A team of Italian horsemen is to retrace the 8,700-mile journey between Venice and China made by Marco Polo in the 13th century.
The Prometheus mission will set off from St Mark's Square in Venice later this year and aim to arrive in Beijing 15 months later. They will follow the Silk Road, passing through 16 countries and two deserts.
"We will plan the route with military precision to arrive in each difficult area at the best time of year," said Piero Lapiana, a photo-journalist who devised the trek.
"We will face the same kind of challenges as our predecessor, travelling over a varied terrain: plains, valleys and mountain tracks."
The expedition will use the hardy Maremmana breed of horses, the modern type closest to that used by Marco Polo, his brother Maffeo and his father Niccolo on their voyages to the court of Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor.
Their route skirts above Iraq before dipping into Iran and then to Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, over the Kirgiz Steppe and into western China.
Complete fascinating article and pictures...
