Benjamin of Tude'la

Benjamin of Tude'la, a Jewish rabbi, was born in Navarre, Spain. He was the first European traveller who gave information respecting the distant East. Partly with commercial views, and partly to inquire into the condition of his dispersed co-religionists, he made a journey, in the years 1159-73, from Saragossa, through Italy and Greece, to Palestine, Persia, and the borders of China, returning by way of Egypt and Sicily. He died in 1173, the last year of his travels. His itinerary—originally written in Hebrew, and frequently republished in Latin, English, Dutch, and French translations—is occasionally concise and valuable; but on the whole must be accepted with qualifications. Like all the early travellers, Benjamin had a greedy ear for the marvellous. His blunders, too, are numerous. The best edition, by Asher (Lond. 1840), contains the original text, with an English translation and learned annotations.