Mongols, Ancient China and the Silk Road

Manuscript in Khitan language

2012-02-08T12:34:00.000+01:00

A Manuscript Codex Written in the Khitan Large Script from the Collection of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts,
Russian Academy of Sciences [Рукописная книга большого киданьского письма из коллекции Института восточных рукописей РАН]
Written Monuments of the Orient, № 2(15), autumn-winter 2011. Moscow, Nauka, Vostochnaya Literatura Publishers, 2011. P.130-150.

Zaytsev, Viacheslav Petrovich

This paper presents the preliminary results of the first published research into a unique manuscript codex that is stored among the Chinese manuscripts of the “Nova Collection” at the Department of Manuscripts and Documents at the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, RAS.The paper not only gives a detailed description of the manuscript, but also suggests an identification of the language and script that it is written in. The manuscript is catalogued as a “Manuscript written in Jurchen” in the inventory (call number Н 176, inventory number 1055), but as it is written using cursive letters that are difficult to read, this identification has never been confirmed. On the basis of detailed analysis of the writing in the manuscript, and comparison with the writing found on Khitan funerary inscriptions, the author of this paper proves that the manuscript is in fact written in the Khitan language using the Khitan large script.No other printed or manuscript books in either Khitan large script or Khitan small script are known, and this manuscript is thus the first Khitan book to have been discovered.

For the paper itself (in Russian), click HERE

Nomads and Networks: The Ancient Art and Culture of Kazakhstan

2012-02-07T16:53:00.005+01:00

Nomads and Networks: The Ancient Art and Culture of Kazakhstan
by Sören Stark, Zainolla Samashev, Karen S. Rubinson and Jennifer Y. Chi
Hardcover: 240 pages
Publisher: Princeton University Press (6 Mar 2012)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0691154805

The catalog for the groundbreaking exhibition at New York University's Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, Nomads and Networks presents an unparalleled overview of the sophisticated ancient nomadic culture of Kazakhstan. Contrary to the perception that Central Asia's nomadic societies were less developed than sedentary ones and randomly roamed over the steppes, this catalog argues that the nomadic peoples of Kazakhstan followed a systematic cycle of movement based on established economic and societal needs, and that pastoralism, or herding of domesticated animals, played an integral role.Focusing on sixth to first century BC material from the Altai and Tianshan regions, Nomads and Networks explores how the reliance on animals is reflected in the material culture, which represented all types of creatures, from the domestic to the mythic. Materials featured for the first time include saddles and saddle covers, and grave goods from the burial mounds in the Berel valley. Other objects, such as gold mortuary ornaments from Shilikty and Kargali, attest to influences from foreign cultures--most notably China and Persia. Contributors include: Alisher Akishev, Nursan Alimbaev, Nikolai Bokovenko, Claudia Chang, Bryan Hanks, Sarynbai Murgabaev, and Abdesh Toleubaev.

About the AuthorSren Stark is assistant professor of Central Asian Art and Archaeology at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University. Zainolla Samashev is a senior researcher at the A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Kazakhstan. Karen S. Rubinson is a research associate at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. Jennifer Y. Chi is exhibitions director and chief curator at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World..

Nomads and Networks in Kazakhstan

2012-02-07T16:22:00.000+01:00

Out of a recently excavated cemetery on the Russian/Chinese border, dating from the third century and preserved by permafrost, a number of stunning hand-crafted artifacts now shed new light on the meaning of a nomadic lifestyle.

“They change the common view about nomads,” says Soren Starke, Assistant Professor of Central Asian Art and Archaeology at the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University (ISAW).
“The common perception that they were aimless and wandering is not correct. They were mobile – it was essential to their way of life. They were highly adaptive to their environments.

”ISAW will open the first U.S. exhibition of nomadic culture of ancient Kazakhstan on from March 7 through June 3, 2012.
Called “Nomads and Networks: The Ancient Art and Culture of Kazakhstan,” it focuses on the peoples of the Altai and Tianshan regions in the eastern part of the country, from roughly the eighth to first centuries BC.
With nearly 250 objects on loan from Kazakhstan’s four national museums, the exhibition provides a compelling portrait of nomadic culture, challenging the traditional view of these societies as less developed than sedentary ones.
“They moved through different environments to make use of them at different times of the year,” he says. “They moved from the lowlands to the high mountains – and their social rhythms were defined by this way of life and movement.”Artifacts on view in the exhibition range from bronze offering-stands, superbly decorated with animal and human figures, to petroglyphs marking important places in the landscape, to dazzling gold adornments that marked the social status of those who wore them. Also included are saddles and expertly carved horse trappings that display fascinating hybrid mythical animals.

The artifacts were frozen almost immediately after their burial some 2,500 years ago. “Most of the materials are perishable – wood or bone or textile, but they were frozen inside the tombs in the highland areas,” he says. “We were lucky to find them.”The sophistication of the tribes’ handiwork contradicts any misperception of them as rootless wanderers. “They were much more constricted. They negotiated with neighbors for routes, and to use specific meadows at specific times,” he says.
As late as the early 20th century, people in the region were still living that way, shepherding horses, sheep and goats, and engaged in minor agriculture. Each group was interconnected inside the steppe, and with their secondary neighbors in Persia and China.In short, the term “nomad” is incorrect.
“They were more like mobile pastoralists,” he says.And fine artisans as well.

Source: Architects and Artisans.com

For more information, go to The Institute for the Study of the Ancient World/ New York University

The first published photo's of this exhibition are absolutely stunning!

Feline Face and Stylized Ornaments from Horse Tack. Wood, and Tin and Gold Foil. Berel, Kurgan 11, late 4th - early 3rd century B.C.E. Presidential Center of Culture, Astana. Courtesy Viktor Kharchenko, The Presidential Center of Culture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.

Round Tray on Conical Stand with Figures of Seated Man and Standing Horse in Center. Bronze, 5th - 3rd century B.C.E.. Central State Museum, Alamaty. Courtesy Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Belt Terminus with Granulation and Argali Decoration. Gold, Zalauli (Kegen District, Almaty Region), 7th - 6th century B.C.E. Central State Museum, Almaty. Courtesy Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Plaque of Argali Head Suspended from Ribbed Bar from Horse Tack. Wood, Gold Foil, Berel, Kurgan 11, late 4th - early 3rd century B.C.E. Presidential Center of Culture, Astana. Courtesy Viktor Kharchenko, The Presidential Center of Culture of Kazakhstan, Astana.

Horse Tack as Shown on a Reconstruction of the Horse from Kurgan 36 at Berel. Courtesy Z. Samashev

Diadem, Gold, Turquoise, Carnelian, Coral. 2nd century B.C.E - 1st century C.E. (Wusun) Central State Museum, Almaty. Courtesy Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Plaque of Facing Elk-Griffin Heads. Horn (Siberian Red Deer), Berel, Kurgan 36, late 4th - early 3rd century B.C.E. A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty. Courtesy Y. Cherkashin, A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty.

U-Shaped Element with Scale Pattern from Bridle Throat Latch. Horn (Siberian Red Deer), Gold Foil. Berel, Kurgan 36, late 4th - early 3rd century B.C.E. A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty. Courtesy Y. Cherkashin, A. Kh. Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty.

Cauldron Protome of Winged Ibexes. Bronze, Almaty Region, 5th - 3rd century B.C.E. CEntral State Museum, Almaty. Courtesy Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Cauldron Fragment Depicting Saiga Antelope in Relief. Copper Alloy, Almaty, 5th - 3rd century B.C.E. Central State Museum, Almaty. Courtesy Central State Museum of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Almaty.

Iron Age Deer from Arpauzen

2012-02-06T15:43:00.001+01:00

This stylised image of a deer (cervus elaphus) with swirling antlers was carved on a small vertical rock surface found at Arpauzen, in the Karatau range in southern Kazakhstan. Along with other similar images at Arpauzen, it belongs to the Early Saka period – that is, the Early Iron Age, circa 700 bc.Hidden amongst the hillsides of Kazakhstan are thousands of rock art images, depicting horses, camels, bulls, deer, shamans, images of buddhas (from much later) and more. The rock art of Kazakhstan consists predominately of petroglyphs, contours of images pecked into the natural rock by striking the surface with another stone or engraved into it with a metal tool to create fine lines.These stag glyphs were symbols of power, rank and prestige. The same motif has often been found amongst the golden artefacts adorning the once-wealthy occupants of Saka tombs. In one of the kurgans (burial mounds) at Shilikty, in eastern Kazakhstan, small stag figurines were discovered that had been used to decorate the outer garment of a Saka prince. Recent excavations at the Arzhan-2 site in Tuva have also yielded a wealthy chieftain couple decorated with numerous golden objects belonging to Uyuk archaeological culture. The male wore a medium-sized figure of a similarly stylised stag on top of his headdress. Many additional such images are found in Saka and other Iron Age cultures spanning the Eurasian steppes, and are undoubtedly related to ancient religious belief in the totemic power of animals.From: Steppe Magazin, Issue no.9Text and Photograph by Kenneth Lymer

Mes Aynak: Recent excavations along the Silk Road

2012-02-06T15:13:00.003+01:00

From Popular Archeology by Joanie Meharry, August 22, 2011

Nearly ten years to the day since the Taliban destroyed the National Museum of Afghanistan’s pre-Islamic statues, the exhibition, Mes Aynak: Recent excavations along the Silk Road, opened at the museum. The event held on March 15, 2011 in Kabul was jointly commemorated by the Afghan Minister of Information and Culture, Makhdoom Raheen, the Minister of Mines, Waheedullah Shahrani, and the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, Karl W. Eikenberry, demonstrating the elaborate effort that made the exhibition possible.The collection showcases the latest finds from the ancient Buddhist monastery of Mes Aynak (“little copper well”), located in Logar province’s rugged terrain, 25 miles southeast of Kabul. Since 2009, archaeologists from the National Institute of Archaeology and the Délégation Archéologique Française en Afghanistan (DAFA) have been rapidly excavating the site. The efforts are urgent because, in less than three years, China Metallurgical Group Corp, a Chinese mining company, is scheduled to develop the overlapping copper mine – the second largest unexploited copper mine in the world. The deal will secure more than $3 billion for Afghanistan’s struggling economy. Thus, the Ministry of Information and Culture, the Ministry of Mines, and international delegations are making a concerted effort to promote both the country’s rich natural resources and cultural heritage.The exhibition, Mes Aynak: Recent excavations along the Silk Road, is one such initiative and is noteworthy for the speed at which it was curated by the museum staff. Housed in two rooms on the second floor of the museum, the brightly-lit displays are accentuated by the space’s dim lighting and deep red walls. The collection contains some 70 pieces of ancient ceramics, coins, and sculptures. Among these include the Dipankara Jakata statue, which on the back features a unique painting depicting a previous life of the Buddha, dating to the 3rd-5th Century, and a wooden seated Buddha statue, dating to the 5th Century. Indeed, archaeologists are already hailing the discoveries from Mes Aynak as some of the most significant to be unearthed in Afghanistan. The exhibition is also complemented by a well-illustrated booklet, published in English, Dari, and Pashtu.

Several months after the exhibition opened, I spoke with Omara Khan Massoudi (pictured below right), the Director of the National Museum, about his thoughts on the Mes Aynak exhibition and archaeological site and their significance for Afghanistan. What follows is the narrative of that interview:

JM: Tell me about when and why you first planned this exhibition.
OKM: It was from 2009 that the Institute of Archaeology of Afghanistan started the excavation at the Mes Aynak site. Some artifacts, when they got them, they sent them to us. In 2010, they also excavated some artifacts which were possible to transfer to the National Museum of Afghanistan. For this purpose, we organized the Mes Aynak exhibition at the museum.Mes Aynak is a huge Buddhist site in Logar province. The archaeologists are working very hard. They try their best to finish, as soon as possible, this excavation. I think this site is really important for me, for our museum staff also.

JM: Why is the Mes Aynak exhibition also important?
OKM: They found many different kinds of artifacts. For example, this is the first time they excavated a wooden seated statue of Buddha (see cover photo above, left). And, also, they got one artifact, the Dipankara Buddha, where in the back there is a painting. This is very important. We don’t have these kinds of artifacts at the National Museum from different ancient sites.For this purpose, we organized the exhibition with the support of the US Embassy. We had the opening ceremony on the 15th March, 2011. That time was a special time. We invited many people specially: the cultural attaché and also the ambassador of different embassies in Afghanistan.At the same time, it was very important for us. The Minister of Information and Culture announced during that gathering that the ministry wants to have a new building for the museum, that we got the land from the Defense Ministry by the order of His Excellency, our president. It was a suitable moment that he announced this.Also, after this gathering, when the speech was over, we had the opening ceremony of the Mes Aynak exhibition. I think it was very interesting for all of these people they invited. I think when everyone visits the exhibition they appreciate it and also they enjoy the visit.

Seated Buddha. Wood. The figure is seated in meditation on a lotus and is the only complete example known to have survived. Dates to the 5th-7th Century. Photo by Jake Simkin.

Front of Dipankara Buddha. Schist stone painted and gilded. On the back is a unique painting representing part of the story of the previous life of Buddha. Dates to the 3rd-5th Century. Photo by Jake Simkin.

JM: So, thus far it seems the exhibition has been well received by the public?

OKM: Yes! There was many media we invited on that day for the ceremony. Also, after that, now the school children and also students of different universities they are coming. They enjoy the visit of this exhibition.

JM: There have been a lot of important finds coming out of Aynak, like you mentioned. How did you select which artifacts would go on display?

OKM: Actually, this is a very huge site. We cannot accept all the artifacts from the site to the National Museum. We don’t have enough space. If you see the site, there are many stuppas they excavated. We don’t have enough space at the National Museum.The Ministry of Information and Culture has this plan to have a site museum, which is very close to the Mes Aynak area. In this case, the government of Logar province mentioned land around 60,000 square meters. In future, our ministry has plans to transfer all of these big artifacts, including small and big stuppas, to the site museum. This is because bringing all of these artifacts to the National Museum of Afghanistan, which is around 30km away, is too difficult. Our ministry prefers to have a site museum in the Logar district. It is possible to transfer these in a safe way to the site museum.

JM: The US Embassy also announced it is planning to do a conservation and storage facility. Is this where the remaining artifacts will go next?

OKM: Yes! The US Embassy’s ambassador has announced $5 million for building a new National Museum. At the same time they had a trip to the Mes Aynak site. They promised to the Ministry of Information and Culture to bring some facilities for cleaning and conservation of the artifacts. They promised they will support this project for the site museum to make a lab over there and also storage.

JM: Given the uncertain security situation, do you think now is a good time to carry out excavations, like at Mes Aynak?

OKM: I think security on the site – nothing has happened these two or three years back. The Ministry of Interior checked the security of the site. I think there are more than 1,500 police involved for the security of the site. Nothing has happened up to yet. I hope that the people help for security, because this is to the benefit of the people of Logar province. This is also good for our people in Afghanistan. I think the security is better now.They have to continue this excavation at the Mes Aynak site. The ministry is trying their best as soon as possible to finish this excavation over there because the Chinese company (China Metallurgical Group Corp) wants to finish this archaeological excavation. Then they will start to get the copper from the site. We have to finish the excavation over there.

JM: Mining is a very big topic in Afghanistan right now…

OKM: This is very important for our people. We appreciate these projects in our country, but we have to protect our cultural heritage. We have to, as soon as possible, finish this excavation.

Kunst von Gandhara

2012-02-05T12:37:00.000+01:00

Bis zum 30. Juli stellt das Museum DKM in Duisburg erstmals seinen Sammlungsbereich "Gandhara" vollständig vor. Zu sehen sind 120 Werke, die zwischen dem ersten und fünften Jahrhundert im heutigen Afghanistan entstanden sind.

Eine Bodhisattva-Skulptur. Ein Bodhisattva ist nach buddhistischer Idee ein Erleuchteter, der aus Mitleid mit den Menschen aus dem Nirwana herabkommt

Als die Taliban-Milizen am 12. März 2001 die Buddha-Statuen im 2500 Meter hoch gelegenen Tal von Bamiyan in Zentral-Afghanistan sprengten, war die Welt empört über diesen religiösen und kulturellen Frevel. Diese mit bis zu 53 Metern höchsten stehenden Buddha-Statuen der Welt gehörten zum bekanntesten Erbe der Gandhara-Kultur, die ihre Blütezeit zwischen dem ersten und fünften Jahrhundert n.Chr. hatte. Werke dieser Kultur sind ein Schwerpunkt in der Sammlung des privaten Museums DKM. Ab heute wird die komplette Gandhara-Sammlung des Hauses, das sind mehr als 120 Werke, erstmals der Öffentlichkeit präsentiert.

Kulturelle Verschmelzung
Gandhara bezeichnet zum einen die historische Region im heutigen Afghanistan und Pakistan, am Rande des indischen Subkontinents. Darüber hinaus wird mit dem Namen eine Kunst charakterisiert, die wesentlich vom Buddhismus beeinflusst ist, aber auch Elemente der antiken griechisch-römischen Kunst aufweist. Diese außergewöhnliche Verschmelzung von Kulturen kam durch verschiedene Herrschaftszeiten und nicht zuletzt durch den Handel entlang der berühmten Seidenstraße zustande.Als die Kunst Gandharas im späten 19. Jahrhundert entdeckt wurde, waren die westlichen Forscher begeistert, weil die ausgegrabenen Stücke klassisch anmuteten. Die figürlichen Darstellungen wurden und werden als Brückenschlag zwischen alter europäischer und asiatischer Kultur gedeutet. Die italienische Kunsthistorikerin Prof. Anna Maria Quagliotti, eine anerkannte Expertin der Gandhara-Forschung und Autorin des demnächst erscheinenden Bestandskatalogs, möchte aber diese Werke nicht nur als ein "Spiel der Einflüsse" verstanden wissen, sondern als "reifes Produkt des Hellenismus, der in den direkten Kontakt mit dem Buddhismus kam".Wie dem auch sei, als Besucher ist man fasziniert von der Weise, wie verschiedene Kulturen verschmolzen sind, wie Vertrautes und Fremdes nebeneinanderstehen. Besonders eindrucksvoll ist in der DKM-Ausstellung eine Reihe von 18 Köpfen in Terrakotta, die, modern gesprochen, multinational wirken.Neben Statuen, Fragmenten und Reliefs zeigt die Ausstellung Gefäße aus der Gandhara-Zeit, die in ihrer Schlichtheit und klaren Form faszinieren. Überhaupt sind "Gefäße" für die Sammler Dirk Krämer und Klaus Maas (=DKM) besonders begehrte Objekte.Hauptmotiv der Gandhara-Kunst ist natürlich der Buddha als unabhängige Statue oder im erzählerischen Zusammenhang, wenn Szenen aus seinem Leben in horizontal aufgebauten Relieffriesen dargestellt werden. Die alten Künstler griffen dabei übrigens häufig auf das Material Schiefer zurück, das wegen seiner Sprödig- und Zerbrechlichkeit schwer zu bearbeiten ist und ein Zeichen für die große handwerkliche Kunst der Schöpfer ist.

Zurück aus dem Nirwana
Nahezu jedes einzelne Stück der Gandhara-Ausstellung ist eine ausgiebige Betrachtung wert. Ein besonders schönes Werk ist eine 1,37 Meter hohe Bodhisattva-Skulptur aus Schiefer. Der religiös-philosophische Kern der Bodhisattva-Idee besteht darin, dass ein Erleuchteter aus dem Nirwana nochmals auf die Erde herabsteigt, weil er Mitleid mit den Menschen hat, die dort leben müssen.

Buddhas Fußabdrücke

The merry monk of Hangzhou

2012-02-05T11:47:00.000+01:00

The 18 life-size murals encircling the Ji Gong Hall of Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou make a pictorial narration of the life of the legendary monk Ji Gong.

Murals depicting the life story of a somewhat eccentric but immensely-adorable ascetic who lived in the Southern Song Dynasty now adorn the walls of the famed Lingyin Temple.

Eighteen huge life-size murals depicting the life of the legendary monk Ji Gong (1130-1209) debuted at Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in November.Delicately painted on the walls of Ji Gong Hall in the temple, the 18-meter-high and 50-meter-long murals display 18 stories about Ji, a Robin Hood-like living Buddha, anecdotes about whom can be heard in every corner of the city.Unlike the heavy paint and thick colors in Western frescoes, the Ji murals are more like a Chinese water-and-ink painting.The murals are not painted directly on the wall, but on palettes that hang on them. The background features a yellow earth color and the drawings are mainly in black and white with some red shadows.The quiet colors and the vague scent of mud, combining with mineral pigments, convey a sense of peace and tranquility.Together, the 18 murals encircling the hall make a pictorial narration of monk Ji's life story.The first mural shows Li Maochun, Ji's father, praying for a child. His wish was realized - a gift for his philanthropic acts.When Ji, whose name was Li Xiuyuan before converting to Buddhism, was born, the statue of an arhat fell to the ground - widely believed to be a sign that Ji was an incarnation of Taming Dragon Arhat, one of the 18 legendary Buddhist arhats.At a young age, Ji was fond of researching Buddhist scripture. At 18, he became a monk at Lingyin Temple against the wishes of his family, starting his life as a legendary living Buddha.Rebelling against traditional Buddhist customs, Ji loved drinking and eating meat. All his life he roamed the streets of Hangzhou, punishing bullies and helping the unprivileged with his magic powers.The murals on the wall depict mythical stories from his life. Ji had predicted that a hill would fly and settle down in front of the Lingyin Temple premises, but people thought it was a fantasy of the "mad monk".On the day the peak was expected to fly in, a wedding was due to take place on the very same spot. Ji kidnapped the bride, which made the villagers chase after him, thus vacating the spot and eventually helped them avoid the disaster. This is the mythical story behind the origin of the Peak Flying-from-Afar.A fire destroyed the main hall of the Jingci Temple, even as Ji slept in the premises. The abbot urged him to acquire large pieces of wood to restore the hall, but he slept through the crisis for three days, induced by a drunken stupor.Shaken back to consciousness, Ji shouted: "The wood is here, take it from the well!" Large pieces of wood kept falling off the temple well until there was enough to rebuild the hall. The Shenmu Well, or "Legend Wood Well", located in Jingci Temple, is associated with this mythology.The last mural is about Ji's parinirvana and return to Heaven as the Taming Dragon Arhat.It took Lin Haizhong, a professor at the China Academy of Art, and his students more than two years to restore the work."While there are manuscripts to provide clues to the restoration of most traditional Chinese murals, in this case we are creating completely new murals," Lin said.According to historical records, a prototype of Ji lived in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), when Hangzhou was the capital city. They restored the city's landscape to the way it looked 800 years ago, in deference to Ji's life and work.The Southern Song Dynasty was one of the most prosperous and advanced economies in ancient times, due to vigorous trade along the Grand Canal.The emperors steadfastly believed in Buddhism and Taoism, leading to the construction of numerous temples along the Qiantang River and West Lake of the city.Over time, the magnificent palaces, exquisite buildings and solemn temples were mostly destroyed in blasts during wars. Genuine Song Dynasty constructions have left no traces at all along the West Lake.Lin and his students devoted much of their time researching the panorama of the city and urban life at that time.They have closely studied the features of a large number of round silk fans, preserved in the Palace Museum and those in Shanghai and Shenyang.The silk fans from the Southern Song Dynasty depict scenes from daily lives of ordinary urban people.In August 2010, a group of restorers spent half a month traveling to Japan to study ancient architecture in Kyoto and Nara, where buildings from the Tang (AD 618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties are well-preserved.A close observation reveals that Hangzhou's scenic spots such as the Lingyin Temple, Liuhe Tower, Leifeng Tower and even the West Lake figure in the murals, although they look slightly different from their current images.Many people picture Ji wearing a broken monk's cap and torn cassock, holding a broken fan. Some of his behavior was considered eccentric and even mad, but he spoke with humor and was kind-hearted. Most of all, he was deeply loved by the common people.To draw a vivid image of the monk, Lin and his students went through various versions of Ji's stories and the resources in Lingyin Temple. Finally they decided to depict him as a ragged, jocular and kind monk, in keeping with the mythology about him.The humid climate poses a threat to the murals. Lin said that in the next decade the murals will have to be watched closely to arrest the paint from chipping off and necessary repairs will be made.

Source: Xinhua

Albert Grünwedel: Zeichnungen und Bilder von der Seidenstraße im Museum für Asiatische Kunst

2012-02-02T21:21:00.000+01:00

Albert Grünwedel: Zeichnungen und Bilder von der Seidenstraße im Museum für Asiatische Kunst
by Caren Dreyer
Publisher: Eb-Verlag (Sep 2011)
ISBN-10: 386893068X

Eine Expedition in die Ferne und der heimische Blick: Albert Grünwedel war Initiator und wissenschaftlicher Kopf der vier so genannten "Turfan-Expeditionen" (1902-14) des Berliner Museums für Völkerkunde an die nördliche Seidenstraße. Er war begabter Zeichner und dokumentierte zahlreiche Monumente in der heutigen chinesischen Provinz Xinjiang so genau, dass seine Arbeiten noch 100 Jahre später für die Forschung unverzichtbar sind.

IDP News Issue No. 38 now online

2012-02-01T21:42:00.001+01:00

IDP News Issue No. 38, Winter 2011–12 is now available online.

This issue is dedicated to the Diamond Sutra including an article on its history and transmission, a preliminary study of the paper of the printed copy found at Dunhuang, as well as extracts from new books on the Diamond Sutra, one of which showcases the conservation work recently completed at the British Library. We also report on the IDP partners’ business meeting held in October 2011 at the Dunhuang Academy, and the exhibition curated by the Dunhuang Academy on historical photographs of Dunhuang.The image above shows a detail from the frontispiece of the Diamond Sutra

Germany returns two millennia old Afghan sculpture

2012-02-01T09:52:00.000+01:00

Reuters, Jan 31, 2012

Germany this week returned an ancient pre-Islamic sculpture looted during Afghanistan's civil war, giving hope to Kabul's cultural mavens that the rest of its stolen treasures will also make their way home.Eight figures, one missing a torso and others without noses, make up the 30-cm high (12 inches) limestone antiquity from the second century AD, a reminder of Afghanistan's rich classical past as a confluence of cultures on the crossroads of Asia.Faces turned to their left, they are believed to be audience members watching Buddha on his throne in the ancient kingdom of Gandhara, which stretched across part of Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Foreign Ministry said."This is a masterpiece ... I am optimistic that in the future we will get the other artefacts back," said Omara Khan Massoudi, the director of Afghanistan's National Museum, which housed the sculpture before it was stolen.Afghanistan's embassy in Berlin has been investigating who owned the sculpture since it appeared in Munich a year ago. It was flown to Kabul earlier this week.As warlords battled for control of Kabul in the early 1990s following the Soviet exit, fighters pillaged around 70 percent of the museum's antiquities, or around 70,000 pieces, selling the choicest artefacts on the black market.Massoudi, whose museum was also heavily shelled in the war, is working to get them back. "This is our responsibility... According to our laws, they must be returned to Afghanistan," he told Reuters.Afghanistan's looted treasures have appeared across Europe, the United States and Japan. Kabul might see twenty ivories currently held in the British Museum return sometime this year, Massoudi said.

