The book presents the works of two authors. The first is "The History of the Mongols," the author of which is Giovanni (John) del Plano Carpini (the envoy of Pope Innocent IV, the first of the Europeans to visit the Mongol Empire) describes his journey to the Mongols in 1245-1247. The second is "Journey to the Eastern Countries"; the author of this work, Guillaume (Wilhelm) de Rubruk, describes his trip to the capital of the Mongols, the city of Karakorum in 1253-1257, committed on behalf of the French king Louis IX