Chau Ju-Kua - University of Oregon Libraries

1,22 THE ARABS. 115
wThis country of the Ta-shi is powerful and warlike. Its extent is very
great, and its inhabitants are pre-eminent among all foreigners for their dis-
tinguished bearing)).
«The climate throughout a large part of it is cold)^, snow falling to a
5 depth of two or three feet; consequently rugs are much prized.
The capital of the country, called Mi-sti-U (^ ^ ^)
make it to be Ma-lo-pa |^ P||| :f^),
(Note: Some
is an important centre for the trade of
foreign peoples ^. «The king wears a turban of silk brocade and foreign cotton
«tuff (buckram). On each new moon and full moon he puts on an eight-sided
10 flat-topped headdress of pure gold, set with the most precious jewels in the
world. His robe is of silk brocade and is bound around him with a jade
girdle. On his feet he wears golden shoes. In his residence the pillars arc of
cornelian stone, the walls of lu-kan stone (^|j -^) (Note: It is as transparent
as crystal), the tiles of rock-crystal, the bricks of green stone (^ ^("jasper?),
15 and the mortar of hvo stone (y^ ^). The curtains and screens are of brocade
with rich designs woven in all kinds of colour in silk and pure gold thread *».^
The king's throne is set with pearls and precious stones, and the steps
of the throne are covered with pure gold. The various vessels and utensils
around the throne are of gold or silver, and precious pearls are knotted in
20 the screen behind it. In great court ceremonies the king sits behind this
screen, and on either side, protecting him, «the ministers of state surround
him)) bearing golden bucklers and helmets and armed with precious swords.
His other «officers are called Tai-wei (^ ^f);
each of them has the
command of some twenty thousand horsemen. The horses are seven feet high
25 and are shod with iron. His army is brave and excels in all military
exercises)).
The streets (of the capital) are more than fifty feet broad; in the middle
is a roadway twenty feet broad and four feet high for the use of camels,
horses, and oxen carrying goods about. On either side, for the convenience of
30 pedestrians' business, there are sidewalks paved with green and black (or
blueish black, flagstones of surpassing beauty.
^ H)
«The dwellings of the people are like those of the Chinese, with this
difference that here thin flagstones (slates?) are used instead of tiles ^).
The food consists of rice and other cereals; mutton stewed with fine
85 strips of dough is considered a delicacy. The poor live on fish, vegetables and
fraits only; sweet dishes are preferred to sour (^ -^ # &£ ^). Wine
is made out of the juice of grapes, and there is also the drink (called) ssi
(.S M VM))
a decoction of sugar and spices. By mixing of honey and