Warriors, Tombs and Temples

2012-01-31T18:00:00.000+01:00

WARRIORS, TOMBS AND TEMPLES: CHINA`S ENDURING LEGACY

Exhibition Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, October 1, 2011- March 4, 2012

Follow this exhibition through the underworld empires of three of the most formative dynasties in Chinese history: the Qin, the Han and the Tang, each a high point of culture and technology, looked back to with pride by Chinese people and admired by others today. The treasures that accompanied China’s rulers and elites in the afterlife, and the spectacular gold and silver offerings placed in their temples, speak to the incredible accomplishments of an ancient culture whose descendants still live on today.The exhibition features the famous life-size terra cotta warriors, protector of China’s first emperor Qin Shihuangdi, whose mausoleum complex is considered the eighth wonder of the world. Newly excavated, the painted garments and armor are clearly visible thanks to new conservation techniques. Smaller in scale but equally impressive are some of the more than 40,000 smiling terra cotta warriors from the imperial tomb compounds of Han emperors Gaozu and Jingdi. They are presented in combination with concubines, animals and a multitude of objects that insured a lavish and comfortable afterlife.The royal and elite tombs from the Tang Dynasty were stocked with riches clearly tied to the trade of exotic goods along the Silk Road. Dazzling gold ornaments, tomb guardians, a mural depicting a game of polo and many other luxuries illustrate the taste of Tang elites and the era’s connection with the West. And, for the first time in the United States, come gold, silver and gemstone treasures deposited into the treasure-crypt of the Famen Monastery by six Tang Dynasty emperors and China’s only female emperor Wu Zhao. This important Buddhist site, sealed in 874 of the Tang Dynasty and rediscovered in 1987, was founded with the fragment of the historical Buddha’s finger bone. The reliquaries associated with the sacred relic are part of this exhibition.

National Palace Museum – Splendid Masterpieces

2012-01-30T17:25:00.000+01:00

From: Asian Art Blog, January 16, 2012

The National Palace Museum in Taipei has put some of their finest collection pieces online. Interesting not only for researchers, some calligraphy scrolls including Wang Xizhi or Huai Su from Tang Dynasty are completely reproduced online. This is the first time in history, that you can take a full look on imperial collection srolls with your computer!

Go to the website: Splendid Masterpieces

From the Introduction to the online exhibition:

The overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911 set the stage for the formal establishment of the Republic of China in the following year. Based on the principles of democracy, the possessions acquired by the imperial family were returned to the public to be shared by all. In the first year of the Republic, 1912, the Museum of History was established at the Directorate of Education. Two years later, objects at the temporary palaces in Shengjing and Jehol in Liaoning were gathered to form the Institute for Exhibiting Antiquities. And after the abdicated emperor family left the palace in 1924, an inventory of the collection in the Forbidden City was finally conducted. In the following year on October 10, National Day, the Palace Museum was founded and opened to the public for viewing. What followed was the development of its functions as a public museum devoted to the exhibition, research, collection, education, and promotion of its holdings. To avoid the flames of war, however, the cream of the collection several times was crated and transported to safety. In 1965, the Central Museum (with its objects mostly from the Institute for Exhibiting Antiquities) and the Museum of History along with the Palace Museum (with their holdings for the most part from the Forbidden City) were brought together to form the National Palace Museum in the Taipei suburb of Waishuangxi, creating a treasury and bastion of Chinese art and culture famous the world over.As such, the collection of the National Palace Museum principally derives from the Qing dynasty court. The holdings inherited from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasty courts can be summed up as a "national treasure."In other words, these objects form a national treasury passed down through the ages. Along with new acquisitions in the form of donations and purchases since the founding of the Republic, the National Palace Museum now features a staggering collection of more than 680,000 objects. In addition to treasures of antiquities, painting and calligraphy, and rare books spanning 8,000 years of Chinese culture, the collection also features the essence of arts and crafts supervised by the Qing court along with its wealth of archival materials. Since the Museum opened in Taipei, comprehensive and special permanent exhibitions have been complemented by publications, lectures, and symposia, providing audiences with not only a feast for the eyes but also first-hand historical materials for research, thereby continuously promoting the collection as a source for creativity in modern life.Over the past century, archaeological discoveries have revealed the pluralistic face of ancient Chinese civilization. Around the world, various public and private collections along with historical materials continue to be made available to all, with the holdings of the National Palace Museum becoming increasingly cherished for its value. For example, in a tradition that emphasizes rites and antiquity, the Museum's collection of a long segmented jade cong tube from the Liangzhu Culture and a meticulously carved jade gui tablet of the Longshan Culture, both from the Neolithic Age, testify to the spiritual content and technical achievements of remote antiquity. Although it was a period the Qing emperors could not fully understand, their inscriptions on these works still clearly echo with an artistic aesthetic that has spanned time and space. Another example is collectanea of the Ming and Qing dynasties that required enormous expenditures of national resources and labor to compile, including the Yongle Encyclopedia, Tibetan Dragon Sutra, and Complete Library of the Four Treasuries. Transcribing and collating to preserve the classics can be called an important feat in the history of humanity as well. As for the history of painting and calligraphy, the masterpieces of such groundbreaking artists as Wang Xizhi, Sun Guoting, Yan Zhenqing, Fan Kuan, Guo Xi, and Li Tang reveal a masterful wielding of brush and ink. Illuminating the hills and valleys of the mind, they continued the joint artistic tradition within Chinese culture. And emperors over the dynasties also supervised craftsmen, resulting in the production of various renowned works, such as official porcelains of the Song dynasty; lacquerware of the Yongle period and doucai porcelains of the Chenghua era in the Ming dynasty; and falangcai enamelware and Songhua inkstones of the Qing court. All of these brought out the finest achievements in arts and crafts at the time they were produced. And exquisite carvings, such as the jadeite cabbage and olive-pit boat in the Museum collection, continue to win the admiration of and become part of the eternal collective memory of visitors.The history of the National Palace Museum is intricately related to that of the Republic of China. On this occasion of the country's centennial celebrations, the Museum has gathered and presented a special selection of a hundred objects noted for their historic significance, importance, rarity, artistry, and popularity. In doing so, they illustrate a continuous heritage of art and culture as well as their multiple facets, also offering by extension blessings for the continued prosperity and good fortune of the nation.

Mound Tomb of the Yue State Elite Found at Taozhuang Site, Anhui Province

2012-01-30T17:08:00.001+01:00

From: Chinese Archaeology January 29, 2012

In order to fit the infrastructure, excavations were constantly conducted by Anhui provincial institute of archaeology and cultural relic together with cultural departments in Ma’anshan city and Dangtu county. Taozhuang site, situated in Ma’anshan City, was excavated from 10th, July, 2011 till 20th September, 2011. As a result, an area, a total of 800 square meter, have been eventually explored. Of a series of significant archaeological achievements, a mound tomb was impressive, as for ceramics, proto-porcelains, and other cherish cultural relics up to forty were unearthed in the tomb.Taozhuang mound tomb, dating to the Warring States, was 200 meters proximity to Taozhuang village, Xinshi town, Dangtu county. The mound tomb, set in an earth shallow pit, was partly destroyed, preserved with its main mound ca. 1 meter high. The bottom of the grave may have been oval, with its longer diameter 23 meter, shorter one 18 meter. Oriented east to west, the tomb measured 6.7 meter long, 3.5 meter wide and 0.55 meter deep. The evidence of remained ashes of wooden slabs may suggest that coffin chamber would have been 5.1 meter long and 2.5 meter wide. The chamber seems to have been divided into two sub-chambers, to the east and to the west. There were several human teeth and bones remained in the middle and to the north of the eastern chamber, and in the northeastern part of the western chamber. It is to be noticed that four limb bones were distributed in the northeastern part of the western chamber, from the east to west, every two a group. An irregular, oval earth pit, with the soil grey and brownish, was found out of the eastern burial chamber. The pit measured 1.6 meter in longer diameter, and 0.9 meter in shorter diameter, and 0.16 meter in depth. Within the pit lay well-preserved femur bones, indicating the orientation of the death: to the north. The evidence of these remained bones and teeth may suggest that the burial would have been a communal tomb. Otherwise, the earth pit out of the burial chamber may have had the purpose of sacrifice.

Funerary inventories include two categories: pottery manufactured for the purpose of burial, i.e., ritual ceramics and imitating bronze, such as ding tripod, tripod plate, washbasin with a tubular handle, angular vessel, and etc. There were ceramics connected with domestic function as the other category, including pottery, impressed ware and proto-porcelain. It should be notice of a variety of pottery forms, such as pottery fu vessel, steamer, bowls, and spinning wheels. Impressed wares have jars, and urns. Small bu vase, cup and goblet are part of proto-porcelains. Besides, the archaeologists found a bronze arrowhead and a dragonfly eye ball made of glass. Pottery, impressed ceramics and proto-porcelains were mainly concentrated in the coffin chamber to the west. In contrast to three categories mentioned above, other items like a proto-porcelain bu vase, washbasin with a tubular handle, tripod plate, bronze arrowhead and glass eye ball were placed in the eastern part of the burial chamber.Feature of the burial inventories and their groupings may suggest a date of the grave, i.e. the Early Warring States. Some factors, like grave scale, grave form, existence of ritual ceramics and groupings of this kind of ceramics, may indicate the status of the death: moderate or low-grade elite. During the Early Warring States, a flourishing time after Wu state was conquered by Yue state, most of the funerary items were from Yue region. Thus, this mound tomb may have been built in the Early Warring States Period.

Mound tomb, a common inhumation form, seems to have been prevalent in the Wu and Yue states in the Shang-Zhou Periods, including normal and stone-chamber mound tombs. This kind of inhumation was often seen in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai and Anhui provinces, dating to a periods from the Western Zhou to Spring and Autumn Periods. But, intensively impacted by burial system used in Central plain and Chu state, rectangular shaft earth tombs seem to have initially been present and later on commonly used within Wu and Yue states since the Late Spring and Autumn Periods. Till the Early Warring States period, the use of mound tomb may have been almost replaced. Thus, it is certain that such kind of tomb was found in Anhui for the first time; otherwise, Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas have a smaller quantity of mound tombs to be found.It is noticeable that Taozhuang mound tomb, found in Dangtu county, Xinshi town, adjacent to Nanjing in Jiangsu province, occupies the core location within Ningzhen town area. The use of mound tombs may have undergone three phases of development: mound tomb, transition of mound tombs to rectangular shaft earth tombs, and rectangular shaft earth tomb. In conclusion, the excavations of Taozhuang site mound tomb could provide the substantial material for burial system and burial customs prevalent during the Early Warring States period. Meanwhile, the work could be taken as significant evidence for the study of mound tomb evolution within Ningzhen region. The assemble of proto-porcelain, impressed pottery, ritual pottery and imitating bronze, and the discovery of sacrificial pit may provide essential clue for the understanding of the politics, economics and cultural communication with other regions. (Translator: Sang Li)

Relics from Yinxu Ruins on display in Sichuan

2012-01-30T16:52:00.001+01:00

From China Daily January 20, 2012

A bronze tripod from the Yinxu Ruins will be on display in the Jinsha Site Museum in Sichuan province for three months.

The mention of the Jinsha Site Museum in Chengdu at this time of year would remind people in the capital city of Sichuan province of the famed lantern festival held there during the Spring Festival each year.Visitors to the museum displaying priceless cultural relics about the history of Sichuan would be given a pleasant surprise this Spring Festival, however, as 136 relics of oracle bones as well as bronze and jade and a carriage from the Yinxu Ruins in Anyang, Henan province, will be on display there.Appreciating the relics on display in Sichuan for the first time, visitors will find stamps engraved with motifs of typical relics from the Yinxu Ruins and can have the motifs stamped on paper as souvenirsUnearthed in 1899, ruins in Anyang called Yinxu have been found to be the capital of the Late Shang Dynasty (1766-1050 BC). The original source of oracle bone scripts, the ruins reflect a splendid culture in ancient China.Yinxu was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2006.

Visitors admire a carriage from the Yinxu Ruins in Anyang, Henan province, which will be on display in the Jinsha Site Museum in Sichuan province for three months.

For more photo's, click HERE

Buried Treasure

2012-01-29T19:58:00.004+01:00

The Wall Street Journal by Maria Mazria Katz, January 27, 2012

Archaeologists are racing to save Afghanistan's cultural heritage before the Chinese start digging on one of the world's most valuable new copper mine

A guard and a relic at the National Museum of Afghanistan Photograph by Leon Chew

For 1,500 years, the sandstone cliffs of afghanistan's Bamiyan valley encased two towering Buddhas peering sleepily from their caves onto patches of magnolia trees. Nearly 11 years ago, however, the statues were destroyed by tanks, explosives and antiaircraft weapons on the orders of the Taliban government, which condemned the Buddhas as "idols." So if you flew into the smog-filled skies of Kabul today, interested in looking for one of the country's most important Buddhist sites, you'd have to head 25 miles southeast, where you'd find yourself at Mes Aynak, on the edge of the tiny but strategically located Logar province.Mes Aynak is a sprawling, mountainous, 9,800-acre site studded with artifacts that archaeologists believe are as significant as the Bamiyan Buddhas, as well as the remains of civilizations that stretch back to the time of Alexander the Great. It is also, coincidentally, a copper mine—in fact, it's the site of the second-largest copper deposit in the world. Mes Aynak is one of dozens of known sites across Afghanistan brimming with rich deposits of other minerals—iron ore, lithium and cobalt.Not surprisingly, the Afghanistan government is determined to cash in, especially since the United States plans to pull out most of its combat troops by the end of 2014 and reduce accompanying aid in the coming years. Afghanistan has struck an estimated $3 billion deal with the China Metallurgical Group Corporation, a Chinese government–owned company, to mine the copper deposit within the next 30 years. While this certainly could be a jackpot for the poverty-stricken country, it could also come at the price of Afghanistan's cultural heritage.

A dig in Mes Aynak reveals the remains of an ancient Buddhist monastery Photograph by Leon Chew

The Chinese beat out bidders from Australia and India to win the project, but with a stipulation that mining would not begin until 2014, so archaeologists could dig. The Chinese provided infrastructure and equipment for the excavation, for which the World Bank and the American Embassy, among others, kicked in around $10 million of the estimated $28 million budget. The Chinese have installed an impressive concrete-and-barbed-wire fence along the perimeter, and the Afghan police have provided a brigade of 1,600 guards to protect the copper. For years the site has been plagued by vandals who have chopped body parts off of countless statues to sell on the black market. "The black side of this country is drugs and war, but another Afghanistan, where suffering isn't the story, could exist," says Philippe Marquis, the director of the Délégation Archéologique Française en Afghanistan (DAFA), who has been leading the excavation to extract as many treasures as possible before the drilling begins.On the day that I visit, Marquis and his team—which at any given time can include up to 30 trained archaeologists, 50 university students and 150 workers—face a new obstacle: The excavation has been temporarily halted because of some administrative snafu in the Afghan government. Although Marquis is careful not to show his angst, every day that passes means less time to excavate.

An intact ruin that was once a museum Photograph by Leon Chew

We walk up a flight of stairs chiseled into the cheek of a dusty hillside where white tarps enshroud a city of relics, including grand terra-cotta structures used for worshipping, a corridor leading to a small chapel with a seated Buddha, and fragments of faded red frescoes (although most have been removed by the archaeologists, others have been ravaged by looters). Beyond that, more corridors and Buddhas, some with legs crossed, wrapped in what looks like billowy linens. Narrow lookouts carved into cappuccino-colored, baked-brick walls skirt the edges of the monastery. "Preferably, a dig of this nature would remain in situ," Marquis says. "But because of the proximity to the future mine, everything that can be removed must go. Eventually this entire area will become a huge copper pit."

A detail of a stupa in Mes Aynak

It's a daunting task—the treasures are spread out over nearly 100 acres, and the clock is ticking—but Marquis is optimistic his team can complete the excavation in time. "Considering the damage done by the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas, Mes Aynak could be a chance for redemption," explains Marquis. "It's an opportunity for the Afghans to take control of their cultural heritage."Back in Kabul, Omar Sultan, an archaeologist who is now deputy minister of culture and heritage in the Ministry of Information and Culture, is banking on Marquis's success. "Just like the minerals, only 10 percent of Afghans' cultural heritage is out of the earth," says Sultan, sitting in his cavernous office, in a building tucked behind a towering concrete wall wrapped in barbed wire in the center of the capital. "And with the help of these minerals, we are going to save our cultural heritage."

UNEARTHING HISTORY | Philippe Marquis, far left, and Nicolas Engel, director and deputy director of the Délégation Archéologique Française en Afghanistan, oversee excavations

Until 1978 a major source of Afghanistan's income was tourism, explains Sultan. Back then visitors included mountain climbers lured by treks across Noshaq, the country's highest peak, and sightseers seeking out the ancient shrines and archaeological sites of the Balkh province. Security and a potentially viable cultural infrastructure have Sultan thinking there's a chance tourists may one day come back. "If, God willing, this country is going to stand up on its own two feet, it is going to be because of tourism," he says.Critics at home and abroad continue to fire accusations of corruption and incompetence at the Karzai government. The former minister of mines, Mohammad Ibrahim Adel, for instance, was accused of receiving roughly $30 million in bribes from the Chinese to win the Mes Aynak bid. (Adel stepped down but has denied the allegations.) But the preservation of cultural heritage isn't just rhetoric. The progress here in the Logar province is evidence of its importance to those who are trying to rebuild Afghanistan.

SAVING GRACE | The president of the National Museum of Afghanistan, Omara Khan Massoudi"

The best thing about the Mes Aynak mining operation is the link between commercial activity and protecting cultural resources," says Michael Stanley, a mining specialist for the World Bank. Stanley believes that Mes Aynak could establish a model in which each new mine containing antiquities would be accompanied by archaeological surveys and cultural investments in the surrounding areas.Indeed, the Ministry of Information and Culture is spearheading the creation of a new museum in the heart of Logar to house artifacts from Mes Aynak—a much needed project, since the National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul cannot handle the scale of the excavation. At one time the museum, located on the outskirts of town, facing a charred former king's palace, contained some of the most important finds in Central Asia, including ivory from India, bronze from the Roman Empire, and lacquer from China—all recovered from the time when the region was a vital transport stop along the Silk Road.During the country's civil war in the 1990s, however, the museum lost more than 70 percent of its collection to looting and bombings. The gray stucco building was abandoned for years until the fighting subsided. Fresh coats of paint have erased the blemished and puffy traces of years of water damage. Stunning relics, like the clay head of a goddess from the fifth century A.D., sit under loosely hung track lights in rooms without guards. One main gallery displays a new exhibition—some early findings from Mes Aynak.

Archaeologist and ethnographer Besmillah Popal spends his days preserving historical artifacts

Here, modest glass cases enclose one of the world's oldest seated wooden Buddhas and four torsos from as early as the third century, each missing their heads due to looters. Although the U.S. has pledged $5 million to resuscitate the museum, and an extra $1 million for partnering with an American institution to train employees, the conditions here are still precarious, with no heating and cooling system in place and only eight conservators on staff.The office of the museum's president, Omara Khan Massoudi, overlooks armed guards standing below budding cherry blossom trees. "Art is our responsibility," says Massoudi. "It is the one thing that gives the message to people outside who only hear about killings and bombings that we are not just fighters and terrorists." As he speaks, he snakes tasbih, Islamic prayer beads, around his fingers. "And all of these monuments, including Mes Aynak, are the bridges. Every antiquity has a voice of its own that can help send these messages."

SITE IN PROGRESS | The Chinese camp where up to 200 people will stay while digging.

Massoudi's sentiment is felt most sharply on the campus of Kabul University, where pine and fir trees shade boxy, Bauhaus-inspired structures. Students in traditional dress mix with those in acid-washed jeans and collared shirts. All of the young women have their heads covered, but some of them bare strands of bangs. In one mustard-yellow and rust-colored building, a group of archaeology students have gathered to discuss past trips to Mes Aynak and their hopes of one day returning. The possibility that more archaeological sites will appear in the near future has resulted in exponentially growing class sizes in the past couple of years. But as Ahmad Zia Haidari, a junior, explains, the decision to study in the department was not just about the sector's potential economic benefits. "I had many chances to choose other professions, but it was the deep emotional connection I got when visiting archaeological sites that made me know it was right," he says. At 21, Haidari has only ever known Afghanistan in a state of war. "I looked down, saw the relics and knew," he says, pausing to glance at the other students. "The only way we are going to show the world how strong and powerful we were and could be is through our culture."

Following in the Footsteps of Grünwedel.

2012-01-29T07:25:00.001+01:00

Cave of the ring-bearing doves', Kizil near Kucha (Xinjiang), 5th century BCE.© National Museums in Berlin; Museum of Asian Art

Following in the Footsteps of Grünwedel.
Research on the restoration of Central Asiatic wall paintings as part of the KUR program me
Exhibition in Museum Dahlem, Berlin
10 December 2011 - 29 April 2012

The National Museums in Berlin owns the most important collection of artworks from Central Asia in the world. For this we mainly have to thank the inquiring mind of researcher and indologist Albert Grünwedel (1876-1935). Grünwedel led the first Turfan expedition in 1902 and was director of the Department of Indian Art at the Museum of European Ethnology in Berlin.Albert Grünwedel's discoveries included wall paintings, clay sculptures, stone and wooden artefacts, textiles, metal objects and manuscripts, some of which were transported back to Berlin. The various publications of the results of his research into the art history and archaeology of this region were pivotal in introducing the Buddhist high culture of Central Asia to Germany and even to the rest of Europe. The exhibition explores the 100-year history of these valuable Buddhist wall paintings in the context of the museum and the German archaeological expeditions and highlights groundbreaking new strategies that have been developed to preserve the collection.

Kleine Bachschlucht in der Oase von Kizil.Im Hintergrund befinden sich Eingänge zu verschiedenen Kulthöhlen.Foto: Toralf Grabsch

Press release:
Ab 10.12.2011 ist im Museum für Asiatische Kunst in Berlin-Dahlem die Ausstellung "Auf Grünwedels Spuren" zu sehen. Umfangreiche wissenschaftliche und restauratorische Arbeiten zur Erhaltung der zentralasiatischen buddhistischen Wandmalereien des 5. und 6. Jahrhunderts n. Chr. im Museum für Asiatische Kunst in Berlin werden dann bis zum 30. April 2012 der Öffentlichkeit präsentiert.Dass die Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin die weltweit bedeutendste Sammlung zentralasiatischer Kunstschätze besitzen, ist insbesondere dem Forschergeist des Indologen Albert Grünwedel (1856 bis 1935) zu verdanken. Als Mitarbeiter sind hier vor allem sein Nachfolger Albert von Le Coq (1860 bis 1930) und der Museumstechniker Theodor Bartus (1858 bis 1941) zu nennen.Ausgelöst durch Reiseberichte gegen Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts aus Ost–Turkistan, richtete sich die Aufmerksamkeit zahlreicher Wissenschaftler zunehmend auf die untergegangenen Kulturen entlang der Seidenstraße.Die Expedition, die der Schwede Sven Hedin (1865 bis 1952) im Jahre 1896 unternahm und die archäologische Expedition der Akademie der Wissenschaften in St. Petersburg unter der Leitung von Dimitri Alexan- drowitsch Klementz (1848 bis 1914) lieferten durch zahlreiche von dort mitgebrachte Fundstücke den Beweis, dass am Rande des Tarimbeckens in Zentralasien eine Vielzahl bisher unerforschter buddhistischer Kultstätten vorhanden war. Dass hierdurch auch bei den Berliner Wissenschaftlern geweckte Interesse war nun so groß geworden, dass die Indische Abteilung des damaligen Berliner Völkerkundemuseums zwischen 1902 und 1914 insgesamt vier Expeditionen an die nördliche Seidenstraße entsandte.Die von Albert Grünwedel publizierten kunstwissenschaftlichen und ar- chäologischen Ergebnisse seiner Forschungen zu den entdeckten und teilweise nach Berlin verbrachten Wandmalereien, Lehmskulpturen, Stein- und Holzobjekten, Textilien, Metallfunden und Handschriften machten in Deutschland und darüber hinaus in ganz Europa die buddhistische Hochkultur Zentralasiens bekannt. Seinen ersten Reisebericht von den Forschungen und Ausgrabungen in Ost–Turkestan publiziert er 1905 unter dem Titel: Bericht über die archäologischen Arbeiten in Idikutschari und Umgebung im Winter 1902/03 (München 1905).Ein weiteres für Kunsthistoriker und Restauratoren besonders hilfreiches Werk veröffentlicht er nach der großen Expedition 1905/07 unter dem Titel: Altbuddhistische Kultstätten in Chinesisch - Turkistan (Berlin 1912). Dieses Buch mit seinen außergewöhnlich genauen Beschreibungen, Fotografien und Abbildungen von Pausen und Plänen zahlreicher zentral- asiatischer Bildwerke, ist für die heutige Restaurierung und Konservierung der Objekte im Museum für Asiatische Kunst von unschätzbarem Wert. In dieser Publikation sind viele der von ihm entdeckten Höhlentempel mit ihren reichhaltigen Secco - Wandmalereien aus dem 3. bis 10. Jh. n. Chr. so präzise beschrieben, vermessen und zeichnerisch abgebildet, dass heute sogar genaueste Rekonstruktionen der vielen Kriegsverluste angefertigt werden können.

Zeichnung von zwei tocharischen Fürsten aus der »Höhle der 16 Schwert- träger« von Albert Grünwedel 1906. Foto: Bildarchiv SMB

Die von Grünwedel in seinen Werken dokumentierten Tempelanlagen befinden sich am Rande der Wüste Taklamakan, abseits der Zentren der nördlichen Seidenstraße. In das weiche Gestein des Gebirgszuges sind dort eine Vielzahl von Höhlen, die als Wohn- und Meditationsräume von buddhistische Mönchen genutzt wurden, eingegraben und, wenn sie als Kulthöhlen dienten, vielfach farbenprächtig ausgemalt.Die Lebens- und Expeditionsgeschichte von Albert Grünwedel und die umfangreiche wissenschaftliche Restaurierung seit 1998 an der weltberühmten Turfan-Sammlung stehen im Mittelpunkt dieser Ausstellung. Eine zentrale Rolle spielte dabei das seit 2008 laufende KUR-Projekt (gefördert durch die Kulturstiftungen des Bundes und der Länder und der Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz) mit dem Titel "Alterung von künstlichen Bindemitteln auf Wandmalereien". In diesem Projekt konnten erstmals vielfältige naturwissenschaftliche Untersuchungen mit dem Rathgen- Forschungslabor und der Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und - prüfung (BAM) zur Anwendung gebracht werden. Ziel der Untersuchungen sollte die Entfernung der in den 60er Jahren als Konservierungsmittel in die Wandmalereien eingebrachten Kunststoffe sein. Auch wurden viele Wandmalereien der „Höhle der 16 Schwertträger“ aus dem 5. Jh. n. Chr. umfassend restauriert. Darüber hinaus war es einem Expeditionsteam des Museums für Asiatische Kunst, Berlin, im September 2011 erstmals möglich, umfassende Untersuchungen an Wandmalereien in den verschiedenen Oasen entlang der nördlichen Seidenstraße in der chinesischen Provinz Xinjiang durchzuführen.Viele Jahre nach dem Ende der Turfan-Expeditionen 1914, wird es dem Publikum nun möglich sein, alle im Museum befindlichen Wandmalereien (ca. 30 qm ) dieser Kulthöhle mit ihren buddhistischen Verehrungsszenen im Zusammenhang zu betrachten.Die im KUR-Projekt geleistete Restaurierungsforschung bildet die Grund- lage für weitere geplante Forschungsvorhaben insbesondere zur antiken Maltechnik in Zentralasien. Ziel dieser Ausstellung ist es, einerseits die 100-jährige Museums- und Expeditionsgeschichte dieser wertvollen buddhistischen Gemälde zu erläutern und andererseits die neu erarbeiteten wegweisenden Erhaltungsstrategien für diese Sammlung einer breiten Öffentlichkeit zu präsentieren.

