Marco Polo is a well-known figure in history: he was an Italian merchant, explorer, and writer. On his way to exploring Asia, Marco Polo has visited Cilicia and was amazed by prosperity, economic and cultural development of the Kingdom.
In his memoirs he wrote about Cilicia: “This is a great country. The people of the country are Armenians… The country is indeed a great passing one… There was a city called Layas situated ashore. It was a city of trade – all goods from the East (gold, silk, spices) passed through this city, where merchants from different countries came together”.
