Tall carts carrying round felt houses
Editorial contextBarbaro watched the whole horde pass Tana and describes its vehicles: two-wheeled carts taller than Italian ones, closed with reed mats and covered with felt or cloth depending on rank. Some carried a house built on a timber ring with half-hoops above, filled with reed mats and covered in felt, which was lifted off when they camped.
This people carie with them innumerable cartes of twoo wheeles higher than ours be, which are closed with mattes made of reades, and parte covered with felte, parte with clothe … Some of these cartes carie their houses vpon them which are made on this wise. They take a cercle of tymber, whose dyameter is a pase and an halfe, crossed within foorthe with other halfe cercles
About Tatars of the Golden Horde (the camp of Küchük Muhammad)
Keep in mind
Scribal abbreviations in the Tudor text (w^th, pte) have been expanded.
Burial mounds with stone crosses, credited to the Alans
Editorial contextDescribing the land around Tana, Barbaro says the countless mounds on the steppe are graves, each topped with a pierced stone holding a stone cross. He credits them to the Alans, a Christian people destroyed by the Tartars, not to the Tartars themselves.
These have been Christen men, and were chased awaie and destroied by the Tartares. In that region are hills, ryvers, and plaines : wheare are to be seene an infinite nombre of little hills forced in signe or steede of sepultures, and on the toppe of everie of them a great stone with an hole : wherein standeth a crosse of one peece made of an other stone.
About Alans (As), 'chased awaie and destroied by the Tartares'
Keep in mind
The crosses may be later Christian additions or Barbaro's reading of stone markers; most steppe kurgans are far older than the Alans.
Astrakhan: a low wall and a few brick houses
Editorial contextContarini spent May to August 1476 at Astrakhan ('Citracan'). He says it belonged to three nephews of the Tatar emperor who wintered there and roamed the steppe in summer. The town was small, with a low wall and a few brick houses, but showed signs of larger buildings not long before, and was said to have once been a great trading place.
These three brothers remain in Citracan a few months in the winter, but in the summer do like the rest. Citracan is a small town situated on the Volga, and surrounded by a low wall. The few houses it contains are built of bricks ; but it is evident that it possessed several edifices at no very distant period.
About Tatars of the Astrakhan khanate
Nomads who sowed and reaped
Editorial contextBarbaro answers the obvious question of where so many people got their grain. Each February the horde announced where sowing would happen; volunteers went with seed, carts and families, ploughed and sowed, and later returned to harvest while the khan's camp circled nearby. He says the yields were huge.
About the mooneth of Februarie they make proclamacons throughout the Lordo, that he which woll sowe shall prepare his things necessarie against the mooneth of Marche, to sowe in such a place. … And there do they eare, sowe, and tarie, till they haue furnisshed that they came for, which doon they retorne to their Lordo.
About Tatars of the Golden Horde
Unwashed lamb and mare's milk that 'stank most horribly'
Editorial contextHiding from the khan's search on a Volga island, the starving Contarini was fed by his Tatar guide's people. They killed a lamb for him and cooked it without washing it, saying washing spoils the flavour. They pressed mare's milk on him as a strengthening drink, and were offended when he refused it.
a lamb was killed in my honour, which was partly roasted and partly boiled, but no trouble whatever was taken to wash the flesh, as they say that washing takes all the flavour away … Mare's milk was also brought, which they hold in great esteem … as they say it gives great strength to man; but, as it stank most horribly, I refused to taste it
About Tatars of the Astrakhan steppe
Justice on the spot
Editorial contextIn the camp, Barbaro says, quarrels were settled without violence or paperwork: the parties walked off together and asked the first respectable man they met to judge, and his verdict was accepted, with bystanders as witnesses. He also describes petitioners kneeling repeatedly as they approached the lord's pavilion.
Whan a difference groweth betwene partie and partie, and wordes multiplied (not aftre the maner of our quarters, for these do vse no violence), thei both or moo (if they be moo) arise and go what waie they thinke good : and to the first man of any estimacon that they meete they saie : Master, do vs right, for we here are in controversie
About Tatars of the Golden Horde
Islam arrives, idols linger
Editorial contextBarbaro says Islam had taken hold among the Tartars only about a hundred years before he wrote, in the time of the warlord Edigu. Before that, some were Muslims but each believed what he liked, and some worshipped idols of wood and rags carried on their carts. On another page a Tatar tells him there are still plenty of secret idolaters.
The faith of Macomett beganne to take place amonge the Tartariens about an C yeres past. In dede some of them were Macomettanes before, but everie man was at his libertie to believe what hym best liked ; so that some worshipped ymags of woode, and of ragges
About Tatars of the Golden Horde
Keep in mind
Historians usually date the Golden Horde's official conversion to Khan Uzbek (1313); Barbaro's timeline reflects what he was told.
The 'valiant fool'
Editorial contextThe bravest Tatar warriors, Barbaro says, earned the title 'Tulubagator', which he translates 'valiant fool', an honour like 'the wise' or 'the handsome' in Italy. The editor explains it as tulu bahadur; bahadur is the root of the Russian bogatyr, hero. He follows it with the story of a Tatar merchant who chased forty Circassians alone.
The hablemen are verie valiaunt and hardie, in such wise that some of them for their excellencie are called Tulubagator, which signifieth a valiaunt foole : being a name of no lesse reputacon amongst them than the sernames of wisedome or beaultie with vs
About Tatars of the Golden Horde
Keep in mind
'Fool' is Barbaro's own gloss; the etymological note is the 1873 editor's.