River of Wisdom

2012-01-25T22:35:00.001+01:00

River of Wisdom – Animated Version of the Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival

27 November, 2010 by Roland Lim in his blog " The World according to Roland"

In the Shanghai World Expo 2010, the “Animated Version of the Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival” created by modern multimedia technology earns its reputation as the star exhibit in the China Pavilion. Projected on a giant screen of more than 120 metres long and 6 metres high, the picture shows its details with animation including moving people, running water, various kinds of goods being displayed for sale, boat trackers shouting on the river and boats swinging their ways forward. A vivid, artificial river meanders through the lower part of the giant picture, giving visitors a stunning experience and an illusion that they are staying in Bianjing, the capital of Northern Song Dynasty nine hundred years ago. This giant picture is called “River of Wisdom” because it depicts many cultural aspects demonstrating the wisdom of Chinese in ancient times. The animated version of the picture is 30 times of its original scroll. Elaborate computer animation gives life to characters and objects in the painting. An integrated image is formed by several high resolution projectors using sophisticated computer geometric transformation and correction technology. The entire features of the original painting including all its streets, boats and buildings are retained in the animation. The scene is portrayed in day to night cycles lasting for four minutes with dramatic interplay of light and colour. It is indeed a masterpiece that blends state-of-the-art animation technology with traditional Chinese culture. Additional elements of history, culture, art and education are incorporated in the exhibition. These include the introduction of the significance of the “Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival” in the Chinese culture and art, and the depiction of the production idea and process of its animated version. The exhibition facilitates visitors to learn more about the urban outlook, people’s daily life and the achievements in science and technology in Song Dynasty.
I was lucky to have obtained a ticket to see River of Wisdom when it was temporarily moved to the AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong for short term exhibition after the Shanghai World Expo finished. The scale of the display simply huge and one needs to be there in person to a a perspective of how large it is. I have made a short video with Canon EOS 5D Mark II. I hope you will enjoy it.

Bactrian Greeks, the Bamiyan and Avukana Buddha statues

2012-01-24T22:15:00.003+01:00

Rajitha Weerakoon discusses the Greek connection with colossal Buddha statuesAround 30,000 Greek bhikkhus had arrived in Anuradhapura from the monasteries of Alasanda (the city of the Yonas, Alexandria in present Afghanistan) according to Geiger’s Mahavamsa (chapter XX1X (39)) to participate in the inauguration of the construction of the Mahaseya (Ruvanveliseya.) The Greek bhikkhus led by Yonamahadharmarakkhita Thera had been part of 96,000 foreign bhikkhus who had arrived from several ancient Indian states and Persia for the ceremonial event.Evidently, Buddhism had been the vibrant force behind Sri Lanka’s interaction with foreign countries in early history and as studies reveal, Bactrian Greek (Indo-Greek) influence in days gone by has had a lasting impact on Sri Lanka.Professor A.D.T.E. Perera of the Department of Philosophy, University of Mexico and former Editor of the Buddhist Encyclopaedia writing a scholarly essay on “Colossal Buddha Images of Ancient Sri Lanka” had stated that Bactrian Greek art influenced the sculpture of colossal images of the Buddha in Sri Lanka.Bactrians, on leaving NW India spread out from Kabul to Punjab after their defeat by Chandragupta in the Mauryan Period. But having been attracted to the new Buddhist doctrine while they were in NW India, they, after their shift, sculpted imposing images of the Buddha in standing position in the Bamiyan Region in Afghanistan which were destroyed by the Taliban a few years ago.These images Professor Perera states led to the ideas pertaining to the turning out of colossal statues of the Buddha in Sri Lanka. The first attempt was the carving of the Avukana Buddha Image in the ancient Rajarata.

The Avukana Buddha statue and inset, the Bamiyan Buddha statue

Bactrian images of the Buddha in the Bamiyan region in Afghanistan Prof. Perera traces may have been a veritable source of inspiration to the early artists who crossed the Kabul valley which linked the Southern branch of the Great Northern Highway referred to in the early Buddhist and Indian texts as “Uttarapada” – the trade route of the then known world which bridged the East and the West on commercial, political and cultural levels.Traders, pilgrims and even men of learning had crossed the region in search of various fortunes. Prof. Perera says that Sri Lankans too may have had links with this ancient world known as Gandhara which covered a vast area extending beyond NW India and it was such religio-cultural-trade contacts that had prevailed between Sri Lanka and the Gandhara region that may have led to the invitation to be extended by King Dutugamunu to the Greek bhikkhus to participate in the inauguration of the construction of the Mahaseya.According to the essay, archaeological researchers and art historians distinguish a close similarity between the Avukana image with that of the Bamiyan. The Bamiyan region had been referred to in early Buddhist Prakrit as Vokkana, Avakana or Vakana. The name Avukana it is surmised had been derived for the colossal statue in Sri Lanka from the name of the Bamiyan region.Bactrian Greek Buddhist artists had been very active in the 2nd or the 3rd centuries BC in the Bamiyan region in West Asia and the Buddha images silhouetted against the vast sandy valley bearing a calm and serene composure may have been an awe-inspiring vision for the travellers who passed by. The images had stood at 112 and 172 feet respectively and were housed within their own chapels.The 43 feet tall Avukana Buddha image depicts the abhaya mudra with the right hand raised towards the right shoulder indicating that the devotee is protected from all fears (bhaya.) The raised left hand is touching the left shoulder with the palm turning towards the Buddha – a gesture seeking the Buddha to release the devotee from sentient bondage (samsara). The back of the image is not separated from the rock boulder out of which the figure is hewn.Professor Perera however states that the Maligavila Buddha image, 52 feet in height with its lotus pedestal, was considered as one of the world’s tallest standing images sculpted in ancient times. It was discovered in southern Sri Lanka fallen with broken limbs and beaten by the elements. This may have been due to the fact that the image carved on limestone was sculpted on the round. It may have fallen unlike other images since it was separated from a living rock. The third colossal Buddha image which Professor Perera had discussed was found at Sasseruva close to Anuradhapura. Sculpted in high relief with the back cleaving to the living rock boulder, the image was either badly weatherworn when it was found or left unfinished by the sculptor. Although it falls short of the elegance of the Avukana image, it bears the same features with regard to stylistic concepts, the hand posture, the method of wearing the “civara” with the right shoulder kept bare and the drapery delineated by parallel ridges as followed by sculptors of the classical period.These Buddha images are dated to around the 4th – the 6th centuries in the present era. All colossal Bamiyan statues had been sculpted by those who advocated Mahayana Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism it is believed had its birth in the Bamiyan part of the Gandhara region. Professor Perera states that the concept of portraying the Buddha in super human qualities – as a saviour of all human and divine beings was followed wherever Mahayana Buddhism spread.The concept of the bodhisatvas belonging to the Mahayana pantheon eventually had found its way into the ensemble of architectural compositions of colossal sculptures in Sri Lanka. Close to the Maligavila Buddha image, a huge bodhisatva image had been disovered. And in the group of colossal sculptures at Buduruvagala, the primary image of the Buddha is flanked by bodhisatva Avalokitheshvara of the Mahayana pantheon with Goddess Tara. On the other side is the bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta with his consort Prajna – all referred to as acolytes of Buddha Amitabha who resides in Sukhavati. The colossal Buddha in parinibbana manca (death bed) sculpted in the Polonnaruwa period does not belong to the Mahayana pantheon. But Professor Perera says that the concept had gained currency even after the fall of Anuradhapura and hence the Polonnaruwa images belonged to the last lap in the classical period of Sinhala art.The Greeks’ entry to the Buddhist theatre in India could be traced to the invasion of Alexander in 334 BC when he captured some parts of the NW India extending as far as the Indus. With the conquest and setting up of Greek settlements, his Greek garrison and a host of camp-followers had poured into NW India who may have been assimilated into the Indian populace. These Greeks, fascinated by the new Buddhist doctrine introduced about 200 years earlier, had embraced Buddhism. Some had joined the Bhikku Order.Although Alexander’s rule in India ended with his death 18 months later, Greek influence continued for several more centuries. It is recorded that Emperor Dharmashoka (about 273-232 BC) in the Mauryan Period sent Greek Bhikkhus such as Dharmarakkhita and Mahadharmarakkhita Theros to Syria, Egypt, Macedonia, Cyrene and Epirus as emissaries of Dhamma.In the pre-Graeco period, the image of the Buddha in India was represented symbolically by His Footprints, a lotus, the Bodhi, the Dharmachakra, the Caitya etc. From the Greek-Indian fusion rose the Graeco-Buddhist art of Gandhara when Greeks contributed to the sculpted work of the Ashoka Pillars and to the commencement of the Mauryan art with Buddha image carved.In the earliest sculptures excavated in the Gandhara sites, the Greek influence is seen in the representations of the Buddha where the Buddha had been elevated to a God. The Bactrians who had spread out from NW India and Kabul to Punjab and West Asia progressed into portraying the Buddha figure in superhuman qualities which brought about the origins of the titanic image of the Buddha. With the spread of Mahayana the concept too spread.Besides the colossal images of the Buddha, Greek influence on early literature is discussed by Professor Merlin Peris in his book titled “Mahavamsa Studies Greek myths in Ancient Tradition” where he discloses an element of Greek mythology in certain anecdotes related in the Mahavamsa.Elaborating on his statement he says that L.S. Perera, A.L. Basham and G. C. Mendis in the “University of Ceylon, History of Ceylon” had commented on the affinities which could be seen in Vijaya-Kuveni affair with that of the Greek adventure of Odysseus with Circe in Homer. Professor Peris says that besides, the Greek myth Jason and Medea is emulated in the killing of the yakshas with Kuveni’s help and the dismissal of her and her children for a royal marriage (men are afraid of enchantresses.)Greek story motifs Professor Peris says may have found their way into the “Attakatha Mahavamsa” (pre-Mahavamsa literary work) before being incorporated by the Mahavamsa author when he wrote on the reigns of our earliest kings.Professor Peris sees motifs of the Greek myth of Danae in the episodes of Ummadacitta, certain early heroes and the sacrifice of Viharamahadevi. However, while Professor Peris’ interpretation of incorporation of Greek story motifs in the earliest literary tradition gives food for thought, Greek impact on Sri Lankan religio-culture illustrates the fact that Sri Lanka had been very much in the international whirlpool.

Source: The Sunday Times (of Sri Lanka)

Scholars intrigued by Afghan scrolls

2012-01-24T13:05:00.000+01:00

KABUL, Afghanistan — A cache of ancient Jewish scrolls from northern Afghanistan that recently came to light is creating a storm among scholars who say the find could reveal an undiscovered side of the religion in medieval times.Experts said the 150 or so documents, dated from the 11th century, were found in Afghanistan's Samangan province and most likely smuggled out — a common fate for the impoverished country's antiquities.Israeli emeritus professor Shaul Shaked, who has examined some of the poems, commercial records and judicial agreements that make up the treasure, said while the existence of ancient Afghan Jewish civilization is known, the culture was still a mystery."Here, for the first time, we see evidence and we can actually study the writings of this Jewish community. It's very exciting," Shaked said from Israel, where he teaches in the comparative religion and Iranian studies department at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.The cache is being kept by private antique dealers in London, who have been producing a trickle of new documents over the past two years, which is when Shaked believes they were found and pirated out of Afghanistan.It is likely they belonged to Jewish merchants on the Silk Road running across Central Asia, said T. Michael Law, a British Academy postdoctoral fellow at Oxford University's Center for Hebrew and Jewish Studies.Cultural authorities in Kabul had mixed reactions to the find, which scholars say is without a doubt from Afghanistan, arguing that the Judeo-Persian language used on the scrolls is similar to other Afghan Jewish manuscripts.National Archives director Sakhi Muneer denied the find was Afghan, arguing that he would have seen it, while an adviser in the Culture Ministry said it "cannot be confirmed but it is entirely possible.""A lot of old documents and sculptures are not brought to us but are sold elsewhere for 10 times the price" the ministry pays, said adviser Jalal Norani, explaining that excavators and ordinary people who stumble across finds sell them to middlemen who then auction them off in Iran, Pakistan and Europe."Unfortunately, we cannot stop this," Norani said. The Culture Ministry, he said, pays on average $1,500 for a recovered antique item. The Hebrew University's Shaked estimated the Jewish documents' worth at several million dollars.Thirty years of war and conflict have severely hindered both the collecting and preserving of Afghanistan's antiquities."I am sure Afghanistan, like any country, would like to control their antiquities. … But on the other hand, with this kind of interest and importance, as a scholar I can't say that I would avoid studying them," Shaked said of the find.

La Mongolie entre deux ères. 1912-1913

2012-01-19T17:36:00.000+01:00

La Mongolie entre deux ères. 1912-1913

Du 29 novembre 2011 au 16 septembre 2012, le Conseil général des Hauts-de-Seine présente l’exposition « La Mongolie, entre deux ères. 1912-1913 » au musée Albert-Kahn à Boulogne-Billancourt. Celle-ci révèle la Mongolie du début du XXème siècle mis en valeur par l’un des fleurons du patrimoine du département des Hauts-de-Seine : les collections d’images conservées au musée Albert-Kahn. Rendez-vous au cœur des steppes, parmi les cavaliers, au milieu des yourtes et des temples bouddhistes pour une évocation haute en couleur et riche d’enseignements sur un monde aujourd’hui disparu.

Au total sont présentés :
72 autochromes (premier procédé industriel de photographie en couleurs véritables) provenant du fonds Albert-Kahn
1 film muet noir et blanc provenant du fonds Albert-Kahn, 1 film noir et blanc provenant des archives Pathé-Gaumont
11 objets archéologiques prêtés par le musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet
38 reproductions de documents anciens conservés dans des fonds patrimoniaux français et mongols.
500 m2 d’exposition

Eclairage sur l’exposition
Son nom suffit à évoquer l’Ailleurs, le voyage, l’immensité des steppes, les galops des cavaliers nomades, les yourtes… La nouvelle exposition du musée Albert-Kahn plonge le visiteur dans l’univers menacé de la Mongolie du début du 20e siècle.

Si le mode de vie nomade est toujours d’actualité aujourd’hui, bon nombre des autres réalités captées par l’objectif de Stéphane Passet en 1912 et 1913 seront vite balayées par la marche de l’Histoire. Dans cette région dominée par les deux géants que sont la Chine et la Russie, les révolutions sont en marche et bientôt la face du monde sera changée.

À travers 72 photographies, 2 films d’époque et 38 documents d’archives, c’est une Mongolie à la fois proche et lointaine qui s’expose, illustrant la mission fondamentale assignée par Albert Kahn aux opérateurs chargés de constituer les Archives de la Planète : « fixer une fois pour toute des aspects, des pratiques et des modes de l’activité humaine dont la disparition fatale n’est plus qu’une question de temps ». Et, en Mongolie plus qu’ailleurs, le temps était compté.

Pour cette exposition, le Conseil général propose une application iPhone introduisant l’exposition et présentant quelques autochromes, ainsi qu’un audioguide et un parcours-jeu papier pour les enfants. En complément, les visiteurs peuvent accéder dans le musée à un panorama numérique du fonds Mongolie dans les Archives de la Planète.

Les grands axes de l’exposition

La Mongolie entre deux ères présente un aperçu de l’histoire mongole et du contexte politique du voyage de l’opérateur dans la Mongolie au début du XXe siècle.

Les missions européennes en Mongolie, une longue histoire : de nombreux voyageurs explorèrent les routes de la soie, du moyen-âge à nos jours. Sont mis en avant : du 13e au 19e siècle, les voyages dans l’empire mongol, en 1909 : la mission d’Henry Bouillane de Lacoste « Au pays sacré des anciens Turcs et des Mongols », en 1912-1913 : le voyage de M. Passet, en 1931-1932 : « l’épopée de la Croisière Jaune » et une mission d’aujourd’hui : la mission archéologique française en Mongolie
La société mongole du début du XXe siècle : description de la société mongole, de sa vie quotidienne et de ses traditions vestimentaires spectaculaires notamment à travers les aspects de la vie nomade, le vêtement comme marqueur social d’une société extrêmement codifiée et un peuple de cavaliers dont on dit encore aujourd’hui qu’ils vivent, naissent et meurent à cheval…
Ourga, 1913 : suite à la chute, en 1911, du « dernier empereur » de la dynastie des Qing, l’ancienne province mandchoue de Mongolie-Extérieure proclame son indépendance. C’est son chef religieux, un grand maître tibétain de l’école bouddhiste des Gelugpa, qui devient le chef de l’État. Son lieu de résidence : Ourga, devient la capitale. Cette section permet de découvrir les transformations de la ville, du campement à celle-ci et l’importance de ce lieu en tant que centre de pèlerinages et capitale spirituelle et temporelle.
Une zone sous influences : en 1912-1913, les deux Mongolie sont « entre deux ères » : pour la Mongolie-Intérieure, l’ère mandchoue s’achève et laisse place à l’ère chinoise. La Mongolie indépendante, elle, prend la Russie pour modèle jusqu’à devenir, en 1924, une République populaire. Les convictions anticléricales et les ambitions en termes de rénovation urbaine de ce nouveau régime conduiront à la destruction de la grande majorité des monuments présentés dans l’exposition.

Ancient Bronzes of the Asian Grasslands

2012-01-19T10:02:00.000+01:00

Five spectacular shows kick off the Holter Museum of Art’s 25th anniversary year, including a centerpiece exhibit “Ancient Bronzes of the Asian Grasslands from the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation.”

Crafted by artisans of the Asian steppes, the 85 ancient bronzes on display were once used by horsemen, chieftains and shamans as far back as 3,400 years ago.
An opening reception for all five exhibits (see related articles) is set for 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20, at the Holter. And a talk by the curator of the Sackler Foundation, Trudy Kawami, is at 5:30 p.m. across the street from the Holter at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church.

The Asian steppes, encompassing a vast region stretching from east of the Gobi Desert in Mongolia to the far western grasslands of Kazakhstan beyond the Caspian Sea, are home to nomadic tribes with a rich and ancient culture. Skilled herders and animal breeders, they were the first to domesticate the wild horse, said Holter Curator Yvonne Seng. It was these nomadic herdsmen and horsemen who guided trade caravans along the famous Silk Road linking Asia to Europe. “They controlled transportation of goods, but also transportation of information,” she said. It was a major route of cultural exchange. Among the exhibit items are cauldrons used by shamans for mixing mind-altering herbs, which would later gave rise to European legends of magic cauldrons. The shamans inhaled the fumes of the drugs and entered ecstatic, trance-like states to contact animal and human spirits and the forces of nature.There’s also a spoon, adorned with graceful bird-shapes, used for measuring sacred herbs; decorative belt buckles in the form of yaks or felines attacking deer; ornate knives; and a sword with an ibex handle. “Some of the items would have belonged to chieftains and were buried ceremonially,” said Seng. “Some were used for personal adornment.” Accompanying the exhibit is a slideshow of faces and places of the Asian grasslands. “The topography is very similar to Montana,” said Seng, as is their love for horses. “I think it’s a perfect fit,” said Seng of the show, “both culturally and artistically. There’s an affinity with what we have here.” In fact, in the languages of the Asian steppes, the word for God, “Tangri,” translates as “the great blue sky,” said Seng. And the Mongolian word for horse, “Takh,” means holy. “Montana and the Asian steppes share a passion for horse culture and a love of the wide open sky.... These two passions — horses and the wide open — link the work of ancient horsemen to contemporary regional artists.” The other Holter exhibits include: life-size clay sculptures by Wanxin Zhang, “A Ten Year Survey”; “Horse and Rider” a joint exhibit by Montana artists John Buck and Deborah Butterfield; “Shifting Perspectives,” a photo-and-essay exhibit of China by Missoula photographer Dudley Dana and writer Candace Crosby; and “Invite Your Demons to Tea,” a series of Tibetan-inspired ceramic works by Helena artist Valerie Hellermann. The Holter show of the Ancient Bronzes is a rare opportunity for not only Helenans but people of the whole Western region to see these artworks, most of which date from 1300 B.C. to 200 A.D., said Seng. The exhibit made only one previous trip West, and this is its first visit to the Rocky Mountain region. It’s also traveled to Greece, Poland, Europe and the East Coast.“These pieces were collected by four missionary families in the early 20th century,” said Seng. Sackler, a research psychiatrist and art collector, purchased them, bringing together over 1,000 pieces of art. He also established a foundation to make his art collection available to the general public. He once said, “Great art, like science and the humanities, can never remain as the possession of one individual, creator or collector. ... great art and all culture belongs to all humankind.”“It’s a huge honor,” said Seng, to host the exhibit. It’s also a huge gift. The foundation has waived the typical $45,000 exhibit fee because of its commitment to show the items in rural areas where people might not otherwise have an opportunity to see them. The Holter paid for transportation and the cost of building its own exhibit cases, which are specially designed to allow air to circulate freely. This protects the bronzes from “off-gassing” that produces moisture, causing the beautiful but damaging blue-green patina on bronze. “It’s exciting, it’s really exciting to have all these exhibits together,” Seng said. They speak powerfully of Asia’s historic influence on art, but also provide fresh inspiration for contemporary artists. “What more can I say. It will be a feast for the eye. I think it will be a great celebration for the 25th.”

No excavation plans for Wu Zetian's tomb

2012-01-18T21:34:00.000+01:00

The Qianling Mausoleum Management Office on Thursday repudiated a wide spreading rumor that the government was considering the large scale excavation of Empress Wu Zetian's tomb, saying it was "sheer fiction," Huashang Daily reported.Chen Yande, vice director of the office, told the newspaper that the excavation of the tomb will not be put on the agenda within at least the next 50 years.Previous reports originated from a weekly publication said the time was ripe to open up the tomb rooms since archeologists have accurately detected their locations. They suggested the possibly broken ancient structures and relics were in urgent need of repairs. The reports said the government could also use the opportunity to develop the vast western region and boost the province's local tourism by attracting additional 5 million visitors every year."The bureau did invite the Tsinghua University in 2011 to design a 20-year plan of the scenic spot development, and the plan has initially passed the appraisal of experts," Chen said. "But some people might probably have quoted [that information] out of context and misunderstood."Zhao Rong, director of the provincial cultural relics protection bureau, was doing research at the tomb site Wednesday. He clarified the report by saying "the current top priority task of the bureau is to preserve the integrity of the tomb site and maintaining the environment of surrounding areas."Qianling Mausoleum Museum Chairman Fan Yingfeng added that the museum had never discussed the excavation of the tomb with departments of cultural relics.

About the Qianling Mausoleum

Built in the year 684 and sitting 80 kilometers northwest of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, Qianling is the tomb of both Emperor Li Zhi of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and his wife Wu Zetian, the only empress in Chinese history who reigned for 50 years. Qianling is the only ancient tomb in China that contains the remains of multiple emperors.In the past 1,200-odd years, there were numerous attempted robberies of the tomb, including 17 large-scale ones, which all reportedly ended in failure and thus added an air of mystery to the still-intact Tang Dynasty tomb.Qianling was listed as one of the historical relics under state-level protection in 1961. Applications to open up the tomb have never been approved by the Chinese government.

From: China.org.cn

China offers S.Lanka help to find Silk Route wrecks

2012-01-18T21:04:00.000+01:00

COLOMBO — Chinese authorities are seeking permission to explore Sri Lanka's coastline for possible Chinese ship wrecks from the ancient Silk Route era, an official said Wednesday.Sri Lanka, an Indian Ocean island, was a key trading post along the ancient Silk Route which saw silk, spices and handicrafts travel by road and sea between Asia and Europe.The seas around the island's southern port of Galle are known to have at least 75 ancient ship wrecks, of which 25 have been well documented.The unsolicited offer by Science Foundation of China to deploy experts to look for vessels along Sri Lanka's coast was under consideration, Director General of Archaeology Senarath Disanayake told AFP.He said, however, that the Chinese had asked to keep half of all antiquities brought up from the ocean bed -- a condition Sri Lanka could not agree to."They also want us to pay for a vessel to carry out the exploration and that is something we can't afford," Disanayake said.China is increasing its presence in Sri Lanka with the construction of a deep-sea port in the island's south as well as several other key infrastructure projects.Sri Lanka's immediate neighbour India has become sensitive about increasing Chinese influence on the island.Source: AFP

Decoding Sogdian Funerary Art in China

2012-01-17T22:32:00.002+01:00

Lecture:Decoding Sogdian Funerary Art in China: Politics, Religion, and Transculturation in the Sixth Century
by Mandy Jui-man Wu, An Wang, Postdoctoral Fellow
Location: CGIS South, Room S153, 1730 Cambridge Street, Harvard University

Some Sogdian merchants, craft workers, translators, and priests coming from Central Asia via the Silk Road, started to establish Sogdian communities in China around the third century CE. The newly excavated Sogdian tombs near Xi’an dating to the Northern Zhou period (557-581 CE) have led to a flurry of academic research. Dr. Wu will use the tomb of Kang Ye, a Zoroastrian priest, to show what Sogdian tombs can tell us about the society in which they lived. By examining the Chinese pictorial images decorating Kan Ye’s funerary furniture, which actually represent Zoroastrian death rituals, Dr. Wu will explore the political negotiation of cultural identity as a result of processes of transculturation in sixth-century China.Mandy Jui-Man Wu is currently an An Wang postdoctoral fellow at the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies. She received her PhD in art history from University of Pittsburgh in 2010. Her current research rethinks the issues of power, constructed identities, and transculturation through examining mortuary art in sixth-century tombs in Northern China. She has published several articles, discussing issues such as gender roles in late Neolithic mortuary practices, the centrality of exotica to visual displays in Sui tombs, and remaining Sogdians in Eastern Asia in the six century. She is currently working on a book manuscript titled “Art, Power, and Identities: Hybridity in Mortuary Art in Sixth-Century Northern China.”

International archaeology conference: Scholars for steps to preserve heritage sites

2012-01-17T21:47:00.003+01:00

Islamabad: A four-day international conference on archaeology concluded with an emphasis on the need to undertake new studies and immediate steps to preserve endangered cultural heritages in the region.

Scholars, on the last day, talked about the Silk Route, Hindu and Sikh temples in Hazara and Islamic and Talpur period architecture.
Ravi Korisettar from Karnatak University in India chaired the morning session.

The first presenter, John Mock from the University of California Santa Cruz in the USA, talked about history and culture of Afghanistan’s Wakhan corridor, expanding on Aurel Stein’s descriptions.He presented an initial analysis of several new finds, including the site of Lien Yuen, which Stein discussed but was unable to locate.He also talked about Tibetan-style fort complexes and watch towers, inscriptions and numerous rock carvings that appear to represent the Silk Route caravan trade.He said these materials provide new information on the history and culture of Central Asia and the Silk Route, and underline an urgent need for thorough documentation and preservation of this globally significant heritage, said a handout issued by the organizers.

Tahir Saeed from Federal Archaeology and Museums Department spoke about local and foreign influences on the iconography of Buddhist art in Korea. “The early formative stage of Korean-Buddhist culture and art is closely followed by earlier Chinese models which were developed from different sources starting from the Indian subcontinent,” he said.

Ibrahim Shah from Hazara University presented his survey on Hindu Temples in Hazara, which mostly date back to the Sikh and the British periods. He said there is a dire need to study the architecture and decoration of these temples before they go into decay.

Other scholars talked about the Islamic architecture of Swat, Talpur period architecture in Sindh, shrines, common features of the regional Islamic archaeology and illustrated manuscripts in National Museum of Pakistan.The conference also gave scholars a chance to interact with each other and youngsters from around the country.The conference concluded at noon. An excursion trip to Taxila for conference guests was held after the closing of the event.

