As one of the first Europeans to travel across Asia through China, Marco Polo is perhaps the most well-known foreign merchant and voyager to the Chinese people. He traveled extensively (广泛地) with his family, journeying from Europe to Asia from 1271 to 1295. He remained in China for 17 of those years. His book The Travels of Marco Polo depicts his journeys throughout Asia, giving Europeans their first comprehensive look into the Far East, including China, India, and Japan. From his written accounts the Westerners learned of porcelain, coal, gunpowder, printing, paper money, and silk for the first time. The wealth of new geographic information recorded by Polo was widely used in the late 15th and the 16th centuries during the age of the European voyages of discovery and conquest (征服). In the centuries since his death, Marco Polo has received the recognition that failed to come his way during his lifetime. Marco Polo's story has inspired countless other adventurers to set off and see the world.