Rafts towed by swimming horses
Editorial contextTravelling to Kaffa with a Lithuanian embassy escorted by Crimean Tatar horsemen, Contarini had to cross the broad river dividing Russia from Tartary. The Tatars built a raft of lashed timbers and branches, then swam their horses across holding their necks, with the raft tied to the horses' tails. He thought he had never been in greater danger.
the Tartars began to cut timbers, which they tied together, and covered with branches to form a raft, and our things being placed on it the Tartars entered the river holding on to their horses' necks, while our raft was attached to their tails by cords. Thus mounted, the horses were driven across the river, which we passed by the help of God.
About Crimean Tatars (escort sent by the khan)
Keep in mind
The text does not name the river; the Dnieper is the likely crossing on this route.
Baltracan, the plant that fed travellers
Editorial contextIn a letter to the Bishop of Padua, Barbaro describes 'Baltracan', a wild plant the Tartars depended on when crossing the steppe. When it sprouted, merchants set out saying 'Let us go, for the Baltracan has grown', and no one chased a runaway slave because he could live on it. He says he ate it himself and later found it in Albania and near Padua.
The Tartars have a plant in their country which they call Baltracan, the want of which would cause them great suffering, and prevent them from going from place to place, especially across those great deserts and solitudes, where they find nothing to eat except this plant, which supports them and gives them vigour.
About Tatars of the Golden Horde
Keep in mind
The plant's modern identity is not given in the text.
The 'wild Tartars' with waist-long hair
Editorial contextContarini separates the Tatars of the 'Lordo' between the Don and Volga, whom he calls brutes who live on milk and meat, from another numerous people beyond the Volga, called 'wild Tartars', with hair to their waists. He admits he did not visit the Lordo himself and relies on what he was told.
But there is said to be another tribe of Tartars living beyond the Volga, in an east-north-easterly direction, who are supposed to be very numerous. They wear long hair reaching to their waists, and are called wild Tartars. They wander in search of pasturage and water like the others; and, in the winter, when there is much cold and ice, they are said to come as far as Citracan
About Tatars between the Don and Volga; 'wild Tartars' east of the Volga
Keep in mind
Hearsay; Contarini's dislike of the Tatars shows throughout.
Venetian treasure-hunters dig a kurgan
Editorial contextTipped off by a story that a Tatar woman in Cairo had told of Alan treasure, Barbaro and six partners hired 120 men and dug into a great mound. Instead of gold they found layers of ash, millet husks and fish scales, then stone vessels, glass-covered brick beads and part of a silver ewer. The dig was so big that locals renamed the mound 'the cave of the Franks'.
we founde in the botome certein vessels of stone, some of them with asshes, some with coles, some emptie and some full of fishe back bones. We founde also v or vi beadestones as bigge as oranges made of bricke and covered with glasse … We founde also halfe the handle of a little ewer of sylver, made with an adders hedde on the toppe.
About Alans; Venetian merchants of Tana
Keep in mind
The treasure story came at third hand; Barbaro repeats the local explanation that the Alan lord Indiabu faked a grave to hide his wealth from the Tartar emperor.
A rescued Tatar slave in a Venetian wine cellar
Editorial contextIn a Rialto wine cellar Barbaro found two chained men who looked like Tartars, runaway slaves of the Catalans recaptured by the vintner. He had them freed by the magistrates and took them home. One turned out to be a servant of the khan's customs officer at Tana, who recognised Barbaro's Tana name, Jusuph, and fell to the ground.
I asked him what was his name. He answered, Chebechzi, which signifieth a bulter of meale. And whan I had well behelde him, I saied vnto him, doest thou knowe me ? He answered, no. But, as soone as I mentioned Tana and Jusuph (for so they called me there), he fell to thearthe, and wolde haue kissed my feete : saieng vnto me, thou hast saved my lief twies
About Tatars of Tana
Cut in half for stealing a pail of milk
Editorial contextA Tartar ambassador returning from Cathay lodged in Barbaro's house at Tana. His servant told 'wonders' of Chinese justice: a man who drank a widow's milk in the market was seized and cut in two on the spot. Barbaro passes it on as the ambassador's report, not something he saw.
being on a daye in Madian, which signifieth the markett place, they did see a woman carieng a payle of mylke on her heade, to whom one came that tooke it from her : and beginneng to drynke, she beganne to crye out … Wherevpon, he was incontinently taken, and with a swearde cutt in sonder by the myddest
About Chinese of Cathay, as described by a Tartar ambassador's servants
Keep in mind
A traveller's tale told at second hand about Ming China.
A horse stuffed with straw and worshipped
Editorial contextBarbaro says the northern lands of Zagatai and Moxia were inhabited by Tartars who were mostly idolaters, then describes a Moxii rite: a horse staked down and shot with arrows, eaten, its hide stuffed with straw and propped up as if alive. On the next page he says it was set on a scaffold in a tree and worshipped, with furs hung as offerings, and that other idolater Tartars worship images carried on their carts.
At a certein tyme of the yere they vse to take a horse : which they laie alonge on the plaine. … Than they stufe the hyde so full of strawe, that it seemeth hole again ; and in every of his legges putt a pece of woodde ; and so sett him afoote againe, as though he were on lyve.
About The Moxii (Moksha Mordvins), grouped by Barbaro with northern 'idolater' Tartars
Keep in mind
The Moksha are a Finnic people, not Tatars; Barbaro says he 'learned' this, not that he saw it.