The four-day conference consisted of back-to-back sessions and discussions carried out by leading archaeologists and museum specialists from well-known universities in Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and the US.The conference was organised by American Institute of Pakistan Studies with support from the US embassy and the Government of Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 9th, 2012.

An unrecognized photo of Aurel Stein

2012-01-17T17:42:00.000+01:00

From: Chinese Manuscripts, a blog by Imre Galambos

Last week we went down for a few days to the south of Hungary and while there I wanted to see at a village called Gádoros, near Orosháza, the “museum” of Zsigmond Justh (1863-1894), a talented Hungarian writer who died too young to fulfill his early promise. He was a close friend of Lionel Dunsterforce (1865-1946), the later major-general, after whom R. Kipling modelled the character Stalky in his book Stalky and Co. (Dunsterville later used this name in the title of his own memoirs: Stalky’s Reminiscences, London: 1928.) Justh visited Dunsterville in 1892 in Mian Mir where the Englishman was stationed at the time. It is here that he met the young Aurel Stein who was working at the Oriental College in Lahore. Following their acquaintance, Stein wrote a number of very warm letters to Justh and in the following summer even visited him at his estate in Szenttornya, not far from Gádoros where his museum is today. Although Justh died the following year (1894), Stein and Dunsterville corresponded for decades (at the Hungarian National Library there are letters from Dunsterville to Stein from 1941).In the two small rooms of the museum (or rather, exhibition) there are lots of photographs and letters. Among the material related to his trip to India, there is a group photo where the bearded Justh sits on a chair, holding a tea cup on his knee. The caption reads, “With his friends in India — next to him is Lionel Dunsterville.” But on the left side, we can see the standing figure of the young Aurel Stein. This is a rare photo from this early period of Stein’s life, long before he became a celebrated explorer. The photo must date to December 1892, when Justh was visiting.

New discoveries in ancient Longyuanfu, east capital of the Bohai Kingdom

2012-01-17T17:33:00.000+01:00

The Kraskino city-site is located in Kraskino Township in Russia’s southern Primorsky Territory, near the mouth of the Chukanov River, known as ancient Longyuanfu, the east capital of Bohai Kingdom. Since 1980, Institute of Far East History, Archaeology and Nationality Studies, the Far East Branch of Russia Science Academy has conducted years of survey and excavations. In recent years scholars from Japan and Korea have also attended excavations to the city walls and the inside remains.According to the agreement with its Russia partner, Institute of Far East History, Archaeology and Nationality Studies, the Far East Branch of Russia Science Academy, Jilin Provincial Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Relic has conducted 20-day’s survey to the city-site since September 2011. Before, the Russia side had explored it wholly with electromagnetic sensing techniques, which provided reference for this excavation. The north (Area I) and southeast (Area II) parts of the site were selected to be further explored, with an drilling area totaled 4000 square meter.

The drilling exploration yielded 7 building remains, 4 serious-destroyed or unclear wall segments, and 2 ash pits from an earlier period. Remain 1 at the southwest of Area I is a rectangular stone-walled structure built on the ground, measuring 20 m long from east to west and 11 m wide from south to north, orientation 224°. There are three probable column base remains in the middle of the area, which are arranged in a line parallel with the wall. Each of them is built with irregular stones, measuring 1 m wide and 1.5 m long.Remain 3 in the middle of Area I is a rectangular structure built on the ground, with the west wall measuring 4.5 m long and 0.5 m wide, the remaining north wall 8.1 m long and 0.5 m wide, the remaining south wall 1.8 m long and 0.5 m wide, orientation 211°.Remain 5 in the north of Area I is another rectangular structure built on the ground, measuring 9 m from west to east and 6.5 m from south to north and 0.5 thick.The ash pit is in a roughly round shape, with the fillings containing large amount of charcoal debris and a few of reddish scorched earthen grains. No other artifacts have been found.All artifacts are unearthed from drilling, which are mostly potteries including tiles and containers. There are 8 pieces of tiles, which are all plate tiles with undecorated convex surface and fabric-patterned concave surface, showing a typical characteristic of the Bohai Kingdom period. The tile’s earthen body, measuring 1.4-1.8 cm in thickness, is mixed with fine sands. Their surfaces are mostly in gray, some are in red, and a very few are in black. There are more than 20 pieces of ceramics, mostly made of fine earth and some mixed with fine sands. Those with a black surface are in the majority, gray and reddish brown potteries take the second. On some wares distinct traces from wheel-making could be seen. Judged from the rims, bottoms and shapes of the body, they originally could belong to large objects with a flat bottom like pots, urns and jars. In additional, other findings include ceramic rings, ceramic cake models, tricolor fragments and animal bones.Commissioned by the Russia side, Jilin archaeologists have drilling-explored the adjacent region of an uncovered tomb from the Bohai period, locating at 300 m west of the city-site. A stone-built tomb from the Bohai period has been found, which is in a nearly rectangular shape and built with irregular stones. The tomb’s walls are about 0.3-0.4 m wide and 0.6 m high. The tomb pit measures 4.7 m long from south to north and 2.6 m wide from west to east. The opening of the tomb is 0.5 m deep and the bottom is 1.2 m deep under the surface. The tomb chamber is 3.6 m long from south to north, 1.8 m wide from west to east and 0.6 m deep.The Kraskino city-site is the only known Bohai Kingdom city that has been excavated for years and is confirmed by the academic circle. But limited by the working progress the overall plane and structure of the site are unfortunately kept unclear. The drilling exploration provides abundant underground information, which is important for studying the city-site, and also provides us a possible way for resolving problems concerning the Bohai cities’ structures. (Translator: Tong Tao)

Source: China Archeology/ Institute of Archeology/ Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

200 square meters of frescoes restored in Unesco-listed Mogao Grottoes

2012-01-17T17:10:00.001+01:00

LANZHOU, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- About two hundred square meters of ancient frescoes found in the Mogao Grottoes in northwestern China's Gansu Province have been restored to their former glory in the past year, authorities confirmed on Monday.Experts explored new restoration techniques to save the degrading artworks both in caves and in the open air in the Dunhuang area of Gansu Province. They have made major achievements in rejuvenating the frescoes and protecting cultural heritage at the UNESCO World Heritage site, said Su Bomin, director of the protection institute of the Dunhuang Academy.In 2011, the restorers completed work on 125.91 square meters in 10 caves and another 109.1 square meters on the cliff, said Su.The 1,600-year-old Mogao Grottoes, or the Ancient Caves of 1,000 Buddhas, became China's first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987. They feature more than 2,000 colored sculptures and 45,000 square meters of frescoes in over 730 caves spread across about 1,600 meters along a hill.Although most of the caves have been and remain closed to the public, many of the frescoes were showing various levels of degradation including flaking, fading and detaching from the walls.The Dunhuang Academy has brought together a group of professionals specializing in fresco restoration and explored a new technique to protect the artworks, said Su.Source: Xinhua

Theater, Life, and the Afterlife: Tomb Décor of the Jin Dynasty from Shanxi

2012-01-15T12:29:00.000+01:00

Children Riding on Deer. Jin dynasty (1115–1234). H. 19 cm; W. 39 cm; D. 4.7 cm. Unearthed from Tomb 65H4M102, Houma city, Shanxi province.

Exhibition Theater, Life, and the Afterlife: Tomb Décor of the Jin Dynasty from Shanxi
China institute, New York
February 9 – June 17, 2012

NEW YORK, NY.- A new exhibition at China Institute Gallery will explore how theater and art intersected in the realm of the Chinese afterlife. The first exhibition in the U.S. to showcase the traditional folk art of brick carving, Theater, Life, and the Afterlife: Tomb Décor of the Jin Dynasty from Shanxi will be on view from February 9 through June 17, 2012. A fully illustrated catalogue will accompany the exhibition. Since the 1950s and as recently as a few years ago, hundreds of brick tombs from the Jin dynasty (1115-1234) have been excavated in Shanxi province, located in the north central region of China. The exhibition presents more than 80 beautifully sculpted objects revealing a passion for theater and opera in this region during the Jin dynasty. One of the highlights, a re-creation of a newly excavated tomb, will enable visitors to see how thoughtfully prepared art patrons were for the afterlife. The ancient Chinese believed in an afterlife and imagined they would have needs similar to those they’d had in their lives on earth. Not only were the nobles buried in elaborate tombs filled with household goods, but the tomb décor in Shanxi province, like that of many tombs found in China , featured numerous references to entertainment. Famed for their brick carving, artists in Shanxi developed sophisticated techniques, creating lively sculptural images in the grey bricks, some of them painted with vibrant colors. The most intriguing of the dozens of intricate and dramatic brick carvings found in tombs dating back to the Song dynasty (960-1127) are those depicting theatrical performances.. The carvings serve as evidence of the popularity of the theater in ancient Shanxi, said to be the cradle of Chinese opera and drama, and illustrate two kinds of popular entertainment: Za Ju, formal performances of written plays; and San Qu, performances related to village festivals. Notes Willow Weilan Hai Chang, Director, China Institute Gallery, “The role of theater was crucial to ancient Chinese life in Shanxi. Not only was it an important form of entertainment, but it enlightened people’s lives, providing a moral education. One of the most important aspects of the Chinese value system developed by Confucius is filial piety, respect for parents and ancestors, which provided many story lines in ancient theater.” The most recent discovery of Chinese brick carvings occurred in July 2009, during the renovation of a staff residence for a chemical company in Jishan county in Shanxi province. When construction workers hit a brick wall while digging, they called the local museum. An excavation ensued, revealing an ancient tomb from the Jin dynasty (1115-1234) decorated with magnificent painted brick carvings surrounding one raised coffin bed that contained a couple of skeletons. Assembled for the first time above ground, the reconstructed tomb presented in Theater, Life, and the Afterlife will include 43 of these carved bricks. Adorned with floral motifs, strongman guardians, and the faces and figures of auspicious animals – all carved in brick and painted with colored pigments – the tomb is considered a treasured gem of ancient Chinese art. Among the performances depicted by carvings is the story of the Eight Immortals, who were considered to be actual people with special capabilities not unlike today’s superheroes. These seven men and one woman were the subjects of countless theatrical performances, stories, and poems. Considered one of the most famous of the eight, Lü Dongbin, an actual historical figure, was a well-known Taoist master at the end of the Tang dynasty. Worshipped as a deity, he appears in many legends. Lü was said to have had a youthful look when he was more than a hundred years old – and had such a quick pace that he could travel hundreds of Chinese miles (known as li, about 1,640 feet) in a single moment. Tieguai Li, another of the eight, represents the most dramatic story of reaching immortality: his body was accidentally cremated when it was still in spiritual transience. Thus, Li had to inhabit the body of a homeless man who had just died of starvation. Fortunately, Laozi, the founder of Taoism, provided him with magical medicines, and he was able to care not only for himself but also for the poor , traveling to help them with a gourd full of medicine on his back. Another fascinating story told by the bricks concerns Meng Zong who was worried about his ill mother who craved bamboo shoots in winter. Meng wandered the bamboo forest, discouraged by the impossibility of the request. However, filial piety moved heaven and earth, and bamboo shoots miraculously emerged from a crack in the ground. Meng brought them home and cooked them in a soup for his mother, who subsequently recovered from her illness.

A Riverside Scene At Qingming Festival

2012-01-15T11:39:00.002+01:00

A Riverside Scene At Qingming Festival - 清明上河图
by Qiu Ying of the Ming Dynasty

Silk Scroll Colors Filled in SketchesHand ScrollLongtitudinal 31 cm Horizontal 1346 cm
Author / Editor: （明）仇英绘 (Ming-Dynastie) Jiu Ying (Künstler)
ISBN: 978-7-80663-624-4, 9787806636244
Cathay Book Shop - 中国书店
Language: bilingual Chinese-English
2009.01

Qiu Ying, was born in Zhengde’s year or late Hongzhi’s year of the Ming Dynasty, and died in the 31st year of Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty (1552). His alternative name was Shizhou and he styled himself as Shifu or Shifu. He was of a native of Taicang, Jiangsu province, and later moved to Wuxian County of Jiangsu province (Suzhou today). Qiu Ying was neither a descendant of an eminent family nor a son of a scholarly family. His childhood was not one cultivated among celebrities or gentlemen, and he had no experience of a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations. He was obliged to discontinue his studies as a boy and once practiced as lacquer man. As far as his lot and experience were concerned, it seemed that Qiu Ying was not qualified to be ranked among the “Four Famous Artists of Ming Dynasty” together with Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming and Tang Yin; however, after we had a review of the works he left, we would feeld that he was fully deserved such an honor. Qiu Ying’s A Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival is an imitation of A Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival by Zhang Zeduan of the Northern Song Dynasty. Zhang Zeduan’s A Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival is an immortal masterpiece, an art treasure in China’s art history. It is a painting reflecting the prosperity and lively scenes at the Qingming Festival in Bianliang (present-day Kaifeng in Henan Province), the capital city of the Northern Song Dynasty. Broad in scale and well composed, this painting depicts more than 550 people, more than 60 deomestic animals of various kinds, more than 20 wood boats, as well as many kinds of houses and buildings, carts and sedan chairs and etc. The rich content in this painting is rare in the paintings from the previous dynasties. However, what is hard to come by and particularly valuable is that every figure, scene and detail are reasonably arranged and well composed, complicated and diverse but not in disorder. Undoubtedly all the later imitators will find it a difficult and huge project to imitate it. Qiu Ying’s A Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival, comparing with Zhang Zeduan’s, is actually a work of his own creation, for it has assumed considerably great variations in structure, circumstances and artistic features, in other words, it has made significant changes and improvements to Zhang Zeduan’s A Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival. As described in the painting, Suzhou, named Wu in ancient times, was the capital of Wu Kingdom early in the Spring and Autumn Period. The painter begins the painting from the scene of the suburban area of Suzhou along the waterway, and then paints through Hong Bridge to the city access and finally the western suburban area. He was finished at a scene of overwater pavilions. The whole painting is 9.8 meters long, two times longer than the one painted by Zhang Zeduan, and the painting has the customs, features and human activities in Suzhou city and the South of Ming Dynasty more than 400 years ago loom large in front of the audience. There are mountains, cities, streets, bridges, rivers, piers, passersby, shops, boats, drama platforms, parade grounds, and also there are scenes such as wedding, banquet, gathering, farmland working, performance, dealing, fishing, fortune-telling and the like. This is true reappearance of Suzhou as the economic and cultural center of the Southeast China. The painter makes fully use of the characteristics of the dispersedly points perspective of the Chinese painting, utilizing the organic combination of highlighted scenery to deduce a lively drama without sound. The center of the volume is the prosperous street spots of Suzhou, the painter starts to describe the quiet village, which is similar in essence to the structure of A Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festivalby Zhang Zeduan of Northern Song Dynasty. The whole volume is naturally sectioned by mountains, river, ramparts and bridges. Its structure not only reflects the real physical geography and environment of Suzhou, but also blends the innovative conception of the painter. Furthermore, the painter has unique ideas for design of scenes and treatment of the details. 2,2000 people described in the picutre, including men and women, the old and the young, the four callings. You can tell the identity of each one of them by their action, expression, clothes and tools with no duplication. The simple and strong clothes lines reflects the action of figures through the density and turns of the lines, and are dotted with different colors in accordance with the identity, age and sex of figures. The locations of the buildings are skilfully arranged. There are many kinds of buildings, such as official departments, shops, firms, platforms and towers. The painter uses the combination of far and near, large and small, virtual and facture expression techniques, which clearly reflects the style and features of the city at that moment and on basis of which the painter can easily arrange certain scenes with certain kinds of people. The ramparts are reflected by realism techniques with clear description of their sunny-side and shaded-side, front and back transitions. …Qiu Ying, poorly-born but talented representative of Chinese ancient professional painters, creates A Riverside Scene at the Qingming Festival which truly reflects the customs, features and human activities of Suzhou four hundred years ago, creates varieties of artistic images and shows omnipotent realism techniques. It is not only a gigantic masterpiece of genre painting marking the transition of Chinese painting history, but also a historic painting with precious value on academic research. Judging from the style reflected by the painting, it is created when Qiu Ying was about more than 40 years old, living as a guest in the residence of Xiang Yuanbian.

Qingming Shang He Tu

2012-01-15T10:28:00.002+01:00

Qingming Shang He Tu - Scenes along the River during the Qingming Festival (清明上河图，英文版)
Zhang Zeduan 张择端
ISBN: 978-1-60220-003-6
Better Link Press, Shanghai Press and Publishing Development Company (上海新闻出版发展公司)
English
Date of Publication: 2008.07

This painting is the best genre painting in the history of Chinese painting. Scenes along the River during the Qingming Festival depicts the hustle and bustle of town life in what is today’s Kaifeng, then known as Bianjing, the capital of Northern Song Dynasty. This twelfth century painting brings to life the town and the natural scenery along the banks of the Bian River on the day of the Qingming Festival.It is a masterpiece of realism, recording the pulses of a thriving historical town and showing extraordinary details of the bridge, the carriage, the costumes, and the activities of various walks of life. Because of its detailed, vivid, and all-inclusive description, the painting has served as an extremely important source of visual material for the study of Chinese urban life in the twelfth century. It was painted by Zhang Zeduan, nicknamed Zhengdao, a native of Dongwu in what is today’s Zhucheng, Shandong Province. He was a court painter during the reign of Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty.The original paintings are presently preserved in The Palace Museum in Beijing.

Scholarly world abuzz over Jewish scrolls find

2012-01-14T10:06:00.001+01:00

Channel 2: If authenticated, historical find in Afghanistan may be on par with Cairo’s Geniza

The Jerusalem Post, Dec. 31, 2012
The scholarly world is abuzz over the discovery of ancient Jewish scrolls in a cave in Afghanistan’s Samangan province.If the scrolls are authenticated, they may be the most significant historical finding in the Jewish world since that of the Cairo Geniza in the 19th century, Channel 2 Arab affairs correspondent Ehud Ya’ari reported Friday.“We know today about a couple of findings,” Haggai Ben- Shammai, professor emeritus of Arabic language and literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, was quoted as saying.“In all, in my opinion, there are about 150 fragments. It may be the tip of the iceberg.”The scrolls, which were part of a geniza – a burial site for sacred Jewish texts – date from around 1,000 years ago and are in Arabic, Judeo-Arabic and ancient Persian.One scroll, a replica of which was shown to the cameras, was apparently a dirge written for an important person whose identity has not been determined.“Where has he gone?” reads the text. “His family members are now alone.”Other texts said to have been found include an unknown history of the Kingdom of Judea, passages from the Book of Isaiah and some of the works of 10th-century sage Rabbi Sa’adia Gaon.In addition, rings with names such as Shmuel Bar-Yosef inscribed in Hebrew on them have surfaced.The area in which the scrolls were discovered is on the Silk Road, a trade route that connected eastern Asia with the Middle East and Europe, and that Jewish merchants often traveled.Ya’ari quoted sources as saying the scrolls had first been moved to Pakistan’s Peshawar province, and from there been sold to antiquities dealers in Geneva, London, Dubai and Jerusalem.He said the Prime Minister’s Office and several Jewish businessmen had expressed interest in buying the scrolls from dealers and collectors, but the process was in its early stages.The Cairo Geniza has produced 280,000 texts, providing a wealth of information on almost every aspect of Jewish history.

Fans brave long queue for Chinese masterpiece

2012-01-14T09:40:00.000+01:00

To watch the video, click HERE

To mark the 40th anniversary of the normalization of relations between China and Japan, Tokyo National Museum is holding a special exhibition of Chinese masterpieces from January 2nd to February 19th, including the world renowned scroll "Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival" from the Palace Museum in Beijing.The magnificent exhibition consists of a selection of 200 of China’s most prominent masterpieces, taken from the Beijing Palace Museum’s collection of more than 1.8 million artifacts. For the majority of the works, including China’s famous Qingming scroll, this is the first time they have travelled abroad for a chance to astound overseas audiences.

Unlike the rest of the collection, which will remain open to audiences until February 19th, the Qingming scroll is only to be displayed until January 24th. Taking advantage of this rare opportunity, many people started to line up early in the morning in order to get a close look at the legendary masterpiece.Reporter: “Standing in front of Tokyo National Museum, we found a sign saying the time we have to wait for before get to see the real Qingming scroll. Now it says 90 minutes. According to the staff of Tokyo National Museum, the average number of the visitors per day is around 1300.”90 minutes was not even the worst of it. Many visitors waited as long as 3 hours, and some unfortunate souls missed out altogether.One Japanese visitor said: "I really want to see the Qingming scroll for myself, but today was not my day. I’ll come back another time and queue earlier."The Qingming scroll is no doubt the star of the exhibition. This panoramic handscroll, stretched out full-length under a glass case, presents foreign viewers with the scene of a Qingming Festival back in the 12th century. It captures the daily lives of Chinese people during the Song period, at the then capital Bianjing, today’s Kaifeng. Most visitors came here to see for themselves why the Qingming scroll is considered to be the most renowned work among all Chinese paintings. It seems they’ve found the answer.One Japanese visitor said: "It’s really a golden opportunity to see the real Qingming scroll in person. I was fascinated to learn how Chinese people lived back in the Song dynasty from all the exquisite detail in the painting. It was just astonishing."One Swedish visitor said: "I think it’s amazing. The level of skill, craftsmanship was just amazing."One Japanese visitor said: "I don’t think you can find a painting like this in Japan. It’s a real masterpiece."The Qingming scroll and other selected masterpieces represent an important part of Chinese culture. Many of the visitors at the exhibition expressed added interest in learning about Chinese culture and history. Many hope the exhibition would help introduce more Chinese masterpieces to Japan in the future.Chinese Ambassador to Japan Cheng Yonghua said: "The exhibition is a great start to celebrations for the 40th anniversary of the normalization of relations between China and Japan. It is a really significant exhibition. "As one Japanese visitor put it, cultural exchanges such as this can continue to develop a deep friendship between Japan and China for generations to come.

Source: CNTV

Chinese Coin Mirror Discovered in Song Dynasty Tomb

2012-01-12T10:41:00.000+01:00

Song Dynasty bronze mirror with Chinese coin design

From "Primal Trek" by Gary Ashkenazy

An ancient bronze mirror with a Chinese coin design was recently unearthed from a Song Dynasty (960-1279) tomb according to a report from Qianjiang City (潜江), Hubei Province.
The Qianjiang Cultural Relics Bureau (潜江文物局) announced that the mirror, which has some damage, was among the precious items found in a tomb located in Longwan Zhen (龙湾镇).
Also discovered in the tomb were three silver bracelets and a bronze wash basin.
The mirror design incorporates multiple images of the classic Chinese cash coin, which is round with a square hole in the center, that was used for more than 2,000 years in China.
In addition to the mirror with the coin motif, 42 ancient Chinese cash coins were excavated from the tomb.
The coins included Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) wu zhu (五铢) coins and Tang Dynasty (618-907) kai yuan tong bao (开元通宝) coins.
There were also coins from the Song Dynasty such as tai ping tong bao (太平通宝 976 – 989), jing de yuan bao (景德元宝 998-1022), and xi ning tong bao (熙宁通宝 1068-1085).
This is the first time coins from more than ten Emperor reigns have been discovered in a single tomb in Qianjiang.
The report concluded by stating that the discovery of the tomb will contribute greatly to the understanding of local burial customs and the historical changes that occurred during the Song Dynasty.

Lyrical Visions Paintings from North India

2012-01-11T18:03:00.000+01:00

Lyrical Visions
Paintings from North India
Metropolitan Museum, New York
December 3, 2011 – May 28, 2012

Paintings produced in the north Indian regional courts of Malwa, Mewar, Bundi, Sirohi, Marwar, Agra, and Gujarat from the fifteenth to the seventeenth century are often visual representations of poetic verse, attempts to give form to moods engendered by music, and interpretations of the great religious epics. The style and metaphorical presentation of this "lyrical" painting tradition has its roots in illustrated manuscripts made for Jain and Hindu patrons. In the fifteenth century, Jain patrons from Gujarat commissioned illustrated texts recounting the miracles of Mahavira. As the audience already knew the content, artists organized the segmented narrative to visually map complex ideological relationships. In the early sixteenth century, Rajput texts illustrating Hindu epics such as the Bhagavata Purana expanded upon the visual strategies of the Jain manuscripts by introducing a vibrant palette. Both the Jain and the Hindu paintings freely juxtapose events occurring at different times and places and employ an iconography of gesture to articulate the narrative.In the seventeenth century, a new interest in representing the emotional essence of poetic texts emerged. A popular source of imagery was Keshav Das's 1591 Rasikapriya, which examines the divine love of Krishna and Radha. The paintings inspired by this text give form to a range of moods and categories of love. Also popular was Jayadeva's erotically charged Gita Govinda, which gave rise to pictures that emphasize longing and rejection as a way to articulate Krishna and Radha's passion. In depictions related to Ragamala literature, the focus is on representing musical modes and allegorically expressing the moods they engender.Contact with artists from the Mughal workshops influenced Rajput artistic production beginning in the early seventeenth century. However, the isolation of some Rajput courts, especially those in Malwa, allowed for a continuation of older painting styles. Mughal pictures emphasize the realistic portrayal of people and events and the accurate rendering of minute details. In contrast, the Rajputs rejected the depiction of everyday life and focused instead on boldly presenting archetypal forms, divine manifestations, and abstract ideals.

For more information, click HERE

The lost temples of India

2012-01-11T11:35:00.000+01:00

The Mysteries of Asia six-part video series was originally produced for the Learning Channel. During this segment, historians and others examine temples built in India more than 1,000 years ago. They remain quite intriguing, though today's tourists rarely visit them. Records reveal that trained elephants had to drag millions of stone blocks to help erect these structures. The program notes that due to the temples' size, the U.S. Senate, Versailles, the Houses of Parliament, and St. Paul's Basilica in Rome could all fit within a single one of them. Michael Bell narrates as footage and animated maps are used to help viewers learn more about what these ancient structures look like and why they were built. Asia is a continent steeped in ancient cultures, religions, and buildings. In this intriguing program, we are transported to this exotic land and examine the mysteries behind some of the most fascinating structures found there. Southern India has the largest temple complexes ever built. In "Lost Temples of India", we examine these 1,000-year-old temples adorned with intricate and beautiful sculptures. We learn how the kings used large herds of trained elephants to drag the millions of stone blocks into place and how these temples are virtually unknown and unvisited by Western tourists. Truth or fiction, the stories of Mysteries of Asia will amaze and delight.

Chinese treasures attract 40,000 Tokyo visitors

2012-01-10T20:24:00.000+01:00

TOKYO - A special exhibition highlighted by the world-renowned Chinese painting "Life along the Bian River at the Qingming Festival," had attracted about 40,000 visitors after it was opened to the public in the Tokyo National Museum on January 2, organizers said Monday.Outside the gate of the museum, a board reading that it takes an 80-minute wait in line before one is able to view the famous hand scroll is put up conspicuously. The officials of the museum told Xinhua crowd disorder had happened during the exhibition, due to the popularity of the treasured painting from the Song Dynasty some 1,000 years ago,The work is one of a selection of 200 exhibits in the event, which is part of the efforts to mark the 40th anniversary of the normalization of China-Japan relations this year.Those masterpieces include calligraphic works and paintings not yet shown outside the Palace Museum by artists in the Song and Yuan dynasties, and the court dress and other accessories used in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).The event will last until February 19 at the Heiseikan Special Exhibition Galleries of the museum, but the famous painting will be wrapped up on January 24.

