A special event commemorating the 700th anniversary of the death of Marco Polo, a cultural envoy between China and Italy, is underway at the 11th China Shanghai International Children's Book Fair from Nov 15 to 17.

Marco Polo's journey to China is vividly presented to readers through the texts and illustrations of nearly 50 selected books.

Titled Marco Polo: Traveler, Merchant, Storyteller, the exhibition showcases books in various languages about the traveler, including Marco Polo. Il viaggio delle meraviglie (Marco Polo: The Journey of Wonders), Il Milione (The Million), and Die wunderbaren reisen des Marco Polo (The Wonderful Travels of Marco Polo).

This event is co-curated by the Giannino Stoppani Cooperativa Sociale and the Accademia Drosselmeier of Italy.

In addition to exhibiting children's picture books, renowned Italian historian, novelist, and essayist Alessandro Barbero will deliver a lecture, delving into misunderstandings of Marco Polo's works in popular culture, revealing how The Travels of Marco Polo provided European readers of the time with accurate and detailed descriptions of the Far East.

The lecture will be held from 10 am to 11 am on Nov 16 at the forum area of the CCBF.

Italian comic artist Elia Mazzantini and writer Alessio D'Uva will host a forum titled "Marco Polo's Comic Book Series: From Concept to Reality" in the illustrator survival corner. Audience members are encouraged to participate.

The organizing committee of the CCBF, in collaboration with the high-tech company Untro, has used technologies such as mixed reality and generative artificial intelligence to recreate the legendary journey of Marco Polo. This creates a truly immersive reading experience for audiences.

As an influential exhibition in the Asia-Pacific region dedicated to books and content for children, the CCBF has gathered 497 publishers and enterprises from 32 countries and regions this year.

Covering an exhibition area of 25,000 square meters, the fair showcases over 20,000 new children's books, from traditional Chinese culture to popular science.

There will also be a total of 353 exchanges and reading promotion activities.

Click here to register as a professional visitor.

Source: WeChat account of China Shanghai International Children's Book Fair