51. As regards the language in which Marco's Book was first committed to
writing, we have seen that Ramusio assumed, somewhat arbitrarily, that it
was Latin; Marsden supposed it to have been the Venetian dialect;
Baldelli Boni first showed, in his elaborate edition (Florence, 1827), by
arguments that have been illustrated and corroborated by learned men
since, that it was French.
That the work was originally written in some Italian dialect was a
natural presumption, and slight contemporary evidence can be alleged in
its favour; for Fra Pipino, in the Latin version of the work, executed
whilst Marco still lived, describes his task as a translation de
vulgari. And in one MS. copy of the same Friar Pipino's Chronicle,
existing in the library at Modena, he refers to the said version as made
"ex vulgari idiomate Lombardico." But though it may seem improbable that
at so early a date a Latin version should have been made at second hand, I
believe this to have been the case, and that some internal evidence also
is traceable that Pipino translated not from the original but from an
Italian version of the original.
The oldest MS. (it is supposed) in any Italian dialect is one in the
Magliabecchian Library at Florence, which is known in Italy as L'Ottima,
on account of the purity of its Tuscan, and as Della Crusca from its
being one of the authorities cited by that body in their Vocabulary.[2]
It bears on its face the following note in Italian: -
"This Book called the Navigation of Messer Marco Polo, a noble Citizen
of Venice, was written in Florence by Michael Ormanni my great
grandfather by the Mother's side, who died in the Year of Grace One
Thousand Three Hundred and Nine; and my mother brought it into our
Family of Del Riccio, and it belongs to me Pier del Riccio and to my
Brother; 1452."
As far as I can learn, the age which this note implies is considered to be
supported by the character of the MS. itself.[3] If it be accepted, the
latter is a performance going back to within eleven years at most of the
first dictation of the Travels. At first sight, therefore, this would
rather argue that the original had been written in pure Tuscan. But when
Baldelli came to prepare it for the press he found manifest indications of
its being a Translation from the French. Some of these he has noted;
others have followed up the same line of comparison. We give some detailed
examples in a note.[4]
[Sidenote: Old French Text published by the Societe de Geographie.]
52. The French Text that we have been quoting, published by the
Geographical Society of Paris in 1824, affords on the other hand the
strongest corresponding proof that it is an original and not a
Translation. Rude as is the language of the manuscript (Fr.