First-Class Cultural Heritage　Life along the Bian River at the Qingming Festival (detail)By Zhang Zeduan, Northern Song dynasty, 12th century, Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, China[On display from Monday, January 2 to Tuesday, January 24, 2012]

Among the Song- and Yuan-dynasty calligraphic works and paintings admired by all fans of Chinese art, Life along the Bian River at the Qingming Festival (Northern Song dynasty, 12th century) is an especially renowned masterpiece. This hand scroll, painted by Zhang Zeduan and measuring over 5 meters long, vividly depicts in detail festivities in the Northern Song-dynasty capital, Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng).The fame of this work as one of the highest points of Chinese art has spread far and wide. However, it is rarely exhibited, even at the Palace Museum in Beijing, and it has only been shown outside of the museum at the Shanghai Museum, the Liaoning Provincial Museum and the Hong Kong Museum of Art. At all these places it was displayed for a limited period of time and was so popular that the exhibition venues, to which art fans flocked from around the world, recorded waiting times of several hours. For the first time, China’s “national treasure of national treasures” is crossing the sea to go on display in Tokyo.

For more information, click on the site of the Tokyo National Museum

Top 10 archaeological discoveries of 2011

2012-01-10T10:37:00.003+01:00

Top 10 archaeological discoveries of 2011
Ranked by the Archeological Institute of America
On no. 7: Chinese Take out. Shaanxi/ Xinjiang, China

A researcher samples the world's oldest soup, which is cloudy and green due to the bronze vessel it was stored in for more than 2,000 years.(M. Klein | 7Reasons, Imaginechina)

Today, dog soup and millet noodles may be meals only an archaeologist could love. In two tombs at opposite ends of the country, archaeologists have found the remains of intriguing dishes, well preserved in bronze vessels and clay pots and buried with the dead. In a Warring States tomb in Shaanxi Province, one team found a soup containing what they believe to be dog bones. And in Subeixi Cemetery in Xinjiang, another group of archaeologists found 2,400-year-old intact noodles made of millet. With efforts to re-create the meals, archaeologists may soon be eating like the ancients.

New discovery at the Hamin site, a prehistory settlement in the Horqin District, Inner Mongolia

2012-01-10T10:15:00.000+01:00

The Hamin site is located 15 km southeast away from Shebotu town, Kezuozhongqi banner, Tongliao city in Inner Mongolia, which is the center of the Horqin Grassland. This site covers over 17 ha.During May to September, 2010, the joint archaeology team consisting of the Inner Mongolia Institute of Archaeology and the Kezuozhongqi banner Cultural Relic administration, carried out an investigation along railway and found the Hamin site, in order to cooperate the infrastructure construction. Then in 2011, the Inner Mongolia Institute of Archaeology and the Frontier Archaeology Center of Jilin University, carried out a large-scale scientific archaeological excavation in area of the Hamin site.

After two years, over 4000 square meter area was excavated and disclosed 43 residential ruins, 6 tombs, 33 ash pits and 1 ring trench. Moreover, there were about a thousand pieces of exquisite artefacts unearthed, including potteries, lithic, bone, shell and jade, etc. In particular, almost complete roof wooden constructions were found in 7 house ruins, which re-appeared the frame construction of the semi-subterranean buildings during the Neolithic period. This is extremely rare in the prehistory archaeology in China. In addition, lots of human bones remains rambling stacked were discovered in other resident ruins. Particularly, there were 97 sets of human bones discovered in a resident ruins, reflecting the life situation at that time. It is significant and supplies important materials for further studying the social structure, political relationship and life style of the original inhabitants in Hamin site during the Neolithic period.The plane of the resident ruins at the Hamin site was laid out in rows or groups and generally distributed in northeast-southwest direction. The doors of the resident ruins faced to the same direction, which is southeast, so they were arranged neatly. The residents were semi-subterranean type in a “凸”-shape plane, and had rectangle doorway and round hearth. The planes of the house were mostly rounded square or rounded rectangle. The houses were 10-40 square meter in sizes and with nearly upright walls, which only 0.1-0.9 m height remained. The doorways were mostly groove type and slope in shape, and the doors faced to 130° to 140°. The hearth was located in the middle-south of the resident room and mostly round in shape. Moreover the hearth had slope walls and flat bottom, and contained a large number of ashes and burned animal bone shards. The floor and the walls of the residents were mostly burned red-brown. In addition, a few post-holes were found on the floor. Plenty of artefacts were scattered on the floors, including tools for production and the articles for daily use, and decoration etc. The articles for daily use were mostly potteries, including jars, kettles, basins and bowls, etc. The tools for production were usually lithic artefacts, including millstones, grinding clubs, axes, adzes, chisels, pestles, hoes, balls and other practical ones. The ornaments were mostly bones, shells and exquisite jades. There were seven houses which were burned so that the roof wooden frame structures were remained partly or entirely. The result of excavation showed that the roofs consisted of purlins, rafters which tied up or buckled and then formed the beam type roof in slope shape. In addition, there were three strange house ruins from which a large number of human bone remains were unearthed and these human bones were scattered, destroyed and burned. Among the human bones, there were 97 sets identified and unearthed from F40 house ruins but parts of the human bones had traces of burned. After the authentication on site, the human bones were mostly of women and children.There were only 6 tombs discovered and scattered between the resident ruins. Except that tomb M3 was found within the F11 resident ruin, other tombs were all pit tombs. Tomb M6 was round pit tomb, and the others were all rectangle shallow pit tombs. Moreover, the burial customs were single burials in supine position with limbs stacked, except the M6 was three persons burial in contracted supine position. In addition, there was almost not any grave good accompanying.There were a few ash pits discovered at the Hamin site and they were round, oval, rounded square and irregular in shape. The pits mostly had flat or round bottom and only less artefacts were unearthed, including pottery shards, animal bones and shells, etc.

Judged by the results of drilling and exploratory trench, the trend and shape of the ring trench in the north district of the Hamin site was preliminarily confirmed. The ring trench was 350m long in east-west and 270m wide in north-south, and was an oval closed ring trench of a settlement. Moreover, the ring trench was trapezoid in the vertical section. In addition, the trench was 0.6-0.8 m deep and 1.2-2.1 m wide. The filler in the trench was dark brown loose piebald soil, which contained less pottery, animal bones, shells and human bones etc.The pottery containers were mostly cylindric-shaped jars, kettles, bowls and basins, which were decorated with pock-pattern, and most of them appeared in groups. Moreover, there were a few Y-shaped artefacts, pottery cakes, painted pottery shards, etc. The majority of the potteries were made from sandy clay and a few from mud clay. The mud and sandy potteries were only found in small quantity and all of them were hard. In addition, a small number of painted pottery shards appeared in the red clay potteries. The patterns appeared at the Hamin site were black painted with transverse strip and curve triangle pattern.The lithic artefacts unearthed at the Hamin site were mostly lithic tools and were made by chipping and grinding methods. The types included grinding stones, grinding clubs, axes, adzes, chisels, choppers, ring-shaped tools, pestles, arrowheads and blades, etc. The materials mostly were quartzite, quart sand stone, andesite, siliceous limb stone, flint, agate, jade, etc. According to the combination of the production tools, the ancestors at the Hamin site may have mostly carried out agriculture but fishing and hunting at the same time.The bone and shell artefacts at the Hamin site were tools for production but mostly ornaments, including drillings, needles, arrowheads, spoons, knives and pendants. These artefacts also supplied some information about natural environment and ancient climate for us.Jades only appeared in a few resident ruins and one of the resident ruins, F37, unearthed rounded rectangle and round jade bi-disk, double-joined bi-disk, jade ring, yue axes and pedents, etc.The Hamin site is dated to 5500 BP. Its large scale, well-preserved, complex phenomenon and rich unearthed artefacts, is extremely rare in the prehistory archaeology in the entire northeast area, particularly those remained roof wooden structure, scattered human bones in the resident ruins, its potteries with pock-pattern, lithic, bones, shell artefacts and exquisite jades, etc, supplied important materials for studying the house structure, economic life, pottery technology, religional customs during the Neolithic period. （Translator: Zhai Shaodong）
Source: Chinese Archeology/ Institute of Archeology/ Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (IA CASS)

Lacquer and Gold. Burmese manuscripts in Musee Guimet

2012-01-09T10:55:00.003+01:00

Lacquer and Gold. Burmese manuscripts
Musee Guimet, Paris
From October 19th 2011 to January 23rd 2012

The Musée Guimet presents for the first time an exceptional collection of manuscripts and artifacts preserved in Burmese collections.The exhibition, displayed in the historic library of the museum’s rotunda, will present gold lacquered books - kammavaca -, manuscripts written on olles (palm leaves) and ink-written works on traditional fan-fold paper - parabaik.

Kammavācā (detail) BG 83700-2 © RMN (musée Guimet, Paris)/Benjamin Soligny / Raphaël Chipault

Manuscript books were extensively used until the late nineteenth century to record both religious and secular literature, or horoscope books, medical and pharmaceutical treaties, archival documents or official records, public or private.A plan of the ancient city of Ava, former longtime capital of the country, a nineteenth century teak model of a large religious building from the Mandalay area, and an amazing astrological chart incised in an ivory tusk, will complete the exhibition.

Model of the monastery of the Queen (Mya Taung Kyung), Mandalay, 1881-1885 (?)MG 26320 © RMN (musée Guimet, Paris)/Benjamin Soligny / Raphaël Chipault

Classical Paintings of Ancient China

2012-01-08T16:32:00.000+01:00

Classical Paintings of Ancient China

Opened Dec 29, 2011; On Regular Display
National Museum of China, Beijing
Venue: Gallery S12

The classical painting collection at the National Museum of China covers a wide range of subjects and styles. Limited by the original exhibition space, most of them have not been shown to the public until now. It is the first time since the re-opening of the museum that the exhibition "Classical Painting of Ancient China" is on display, featuring two of the most celebrated pieces in the collection: Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour and Strange Tales of Liaozhai. Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour is composed of 12 scrolls, which 4 of them are on display in this exhibition. Executed by royal court painter Xu Yang during the Qing dynasty, the scrolls illustrate the scenes when Qianlong Emperor visited the south of China to inspect the water systems, social conditions and military preparations. These scrolls serve as a visual record that captures the social conditions and the landscapes during "the Golden Age of Kangxi and Qianlong Emperors." Strange Tales of Liaozhai is based on the classical Chinese tales written by Pu Songling. It is composed of wooden plates and colorful images on silk scroll. The techniques employed are refined and vivid, and the colors are rich and bright. The themes of the tales combine folk attractiveness with literary significance.

Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll 1, “Departure from the Capital”

Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll 3, “Crossing the Yellow River”

Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll 8, “Sojourn at Hangzhou”

Qianlong Emperor’s Southern Inspection Tour, Scroll 10, “Military Parade at Jiangning”

Strange Tales of Liaozhai, “Fengxian”

Strange Tales of Liaozhai, “Hongyu”

Strange Tales of Liaozhai, “Bai Qiulian”

Strange Tales of Liaozhai, “Princess of the West Lake”

Strange Tales of Liaozhai, “Chang’e”

Ancient Costume from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China Region

2012-01-08T15:48:00.002+01:00

Ancient Costume from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China
National Museum of ChinaExhibition from Dec 16, 2011- Jan 16, 2012
Gallery N10

Xinjiang is located at the northwest border of China. It is the land of migration as well as a crossroad between China and other civilizations. During the thousands of years’ historical development, people live on this land continuously absorb cultural elements from other nations and create the splendid multinational culture with regional characteristics. This exhibition showcases close to one hundred costumes collected from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum, including simple and traditional woolens during pre-Qin dynasty, gorgeous silks and cotton dresses during the Han and the Jin dynasties, soft and colorful garments during the Sui and the Tang dynasties and folk costumes from the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. These costumes reveal the blending of different nations in Xinjiang and its multicultural developments through continuous innovation.

For more information, click HERE

Emperor Huizong's calligraphy sold for 140mln RMB

2012-01-08T09:43:00.002+01:00

To watch the video, click HERE

A calligraphy work by Song dynasty emperor Huizong has been sold for a staggering 140 million yuan --that's around 20 million US dollars. The 1000 year-old piece went under the hammer at an auction in Shenzhen on Monday. Bidding opened at 60 million yuan, and soon doubled to 120 million. Competition between two buyers forced the price even higher, to a bank-breaking 140 million. The work of a thousand characters was created by Huizong in the year 1104, and remains in good condition. The emperor was the founding father of "Slender Gold" - a calligraphy style which has gradually involved into the "Immitating Song Style" - a major school in Chinese calligraphy. The work spans 25 pages, and features inscriptions by celebrities over the centuries. "Source CNTV.cn"

THE Shanghai Museum has questioned the authenticity of a calligraphy work sold for 140 million yuan (US$22.1 million) in south China's city of Guangzhou last month.The museum claims the original by Emperor Song Huizong (1082-1135) is in its own collection."I'd never heard that two identical pieces by Emperor Huizong existed anywhere," said Shan Guolin, director of the museum's calligraphy department.But Liu Molin, director at Guangzhou-based auction House, Zhonghan Qinghua Auction House dismissed this."Shanghai Museum has a scroll, and the other is an album. These are two different forms."Source:Shanghai Daily"

The Song Dynasty as Living Art

2012-01-06T21:55:00.001+01:00

Singapore Expo Hall 7 Dec 2011- 6 Feb 2012

International premiere of the animated painting - 清明上河图 - The Song Dynasty as Living Art. More info about the exhibition at www.amovingmasterpiece.com and read description of the painting herehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Along_the_River_During_the_Qingming_Festival

A digital panoramic animated moving masterpiece measuring 128 metres long and 6.5 metres high - 1068 moving and talking characters on the countryside into the city as days turn into night.

Along the River During the Qingming Festival (simplified Chinese: 清明上河图; traditional Chinese: 清明上河圖; pinyin: Qīngmíng Shànghé Tú) is a panoramic painting by Song Dynasty artist Zhang Zeduan (1085--1145). It captures the daily life of people from the Song period at the capital, Bianjing, today's Kaifeng. The theme celebrates the festive spirit and worldly commotion at the Qingming Festival, rather than the holiday's ceremonial aspects, such as tomb sweeping and prayers. The entire piece was painted in hand scroll format and the content reveals the lifestyle of all levels of the society from rich to poor as well as different economic activities in rural areas and the city. It offers glimpses of period clothing and architecture. As an artistic creation, the piece has been revered and court artists of subsequent dynasties have made several re-interpretive replicas. The painting is also known for its geometrically accurate images of variety natural elements and architectures, boats and bridges, market place and stores, people and scenery. It is often considered to be the most renowned work among all Chinese paintings, and it has been called "China's Mona Lisa."

Penn Museum Launches Online Collections Database

2012-01-06T19:27:00.001+01:00

From the Penn Museum Blog by Gabrielle Niu, December 1, 2011

Just this week, the Penn Museum launched its Online Collections Database. This brand new resource currently encompasses over 314,000 object records and is illustrated with 46,000 images, stats that are expected to increase as the project moves forward. A keyword as well as an advanced search allow users to casually browse or specifically search for objects. A search for “cheese” unexpectedly turns up this terra cotta figurine carved in moulded relief from Iraq. Apparently, depicted on the tripod table in front of the male figure is a collection of stacked, rectangular objects that could be cheese. The “Highlights of the Collections” section includes a number of particularly important pieces from the Museum. A “Featured Themes/ Collections” section highlights the collections in fun ways – like exhibiting objects that depict faces. Additionally, an interactive feature allows the user to create his or her own collection of objects and share it with others. I can even make this exciting collection of early Chinese funerary objects and share it with you here! All in all, this database is an incredible and useful resource that makes the Museum’s collections open and accesible to many more people.

Asian Section Collection Highlights

With more than 25,000 pieces, the Asian collection ranges in material from musical instruments and tools, to paintings, jewelry, and clothing. The objects on display in the Chinese Rotunda showcase our impressive collection of Chinese sculpture collected during the early part of the 20th century. The large-scale artifacts on view are a testament to the artistic achievements of the Chinese people, particularly in early Buddhist sculpture, and the continuity of artistic evolution during the early, pre-Song periods (before 1000 CE). In storage, the focus is largely on ethnographic collections with representative collections of the Ainu people of Japan and the Naga Hills people of India. Other highlights include a large thangka collection from Tibet, a series of textiles from the minority people of China, and numerous examples of blankets and wall hangings from India and Japan. There is also a significant collection of Buddhist material collected as part of a temple that was erected when the Museum opened in 1899. The nucleus of the South Asian sculptural collection was put together by Alexander Scott, who led a Museum expedition to India from 1915 to 1918. These objects represent one of the earliest collections of Indian art to come to America. They also became the focus of study for several pioneering scholars in the fields of South Asian art and culture, including Ananda Coomaraswamy and W. Norman Brown.

Blood writing in Buddhist scrolls

2012-01-06T09:09:00.002+01:00

From The British Library "Untold Lives, Sharing Stories from the Past". 2 January, 2012

Among the thousands of manuscripts uncovered from a walled up library cave at Dunhuang, northwest China, at the turn of the twentieth century, were a group of Buddhist scrolls copied by a man in his eighties. The texts are all linked by a similar colophons, identifying the old man as the scribe and documenting his advancing years. One of the scrolls, S.5451, today held at the British Library, shows the man at 83 years old demonstrating his piety by copying out a Buddhist scripture in his own hand, using ink mixed with his own blood. The colophon reads:Copied by an old man of 83, who pricked his own hand to draw blood [to write with], on the 2nd of the 2nd month of 'bingyin', the 3rd year of Tianyou (27 February, 906).

These documents illustrate a widespread belief in Buddhist cultures that by copying, or commissioning a copy of a Buddhist sutra, individuals would demonstrate their piety and devotion to the Dharma, or Buddhist doctrine, and in so doing accrue merit for their passage to the next life. Not only was it believed that by replicating the words or image of the Buddha one could demonstrate and build on one’s own piety but also that doing so might improve the karmic lot of one’s relatives or loved ones, alive or already passed. To this end, wealthy donors and patrons commissioned artists and craftsmen to decorate caves, create elaborate murals, and copy out Buddhist scriptures. More modest individuals achieved similar ends by spreading the word via the oral traditions of storytelling and music, or by copying out scriptures in their own hand. The most pious sometimes gave their own blood to do so, as a particularly demonstrative and efficacious means of accruing religious merit.The practice of blood-writing seen in this scroll seems to have been uncommon in other Buddhist cultures; while in China it actually predated the appearance of Buddhism. Acts of self-mortification also extended to more extreme practices of self-mutilation such as the amputation of fingers, and even self-immolation (burning oneself alive) as a means of demonstrating devotion and piety. The example shown in our scroll S.5451 is not common among the Dunhuang manuscripts held at the British Library but it demonstrates an important phenomenon among pious Chinese Buddhists, which continued through to the seventeenth century.

Abby BakerEducation & Training Coordinator, The International Dunhuang Project

Further reading

Jimmy Y.Yu, Bodies of Sanctity: Ascetic Practices in Late Imperial China

James Baskind, Mortification Practices in the Obaku School, Essays on East Asian Religion and Culture, Edited by Christian Wittern and Shi Lishan, Kyoto 2007

Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum

2012-01-01T13:36:00.003+01:00

A Project within the Ancient History Documentary Research Centre
at Macquarie University in Australia
Directed by
Prof. A. van Tongerloo (KU Leuven)
Prof. Sam Lieu FAHA (Macquarie, Sydney)
Prof. J. Van Oort (Utrecht and Nijmegen)

The Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum (Corpus of sources of the Manichaeans) Project is a major international research and publication project sponsored by UNESCO under the aegis of the Integrated Study of the Silk Road. It is a project of the Union of International Academies (Union Académique Internationale UAI) and its sponsoring academy is the Australian Academy of the Humanities. It is also co-sponsored by the British Academy (1990-) and has received major funding from the Australian Research Council, the Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) and the Chiang Ching Kuo Foundation for International Academic Exchange (Taiwan, ROC) as well as minor funding from the Royal Swedish Academy of History and Letters (1990-91), the Leverhulme Trust (UK, 1990-93), Society of Antiquaries (UK, 1990-94) and the Seven Pillars of Wisdom Trust (UK, 1990-91) in addition to grants from research foundations in Germany and Denmark. The Corpus is published by Brepols of Turnhout (Belgium). The project is also one of the main avenues of publication for the International Association of Manichaean Studies (IAMS).

The religion of Mani (c. 216-c.276 CE) was a missionary religion par excellence. Manichaean texts have been found in Egypt in Coptic, Greek and Syriac, and in N. Africa in Latin and in sites along the Ancient Silk Road in Middle Persian, Parthian, Sogdian, Bactrian, Tocharian B, Chinese and Uighur (Old Turkish) as well as in substantial citations in a wide range of Arabic writings. The project aims to publish not only genuine Manichaean texts but also principal witnesses of the religion from Islamic and Christian (Patristic) sources and the voluminous writings of Saint Augustine on the religion of which he was a member for nine years will form a substantial part of the series. Each volume of the text-series contains introduction, critical text, translation (in English, French or German), commentary and extensive word indices. The Series Subsidia produces research tools such as bibliographies and the multi-volume Dictionary of Manichaean Texts. The Series Archaeologica focuses on the artistic and archaeological remains of the sect now in museums and in situ at archaeological sites.

For more information on Manichaeism consult:
http://www.uni-muenster.de/Philologie/Iaek/mani.html

Project HistoryThe project began originally as the Database of Manichaean Texts and Dictionary of Manichaean Terms and Concepts at Warwick University, (UK). It was recipient three consecutive Major Research Grants from the British Academy and an unprecedented fourth renewal under the aegis of the Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum. With the appointment of Professor Sam Lieu to the Chair of Ancient History at Macquarie a substantial part of the project moved base to Sydney, Australia. The Institute of Classical Studies in the University of London participated in completing the work on Volume One of the Dictionary of Manichaean Texts and the project now has a U.K. base at the School of Oriental and African Studies but the research office is at the research library of the Ancient India and Iran Trust at Cambridge. The project is administered from Leuven but the research is devolved and Sydney (Manichaean Documentation Centre, Macquarie University), Cambridge (Ancient India and Iran Trust), Münster (Germany) and Aarhus. The administrative HQ for the project is at KU Leuven but the Research Archive of the project is kept and maintained at the Manichaean Documentation Centre which is part of the Ancient History Documentary Research Centre at Macquarie University. The Centre has facilities for Visiting Fellows and doctoral candidates from other institutions to consult this major collection.

The Project Committee:
Executive Officers:
Professor Aloïs van Tongerloo (Leuven), Director
Professor Samuel N.C. Lieu (Macquarie), Co-Director
Professor Johannes van Oort (Utrecht), Co-Director

Secretary to the Corpus: Dr. Gunner Mikkelsen (Aarhus)
Director of the Series Archaeologica: A/Prof. Zsuzanna Gulácsi (Bloomington, Indiana)
Director of the Series Syriaca : Dr. E. Hunter (Cambridge and London)
Director of the Series Arabica: Prof. A. van Tongerloo (Leuven)
Director of the Series Coptica: Prof. M. Krause (Münster)
Director of the Series Iranica: Dr Enrico Morano (Turin)
Director of the Series Sinica: Prof. S.N.C. Lieu (Macquarie) and Dr Gunner Mikkelsen (Aarhus)
Directors of the Series Turcica: Prof. A. van Tongerloo (Leuven),
Director of the Series Latina : Dr. J. Van Oort (Utrecht)
Directors of the Series Graeca : Prof. S. N. C. Lieu (Macquarie) & Prof. L. Cirillo (Naples).
Directors of the Series Subsidia: Prof. Nicholas Sims-Williams FBA (Dictionary of Manichaean Texts) and Prof. Sam Lieu (Macquarie)

Volumes Published or In-press (2006)
Series Archaeologica
Z. Gulácsi, Manichaean Art in Berlin Collections CCLXXXVIII+350 p., + ill., 210 x 297 mm, 2001, ISBN 978-2-503-50649-4, EUR 145.00.
Series Coptica
G. Wurst (ed.) The Manichaean Coptic Papyri in the Chester Beatty Library Psalm Book Part II, 1, Die Bema-Psalmen, 140 p., + 8 Plates, 210 x 297 mm, 1996, ISBN 978-2-503-50526-8 (German text)
S. Richter (ed.) The Manichaean Coptic Papyri in the Chester Beatty Library. Psalm Book Part II, 2 Die Herakleides-Psalmen. 134 p., + 4 plates, 210 x 297 mm, 1999 (German text)
N. A. Pedersen (ed.) Manichaean Homilies 260 p., 210 x 297 mm, 2006, ISBN 978-2-503-51045-3 (English text).
Series Latina
H. G. Schipper, J. Van Oort (eds.) Sancti Leonis Magni Romani Pontificis, Sermones et Epistolae. Fragmenta selecta, 210 p., 210 x 297 mm, 2001, ISBN 978-2-503-51160-3 (English text)
Augustinus, Contra Fortunatum, F. Decret and J. van Oort (eds.) VIII+124 p., 210 x 297 mm, 2005, ISBN 978-2-503-51324-9 (French text)
Series Subsidia
G. Mikkelsen (ed.) Bibliographia Manichaica. A Comprehensive Bibliography of Manichaeism through 1996, 360 p., 210 x 297 mm, 1997, ISBN 978-2-503-50653-1
S. N. C. Lieu, S. Clackson, E. Hunter (eds.) Dictionary of Manichaean Texts. Volume I: Texts from the Roman Empire (Texts in Syriac, Greek, Coptic and Latin) 262 p., 210 x 297 mm, 1999, ISBN 978-2-503-50819-1 (English text)
D. Durkin-Meisterernst (ed.) Dictionary of Manichaean Texts. Volume III,1: Texts from Central Asia and China (Texts in Middle Persian and Parthian) XXX+428 p., 210 x 297 mm, 2004, ISBN 978-2-503-51776-6 (English text)
F. de Blois, N. Sims-Williams (eds.) Dictionary of Manichaean Texts. Volume II: Texts from Iraq and Iran (Texts in Syriac, Arabic, Persian and Zoroastrian Middle Persian) XIV+157 p., 210 x 297 mm, 2006, ISBN 978-2-503-51862-6 (English text)
To order the books contact Brepols (Turnhout, Belgium)
http://www.brepols.net/catalogue/index.jsp?mpk=20295,20302
Under Keywords type in: Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum

The same Editorial Team is also responsible for the publication of the monograph series Manichaean Studies and the volumes published to 2006 are:
A. van Tongerloo, S. Giversen (eds.) Manichaica selecta, Studies presented to Professor Julien Ries on the Occasion of his Seventieth Birthday. 462 p., 160 x 240 mm, 1995, Supplement Ref. 13700010200.
A. van Tongerloo, J. van Oort, (eds.) The Manichaean NOUS, Proceedings of the International Symposium Organized in Louvain from 31 July to 3 August 1991. 333 p., 160 x 240 mm, 1995, Ref. 13700020100
L. Cirillo, A. Van Tongerloo (eds.) Manichaeism and Early Christianity, 470 p., 160 x 240 mm, 1997, ISBN 978-2-503-50602-9
Acta Archelai (trans.) M. J. Vermes, 200 p., 160 x 240 mm, 2001, ISBN 978-2-503-51156-6 (English text)
A. van Tongerloo, L. Cirillo (eds.), New Perspectives in Manichaean Studies. XIX+439 p., 160 x 240 mm, 2005, ISBN 978-2-503-51646-2

http://www.brepols.net/catalogue/index.jsp?mpk=20295,20302
Under Keywords type in: Manichaean Studies

Illustration acknowledgement:
The illustrations for this website are taken from Corpus Fontium Manichaeorum, Series Archaeologica I: Z. Gulácsi, Manichaean Art in Berlin Collections, 2001 p. 93 and 94, figs. 40.1/2/3 (MIK III 6368 Museum of Indian Art, Berlin).

