Person

Rabban Sauma

c. 1220–1294 · 13th century · Also known as Rabban Bar Sauma

Rabban Sauma was a Turkic monk of the Church of the East, born near Khanbaliq (Beijing), who travelled west on pilgrimage and became an envoy of the Ilkhan Arghun. In 1287–1288 he visited Constantinople, Rome, Paris and Gascony, meeting Philip IV of France, Edward I of England and Pope Nicholas IV, to seek an alliance against the Mamluks. His account of the journey survives in Syriac.

Rabban Sauma
Image: PHGCOM · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 2 profiles

IlkhanateImpact, SummaryYuan DynastyImpact

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Rabban Sauma. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/rabban-sauma
MLA
“Rabban Sauma.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/rabban-sauma. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Rabban Sauma.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/rabban-sauma.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Rabban Sauma’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/rabban-sauma (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