The palace is completely surrounded by a square wall, each side being a mile in length so that the whole circuit is four miles. It is a very thick wall and fully ten paces in height. At each corner
of this wall stands a large palace of great beauty and splendor in which the Great Khan keeps
his military stores Within this wall is the Great Khan's palace, which I will now describe to
you. It is the largest that was ever built. Inside, the walls of the halls and chambers are all
covered with gold and silver and decorated with dragons and birds and horsemen and various
breeds of beasts and scenes of battle. The ceiling is similarly adorned, so that there is nothing
to be seen anywhere but gold and pictures,
- Marco Polo, Travels (circa 1300)
The Mongol ruler of China most likely built the palace described by Marco
Polo in the excerpt above in order to
impress his subjects with his power
show that he had divine approval
demonstrate his humility before God
increase his wealth