Semester 1 Review Notes ASR.pdf

Semester 1 Review Notes ASR Lecture 0: Silk Road Basics 2 Silk Road: History 2 Silk Road: Trade 2 Silk Road: Geographical Look...

Semester 1 Review Notes ASR Lecture 0: Silk Road Basics 2 Silk Road: History 2 Silk Road: Trade 2 Silk Road: Geographical Look 3 Lecture 1: Rome and China (Da Qin and Qin) 4 China and Silk (Under Han Dynasty) 4 Rome and Silk 5 Evidence of Silk Trade Between Rome + China 5 Misconceptions Between Rome + China 6 Lecture 2: Origins of the Journey to Louyang, Chang’an, and Dunhuang 6 Ferghana Valley 6 Luoyang (Henan Province) 6 Chang’an (Xi-an - Shaanxi Province) 7 Basic Details 7 Tang Dynasty Heyday (618-907 CE) 7 Dunhuang and the Mogao Caves 8 Lecture 3: The Buddhist Kingdoms 9 Tarim Basin: The Taklamakan Desert 9 Importance of Water 9 Evolution of Buddhism Part A: Focus on Khotan 10 Evolution of Buddhism Part B: How it Expanded 10 Aurel Stein: Archeologist 10 Lecture 0: Silk Road Basics Silk Road: History Definition: network of Eurasian trade routes from second century BCE to mid-15th century ○ Trade of: goods, beliefs, thoughts, medicine… Before Silk Road: The Steppe Routes ○ Victor Mair: “ before… Zhang Qian… there was an informal system of contact and exchange across the expanse of Eurasia.” ○ Traded: silk, fabrics + horses along with furs, weapons, jewels Roots of Silk Road: Zhang Qian’s Expedition ○ 206 BCE: China has new Han Dynasty (fall of Qin Dynasty) ○ Under threat by nomadic tribes (particularly the Xiongnu or Huns) ○ Need horses (current ones = small + weak) = hear of ‘celestial horses’ from Ferghana valley ○ 138 BCE: Emperor Wu sends ambassador Zhang Qian ○ After 13 years = comes back confirming horses + stories on India and Persia ○ From then: Emperor Wu begins trade (silk for jade + horses) = expands as discover popularity of silk in West Origin of Name: 1877 German geographer Paul Wilhelm Ferdinand von Richtofen Silk Road: Trade Silk Road Trade = reductionist phrase for 2 reasons 1. Very little silk was traded 2. Wasn’t seen as trade in China = Confucianism beliefs saw it as giving of presents that were then sold a. Merchants/traders = bottom of social hierarchy as seen as not serving their country b. Armin Selbitschka: “The Han government was not at all pursuing economic profits… keenly interested in getting alien powers to actually accept Han suzerainty” Chang 'an -silk, chrysanthemums, rhubarb, paper, lacquer, gunpowder, mirrors, bamboo Turpan - grapes, raisins, wine, cotton, dye for porcelain, alum, salt Kashgar - pack animals, tea, dried fruit, medicinal herbs Ferghana - horses, rugs, nuts, dried fruit, copper Baghdad - dates, nuts, dyes, lapis lazuli Damascus- almonds, purple dye, dried fruits, swords, glass cloth goods Rome - gold coins, glass and glazes, grapevines, alfalfa India - cotton, herbal medicine, precious stones, jade Silk Road: Geographical Look What we study in class  Silk Road: land + sea routes (gained popularity as more practical) Lecture 1: Rome and China (Da Qin and Qin) China and Silk (Under Han Dynasty) Importance of silk in China: foundation of economy (along with rice) ○ Farmers paid taxes with silk or rice ○ Civil servants paid with silk ○ Measurement calculated in length of silk ○ Silk gifted between states and eventually given to traders Production of silk: kept secret = many legends ○ Chinese legend: in the 3000 BCE an empress was drinking tea under a mulberry tree, a cocoon fell in her cup = tea ○ Roman/Greek early beliefs: came from trees — Virgil writes “how the Chinese obtain silk from combing leaves” Chinese name for Roman Empire: Da Qin (Great Empire) = modelled after Qin dynasty (founding dynasty of China) Han Dynasty trading beliefs: did not plan create state revenues, acquire luxuries not promote exports  ○ Reasoning 1: merchants not highly considered (e.g., banned from owning land) ○ Reasoning 2: wanted foreign powers to accept Han sovereignty (see quote Lecture 0) Result: silk first used as payment, then as diplomatic gifts + marital gifts to break Xiongnu dominance Rome and Silk Discovered silk: in 53 BCE after defeat in Carrhes battle = impressed by silk banners Obtain silk: (not trade as Han against it) via merchants selling the silk Han gave for as gifts Roman/Greek name for China: Seres (land where silk comes from) Short summary of silk use: (would be reworked to be lighter = thinner + expensive) ○ First used by Macedonians + Parthians ○ Then important