See also: Mandeville

Jehan de Mandeville (? , † in Liege on November 17th 1372), originating in Liege, is a Explorateur, author of a work entitled the Livre of the wonders of the world (title original in Latin: Itineraria , i.e. voyages ) that it wrote at the conclusion of a voyage 34 years in Egypt, and in various countries of Asia, until in China. This title evokes the famous Livre of the wonders, which one usually allots to Marco Polo, and which, dictated by this one with his/her companion in prison, would be rather entitled Devisement of the world . Jean de Mandeville, professor of medicine, affirmed to be a knight English.

Its voyage

Jean de Mandeville initially studied medicine. He left for the Egypt the day the Saint Michel 1322. He affirmed on his return to have been a mercenary to the service of the Sultan, then fights about it with the Bedouin S. Passé of Egypt in Palestine, he followed the Silk route and visited the India, the interior of the Asia, and the China. He would have served fifteen years in the army of large the Khan.

After a 34 years absence, it returned in 1356, i.e. a few years after the Black Death of the 14th century, which involved a demographic bleeding in Europe in the years 1347 - 1350.

One knows the date of his death thanks to description that the geographer Abraham Ortelius gave of his tomb in his Itinerarium per nonnullas Galliæ Belgicæ leave (1584), which was in a monastery of Guillaumins. The epitaph was the following one:

Here rests the noble D. Jean de Mandeville, also called with the beard, warlike, lord of the Fields, born in England, professor of very pious medicine, speaker, and benefactor very generous of needy who, having made the round the world tour, finishes his life in Liege. The year of the Lord 1371, the 17th day of the month of novembre.

On the stele a portrait of the man-at-arms was engraved, wearing a beard fourchue, the foot on a lion, a hand blessing its face, with these words in Picard: Your which paseis semi sor, for the love deix preys semi por.

The account of its voyages is often regarded as an imposture, if it is not its stay in Egypt, because of the tone employed and the loans to others Explorateur S former.

The account of its voyage

On its return, it decided, with the assistance of a doctor of Liege, to lay down on the Papier the stories of which it had been pilot, but also the actor. Its collection became one of the most famous works of the Moyen-âge, and probably more read by its contemporaries (Christine de Pisan, Jean Without Peur, the Duc of Burgundy). Between account of voyage and erudite treaty, it describes the known world at the 14th century, in particular the Far-Eastern Asia, which was still far from known at that time Westerners: only some missionaries Franciscain S and Dominican S, like Marco Polo, had ventured in these remote areas. The accounts of these first missionaries (Guillaume de Rubrouck) or Explorateur S (see the Devisement of the world, account of the voyage of Marco Polo) were diffused little in Occident at that time, and the great plague had just made great devastations.

Jean de Mandeville refers to the theoretical possibilities of " circumnavigation " world, which one knew in XIVe century, since the large well-read men (Albert the Large one…) had integrated this concept. It is undoubtedly what made its work so popular at the end of the Moyen-âge. It is known indeed that Jean de Mandeville had a certain influence on Christophe Colomb.

Jean de Mandeville described routes, inserted fabulous stories and legends in an account mixing biblical references and considerations religious S.

The work is thus a compilation and a synthesis of a travelling outfit including:

  • proper voyages of the author in Egypt (fruit of personal observations, because after a thorough study of the text, all criticisms agree to affirm that it really remained in this country), in India, in the interior of Asia, and in China,
  • of the former voyages accomplished by missionaries franciscains and Dominican. It would have thus described grounds which it did not see, and would have introduced the usual deformations of the geographers of the Moyen-âge, the compilation of works of Dominican travellers or franciscains such as Guillaume de Boldensele, Guillaume of Tripoli or even Odoric de Pordenone.
  • of the references to the great classics of the ancient literature like Flavius Josèphe, Pline the Young person, and Solinus,
  • of the references to the " Historiale" speculum; of Vincent of Beauvais, which was an encyclopedia recognized at the time.

It was reproduced with more than 250 specimens in ten languages, which is considerable for the time. That makes it possible to think that a great number of people in occident regarded the ground as spherical.

The critical study of this work, made by Christiane Deluz, watch that it was written in three versions:

  • the insular version, in speaking Anglo-Norman (25 manuscripts),
  • the continental version, in speaking continental,
  • the Ogier version with interpolation of texts putting in Ogier scene the Dane.
The insular version would be oldest. These three versions were translated in various vernacular languages.

The diversity of the sources, the references, the initial versions, the translations in vernacular languages makes difficult the authentification of information.

Work

  • Voyage around the Earth (transl. and Com. by CH. Deluz, 1993), ED. the Beautiful Letters, coll the Wheel with Books, XXVIII + 301 p. ISBN 2-251-33919-1

See too

Related articles

External bonds

  • Ways of Jean de Mandeville towards the Holy Land
  • Jean de Mandeville in Catholic encyclopedia

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