At this time, there lived in the court of Abubekr, a prince named Zegra, a son of the khan of Great Tartary, to whom Ideku[2] sent word that he would resign to him the sovereignty of Kiptschak.  Zegra accordingly set out for Great Tartary, accompanied by Schildtberger, and four others.  Their route lay through Strana[3], which produces good silk; then through Gursey, Gurghia, or Georgia, which is inhabited by Christians; after this, through the country of, Lahinsham[4], where silk is cultivated; and through Schurban, or Shirvan, where the silk is produced from which the silk stuffs of Damascus and Kaffer[5] are made.  They next passed through Bursa[6], which is situated in Turkey, and from whence the fine silk, of which velvet is manufactured, is sent to Venice and Lucca:  This is an unhealthy country.  Their route next lay through Temur-capit, Demir-Kapi or, Derbent, which signifies, in the Tartarian language, the Iron-gate, and which separates Persia from Tartary.  They then went through a town of great strength, called Origens[7], situated in the middle of the Edil.  After this, their way was through the mountainous country of Setzalet, in which there are many Christians, who have a bishop and some Carthusian monks, who perform the service in the Tartarian language, that the common people may understand what is sung and read.  They were now arrived in Great Tartary, at the camp of Ideku, who had just assembled all his forces and was going to march into the land of Ibissibur[8].  In this expedition, they employed two months of continual marching; in the course of which, they crossed a range of mountains, thirty-two days journey in length, and at their extremity, there is a desert, which is the end of the world[9]; which desert is uninhabitable from the number of reptiles and wild beasts with which it is infested.  These mountains are inhabited by roaming savages, who are hairy all over, except their faces and hands[10], and who subsist on green leaves and roots, or whatever they can procure.  In this country, also, there, are wild asses as large as horses.  The inhabitants employ dogs, as large as asses, to draw carts and sledges, and some times feed upon them.  They are Christians, and they bury, their young people who die in celibacy, with music and rejoicing, eating and drinking at their graves.  In this country they cultivate nothing but beans, and they eat no bread.  Having made a conquest of Bissibur, they marched into. Walor[11], which they also conquered, and then returned into Kiptschak.

At this period, there was a high officer of state among the Tartars, called Obmann, who had usurped the power of nominating and deposing the khan, and to whom all the lords or chiefs were subservient.  This anomalous dignity was now held by Ideku; who, as has been already mentioned, had invited Zegra to accept the dignity of khan.  This Ideku, with the khan, all the nobility, and the whole people, wandered