Italy has produced many explorers of international fame, with one of the most famous being Marco Polo (1254 – 1324), the man responsible for epic voyages to China and the Far East. Polo is remembered also for his friendship with Kublai Khan, the subject of the 1797 classic poem that bears his name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
Also the world over knows the name of Genoa-born Christopher Columbus (1451 – 1506), the man whose voyages contributed to shape the modern world. Alongside these famous names, Italy has gone on to produce many more accomplished explorers; here are five who have made a difference to the world as we now know it.