Romans buried in silk shrouds ○ Elite norm to wear silk Result of silk trade: trade deficit ○ Blamed on delicati (those obsessed with the exotica or not Roman produced material) = often women ○ Attempt to ban silk (reinforced by traditionalists = e.g., Pliny) 552 CE: find out secret silk — ends Chinese dominance ○ Myth: Emperor ordered two monks steal silkworms by hiding it in bamboo sticks Evidence of Silk Trade Between Rome + China Chinese mingqi = statues to accompany departed into after life = some were of traders or foreigners  Roman coins found in China Chinese-style silk found in Palmyra Misconceptions Between Rome + China Difficult for direct contact: due to Parthians wish to control silk trade + ocean separation 97 CE: Ban Chao leads military expedition to West = goes wrong way (thinks Egypt is Rome) ○ “The king goes each day to one of the palaces to deal with business” = confusing as not Rome nor Egypt ○ “There is a government department of archives” = made them think Rome important like China as similar values of keeping past documents Evidence of misconceptions: Hou Hanshu, compiled by Fan Ye (398-445) — describes Roman Empire in Chinese terms ○ Example: “They also have a fine cloth… say is made from the down of ‘water sheep’... in fact, from the cocoons of wild silkworms” Lecture 2: Origins of the Journey to Louyang, Chang’an, and Dunhuang Ferghana Valley Emperor Wu ordered embassy in Ferghana valley = opening of Silk Road ○ Reason: threat of Xiongnu, military alliance opportunities + Zhang Qian mission Rich valley ruled by: Arabs, Persians, + Turks Luoyang (Henan Province) Founded: 11th century BCE by Duke of Zhou One of China’s 4 capital cities (Luoyang, Chang’an, Beijing, Nanjing) ○ First capital city of united China (under Qin Dynasty) 202-200 BCE: Han Dynasty move capital to Chang’an 70 CE: hosted first Buddhist temple Chang’an (Xi-an - Shaanxi Province) Basic Details Name Meaning: “celestial/eternal peace” Known as: Chinese Gate to the West Went through turmoil, success, decline ○ 220 CE: collapse Han Dynasty = city burned + looted — capital moves to Luoyang (Chang’an becomes deserted) ○ 311 CE: Chang’an + Luoyang looted by Xiongnu (30 000 killed) ○ 582 CE: first Sui Emperor rebuilds city south of Chang’an — location decided by divination (to find best energy for prosperity) ○ 618 CE: under Tang Dynasty = heyday + renamed Daxing (great prosperity) Tang Dynasty Heyday (618-907 CE) 750 CE: became cosmopolitan city ○ Trade with 300 nations ○ 1200 foreign inhabitants Location, architecture + organisation: designed to fit universal cosmic order (via constellations + divination) + fit belief head of State at centre of universe Choosing location: geomancer decided the place + design via divination —- aim to Yin and Yang energies flow ○ Example: might need to remove some earth or create a lake for balance Architecture design: square urban areas = each dedicated to different things (no mixing business with leisure) ○ Focus connectivity, network, infrastructure = ensure traders find all comforts ○ Inspiration: Japan + Korea Book “On Building a Capital City” (Jiang Ren Jing Guo) = greater understanding of extent state controls trade + city ○ Ensured: places for trade intended for business not leisure ○ Markets inside walls + scrutinised ○ Shi-lou tower building: heart of administration + control Importance of Shi-lou Towers: at centre of both markets ○ Officials appointed ○ Control, order, + levying of taxes ○ Controlled access to gates ○ Bells to start + end daily trade  ○ Marketplace = executions as reminder of emperor power Major religious centre: for Taoism, Zoroastrianism, Nestorianism, Manichaeism ○ Famous Buddhist pilgrims visited: Faxian (399 CE) + Xuanzang (645 CE) ○ Evidence: mosque built for Muslims, stone pillar evidence of Nestorianism Dunhuang and the Mogao Caves Strategic location: in Gansu Province = crossroads of 2 major trade routes in Silk Road ○ Oasis at Taklamakan Desert = one of first trading cities for merchants from West Result of location: centre for trade + meeting of people and religions (Buddhism) Military origins: 111 BCE became frontier garrison against Xiongnu Origins of Mogao Caves: construction near Dunhuang began fourth century BCE ○ 366 CE: Buddhist monk Lè Zūn has vision of 1000 Buddhas = caves built for meditation ○ Then became: site for pilgrimage = caves built + carved till 14th century Mogao Caves Importance: today UNESCO