Pirates of the Marine Silk Road

2012-01-01T09:56:00.003+01:00

A shipwreck in the South China Sea advances China's emerging field of underwater archaeology

From Archeology Magazine by Lauren Hilgers September/ October 2011

The Nan Tianshun, China's primary underwater excavation vessel, is being used to explore the remains of a Ming Dynasty pirate ship that defied the country's ban on maritime commerce in the 16th and 17th centuries. (Courtesy Cui Yong)

Just off the coast of the southern Chinese island of Nan'ao, on a boat called the Nan Tianshun, Chinese archaeologist Cui Yong is the only still thing on deck. He sits near the front of the repurposed barge, leaning into a radio receiver while everyone else on the boat bustles around him. Researchers in wetsuits and fins splash into the water. Workers shout back and forth, pulling on taut ropes that disappear into the ocean. Someone hoses down a row of oxygen tanks. Loud as they are, these on-deck activities barely seem to register with the archaeologist. His attention is 90 feet down, on the bottom of the South China Sea. The radio crackles with reports from his divers on the wreck of a Ming Dynasty pirate ship.

Named the Nan'ao Number One, the wreck that Cui is excavating lies along a stretch of ocean that Chinese historians regard as the country's "Marine Silk Road." During China's heyday as a maritime power during and shortly after the Song Dynasty (A.D. 960-1279), the route was popular with traders but prone to dangerous storms, resulting in a trail of sunken ships. The Nan'ao wreck is part of an abundant record that has helped speed the development of Chinese underwater archaeology, a discipline with barely 20 years of history in the country, and encouraged a frenzy of new underwater excavations.

In this litter of wrecks the Nan'ao Number One is unique. It is the only known wreck from the late Ming Dynasty. Archaeologists estimate the ship sailed between 1573 and 1620, a period when China had turned inward, banned maritime commerce, and begun to dismantle its once-great fleets. In another time, the vessel would have been a merchant ship, following a busy trade route. But when China closed its shores and docks, maritime trade and commerce became piracy and smuggling. Officially, the Nan'ao ship never should have been in the water—it was likely moving along the coast illegally. Its cannons, now half-buried in the mud at the bottom of the South China Sea, would have been necessary for defense.

The Nan'ao ship is a rare find, but its fate is a familiar one in this part of the ocean. "This is a dangerous passage," says Cui. As the boat snuck along the coast, something, whether bad weather or hidden rocks, caused it to sink and deposit its load of contraband—ceramics, copper coins, and ironware—onto the sea floor. "The weather can be bad," Cui says as the wind picks up around his own boat. "And, over there, there are rocks you can't see."

The excavation of the Nan'ao and tales of a Ming Dynasty pirate ship have lured a rotating cast of journalists to the excavation site. Cui has grown accustomed to the attention. At 49, he is one of China's first generation of underwater archaeologists and, with a run of high-profile wreck discoveries, he is the most recognizable face in an ascendant discipline. On the deck of the Nan Tianshun, however, Cui is soft-spoken and at home in flip-flops. Only the flecks of gray in his hair betray his age and, perhaps, the stress of his job, he says. Wrecks like the Nan'ao, he adds, help attract media and increase government funding. But the increased exposure also attracts looters and adds pressure. It is a delicate balancing act that is visible in the commotion on the Nan Tianshun. Journalists in deck shoes pick their way carefully through stacked oxygen tanks, while border patrol officers in fatigues and orange life jackets stand at attention at the corners of the boat. "The government is giving us money to do the excavations, so we should be able to show people the progress we are making," Cui explains. "Archaeologists have to learn how to juggle these things."

The wreck known as Nan'ao Number One contained more than 10,000 pieces of Ming Dynasty porcelain, much of it still stacked for transport. (Courtesy Cui Yong)

With few experienced underwater archaeologists at work in China today, Cui has become an excellent juggler. He was still working on a previous find when he first heard reports from Nan'ao Island in 2007. Some local fishermen were pulling Ming Dynasty porcelain out of the ocean. "I knew it was a wreck," Cui says. "There were so many artifacts from the same period being taken from the same spot in the ocean." When he arrived at the island and made his first dive, the Nan'ao site proved better than he had imagined. The wreck was unusually well preserved and the conditions were good for excavating. It was deep, but the water was clear and the mud at the bottom of the ocean soft and manageable. "I got lucky," he says.

Cui's excavation team was given permission to begin digging two years ago, and since then he has spent as much time as weather permits floating above Nan'ao Number One. After one excavation season, nearly half the wreck is exposed. The top decks have been worn away, but its belly lies undisturbed, oriented along a northnsouth line. Two curves of wood are exposed toward the stern, hemming in rows of porcelain bowls, platters, and cups, many still stacked neatly. On excavation maps, archaeologists have filled in where they speculate the sides of the boat continue, and they estimate the Nan'ao runs around 90 feet from bow to stern.

The Nan'ao sank at the mouth of a particularly dangerous stretch of water. It sits at the northern edge of present-day Guangdong Province, near the entrance to the strait between the coasts of China and Taiwan. Typhoons frequent this passage and could blow ships—Ming Dynasty pirate vessels and excavation barges alike—into hidden rocks or smash them along the coast.

Excavations at the site move painstakingly slowly. Because of the depth of the site, around 90 feet down, a diver is only allowed 25 minutes at the bottom and only one dive a day. If a storm hits, or if the wind is simply too high, no one dives. This, says Cui, generally rules out fieldwork nine months of the year. And even on good days, he is concerned for the safety of his divers. They descend in pairs and keep close tabs on bottom time. Cui is quick to point out one of the Nan Tianshun's key features—a decompression chamber.

Despite the challenges, Cui's team is making progress. "Last year was a good year," Cui says. "We had a full 100 days to excavate." During that time, he says, the archaeologists retrieved more than 10,000 pieces of porcelain from the sea floor. This year he hopes to retrieve all the remaining pieces from the ship's stores.

Nan'ao Island border patrol guards help retrieve and clean pieces of porcelain as they come up from the wreck. They remain on guard even beyond the excavation season because the risk of looting by local fishermen is high.
(Courtesy Cui Yong)

The fact that the Nan'ao wreck has any artifacts at all is testament to the determination of Ming Dynasty businessmen. Boats caught defying the ban on maritime trade could be scuttled and their crews thrown in jail. These deterrents did not keep the Nan'ao merchants down—they simply became smugglers. "The ban was regularly ignored in southern China," says Wu Chongming, a colleague of Cui's who teaches at the Maritime Archaeology Research Center at Xiamen University in Fujian. Some historians theorize that the ban on international trade was originally intended to starve increasingly bold Japanese pirates. Rather than give up the business, Chinese merchants turned to piracy themselves—both smuggling and raiding. The Chinese still called smugglers and raiders wokou, a derogatory term for Japanese pirates, but just a few years into the ban, Chinese pirates had taken over the South China Sea. "There is a saying in Chinese," says Wu. "When the market closes, all the businessmen become smugglers."

The pieces Cui's team are bringing up were likely not the most valuable items onboard, explains Cui. They were probably, in fact, an afterthought for the Ming Dynasty smugglers. "It was probably ballast," says Cui. Other cargo, such as tea or the strings of copper coins that have been found on the wreck, would have been the ship's real treasure. The archaeologists have uncovered some organic material, Cui says, but haven't subjected it to testing yet. Though they didn't hold much monetary value then, today the porcelain pieces are priceless for determining the origin and probable destination of the ship.

As soon as Chen Huasha, a researcher from the Beijing Palace Museum, arrives for the field season, the crew of the Nan Tianshun pulls out crates of porcelain for her to sort through. She sifts carefully through the blue-and-white pieces, each covered with glazed flowers, animals, and human figures. Chen, who has spent time on the Nan Tianshun for two years running, believes the bulk of the porcelain uncovered comes from kilns that were operating in China's Fujian and Jiangxi provinces. When asked how she can tell, Chen says, "There are characteristics."

Chen selects a large dish that shows a woman plucking a flower. The round dish, she explains, represents the moon, and the woman standing at its center is Chang'e, the moon goddess in Chinese folklore. The flower, she says, could have to do with success at an imperial examination, a process that was called "picking flowers" at the time. Later, Chen pulls out a dish decorated with the figure of a woman with a bouffant hairdo. "Her hair looks like a flower," Chen says. "This was fashionable among royal women during the late Ming Dynasty." The subjects on the porcelain are so characteristically Chinese that Chen suspects they were intended for other Asian markets, such as Japan or the Philippines.

In addition to its porcelain, Nan'ao Number One stands out for its weaponry. Xiamen University's Wu stops by the Nan Tianshun to visit Cui and see for himself the Nan'ao's bronze cannons, which still wait on the ocean floor. "This is the first boat found with cannons on board," he says. They could have been used to protect the smugglers from imperial forces. "They would confiscate your goods, put you in jail, and sink your ship—the stakes were high." The cannons could also have served to protect the boat against other pirates or raiders. The sailors might also have feared becoming entangled in the intermittent battles that occurred between the Dutch and Portuguese through the end of the sixteenth century and the beginning of the seventeenth.

The wreck called Nanhai Number One, a Song Dynasty ship, was lifted intact from the sea floor in 2007 (in large freight container). (Courtesy Cui Yong)

While the Nan'ao ship stands out for having sailed outside the law, underwater archaeology in China has its own set of pirates and lawbreakers. Cui and Wu are both at the forefront of a young profession—before they started their studies in 1988, China had no trained underwater archaeologists and wrecks like the Nan'ao were the exclusive territory of treasure hunters. Fortunes may have been made among fishermen.

One treasure hunter in particular caught the attention of China's government and was instrumental in forcing the country to consider its own underwater excavations. Cui is a bit chagrined by it, but he explains that the development of underwater archaeology in China owes much to English treasure hunter Michael Hatcher. Hatcher's biggest find, which came to be known as the Nanking Cargo, came in the 1980s. All the archaeologists on the Nan Tianshun know the story well. It was the wreck of a Dutch ship that had run afoul of a coral reef near Indonesia in 1752, dropping a load of tea, gold, and more than 150,000 pieces of Ming Dynasty porcelain. "The porcelain was all from Jingdezhen, near Nanjing," says Wu. "That boat wasn't Chinese, but all that porcelain originated from China." China's government did its best to stop the sale of what it saw as national cultural heritage, but Hatcher was still able to auction off the bulk of his find in 1986, reportedly earning more than $20 million. Two years later, Cui was enrolled in an underwater archaeology program at Qinghua University. "Hatcher got Chinese archaeologists to start studying underwater excavation techniques," he says.

The ship and its surrounding silt were placed in a custom-built tank at a new museum in Guangdong. (Courtesy Cui Yong)

Cui and Wu often refer to their first experience with underwater archaeology as the "Australian Program." Qinghua partnered with Adelaide University in Australia, and the first class of underwater archaeologists was selected on the basis of physical fitness as much as anything else. "They needed young archaeologists, and I was in good health," Cui says. "And, of course, the other point was that
I could swim."

The first decade of underwater archaeology went slowly, but the last two boats on which Cui has worked have sped that development up considerably. In 2001, Cui was sent to head excavations at Nanhai Number One, the wreck of a Song Dynasty boat that sailed well before the dismantling of China's fleet during the Ming Dynasty. "[The Song Dynasty] was a time when China's sailing fleet was well developed," Cui says. "Chinese boats were making it all the way to India and Africa." The boat was discovered by accident in 1987 by a team of English and Chinese researchers who were searching for an English boat thought to have gone down in the area. The Chinese archaeologists, however, weren't prepared to take on the large and complicated excavation.

"The Nanhai was in shallower water than the Nan'ao, but the visibility was terrible," Cui says. "We would have had to conduct excavations by feeling our way along the bottom of the sea floor." In 2001, archaeologists revisited the wreck with a bigger budget—$20.3 million—which was used to build a custom saltwater tank on Hailing Island in Guangdong, part of a new Maritime Silk Road Museum, which opened in 2009. Archaeologists actually lifted the boat—along with the silt in which it was buried—out of the ocean and into the tank for study. The spectacle of a 3,000-ton steel cage being pulled out of the water earned shipwrecks a place in China's popular consciousness.

A pot and plate, both retrieved from the Nan'ao Number One wreck. Such items are popular with collectors, putting many of China's wrecks at risk from looting.
(Courtesy Cui Yong)

"These boats—two very different boats—have attracted a lot of popular interest for marine archaeology," says Cui. "Without them, I don't think it would be growing so quickly [in China]."

The frenetic activity on the Nan Tianshun is a sign of how far underwater archaeology has come since Cui took his first diving class. The Chinese government continues to invest in digs and soon the Nan Tianshun will be replaced with an updated excavation vessel. But the interest in the Nan'ao wreck has also put all of China's wrecks in greater danger. The biggest threat to underwater archaeology, Cui says, is the popularity of the artifacts such sites carry. Unblemished, authentic Ming Dynasty porcelain can command high prices from collectors, and thieves have learned to target sunken ships to find it.

According to the archaeologists at Nan'ao, keeping the wreck well protected has been the key to their success. However, they are on-site only a few months a year. The rest of the time, Nan'ao Number One is under the watch of one determined local law enforcement officer. "If we had no Zhu Zhixiong, we would have no Nan'ao," Cui says.

Zhu, or Chief Zhu, as everyone on the boat calls him, is the head of Nan'ao Island's maritime border control. He is perpetually in uniform and has a tendency to stare, earnest and unblinking, when speaking about the Nan'ao. "When the fishermen uncovered the porcelain they wanted to keep it," he says. They discovered the Nan'ao's treasures while diving off the coast of the island in 2007 and set about building their collection in secret, hoping to attract the attention of a buyer. Instead, tales of the stash reached Zhu. "We run a program where we reach out to the local people and they feel comfortable talking to us," Zhu explains. "Somebody came to us and told us about the artifacts." The border patrol confiscated the porcelain and Zhu did his best to explain to other fishermen that retrieving and selling the artifacts is against the law.

"We didn't do this for glory," Zhu says. "We didn't know what was down there at that point. We don't dive, we can't see under the water, but we know it is important to protect our national heritage." Zhu dedicated himself to guarding a wreck he couldn't see.

"This isn't just a Chinese problem," Zhu says carefully. "But thieves and treasure hunters are tireless." At the Nan'ao wreck, Zhu set up 24-hour surveillance. "They will come at night or in bad weather, thinking you won't chase them. Some of them are very professional." Some haul in diving gear and lights. Others are fishermen and experienced enough in the water to free dive 90 feet to the bottom. "One boat must have studied our habits and came in through an area we weren't patrolling. When we came with our boats they fled, but we saw, with complete clarity, where they were headed." Zhu's team called ahead to another guard base and caught the thieves.

Over the years, Zhu's reputation has spread. Patrol officers say they are seeing fewer attempts every year. Still, says Zhu, you have to be vigilant. "You can't sleep if you want to protect our heritage," he says. When Cui sees him on the deck of the Nan Tianshun, he gives him an affectionate pat on the shoulder and says, "Every wreck needs its own Chief Zhu."

Cui considers himself lucky to have such a dedicated protector. In many areas of the South China Sea, archaeologists hesitate to explore new wrecks for fear that even a preliminary dive will attract the attention of looters. Despite Zhu's vigilance, the persistence of thieves and vulnerability of the wreck add to the pressure on the archaeologists on the Nan Tianshun. "We are hoping to finish bringing up artifacts this year and look more closely at the structure of the boat," Cui says. Archaeologists have identified the bow, stern, masts, cargo cabin, and possibly anchor. "Maybe we'll be able to bring the whole thing up; we're not sure yet."

Once finished at the Nan'ao, Cui says he might take a break from excavation. His colleague Wu, however, is enthusiastic about future excavations on the coastline north of the Nan'ao in Fujian Province. Here, says Wu, will be the cradle of Chinese marine archaeology. The Nan'ao Number One and the Nanhai Number One are just two examples from a sea rich with history and prone to sinkings. "There are thousands of wrecks," he says. They've barely broken the surface.

Lauren Hilgers is a freelance writer based in Shanghai.

A reflection of China's ancient past at the Huntington

2011-12-31T09:25:00.003+01:00

Warring mirror with riders and figures in Landscape. (Photograph by Bruce M. White)

Huntington exhibit uncovers history of intricate mirrors, their makers and owners.

From Valley Sun by Lynne Heffler, December 30, 2011

A tiny leopard frozen in mid-leap. A stalking hunter. Twining leaves, coiled dragons, interlaced serpents, swooping birds and “swirling cloud scrolls” that represent “the vital energy, or qi, of everything in the universe”:

These are some of the stunning designs to be found in “Ancient Chinese Bronze Mirrors From the Lloyd Cotsen Collection,” a major exhibition at the Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino.

Running through May 14 and organized by Huntington Curator June Li, the first-time exhibition features 87 bronze mirrors — diminutive treasures that span 3,000 years of ancient Chinese history, from the Qijia Culture (2100-1700 BC) to the Jin Dynasty of the 12th and 13th century.

These cast bronze mirrors with once-glossy polished faces are not on display merely as objects of cosmetic use and self-reflection. In fact, the star attractions are the backs of the mirrors. Even green or blue with the patina of age, the intricately decorated surfaces are alive with inscriptions, abstract and symbolic designs, mythical beings, deities, flora and fauna.

Some are lacquered and painted, others are inlaid with mother-of-pearl, glass and precious stones. Some are gilded, silvered or crafted with hammered gold.

Their use and décor can be interpreted as sacred, magical and protective as well as pragmatic. The evolution of their designs and metallurgy offers scholars a key to historical, cultural and technological changes that took place in ancient China over thousands of years.

The trade routes of the Silk Road, for instance, brought Western influences to China’s indigenous motifs and its highly developed bronze technology. Foreigners, recognizable by their clothing and facial features, began to figure into the designs. Grapevines became a popular motif.

The delicately crafted mirrors — mostly circular in shape, some square, others elaborately lobed — were the province of the wealthy, their value underscored by the fact that they were presented as diplomatic gifts and entombed with their owners.

“Bronze was a very valuable commodity,” said Huntington Curatorial Assistant Michelle Bailey. “All the mirrors you see in the exhibition would have been quite expensive. Even the smallest were owned by the elites in early China.”

Fragments of embroidered silk cloth on display demonstrate how closely textile and mirror designs were related. Finely patterned background designs in bronze appear to echo the weave of textiles, a subtlety that can be discerned because the display cases allow visitors an intimate view of these exquisite little works of art.

“The cases were custom made for the exhibition,” Bailey said, “and they’re built so that you can get close to them. We also have interior lighting in the cases as well as exterior lighting to give visitors a chance to see the sculptural quality in the designs.”

And careful scrutiny is rewarded as tiny details emerge. Look carefully at the “Moon Mirror with Birds and Dragon” from the Tang Dynasty and within the mirror’s circle shape you’ll see a little moon inhabited by a rabbit stirring a pot under a leafy cinnamon tree. The pot contains “perhaps the elixir of life,” says the display label, and the rabbit “is an endearing allusion to popular legends of immortality.”

In a nearby case, a fragment of silk embroidered with a “Cloud Scroll and Rabbit in the Moon” further demonstrates the popularity of this motif.

Many of the mirrors bear inscriptions offering good wishes to the owners or pertaining to the artisans themselves. One maker’s translated inscription is a masterpiece of self-promotion:

“The Shangfang workshop made this mirror/Which is truly great and well crafted/On its surface are the immortals/Who do not know old age/When thirsty, they drink from jade springs/And when hungry they eat jujubes/Floating, they roam the world/And ramble everywhere within the surrounding seas/What pleasure!”

These eloquent remnants of a distant past (plus a few modern copies displayed for contrast) were collected by Lloyd Cotsen, a Los Angeles-based businessman, philanthropist and noted eclectic art collector, who began accumulating them while serving in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War.

After their stay at the Huntington, the mirrors will go to the Shanghai Museum, designated as the collection’s new permanent home by Cotsen, who has previously donated other of his varied collections to such institutions as the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and Princeton University.

UCLA professor of Chinese archaeology and art history Lothar von Falkenhausen edited the impressive, companion two-volume book, “The Lloyd Cotsen Study Collection of Chinese Bronze Mirrors.” Volume one, the collection’s hardcover catalog, was authored by UC San Diego history professor Suzanne E. Cahill.

Part of the mirrors’ hold on viewers, Cahill writes, “comes from uniting contradictory elements in meaning as well as design: religious and secular concerns, the individual and the cosmos, the transient and the eternal, time and space, the living and the dead.”

17th century Chinese coin found in the Yukon, Canada

2011-12-29T21:03:00.009+01:00

This ancient Chinese coin may shed some light on pre-Gold Rush history in Yukon. (James Mooney/Ecofor Consulting)

CBC News November 1, 2011 Russian traders linked China with First Nations
Archeologists have unearthed a coin more than 300 years old northwest of Carmacks, Yukon, which provides a link between 17th-century China, Russian traders and First Nations people.
The find came in July as a team checked the route of a proposed mining road for the Western Copper and Gold Corporation’s planned Casino gold mine.
The Chinese coin, which is round with a square hole in the centre, helps fill in the blanks on some pre-Gold Rush history.
James Mooney, from Ecofor Consulting Ltd., and his team were doing the heritage impact assessment for the proposed mining road.
"I was less than a metre from our archeologist Kirby Booker when she turned over the first shovel of topsoil and I caught sight of something dangling from the turf. It was the coin — the neatest discovery I've ever been part of,” Mooney said.
Mooney believes there’s a logical explanation for how the coin found its way deep into the Yukon interior hundreds of years ago.

“The first documented accounts of foreigners getting into Tlingit territory were in the mid-1700s. Russian traders [were] coming in and they were collecting sea otter pelts and some of the inland furs, and they would trade things like glass beads, silks and coins,” he said.

Evidence Chinese market connected with Yukon First Nations

Ecofor Consulting archeologist Kirby Booker made the find of a lifetime when she dug up the coin. (James Mooney/Ecofor Consulting)

Heritage Canada says the coin was minted between 1667 and 1671. It says the coin adds to the body of evidence that the Chinese market connected with Yukon First Nations through Russian and coastal Tlingit trade.
Ecofor Consulting archeologist Kirby Booker made the find of a lifetime when she dug up the coin. (James Mooney/Ecofor Consulting)
This trade happened throughout the 17th and 18th centuries and possibly as early as the 15th century.
The Tlingit tightly controlled direct trade with the interior First Nations through the Chilkoot Pass, which is one of the few entry points through the Coastal Mountains to the interior.
Mooney said the location of the find, on a bluff overlooking a river and creek source, is a likely place for a traveller to have rested or camped between Dyea and Fort Selkirk.
The coin is different from others of its type because it has four additional small holes above each corner of the central square.
“The extra holes could have been made in China. Coins were sometimes nailed to a gate, door or ridgepole for good luck. Alternatively, First Nations might have made the extra holes to attach them to clothing,” said Mooney.
The coins could have been used as decoration or sewn in layers like roofing shingles onto hide shirts to protect warriors from arrows.

3rd ancient coin found in Yukon
The coins are more common along the coast, but only three have been found in Yukon.
A matrix archeologist found another one in the Kwanlin Dun region this past summer. That was dated between 1724 and 1735. An even older coin was found in 1993 by Beaver Creek, which was dated between 1403 and 1424.
The most recent find will be held with the Yukon archeological collection. Mooney and his team are recommending the road builders avoid the site and that further study be done there.

Qing royal tombs to go digital

2011-12-29T20:47:00.004+01:00

To watch video, click HERE

Now we are going to look at the heritage of the Qing Dynasty -- the last empire in China's long history. Among the enduring legacies left by the Qing emperors are the eastern Royal Tombs in Hebei Province, which took 247 years to complete.
Now, the ancient site is going digital. Through a joint project by Historic Scotland and the China Cultural Relics Bureau, everyone from researchers to the mildly curious can soon enjoy a digital record of this world-renowned cultural heritage.
The Scotish team will focus on the Xiao Tomb of Shunzhi and Jing Tomb of Kangxi. Shunzhi was the first emperor since the Manchu Army conquered the all of China. His son, Kangxi, spent more time on the Chinese throne than anyone else with a 61-year reign. The tombs will undergo a comprehensive scanning in order to build a detailed digital model. Thus enough data will be available for remote access and educational projects.
Alex Salmond, Scotland First Minister, said, "This is a big challenge, a representation of Chinese culture."
Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty is the largest royal tomb cluster discovered thus far. 580 detached architectures stand in an area of 48 square kilometers. It takes a visitor at least two days to cover the whole sight. However, with the help of digital modeling, one can stay indoors to appreciate it on-line.

Eastern Tombs of the Qing Dynasty is the largest royal tomb cluster discovered thus far.

Zhao Yingjian, deputy director of Tourism Management Committee, said, "It helps us know more about the history and the value of architecture and sculptures. It is significant for cultural communication."
The project will use the same kind of laser technology that has been applied to other world cultural heritages like the Queen Well in India and Mount Rushmore in the U.S.

Tomb reveals life of nobles

2011-12-29T12:30:00.004+01:00

In a suburb of Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi Province, there is a tomb complex that archaeologists found in 2007 with 14 separate units. Unfortunately, the researchers were not the first to discover the site. Over time, some significant findings have come out of the site. To watch a video, click HERE
In 2008, excavation of the site began in earnest and researchers discovered that only one tomb out of the total 14 had remained unspoiled by looters. Thus far, Archaeologists have determined that the tombs date back to the Western Han dynasty about 2000 year ago, and that they belong to the nobleman, Zhang Shi’an, an important courtier in the Western Han Dynasty.

In April of this year, the only non-plundered tomb, called M1, was excavated. The wooden coffin in M1’s chamber had collapsed, exposing the owners remains and precious funerary objects. Ding Yan, director of Archeological Team said: "We found some lacquers inlaid with gold and silver buttons, some small bronze wares and coins."

What surprises archaeologists is the garment covering the body in this tomb. After some cleaning, some patterns and designs can be seen on the cloth, which is very rare in a tomb over 2000 years old. Researchers believe this may be the daughter-in-law of Zhang Shi’an, but they still need further proof. Even so, they find this tomb very meaningful, because it shows the fashionable life she lead and her treatment after death.

Source: CNTV [December 19, 2011]

Ancient price tomb found in Xi'an

2011-12-29T12:17:00.004+01:00

To watch the video click HERE

Recently the Xi'an Cultural Relics Protection Institute excavated a tomb complex in a western suburb of Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi Province, and ancient capital of China.

The 18 tombs date back to the Tang Dynasty, some 1200 years ago. According to researchers, the tombs belong to a prince from a Turkic clan, which was a minority group located in the area during the Western Tang Dynasty.

Archaeologists have unearthed many funerary objects such as figurines, including a rare kneeling eunuch figurine.

The reason this Turkic prince was buried in Xi'an is because during that period the prince was held hostage in the central Tang territory in order to keep the peace.

Recently the Xi'an Cultural Relics Protection Institute excavated a to

One Hundred Geese attributed to Ma Fen

2011-12-28T23:00:00.001+01:00

In this 15 foot long handscroll attributed to Ma Fen, the viewer can enjoy 100 geese, painted in shades of gray and black ink, moving through a misty marsh.

