the process of breaking and wrapping the toes and foot in such a way as to force it into a misshapen, but (for some reason) aesthetically desirable form. As I was watching the show, I was confused, because I thought foot-binding was a practice that found popularity later on in China. However, I was wrong. According to this BBC News article "Foot-binding is believed to have begun during, or just before, the Song Dynasty in China around the 10th Century, and became widespread within a couple of hundred years"(4). Thus, the show is correct in planting this practice right in the middle of our story, for not only was the practice desired among the wealthy denizens of the Song Empire, its popularity rose and spread on the Song's watch.

Episodes 3 and 4 did a lot to develop character and expand the depth and definition of the world of Marco Polo and the Yuan Dynasty. These episodes have set the stage for some serious plot movement, which I have no doubt will be riveting and exciting stuff. Even though there were some nitpicky issues, these episodes have such strength in performances and content that I cannot help but be pleased with what I have seen overall, and I expect great things in the next few episodes.


1. UNESCO. "About the Silk Road". unesco.org. https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/about-silk road.

2. Procopius. Quoted in UNESCO. "About the Silk Road". unesco.org. https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/about-silk road. 

3. Xuanzang. Si-Yu-Ki: Buddhist Records of the Western World, Volume II. trans. Samuel Beal. (Keagan Paul: London) 1906, pg. 318-319.

4. Coomes, Phil. "Chinese Foot Binding". BBC News. http://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-28208695

Marco Polo - Episode 3 and 4 Review, Part 1

Episodes 3 and 4 of Netflix's Marco Polo take the series forward at a good pace, but lose no chances for character development and nuance. The accuracy in details when compared to the text suffers here, but only slightly, and in ways that would only annoy someone actively comparing the show and the book like I am.

Episode 3

I want to make two comments here that have nothing to do with Marco Polo studies and everything to do with what makes a good show: A great theme song and a compelling opening scene. The theme song of Marco Polo features Mongolian Throat Singers, along with blended European and Mongolian/Chinese instruments. Combined with the beautiful artwork of the intro, these title scenes really help set the tone for an adventurous show taking place in a land and time long past. Here below are links to the Marco Polo theme music and the video showing the making of the Introduction sequence.

The opening scene finds our hero, Marco, being trained in martial arts by Hundred Eyes, a Taoist monk and resident badass. Hundred Eyes is explaining to Marco the meaning of "Kung Fu", and while doing so, the scenes cut to various people and characters going about their tasks. Hundred Eyes explains that the dedicated servant, the cook, the painter, the poet, all can be said to have Kung Fu, since he defines Kung Fu as "Supreme skill from Hard Work". This opening sets such a fantastic tone and is so well shot and edited, it is probably my favorite scene so far in all the episodes I have watched.

Now, on to the scholarship! We find in this episode a wagonload of potential concubines being brought to Kubilai Khan's court. They are scrutinized, trained, and voted out at the will of the Empress and the eunuchs in charge of the concubines. However, upon their arrival, they are told that if they are not chosen for the Khan's service, they will be sold to brothels and slavers to generate revenue for the empire. This struck me as unnecessarily cruel and odd. The Mongols did a lot of horrible stuff, which included human trafficking, but these girls, as attested in The Travels, at least, did not meet the fate to which the show resigned them. 

There is a province inhabited by Tartars who are called Kungurat, whilch is also the name of their city. They are a very good-looking race with fair complexions. Every two years or so, according to his pleasure, the Great Khan sends emissaries to this province to select for him out of the most beautiful maidens, according to the standard of beauty which he lays down for them, some four or five hundred, more or less as he may decide...When the emissaries arrive, they summon to their presence all the maidens of the province...After inspecting and surveying every girl  feature by feature, her hair, her face, her eyebrows, her mouth her lips, and every other feature, to see whether they are well-formed and in harmony with her person, the valuers award to some a score of sixteen marks, to others seventeen, eighteen, or twenty, more or less according to the degree of their beauty. And, if the Great Khan has ordered them to bring him all who score twenty marks, or prehaps twenty-one, according to the number ordered, these are duly brought. When they have come to his presence, he has them assessed a second time by other valuers, and then the thirty or forty with the highest score are selected for his chamber...As for the other damsels, who are rated at a lower score, they remain with the Khan's other women in the palace, where they are instructed in needle-work, glove-making, and other elegant accomplishments. When some nobleman is looking for a wife, the Great Khan gives hime one of these damsels with a great dowry. And in this way he marries them all off honourably.(1)

Not as dramatic as being sold off into prostitution, but for show purposes, I suppose there had to be serious consequences for the sake of the story. This episode seems to have something to say with regard to contrasting roles and fates of women in the empire. That some women can be sold and traded off as revenue while others, such as Khutulun, Chabi, and, to a lesser extent, the Blue Princess, can enjoy status and autonomy by virtue of their nobility is a valid point to highlight. However, I would like to stress that in Mongol society, women often faired much better and enjoyed more respect and status than those of contemporary, sedentary societies. Mongol women had to be trained to fight in order to defend the homes and flocks while men were away at war. They had to tend to trade and maintain the economy and the camps. Noble mongol women were involved in politics and were consulted on crucial matters, as we see with the extremely important role of Chabi in this series.

Another feature of this episode is the introduction of Khutulun, the famous Mongol Warrior Princess and undefeated champion wrestler. To avoid any spoilers, I will simply say her scene with Marco is interesting, a little awkward, fun, but not based on any reports in The Travels. Her father laments to Marco that he may never find a man to marry his daughter, while she laughs and wrestles her male counterparts and defeats them with ease. One distracting aspect of Khutulun, however, is her costume. She looks, to me, like a Mongolian Xena.

Khutulun is rocking that Warrior Princess look from the Xena Collection.

This isn't a big deal, but I guess this just disappoints me more than anything. Again, I don't know anything specific about Yuan Dynasty or Mongol Confederation women's dress and costume, but I do know that her outfit looks like a variation of every other "warrior woman" outfit from historical drama and fantasy productions. When the costuming of this series has been, to me, fairly on point, for this to happen and take me immediately out of what is happening on screen seems like someone dropped the ball somewhere. And I don't know if, like me, the costumers couldn't find good evidence of practical Mongolian female garb or what, but this just felt off for some reason. The costumers are certainly talented enough that I think they could have come up with something a little more unique and accurate to the time for Khutulun to wear.

Or maybe this is pretty accurate and I just don't know it.

Anyway, my last point about episode 3 is that it really takes a look at the character of Kubilai Khan. From his personal struggle of dealing with having to kill his own brother, to dealing with his gout, to having to manage his empire, it really makes him a human, rounded character that is approachable, rather than some distant, legendary, flawless warrior-king. This development made him into a man, a father, a husband, and an emperor, rather than just a historical figure. And while he may be a flawed man who does things that we may not like or agree with, we do know he has his reasons and we know that he struggles internally with those choices. Kubilai the Man and Kubilai the Khan may not always agree, but he does what he must to preserve his realm.

Continued in Part 2

1. Polo, Marco. The Travels. trans. Ronald Latham (Penguin Books: 1958) pg. 122-123