heritage site because ○ 1000 years of Buddhist art (paintings, statues, engravings) ○ Melting pot of cultures: Han, Indian, Gandhara, Persian, Turk + Tibetan influences ○ Example: find specific cave to cite Lecture 3: The Buddhist Kingdoms Tarim Basin: The Taklamakan Desert Tarim Basin: one of biggest basins in Northwest China ○ Endorheic: no water to flows out ○ At centre: Taklamakan desert Taklamakan desert sayings: name originates from Uyghur word tark (to abandon) + makan (place) = forsaken place ○ “A place of despair, with bones for milestones” ○ “A sea of death” Taklamakan desert origin myths: due to inaccessibility = attempts to explain green on edges ○ God gave 2 gifts: golden axe and golden key ○ Golden axe: used by Kazakh = transform north valley in fertile lands ○ Golden key: meant for Uyghur but daughter lost it = held captive by God in basin = desert Influence on Silk Road: the desert (natural obstacle) shaped dynamics = only 2 routes (southern + northern) to go around desert — only ways to go from East Asia to Central Asia to West Buddhist kingdoms: small cities around the desert = prosperous from trade + systems of irrigation and agriculture from rivers ○ Han dynasty = ensured many were Chinese vassal states Importance of Water Shows 1: water accessibility leads to important trade centres Turfan (on northern route): oasis/fertile due to underground canals from Tianshan mountains + dry climate ○ Excessive irrigation: could have accelerated desertification Khotan (on southern route): had Hotan River = jade (exported to China) (high demand in India as Buddhist) ○ Evidence 1: Mogao cave N°61 = Khotan princess marries Dunhuang ruler — she wears headdress with jade stones Shows 2: water + oasis leads to important agriculture = growth fruits + cereals  ○ Evidence 2: Marco Polo descriptions: “abundance of cotton, flax, hemp, wheat, wine, and other produce” Evolution of Buddhism Part A: Focus on Khotan Khotan: ancient Buddhist Saka kingdom ○ 84 BCE: Buddhism introduced ○ 644 CE: Xuanzang settles in Khotan Buddhist mythological tale on Khotan origins: Buddhist gods dried the lake covering Khotan with their staffs Khotan as origin of pilgrimage: a statue (according to Xuanzang = first image of Buddha) flew from India to Khotan (or Pimo in Chinese sources) ○ Convinced king Khotan = build monastery ○ Evidence 3: Mogao Cave 231 = depiction of statue (4th century) 632 CE: became Chinese vassal state Evolution of Buddhism Part B: How it Expanded Han dynasty: first contact Buddhism in China via expansion Greco-Buddhist Kushan Empire into Tarim Basin 1st century CE: Buddhism begins to spread in China under Emperor Ming of Hang ○ Dreams of: golden man with glow around his head ○ Sends envoy to India to inquire about true doctrine ○ Evidence 4: Buddhist missionaries translated scriptures into Chinese 3rd to 5th century: reaches into Korean and Japan Rise in pilgrimage: after Faxian (early 5th century) and Xuanzang (mid 7th century) pilgrimages to India = more Chinese pilgrims = bring back texts 7th century Tang dynasty: flourishing Silk Road = flourishing Buddhism as merchants found it appealing = diffusion ○ Evidence 5: Mogao Cave N°138 – painting from Tubo Period of princes from different countries mourning for Buddha  Mid 8th century decline: due to rise Hinduism + Muslim expansion ○ Ended Buddhism in Tarim Basin kingdoms ○ Evidence 6: 1006 capture of Khotan by Karakhanids (poem line “We tore down the idol-temples”) Aurel Stein: Archeologist 19th century: Taklamakan desert = dream for scholars, archeologists + travellers due to buddhist text references + perfect preservation ○ Dry climate ○ Sand buried kingdoms Aurel Stein: 1862-1943 — famous for artefacts he found + book “Innermost Asia” ○ Hypothesis: spreading East of Buddhist civilisation to Taklamakan kingdoms + China ○ 3 successful expeditions between 1900 and 1916 First expedition: 1900-1901 = reached Dandan Uiliq (in desert) = finds remains of lost civilisation + brings back to British Museum thousands of artefacts Second expedition: 1906-1908 = reached Dunhuang Mogao Caves (1900 recent rediscovery) ○ Collects: thousands of rolls from library cave ○ Discovers: Diamond Sutra (868 CE) = oldest surviving printed text + Buddhist holy scripture Third expedition: 1913-1915 = finds Miran murals (another Buddhist kingdom) = frescoes with Indian/Greek/Roman features ○ Evidence 7: found cherub painted in Greek + Roman style