The Night Banquet: A Chinese Scroll Through Time

2011-12-28T21:05:00.002+01:00

The Night Banquet: A Chinese Scroll Through Time
By De-nin Deanne Lee

Hardcover: 192 pages
Publisher: University of Washington Press (25 Mar 2011)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0295990724

The tenth-century Chinese handscroll The Night Banquet of Han Xizai (attributed to tenth-century artist Gu Hongzheng), long famous for its depiction of a decadent party hosted by a government official, is used by De-nin Lee to explore how art objects are created and the many sociopolitical eras and individual hands through which they pass. By the tenth or eleventh century, and in earnest by the thirteenth, viewers of Chinese paintings lodged their responses to a work of art directly on the object itself, in the form of seals, inscriptions and colophons. The scrawls and markings may amount to distractions for the seasoned admirer of European easel painting, but Lee explains that a handscroll painting without its complement of textual accretions loses its very history. Through her deft detective work, we watch the Night Banquet handscroll-much like the enigmatic seventeenth-century Cremonese instrument in Francois Girard's film The Red Violin-travel through the centuries from owner to owner and viewer to viewer, influencing and being influenced by the people who contemplate it and add their thoughts, signatures and seals to its borders. Treating the scroll as a co-creation of painter and viewers, Lee tells a fascinating story of cultural practices surrounding Chinese paintings. In effect, her book addresses a question central to art history: What is the role of art in a society? De-nin Lee is assistant professor of art and Asian studies at Bowdoin College in Maine.

Review
"A tour-de-force of historical scholarship, The Night Banquet is an engaging narrative that at times reads like a detective novel. Lee investigates every individual who saw, wrote on, or commented about the scroll and she leads the reader on an enticing journey of discovery that provides both an overview of Chinese history and an in-depth reading of this extraordinary work of art."-Ankeney Weitz, Colby College "Lee has been immensely successful in her quest to uncover the history and changing significance of the Han Xizai scroll, detailing what a spectrum of career officials, connoisseurs, collectors and emperors had to say about it-sometimes disapproving of the subject matter as licentious and immoral, sometimes considering it a vehicle for comment on current political situations. A masterful study, rooted in extensive original research, rich in detail and interpretation, The Night Banquet is a major contribution to the study of Chinese painting and to Chinese culture in general."-Ellen Johnston Laing, University of Michigan

Seals, Sealings and Tokens from Gandhara

2011-12-27T17:50:00.001+01:00

Seals, Sealings and Tokens from Gandhara
by Aman ur Rahman and Harry Falk

Hardcover: 238 pages
Publisher: Reichert Verlag (15 Aug 2011)
Language English
ISBN-10: 3895008192

Ancient seals say much about people, their names, preferred styles and self-esteem. Over many decades Aman ur Rahman has built a large collection of seals from North-Western Pakistan, which were produced during Hellenistic times up to the Guptas. He classifies them and explains their pictorial content, while Harry Falk, a professor of Indology at Berlin, reads all epigraphs in Kharosthi and Brahmi and provides an introduction on the scribal aspects.

Das Werk präsentiert über tausend Siegel, Siegelabdrücke und Verwandtes aus Gandhara aus der Zeit des Hellenismus bis zu den Guptas. Die Sammlung Aman ur Rahmans findet sich durchweg in Farbe wiedergegeben, wie auch die Sammlungen der Museen in Taxila und Peshawar. Harry Falk bietet eine schrift- und kulturgeschichtliche Einleitung, mit Schwerpunkten bei den Kulten der Bhima aus der Höhle Kashmir Smast und den Lesungen aller Epigramme in indischen und griechischen Schriften verbunden mit einer namenskundlichen Analyse.

The Silk Road: A New History

2011-12-27T17:37:00.002+01:00

The Silk Road: A New History
by Valerie Hansen

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Oxford Univ Press (2 Aug 2012)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0195159314

Description
The Silk Road is as iconic in world history as the Colossus of Rhodes or the Suez Canal. But what was it, exactly? It conjures a hazy image of a caravan of camels laden with silk on a dusty desert track, reaching from China to Rome. The reality was different, and far more interesting, as revealed in this new history.

In The Silk Road, Valerie Hansen describes the remarkable archaeological finds that revolutionize our understanding of these trade routes. For millennia, key records remained hidden--often deliberately buried by bureaucrats for safe keeping. But the sands of the Taklamakan Desert have revealed fascinating material, sometimes preserved by illiterate locals who recycled official documents to make insoles for shoes or garments for the dead. Hansen explores seven oases along the road, from northwest China to Samarkand, where merchants, envoys, pilgrims, and travelers mixed in cosmopolitan communities, tolerant of religions from Buddhism to Zoroastrianism. Hansen notes that there was no single, continuous road, but a chain of markets that traded between east and west. China and the Roman Empire had very little direct trade. China's main partners were the peoples of modern-day Iran, whose tombs in China reveal much about their Zoroastrian beliefs. Hansen writes that silk was not the most important good on the road; paper, invented in China before Julius Caesar was born, had a bigger impact in Europe, while metals, spices, and glass were just as important as silk. Perhaps most significant of all was the road's transmission of ideas, technologies, and artistic motifs.

The Silk Road is a fascinating story of archeological discovery, cultural transmission, and the intricate chains across Central Asia and Southeast Asia.
.
About the Author
Valerie Hansen is Professor of History at Yale University. Her books include The Open Empire: A History of China to 1600, Negotiating Daily Life in Traditional China: How Ordinary People Used Contracts, 600-1400, and Changing Gods in Medieval China, 1127-1276, and co-author of Voyages in World History.

The Silk Roads: A Brief History with Documents

2011-12-27T15:56:00.003+01:00

The Silk Roads: A Brief History with Documents
By Xinru Liu

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (18 May 2012)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0312475519

Product Description
This thoughtful introduction examines the many ways in which the peoples along the Silk Roads interacted and considers the implications for economies and societies as well as political and religious institutions. The book contains a range of primary material, some of which has been translated into English for the first time.

Review
'What is very helpful about Liu's collection is that it combines a well-organized, concise overview of the pre-modern Silk Road with documents from all across ancient Eurasia, instead of just China or the Greco-Roman world. The new translations of individuals' letters from the Tarim Basin area are quite cool.' - Shoshana Keller, Hamilton College, USA

Chinese scientists finish sequencing Genghis Khan descendant's genome

2011-12-27T15:31:00.002+01:00

HOHHOT, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Scientists said on Sunday that they have finished sequencing the genome of a direct descendant of Genghis Khan.

Zhou Huanmin, project leader and head of the biological research lab at the Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, said Sunday that this was the first individual genome sequencing of a Mongolian.

The blood donator was a male only identified as one of Genghis Khan's 34th-generation offspring from the Sunit Tribe, which is based in the Xilingol league (prefecture) in Inner Mongolia.

Zhou said the research team will continue to sequence the genomes of another 199 ethnic Mongolians and build a database consisting of Mongolian genetic code.

Zhou said the results of the genome mapping are important for the detection of ethnicity-specific genome inheritances and the evolutionary features of Mongolians, and will also contribute to medical research linked to the control of certain diseases.

There are about 10 million ethnic Mongolians living around the world, mainly in China's Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous regions and Qinghai province, as well as the Republic of Mongolia and Russia.

For more information, read this article in Discover Magazine

The Prosperous Cities: A Selection of Paintings from the Liaoning Provincial Museum

2011-12-26T11:11:00.002+01:00

The Prosperous Cities: This is about an exhibition in 2009 but the scrolls are so beautiful!!

A Selection of Paintings from the Liaoning Provincial Museum
2009.09.25 - 11.22
Hong Kong Museum of Art
Special Exhibition Gallery (1), 2/F

Jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and
the Liaoning Provincial Museum
Jointly organised by the Hong Kong Museum of Art and the Liaoning Provincial Museum

A Celebration Programme of the 60th Anniversary of the Founding of the PRC

This exhibition features 15 paintings from the Ming (13681644) and Qing (16441911) dynasties, on the unique theme of prosperous cities, from the collection of the Liaoning Provincial Museum. Most of the exhibits, once prized possessions of the Qing emperor Qianlong, are representative works in the history of painting. Offering an insight into China's urban wealth during the Ming and Qing periods, they include significant paintings such as Along the River during the Qingming Festival by Qiu Ying (ca.1494ca.1552) of the Ming dynasty, Ten Views of West Lake by Wang Yuanqi (16421715) and Prosperous Suzhou by Xu Yang (1712ca. 1777) of the Qing dynasty.

The centrepiece of the exhibition is the handscroll by Xu Yang, a Qing court painter during the reign of Qianlong. Completed in 1759 during Qianlong's second Southern Inspection Tour, the scroll painting provides a panoramic but extraordinarily detailed view of 18th century Suzhou. In it, Xu painstakingly depicts people from all walks of life from fishermen, woodcutters and tillers to merchants, literati and civil officers as well as Suzhou's fascinating scenery, in which many prosperous aspects of the city during the High Qing era are emphasised.

Gov't eyes seabed with 13th century Mongol wreck as historic site

2011-12-26T08:26:00.001+01:00

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The Agency for Cultural Affairs plans to seek the designation as a national historical site the seabed off Nagasaki Prefecture in southwestern Japan where the wreck of a ship believed to have been used by 13th-century Mongol invaders has been found, agency sources said Wednesday.

If realized, the area off Takashima Island in Matsuura, Nagasaki, will be the first underwater ruins to be registered. Designation as a historic site would in principle prohibit the existing state in the area to be altered.

The agency saw the need to take immediate protection measures in the area given that relics there are expected to provide archeologists with crucial information on the 1274 and 1281 Mongol attacks that, until the recent discovery of the relatively intact shipwreck, has mostly been available only from historical documents and drawings.

The move came after the Matsuura education board submitted a report to the agency in July calling for the designation of some 384,000 square meters in the area, including where the sunken ship was found, as a national historical site. The board said academic research is still ongoing in the area and that no decision has been made on whether to raise the submerged wreck.

The failure of the two attacks launched by Mongol leader Kublai Khan (1215-1294) against Japan, with battles fought in northern Kyushu, is often attributed in Japan to "kamikaze" divine winds that destroyed much of the Mongol fleets.

The waters around Takashima Island are known for discoveries of the scattered wrecks. In October, a research team of the University of the Ryukyus said it has found a wreck with much of the hull still intact, including a 12-meter-long section of the keel.

In accordance with procedures for designating cultural properties, the agency will first consult with the Council for Cultural Affairs on the matter.

(Mainichi Japan) December 8, 2011

Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China

2011-12-25T19:20:00.007+01:00

"Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China" at HK Central Library

Precious ancient rare books and special collections from the National Library of China (NLC), which has the world's largest collection of Chinese documents, will be on display from December 9 to January 15 at the Exhibition Gallery of the Hong Kong Central Library (HKCL).

Items on display at the "Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China" include 12 original pieces such as a "Zhaocheng Jin Zang" (Zhaocheng Jin Tripitaka) scroll from the Jin dynasty; "Shizhu Zhai Shuhua Pu" (The Ten Bamboo Studio Manual of Calligraphy and Paintings), "Zhang Shenzhi Xiansheng Zheng Bei Xixiang Miben" (Story of the Western Chamber Revised by Zhang Shenzhi), "Shuo Wen Jie Zi" (Annotations of Chinese Characters) and "Yuanqu Xuan Tu" (Illustrations from Selected Yuan Dramas) from the Ming dynasty; "Yuzhi Guwen Yuanjian" (Anthology of Ancient Essays, Imperial Edition) from the Qing dynasty; and a palm-leaf manuscript of "Narrative Verses of Sariputta from the Abhidhamma-Pitaka" in Dai script from the 19th century.

Officiating at the opening ceremony (December 8) at the HKCL were the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Tsang Tak-sing; the former Vice Minister of Culture and Director of the NLC, Mr Zhou Heping; the Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), Mr Li Gang; the Deputy Director-General of the Department of Publicity, Cultural and Sports Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, Mr Liu Hanqi; the Chairman of the Public Libraries Advisory Committee, Professor John Leong; and the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Mrs Betty Fung.

"Yudi Tu" (Map of Imperial Territories), one of the finest extant samples of Ming maps to show political and administrative divisions, is one of exhibits on display at the "Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China".

The exhibition, jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the NLC and organised by the Hong Kong Public Libraries, is one of the key events to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the HKCL. It aims to display the rich and varied cultural heritage of China and the NLC's contributions in heritage conservation and restoration.

The 42 exhibits on display are some of the precious treasures in the NLC's vast holdings. They consist of "shanben" (rare books), Dunhuang documents, ancient maps and atlases, epigraphical and pictorial rubbings and texts and illustrations from China's ethnic minorities, and feature a wide spectrum of disciplines ranging from religion, literature, geography and medicine to art and technology of ancient China.

"Shanben" refers to ancient books with high heritage, artistic and academic value. The original pieces on display include the precious surviving set of "Zhaocheng Jin Zang" (Zhaocheng Jin Tripitaka) from the Jin dynasty; "Shizhu Zhai Shuhua Pu" (The Ten Bamboo Studio Manual of Calligraphy and Paintings), which is regarded as the earliest colour painting manual in China; the first genuine Chinese dictionary, "Shuo Wen Jie Zi" (Annotations of Chinese Characters); "Zhang Shenzhi Xiansheng Zheng Bei Xixiang Miben" (Story of the Western Chamber Revised by Zhang Shenzhi), the artworks of which represent the distinctive woodblock printing techniques of China in the 17th century; "Yuanqu Xuan Tu" (Illustrations from Selected Yuan Dramas) of the Ming dynasty, a significant document for research on Yuan plays; and "Yuzhi Guwen Yuanjian" (Anthology of Ancient Essays, Imperial Edition) from the Qing dynasty, featuring a comprehensive anthology of classical prose literature from ancient times to the Song dynasty.

Other "shanben" original pieces are "Xinbian Mulian Jiumu Quanshan Xiwen" (New Compilation of the Play Scripts about Mulian Rescuing His Mother), "Lidai Minggong Huapu" (Manual of Paintings by Famous Masters of Successive Periods) from the Ming dynasty and "Lingyange Gongchen Tu" (Portraits of Meritorious Officials from the Lingyan Pavilion) from the Qing dynasty. Some of other highlights in this collection include a large-scale encyclopaedia, "Yongle Dadian" (Yongle Encyclopaedia); "Tiangong Kaiwu" (The Exploitation of Nature Works), which has been named as one of the most important works on science and technology in the cultural history of China; "Siku Quanshu" (Complete Library of Four Treasuries), a set of books that is a comprehensive summary of Chinese ancient culture; "Shengping Shu Lianpu" (Albums of Beijing Opera Characters from the Shengping Bureau) from the Qing dynasty featuring all actors in the Beijing opera; and the earliest classic work on traditional Chinese medicine, "Huangdi Neijing Suwen" (Medical Classic of the Emperor Huangdi).

The "Zhaocheng Jin Zang" (Zhaocheng Jin Tripitaka) scroll from the Jin dynasty is one of the originals on display at the "Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China".

Dunhuang documents are ancient literature found in Dunhuang and other sites in China and Central Asia. The manuscripts were mainly official documents, private letters, religious canons, Chinese classic literature and non-Chinese documents. The exhibition showcases "Lao Zi Yi Shu" (Commentary of Dao De Jing), "Bian Wang Lun" and "The Diamond Prajna-Paramita Sutra" from the Tang dynasty.

Ancient Chinese cartography has a long history. The earliest mention of a Chinese city map dates back to the 11th century BC during the early years of the Western Zhou dynasty. In ancient China, maps functioned as the territorial emblems of a state and provided concrete proof of territorial rights. They occupied a hallowed spiritual position and were also utilised for military purposes. Ancient maps also presented the layouts of famous scenic spots and the architectural plans of imperial gardens and palaces. "Yudi Tu" (Map of Imperial Territories), one of the finest extant samples of Ming maps to show political and administrative divisions, and "Bishu Shanzhuang Quantu" (Full Map of the Mountain Resort) from the Qing dynasty, featuring the imperial resort, are the epitome of this collection.

The ancient Chinese utilised the plastrons or carapaces of turtles, bones of animals, bronze, stone and other materials for engraving, incising or writing inscriptions. Rubbing is a reproduction technique achieved by placing a piece of paper or a similar material on the texts or graphics of an engraved or carved subject and making an ink print by means of rubbing. The prints, known as "taben" (rubbing edition), are of high artistic and documentary value as they are able to perfectly record the contents of the original items.

"Zhang Shenzhi Xiansheng Zheng Bei Xixiang Miben" (Story of the Western Chamber Revised by Zhang Shenzhi), which represents the distinctive woodblock printing techniques of China, is one of the originals on display at the "Exhibition of Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China".

The rubbing exhibits include "Yinxin Shiwu Tushuo" (Illustrations of the Yinxin Stone Dwelling), an original work from the Qing dynasty; "Han Junche Huaxiang" (Illustration of a Han Dynasty Procession), which vividly portrays an important official seated in a canopied chariot; "Shence Jun Bei" (Inscription to Commemorate the Emperor's Inspection Tour to the Left-Shen-Ce Forces), a rubbing edition on the writings of the great calligrapher Liu Gongquan of the Tang dynasty; and "Lanting Xiuxi Tu" (Illustration of the Spring Purification Gathering at the Orchid Pavilion), which portrays the graceful scene of literatus Wang Xizhi having a gathering with friends.

China is a unified nation in which different ethnic groups contributed to the establishment of a splendid civilisation. The ancient scripts show the great heritage and research value in ancient language, philology, religion, literature, art, history, archaeology, astronomy, calendrical studies and medicine of these ethnic groups. Exhibits in this collection include documents in the Dai, Mongolian, Manchu, Tibetan, Sanskrit, Yi, Tangut and Dongba scripts, among which "Imperial Patent of Nobility to the Parents of Yulin" (in Manchu and Chinese scripts) from the Qing dynasty and "Narrative Verses of Sariputta from the Abhidhamma-Pitaka" (in Dai script) from the 19th century are the originals. Not to be missed are "Annals of the Creation", written in colour Dongba symbols on the ancient Naxi people's view of nature and the origins of human beings, and "Twenty-One Hymns to the Rescuer Mother of Buddhas" written in Manchu, Tibetan, Mongolian and Chinese scripts in the Qing dynasty.

To complement the exhibition, the HKCL has organised two subject talks. The first one, entitled "Preservation of Ancient Books to Sustain Civilisation: Preservation and Conservation of Ancient Chinese Books and Records and the Implementation Project", will be held at 9 December ). The Director of the NLC and Director of the National Centre for Preservation and Conservation of Ancient Books, Mr Zhou Heping, will share his views on conservation of rare documents. The other talk, entitled "Bastions of Civilisation: Rare Books and Special Collections from the National Library of China and Stories Behind the Exhibits", hosted by the Director of the Ancient Books Library of the NLC, Ms Chen Hongyan, will be held on December 10 (Saturday). Both talks, to be conducted in Putonghua, will be held at the Lecture Theatre of the HKCL.

Catalogue of this exhibition
Following a nice and inspiring review of this book on Amazon.co.uk
This exhibition catalogue is a must have item for anyone who has a serious interest in China's rich textual tradition. I have already put Visible Traces on my Christmas wish list in hopes that my relatives, who have no idea why I have been studying Chinese literature and history all these years, will break down and give me something related to my life's work. And I haven't written a wish list in ages, that's how much I want a copy of this on my bookshelf. And if they don't give me a copy, I'll give one to myself as a gift once I finish my PhD.
If you didn't have an opportunity to see these rare books, maps and artefacts when they were on display in New York or Los Angeles, or if you don't feel like buying a plane ticket to visit the National Library of China in Beijing, this catalogue is an economical way to savor what you missed. The editorial review does a wonderful job of summarizing the contents, so I won't repeat that. The color photography certainly does justice to the original works. I enjoyed seeing the photographs of a 1621 manuscript on Tang poetry because it's connected to my own research, but there is something in this volume for anyone who loves Chinese culture. The reader will find scrolls of Buddhist sutras, delicate drawings of gentlemen playing the game of go, specialist monographs on the varieties of crysanthemums, illustrated manuals on goldfish, albums of Beijing opera characters, oracle bones, pictorial rubbings and multi-color maps of the Chinese empire, and more.

For the specialist the bibliography is detailed enough to start tracking down other extant copies of the items in the exhibition as well as general information to be found in secondary sources.

That said, why didn't I rate this book a 5? Only a couple reasons. Some sections of maps and charts have been magnified, and are less distinct than their smaller scale originals, which some readers will find frustrating. Every reader will have a different reason why they love this book. I wanted to be able to see the whole 1621 poetry collection. A crysanthemum connoisseur will want to see every flower illustration. Map lovers will wish that all the maps had been printed. In other words, every one will wish the book were bigger and that it covered his or her interest in more detail (even at the expense of someone else's). At 337 pages, however, it's already a large volume. After savoring each page, you may find yourself falling for some new aspect of Chinese culture and you'll realize you may have to buy that plane ticket to China after all. Visible Traces will whet your appetite, but it won't quench your thirst, which is fine because no one volume could ever contain all the glories of China's print culture. DO NOT show this catalogue to your kids, unless you are happy for them to fall in love with Chinese history and art and study for PhDs instead of becoming a lawyer or getting an MBA.

Christian art on the Silk Road

2011-12-25T15:46:00.002+01:00

VisAsia Hingyiu Mok Mandarin language lecture 2012
Saturday 28 January 2012, 1.00pm
Duration 1 hour, 30 minutes
Location: Centenary Auditorium The Art Gallery of NSW/ Australia

From the cross on the lotus of Tang Nestorianism to the palace architecture of the Christian university campus in modern China, religious art from the West has undergone tremendous transformation since its introduction to China via the Silk Road. Join professor Gu Weimin from the Shanghai Normal University and adjunct professor Milton Wan from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in a visual art journey, spanning over a thousand years, from Rome to Beijing, and discover the inter-faith merging of Christian, Buddhist and Muslim arts along the way.

NOTE: This lecture is delivered in Mandarin language only.

This event is part of the 2012 City of Sydney Chinese New Year Festival, celebrating the Year of the Dragon.

Tangut in Tibetan

2011-12-24T16:30:00.003+01:00

The most recent article by Andrew west in Babelstone !!

Perhaps the core problem of Tangutology, which has directly and indirectly involved most of the effort of most Tangutolgists most of the time, has been the reconstruction of the pronunciation of the extinct Tangut language. Modern reconstructions of Tangut are largely based on the evidence provided by a few surviving Tangut lexico-phonological works such as the Homophones and the Sea of Writing, although the phonetic glossing of Tangut characters by means of Chinese characters in the Pearl in the Palm has also provided important evidence for the pronunciation of Tangut. However, it is necessary to first reconstruct the pronunciation of 11th century Chinese before the Chinese glosses can be used to try to reconstruct the pronunciation of the corresponding Tangut characters, and furthermore, as Chinese characters are notoriously incapable of accurately representing the phonetic systems of other languages, even if the pronunciation of the Chinese characters can be accurately reconstructed, they may only give an approximation of the actual Tangut pronunciation. For these reasons, phonetic glosses in Chinese characters are inferior to phonetic glosses given in phonetic scripts such as Tibetan or Phags-pa. Luckily for us, a number of Tangut Buddhist manuscripts with phonetic transcriptions of Tangut characters in the Tibetan script are known, and have been the subject of considerable interest to Tangutologists ever since the existence of such manuscripts was first reported by Nevsky in 1926.

I recently started a project to transcribe the known Tangut-Tibetan manuscripts and collate the readings of the Tibetan glosses by various scholars. So far I have only covered the five Tangut-Tibetan manuscripts collected from the Tangut fortress city of Khara-Khoto by Aurel Stein during his expedition of 1913–1916, and now held at the British Library in London. Thanks to the wonderful International Dunhuang Project these manuscripts are available online for all to see. The following pages are currently available, but I hope to add more manuscripts next year :

Or.12380/1842
Or.12380/3495
Or.12380/3909
Or.12380/3910
Or.12380/3911
Index of Tangut characters with corresponding Tibetan phonetic glosses
Index of Tibetan phonetic glosses with corresponding Tangut characters

As I have only just started this project, it would be premature to attempt an analysis of the way Tibetan is used to represent Tangut pronunciation in these manuscripts, but it is worth making a few general observations.

Firstly, many of the manuscripts are in poor condition, with tattered edges and tears, resulting in many illegible or only partially legible Tangut characters and Tibetan glosses. The poor legibility is exacerbated by the often hard to read Tangut and Tibetan handwriting used in these manuscripts. The Tibetan glosses are particularly difficult (for me at least) to read as they are generally written in an untidy, cursive, headless script in which many letterforms are very similar to other letterforms (e.g. the letters ng ང, d ད and ra ར all look almost identical in some hands), and without context it can be difficult to be sure exactly what letters are intended. For this reason, in many cases the identification of the Tibetan gloss can only be determined with certainty by reference to the reconstructed reading of the corresponding Tangut character. Thus the Tibetan gloss for the 3rd character of the 1st line of Or.12380/3495 looks identical to the Tibetan gloss for the 3rd character of the 1st line of Or.12380/1842, and they could both potentially be ngu, du or ru. In the case of Or.12380/3495 Tai Chung Pui reads it as ru because it fits the Tangut reconstruction of L5130 (*rjur), but in the case of Or.12380/1842 Tai Chung Pui reads it as ngu because it fits the Tangut reconstruction of L0508 (*ŋwu), whereas in the latter case Berthold Laufer, who in 1928 did not have any reconstruction of the Tangut text to refer to, reads it as du.

Secondly, Tibetan is a writing system that is particularly well-equipped to represent a wide range of phonetic values, and we could hope for a very accurate transcription of Tangut pronunciation using the Tibetan script. However, this does not seem to be the case. Although most Tibetan glosses do approximately correspond to the modern phonetic reconstructions of the corresponding Tangut characters, the correspondence is disappointingly poor, with only a very few characters showing an exact correspondence between Tangut reconstruction and Tibetan transcription (e.g. L2098 "I, me" which is reconstructed *ŋa and glossed ŋa ... which also happens to be the Tibetan word for "I, me"). In most cases the Tibetan glosses miss out what should be essential phonetic features, for example transcribing *mja as ma, *ŋwu as ŋu, *ɣjɨ̣ as rgi, *war as wa, *lew as li, and *lhjwịj as lhi. Either the modern reconstructions of Tangut are seriously flawed (a possibility I can't reject) or the Tibetan scribes were content to provide a very approximate representation of Tangut, so approximate that it is hard to imagine that a Tangut speaker could have understood much that a Tibetan reading the Tibetan transcriptions of Tangut was saying. So what was the purpose of the Tibetan transcriptions? My theory is that they were intended for Tibetan monks to be able to chant in unison with their Tangut colleagues, not knowing what they were chanting or needing to chant perfectly, but just vaguely correct enough to be able to chant along without sticking out like a sore thumb. Maybe the Tibetan monks who made the transcriptions did not speak a word of Tangut, and they just wrote down what they thought they heard, which would explain why the transcriptions are so imprecise.

Thirdly, the Tibetan glosses utilise prefix letters (g, d, b, m and ') and superfixed letters (s, r and l) in a way that suggests they might have been intended to indicate a particular pronunciation of the corresponding Tangut character, but it is not immediately obvious what this might have been (it has been sugegsted that these nominally silent letters may have been intended to represent tone in Tangut, but I am not convinced), and they are used inconsistently (e.g. L1245 ·jij is glossed as either ye or g.ye). Likewise, the glosses frequently use a final letter -'a, seemingly to indicate a long vowel, but again it is used inconsistently (e.g. L1278 ·jɨ is glossed as either g.yi or g.yi'). Perhaps the oddest feature of the Tibetan transcriptions is the use of prefix letters in front of letters that do not allow prefix letters in standard Tibetan orthography, for example d.wi དཝི and g.ru' གརུའ. This feature occurs across different manuscripts, and could suggest that the scribes were actually using a formally defined orthography for transcribing Tangut, and not just putting down what they could hear, as I suggested above.

