In this illumination by an unknown Armenian artist, Archbishop Jean, also known as Archbishop John, stands on a carpet indicating his holiness. On his robe is the motif of a dragon, an indication of the thriving trade between Armenians and Mongols in the late 13th century. The Christian Armenians entered into agreements with the Mongol Empire (primarily the Ilkhanate) from the 1240s to around 1320. Some historians refer to this relationship as an alliance, while others refer to it as vassalage, suggesting Armenia was a tributary of the Mongols. During the period of the later Crusades, the Mongols and Armenians engaged in some combined military operations against their common enemy, the Mamluks, and the relations with the Mongols allowed Cilician Armenia to survive much longer than the other Christian states of the Levant.