Professor Li Narangoa - Mongolian language, culture and studies at ANU

2011-12-24T13:05:00.001+01:00

Professor Li Narangoa Introduces The Australian National University's new Mongolia Studies Centre, some common Mongolian phrases and some things you may not know about the country.

The first centre of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, the centre in the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific will enhance growing Australian interest in Mongolia as well as strengthen the increased links between the two countries. It will host guest researchers working on Mongolia, organise seminars on Mongolian topics, provide a support network for Australian researchers on Mongolia and promote Mongolian studies in Australia in general.

The launch of the Mongolia Studies Centre coincides with the Mongolian Studies Open Conference which brings scholars from around the world to examine the country's history, culture, anthropology, international relations, business and archaeology. More information and a full program is available at
http://chl.anu.edu.au/mongolianstudies/events.php

Archaeologists starts to unearth ancient tombs in Fanchang, China's Anhu

2011-12-23T19:28:00.003+01:00

An archaeological staff member measures an ancient tomb discovered in Xin'gang Township, Fanchang County, east China's Anhui Province, Dec. 22, 2011. Archaeologists on Thursday started to unearth a group of ancient tombs discovered in a construction site in Xin'gang Township of Anhui Province. The tombs were believed to be of the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) dynasties. (Xinhua/Yang Hua)

Lyrics as literature

2011-12-20T21:08:00.002+01:00

Ohio State professor offers new perspective on cultural diversity

Interpreting song lyrics as a literature device can aid in furthering and bettering the understanding of cultures during different time periods and in relations to different groups of individuals, an Ohio State University professor said.
In “Whose Afraid of Khubilai Khan? A New Perspective on Diversity in Yuan Chinese Musical Culture,” a lecture by Patricia Sieber, Ph.D., and associate professor of East Asian Languages and Literature at Ohio State University stated that lyrics of ancient songs can been viewed as literature and used as a tool to understand cultural diversity.
“We should see these songs as one chapter in the unfolding history of Chinese as a world literary language,” Sieber said.
Sieber explained the culture of music and song in China during Marco Polo’s time. Although the melodies of many songs have been lost, most of the lyrics survived, but these lyrics can help understand diversity in a different time and give insight into a medieval diversity that is seemingly understated.
During the time of Marco Polo’s stay at the palace of Khubilai Khan, the founder of the Yuan Dynasty during the thirteenth and 14th century, he recorded in his journals on what occasions music was played and why music was played.
The lyrics to these songs were used for major court functions such as royal birthdays, New Year’s celebrations and for court audiences such as when Khubilai Khan was entertaining foreign ambassadors, according to Sieber.
Many times, these musical events included the same songs which were sung acapella by women, who also were active in the urban musical culture during the Yuan period. The participation by women are examples of diversity and equality in Yuan culture, Sieber stated.
The inspiration for these lyrics are diverse from the palace, to urban and rural life, as well as the different ethnicity’s that were united under the Yuan dynasty. Due in part to the fact that song writers and musicians were relocated to the capital, many aspects of their local culture influenced their songs.
“What is important here, is seeing this urban and rural origin, is the imperial heritage for this song writing,” Sieber said.
In evaluating these song lyrics as literature, a new appreciation for medieval diversity in historically and socially specific ways is created.
By studying these lyrics there is a distinct picture of the different people present and influential throughout Asia during Polo’s time there.
In this period, many writers may not have been of Chinese ethnicity, but scholars accredit these songs to the Chinese because those writers were culturally stimulated, Sieber said, adding that the songs and lyrics are the dynamic creation of those who lived during the Yuan dynasty.
“In short, what I am trying to suggest is that these songs might be yet another reason why world historians might justly claim that the Mongol empire was one of the transformative cultures in modern age,” Sieber said.
Lyrics from the Yuan period can be used to understand the relations between different people throughout Asia such as students, military officials and artists, who all participated in songwriting as well as locals and non-locals in that community, Sieber said.
Many different members of society were educated and specialized in writing lyrics, continued Sieber.
Through studying these lyrics, Sieber stated that many conventional concepts characteristic of Yuan culture do not correlate with more modern understanding of ethnic discrimination, multiculturalism and cosmopolitanism.
“We need to rethink the way we view how these songs play a role in world literature and in world history,” she said.
Source: Rebel Yell

IDP Field trip 2011

2011-12-20T20:53:00.003+01:00

Members of the IDP UK team recently travelled to Xinjiang to visit the ancient sites of Niya and Karadong. In collaboration with the Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology and local guides IDP spent time documenting the sites. We are working to make this material available on the IDP database as soon as possible but general photography of the trip can already be seen on our Flickr group page and several Audioboos can be heard here.

The photograph above was taken at the house of Kaysar Mahmut, guardian of Niya site, in Kapak Askan village. It shows him (third from left) with members of his family, the IDP UK team and the Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology.

Museum to be built on remains of Yuan Dynasty's earliest capital

2011-12-18T13:01:00.003+01:00

HOHHOT, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- Construction of a museum dedicated to the Yuan Dynasty's (1271-1368) upper capital of Xanadu is expected to be completed in June next year, a local official said Sunday.

Gao Jiaxin, a spokesman for the Zhenglan Banner (county) government, said that the museum, located near the city's remains in north China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, will house more than 200 relics unearthed from excavations of the site.

The remains of the city are on China's application list for world heritage status. UNESCO is scheduled to vote for new entries for its world heritage list at the World Heritage Conference in June next year.

The ancient city was built by Genghis Khan's grandson Kublai Khan during the 13th and 14th centuries and is the earliest Yuan Dynasty capital. The layout of the ancient city demonstrates the merging of Mongolian and Han cultures.

The ruins were opened to tourists in July this year.

Gao said the museum will use modern technology to give visitors a more vivid picture of how the city was built, as well as the life and culture of the time.

Canine Conundrums: Eurasian Dog Ancestor Myths in Historical and Ethnic Perspective

2011-12-11T20:26:00.003+01:00

In the series Sino- Platonic Papers a re-issue of No 87 from October 1998 by Victor H. Mair "Canine Conundrums: Eurasian Dog Ancestor Myths in Historical and Ethnic Perspective"

Silk Road Museum & the Tibet Museum in Seoul

2011-12-11T19:55:00.005+01:00

From D Swede, April 4, 2011
I am writing one tip here for two separate locations. I do this because they are located close to each other (about 5 minutes walk), and you can buy a discounted ticket that allows entry to both.

The Silk Road Museum:
Korea was near the far east of the ancient Silk Road, with only Japan stretching further east. This museum has a respectable amount of artifacts and displays dedicated to the old road. The items on display do not particularly relate to Korea, but rather to any location on the old road. There are ancient weapons, clothing, animal bridals / saddles, etc.
The museum is located in a small building and has displays on three floors. The stairs are rather steep and do not offer access to wheelchair or handicapped.
Contact information for the Silk Road Museum is listed below.

The Tibet Museum:
The Tibet Museum is a humble amount of artifacts. They displays are limited to clothing and robes, photographs and several Buddha statues.

Both museums have limited information signs in English, but are obviously well documented in Korean. Thankfully the artifacts mostly speak for themselves.

Both museums are open 10am ~ 7pm. Closed on Mondays.
Tickets for each are 5000won (adult), 3000won (student).
Discount ticket for both museums are 6000won & 4000won respectively.

From the base of the Jeongdok Public Library, there is an Tourist Information Desk, with maps, or from there, there are street signs pointing the way.

By fedoromanchuarchery A short video of our visit to the Silk Road museum, a private collection tucked away in the suburbs of Seoul. The chatter in the background are me (Peter), Suki and Bede Dwyer talking bows.
The track is "Yekul Song" by the Mongolian band Hanggai.

New manuscripts from the Royal Library of Copenhagen on IDP

2011-12-09T07:00:00.006+01:00

16 Dunhuang manuscripts in 14 rolls are now available on IDP. Donated by Arthur Bollerup Sørensen (1880–1932) in 1915, the collection contains a Daoist manuscript and a text believed to be unique. MSS 12 and 16 have colophons.

View the catalogue online or search for 'Holding Institute = Det Kongelige Bibliotek' on our Advanced Search page.

Source: IDP

Songtangzhai Museum rises from rubble

2011-12-06T19:16:00.010+01:00

Peacefully tucked away on tree-lined Guozijian Street in Beijing, Songtangzhai Museum appears to be a tiny little antique without any shiny modern decorations. Yet when you approach it, you will find every part of it is engraved with brilliant but mostly unfamiliar traditional Chinese culture.

Located on Guozijian Street of Beijing, Songtangzhai Museum is China's first folk carving museum that collects ancient relics of carvings retrieved from the rubble of demolition sites across the capital of China, and it also is called the "picked museum."
Founded in October 2001, Songtangzhai Museum exhibits thousands of collections mainly consisting of folk items, such as elaborate gate piers, exquisite wooden doorways, and delicate screens, which occupy a courtyard in Beijing.
Li Songtang, born in 1949 and the curator of the museum, has dedicated half his life to collecting and preserving Beijing's past.
"There used to be more than 920,000 sets of private residences and between 7,000 and 8,000 hutongs in old Beijing. But now, they are all gone," Li said.
"I'm living in Beijing and I'm a Beijinger. I like the ancient Chinese folk culture and I feel it's my duty to protect them," Li said.
Songtangzhai Museum is also seen as one of the best courtyard houses in Beijing featuring the unique traditional art and culture.
Besides the carved artworks, Li also collects blue and white porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), also on display at Songtangzhai Museum.
Li said that most of his collections of blue and white porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty were acquired in the past 10 years.
The blue and white porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty were seldom known by collectors until a pot, "Guiguzi down the hills" fetched 230 million yuan ($35.4 million) at Christie's London auction house on July 12, 2005. The news astounded collectors all over the world and since then, they have become hot collectors' items.
Experts say there are now a total of 300 to 400 blue and white porcelain pieces from the Yuan Dynasty in the world and many of them are in west Asia. It's doubtful that a private museum could have a collection of nearly 100. So Li welcomes the collection lovers to the museum for discussion and exchange of views.

Further Information:
Address: No 3, Guozijian Road, Dongcheng District, Beijing
Open: 8:30 - 18:00

A pair of stone carving gate piers from the Yuan Dynasty

Stone carving artworks are embedded in the wall of the yard at Songtangzhai Museum in Beijing

A wood carving screen

A stone carving shows the Chinese story “Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles"

A stone carving shows the Chinese story “Guan Yu fights against Qin Qiong”

A wood carving

A wood carving

A wood carving

Blue and white porcelain pieces from the Yuan Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain pieces from the Yuan Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain pieces from the Yuan Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain pieces from the Yuan Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty

White porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty

Blue and white porcelain from the Yuan Dynasty

People return to Swat’s historical sites

2011-12-06T18:58:00.002+01:00

Tourists get a briefing on the Buddhist site of Ta-Lo, traced back to the 3rd century BCE. PHOTO: FAZAL KHALIQ

SWAT: People have started coming back to historical sites in Swat, a source of information in understanding how Buddhists lived in the Swat valley.
Located in the valleys of Mingora, the Buddhist monastery of Ta-Lo tracing back to 3rd century BCE was once a happening spot for international tourists before the militants came. However, now that normalcy has returned to the valley, people, while lesser than before, have begun to return to these sites.
“We can’t believe we’re seeing the historical remains of Gandhara civilization. Reading about this is completely different from actually seeing it,” said Ayesha, a student at a local high school.
She added that visiting historical landmarks helps in widening academic understanding and hoped that tourists could learn something from the pacifism propagated by Buddhism.
Sanaullah Khan, an official from the archaeological department stated that the main Stupa that stands in the middle traces back to 3rd century BCE. Subsequent reconstruction over it traces back to 7th century BCE.
The stupa was first uncovered in 1956 Italian archaeological mission from which 9,000 statues and sculptures were recovered.
Sanaullah added that the site is arguably one of the most sacred in the world and has historically been visited by groups of pilgrims. “We have even entertained more than 25 groups in a day,” he added.
The Swat valley is the cradle of various civilizations, glimpses of which are still evident in the form of stupas, statues and castles that afford much history to international and local tourists, provided they are preserved by the government. Unfortunately, such protection has not been offered and between the vandalism and militant occupation, much has been lost to the ravages of current history.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 5th, 2011.

In Search of the Great Khan

2011-12-05T17:38:00.002+01:00

National Geographic and UCSD Engineers partner up to solve one of history’s greatest mysteries: The location of Genghis Khan's tomb.

From The University of California Guardian, november 20, 2011, by Mina Nilchian

Not many people can brag about visiting all seven continents, but one UCSD undergrad can get pretty close.
Third year Warren College student Radley Angelo has visited six, and might visit his seventh (Antarctica) this summer. But the computer engineering and literature/writing double major isn’t just a thrill-seeking globe trotter. Last summer, he visited Mongolia on an expedition on behalf of National Geographic.
The purpose of the three-week endeavor? To solve one of history’s mysteries — find the tomb of Genghis Khan.
It started when Angelo was intrigued by a presentation given by his engineering professor during his sophomore year.
“I was taking a computer science class with a professor, professor Kastner,” Angelo said. “At the end of class one day he showed a promo video for a lab that he was a cofounder of on campus. It was called the Engineers for Exploration lab, and it had the National Geographic logo on it and he said we’re always looking for talented engineers.”
Due to his family’s background in flight (his grandfather used to work for TWC Aviation), Angelo was attracted by the opportunity to work with helicopters. Before long, Angelo was working at the “Engineers for Exploration” lab with his supervisor Albert Lin, a UCSD alum, and associate professor of Computer Engineering Robert Kastner, the professor that piqued Angelo’s interest in the first place. One of the lab’s several projects — the one Angelo would be assigned to — is an innovative development of the regular helicopter. Instead of having one blade, the multiple bladed aerial copter has multiple smaller blades around it. The blades are controlled by a central computer system. They aren’t designed to carry people, but rather, a camera that would be used to take pictures from difficult angles.
With his background in computer science, it seemed natural that Angelo would spend his time at the lab developing the code for the central computer that would control the copter.
After a few successful test runs of the copter, Angelo felt it was time to get the equipment out in the real world.
“The lab exists so that students get to work on hands-on projects that actually get to go out in the field,” Angelo said. “All of our research is application driven.“
Since 2009, Angelo’s supervisor Albert Lin has taken two quests to Mongolia in search of the tomb of Genghis Khan. While there wasn’t any conclusive information about where the tomb was, it was presumed that the possible location of the burial site would likely be in a very significant mountain range of the Mongolian shaman tradition, the Burkan Khaldun mountains.
Armed with this information, the July expedition, building off of the past two expeditions, which were turned into feature documentaries by National Geographic, planned on taking advanced equipment, including Angelo’s helicopter, to get a close picture of the mountain range.
Angelo, who built the copter and had good knowledge of how to repair it, eventually convinced Lin to be a part of the effort in the third expedition to Mongolia.
The team of about 20 people left for Mongolia in July. When they reached the mountain range, a mixture of difficult terrain and some very tenacious pests gave the team quite a challenge to work with.
“The flies actually get into the car through the AC and the exhaust,” Angelo said. “They get in the windshield so you can’t actually see the outside. And then there are these thing called horse flies. They have this jigsaw nose kind of thing. What they do is they land and they attack your skin.”
They spent the three weeks hauling equipment to their exploration site and managing the different devices they were going to use to get detailed pictures of the mountain range. At night they all slept in a circular tent. Angelo used his copter to take several pictures of the mountain range, which would be stitched together to create a visualization of the area they wanted to observe. Like a more detailed version of Google Earth, the topographic picture of the mountain range could give them clues that would turn them in the right direction of finding Genghis Khan’s tomb.
“What you can do is create a really cool map of where every tree is, where every rock is,” Angelo said. “The more data you have, the better. If I find a roof tile or something, which we found a lot of roof tiles, I can now place it on a spot on a map.” The group had also been keeping close contact with the Mongolian government. Their project of studying the sacred Burkan Khaldun mountain range could be compared to “the equivalent of digging around in the Vatican.”
“You don’t do that without the right permissions,” Angelo said.
The group also came in contact with the religious shamans of the mountain range. Initially concerned with the group’s motives, they ultimately granted them permission to spend time in the area. Angelo explained that while their goal is to ultimately find the tomb of Genghis Khan, what they hope to do with the information is protect the mountain range, which is currently vulnerable to Chinese mining companies that want to gain access to the region’s natural resources.
“This area is obviously such an important part of the world’s humanity,” Angelo said. “One of every two hundred men can trace their lineage back to Genghis Khan. They just want to destroy this whole sacred mountain, that just rubs a lot of people the wrong way.”
While they weren’t able to conclusively prove that the mountain range is home to Genghis Khan’s tomb, the group’s findings were enough to get the range recognized as a UNESCO historical site. Eventually, the region will be protected from any future mining exploits.
Angelo returned from the trip with a new network of friendships from around the globe, and gained vital experience in working with engineering equipment. His copter design is going to be used by future explorers. Angelo says that he might even get the opportunity to join a team visiting Antarctica, which will use the device to track penguin migration patterns.
Angelo hopes his future includes more opportunities to apply his skills in the field. But he insists that all those opportunities begin right at home.
“It’s easy to get caught into thinking that the fifth floor of Geisel is where all this happens,” Angelo said. But that’s so patently untrue. I can’t say it enough times.”

Powerful words

2011-12-04T15:15:00.004+01:00

From Cambridge University Library

10 november 2011

A major exercise in ‘linguistic archaeology’ has set out to complete a comprehensive survey of Cambridge University Library’s South Asian manuscript collection, which includes the oldest dated and illustrated Sanskrit manuscript known worldwide.

Written on now-fragile birch bark, palm leaf and paper, the 2,000 manuscripts in the collection express centuries-old South Asian thinking on religion, philosophy, astronomy, grammar, law and poetry.

The project, which is led by Sanskrit-specialists Dr Vincenzo Vergiani and Dr Eivind Kahrs and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, will study and catalogue each of the manuscripts, placing them in their broader historical context. Most of the holdings will also be digitised by the Library and made available through the Library’s new online digital library (http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/).

“In a world that seems increasingly small, every artefact documenting the history of ancient civilisations has become part of a global heritage to be carefully preserved and studied,” explained Dr Vergiani, who is in the University’s Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies. “Among such artefacts, manuscripts occupy a distinctive place – they speak to us with the actual words of long-gone men and women, bringing their beliefs, ideas and sensibilities to life.”

He added: “One reason this collection is so important is because of the age of many of the manuscripts. In the heat and humidity of India, materials deteriorate quickly and manuscripts needed to be copied again and again. As a result, many of the early Indian texts no longer exist.”

In fact, some of the oldest holdings of the Library’s South Asian collection were discovered not in India but in Nepal, where the climate is more temperate. In the 1870s, Dr Daniel Wright, surgeon of the British Residency in Kathmandu, rescued the now-priceless cultural and historical artefacts from a disused temple, where they had survived largely by chance.

An early catalogue of part of the collection in 1883 found among its treasures a 10th-century Buddhist Sanskrit manuscript from India – the oldest dated and illustrated Sanskrit manuscript known worldwide.

More than half of the collection is in Sanskrit, a language that has dominated the literary culture of pre-modern South Asia for almost three millennia. Its earliest attestations are found in the Vedic hymns (texts that are still central to Hinduism), dating from the end of the second millennium BC.

“The word Sanskrit means refined or perfected. From a very early stage, its speakers were obsessed with handing down their sacred texts intact,” said Dr Vergiani. “Out of this developed an attention to how the language works. A grammatical tradition arose that produced, around the 4th century BC, the work of Pāṇini, an amazing intellectual achievement and arguably the beginning of linguistics worldwide, which made the language constant, stable and transmissible.”

It is this robustness that Dr Vergiani believes explains how the language became so prevalent across South Asia – a situation that has been likened to the spread of Latin across Europe: “It was used by religious figures and royalty, scholars and scientists, administrators and artists. Well into modern times, Sanskritic culture was very much alive throughout India, and the language is still used by a number of intellectuals and religious figures today.”

The widespread use of Sanskrit as the language of power and communication across South Asia makes the collection at the Library so significant. The manuscripts, written in centuries that spanned momentous political and economic change, are an invaluable and untapped source for understanding the pre-colonial past of South Asia, and therefore its present.

By combining traditional philological methods with advanced information technology, the project will make these extraordinary documents available in new ways, helping to further research on the intellectual traditions, religious cults, literature and political ideas of South Asia.

Dunhuang Workshop

2011-12-03T20:02:00.001+01:00

Dunhuang Workshop from Axel Hoffmann on Vimeo.

An Islamic world map from Treasures of the Bodleian

2011-12-03T14:21:00.002+01:00

Introduction to an early world map from the Book of Curiosities by Prof Emily Savage-Smith, Emeritus Professor of the History of Islamic Science, University of Oxford.

This is part of an anonymous treatise, entitled The Book of Curiosities, and is unlike any other recorded ancient or medieval map. At the top there is a carefully executed graphic scale, over which the Mountain of the Moon, thought to be the source of the River Nile, has been painted. The land-mass to the lower right is Europe, including a very large Iberian peninsula to its right. At the left-hand margin of the map, a brown land-mass has an inscription outlined in red reading ‘Island of the Jewel, and its mountains encircle it like a basket’. This island, usually interpreted as Indonesia or Formosa, was considered to be the easternmost limit of the inhabitable world. The map also depicts, in the lower left corner, the legendary barrier built by Alexander the Great to keep out Gog and Magog, the mythical enemies of civilization who dwelt in the far north-east of the inhabitable world.

From Treasures of the Bodleian, for more information, click HERE

Dissolving

2011-12-02T23:05:00.003+01:00

From Poemas del Rio Wang

Roman bridge above the Wadi al-Murr near Mosul, Iraq. Photo by the German archaeologist Max von Oppenheim researching the ancient city of Tell Halaf, 1920s.First publication: National Geographic, November 2009

Roman bridge, Eski Mosul, with policeman on the right. Cat. Stein LHAS Photo 23/1 (38) Photo by the Hungarian-British archaeologist Aurel Stein reconstructing the route of Alexander the Great in Persia, 1930s. First publication: the Aurel Stein site of the Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences prepared by us, April 2008.

Digging through the Directors' Correspondence: Letters from Aurel Stein

2011-12-02T22:48:00.005+01:00

Digging through the Directors' Correspondence: Letters from the Archaeologist M. Aurel Stein
By: Virginia Mills - 02/11/2011

From the website of Kew Royal Botanical Gardens

Read about our trip to the British Library's International Dunhuang Project, the amazing scrolls discovered by archaeologist M. Aurel Stein, and some of Stein's letters that we recently unearthed from the Kew's Directors' Correspondence archive collection.

Recently, the Directors' Correspondence team decamped to the British Library to see some of the material they hold on the Danish botanist Nathaniel Wallich, which has been digitised as part of a collaborative project with RBG Kew and other institutions. Watch out for more news and blogs on the Wallich and Indian Natural History project coming soon.

We were also lucky enough to visit the International Dunhuang Project: a collaborative project digitising manuscripts and artefacts from Dunhuang and other sites on the Silk Road. This well established project has partners in China, Japan, Germany, Korea, Russia, France, USA, Sweden, India, Ireland and the UK allowing related but widely dispersed historical documents, photographs and relics, and treasures of all kinds to be brought together into a single digital collection of over 322,000 images and still growing!

Bundles of manuscript rolls from the walled-up temple library, Dunhuang. Digitised by the International Dunhuang Project. © The British Library.

Sir Marc Aurel Stein

At the beginning of the 20th century archaeologists began to excavate numerous sites along the Silk Road that had long been buried under the desert sands. One such archaeologist was Aurel Stein (1862 to 1943). His most famous acquisitions came from the 'Library Cave' at Dunhuang, and include the Diamond Sutra, the world's oldest dated printed book (A.D. 868). The British Library's Stein collection contains over 45,000 manuscripts as well as paintings and photographs taken by Stein on his travels all over central Asia.

Photograph taken by Stein in March 1908 of him and his researchers (and his dog Dash II) at Ulugh-mazar, China. Digitised by the International Dunhuang Project. © The British Library.

Letters from Stein in the Directors' Correspondence

Inspired by our trip to the British Library we looked up Stein within our very own DC collection and found a rather more modest two documents, which we thought were interesting none the less.
The letters from Stein in the DC collection date from October 1903 and concern ancient cereals which Stein found preserved within the ruins of ancient dwellings at Khotan, buried under drift sand in the Taklamakan desert. He explains that documents from the same site have allowed him to determine that the ancient city was ruined at about A.D. 269. Stein is interested to know whether the historic cereals are materially different from those grown in the area in the 20th century. Stein's labourers, from the nearest Oasis towns, had no difficulty in recognizing all but one of the cereals. This one was however familiar to one of Stein's party from the Kangra district in India, who identified it as a root used as a condiment. The fact that there was an Indian man within Stein's own party who recognised this condiment, apparently from an Indian plant, which Stein was digging up in China over 1500 years later, is just one small but striking illustration of how far reaching was the trade that once brought exotic commodities along the Silk Road.

Extract taken from a descriptive list enumerating the ancient cereal grains found by Stein and sent to Kew for identification. Annotations on the right hand side show that the experts at Kew identified one of the cereals as Panicum miliaceum, a form of millet still grown for livestock feed today. © RBG, Kew

Stein also enquired of Kew whether there was any truth to the stories that wheat had been grown from ancient seeds found in Egyptian tombs. If you are interested in finding out whether these enduring stories are fact or legend you can read the answer given by Kew's experts at the Millennium Seed Bank: how long can seeds live?

- Virginia -

Niya: "The Pompeii of the East"

2011-12-01T21:51:00.002+01:00

When Aurel Stein first uncovered the vestiges of a once thriving kingdom along the Niya River deep in the Taklamakan, he described it as 'The Pompeii of the East.' But although the ancient Romans and the people of Cadota - the name of the Niya kingdom - shared a love of the grape, the sites are very different. Life in Pompeii was arrested by the lava. The sands of the Taklamakan, while no less invidious, invaded over time. There are cemeteries at Niya but the living community had already left before the sands seeped in.

Working in collaboration with the Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology, the IDP team has just returned from Niya and the documentary photographs and videos showing many of the sites of Niya - and the caravanserai of Karadong - will be soon start becoming available online on IDP and HERE.

Ancient Buddhist seals found in NW Pakistan

2011-12-01T21:47:00.000+01:00

ISLAMABAD, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- More than 100 seals of ancient Buddhist period were found in Taxila which was the capital of the Buddhist kingdom of Gandhara and a center of learning in northwest Pakistan, local Media reported Tuesday.

The relics were found during the research made by the Department of Archeology and Museums in their latest excavations of Taxila region, according to DAWN newspaper. The seals are reported to be added to the collection of Taxila museum soon.

Besides other relics of historical significance including gold coins and the rare Red Stone and Buddha sculpture were also found.

The seals were found in a cell, which was reportedly the greatest collection from a single location so far.

Officials believed that the discovered seals belong to the first century BC to fifth century AD. They believed that the discovery of the ancient clay seals depicting icons symbols and motifs provides vital evidence that this monastery either received heavy donations or had deep economical ties with other states.

Analytical study of the seals is underway to confirm the donor states and people in those days.

Taxila had been the proud cradle of one of the most ancient civilizations in this part of the world when it was known as Takshasila and where Buddhism flourished since the reign of Ashoka, the great India king, in 272-232 BC.