News from Ancient Afghanistan.....5 Rather Than Attempt to Comment Part of an Elite but Non-Royal • Prof
Volume 4 Number 2 Winter 2006-2007 “The Bridge between Eastern and Western Cultures”
In This Issue From the Editor
• News from ancient Afghanistan.....5 Rather than attempt to comment part of an elite but non-royal • Prof. Tarzi’s 2006 excavations at here on every article in this issue residence? What is depicted? Is Bamiyan ...... 10 of our journal, let me share with the whole iconography connected • A visit to the region of historic you some thoughts inspired by with celebration of Nauruz? Is it Balkh...... 27 reading two important new books abstract and symbolic or rather • A new interpretation of the Afrasiab which are closely related to certain related to a very specific political murals...... 32 of our contributions. In the first situation? Is the Chinese scene on • Mapping Buddhist sites in Western volume, Royal Nauruz in the north wall a specific depiction Tibet ...... 43 Samarkand, the eminent scholar of court culture in China or simply • Han lacquerware in Xiongnu Prof. Frantz Grenet begins his emblematic of a Chinese prin- graves...... 48 essay with the statement: ‘A cess’s having been sent off as a • Ming-Timurid relations as recorded positive side to the so-called bride to Central Asia? It is certainly in Chinese sources ...... 54 ‘Ambassador’s painting’ at interesting that at least one • Hunting hounds along the Silk Samarkand is that we shall never contributor (Markus Mode) Road...... 60 fully understand it…This means explicitly disagrees with the • An interview with Kyrgyz epic that research on this painting will premise about Nauruz which is singers...... 65 never stop and this is excellent embodied in the volume’s title. news, as this research had many While the consensus dating for the repercussions on the knowledge paintings now has been narrowed Next Issue of Sogdian history and art’ (p. 43). to the 7th century, scholars cannot Indeed, as most of our articles in agree whether we might be • A focus on food along the Silk Roads, The Silk Road this time remind us, looking at the late 640s or, say, with articles by Terrie Chrones, Darra we live in a world of new the early 660s. Each choice has Goldstein, Paul Buell, Debra McCown, discoveries, if one marked by sad some plausible arguments in its Dru Gladney and Nancy Chen.... reminders of what has been lost favor. Or, take the Sogdian • The latest on Xiongnu archaeology or is under the threat of inscriptions on the murals, destruction or theft. Were we to published in a new reading in this • Trade routes in Anatolia second-guess history, we might volume by Vladimir Livshits. When .... and more ask, for example, what if the were they written? Do they record bulldozer in 1965 had not torn off merely formulae and inter- the top of the hall with the pretation of the imagery by those About ‘Ambassador’s painting?’ Would who could not have witnessed the it eventually have been properly scene it depicts? The Silk Road is a semi-annual publi- excavated with enough more cation of the Silkroad Foundation. The One can readily obtain a visual intact to answer some of the now Silk Road can also be viewed on-line impression of the scholarly unanswerable questions which are at
2 obtained for copyrighted and was stocked with them. Skrine residence and Buddhist monastic uncopyrighted material to be reported how one of these center, beyond what we knew reproduced in electronic form. ‘excavators,’ looking for objects to while the Buddhas still stood. That would truly be, to use sell, entered a previously unknown Read Professor Tarzi’s report Grenet’s words, ‘excellent news.’ small temple in the desert only to below: although phrased very If the Samarkand murals have have the walls and their murals cautiously, it encourages us to 1 in certain ways been ‘well known’ disintegrate around him. It is think that even more significant and preserved starting with their impossible to come up with a results may soon emerge. balance sheet here regarding discovery over a quarter century This brings me to the second whether the world would have ago, the excavations at Bamiyan book about which I promised to more or less of the evidence of and surveys in southern Tibet write here: Afghanistan: the historic remains had not many of reported on in this issue may be Rediscovered Treasures, the them been removed by outsiders news to many and highlight the catalogue for a remarkable whose motives may have been ongoing threats to the pre- exhibition at the Musée Guimet in altruistic and scholarly or servation of cultural artificats. The Paris until April 30 (which then will imperialistic. We cannot know, for threats come from various travel to the United States). The example, whether the remains at directions — illegal excavation, treasures begin chronologically Kizyl or Miran would have been deliberate destruction for religious with the Fullol hoard, which dates better preserved for posterity had or other reasons, indifference, the from about four millennia ago. The the German expeditions in the first pressures of ‘modern develop- largest portion of the objects come instance, and Stein in the second ment.’ In too many places — be from the much later sites: Aï never been there. Even though they in the Middle East, Latin Khanum on the Amu Darya, Tillia now, unlike then, proper legal America, or Southeast Asia — Tepe, and Begram. Many years frameworks are in place to protect there is no adequate security even of the French-directed excavations cultural patrimony and prevent it at sites which have long been under DAFA were devoted to Aï from being illegally removed, recognized as having substantial Khanum and Begram. A Soviet- enforcement is lax. historical value. It is hard to know Afghan team headed by Victor where the balance lies between Sarianidi and Zemaryalai Tarzi, Such controversies plague the discovery and charting of new excavated the spectacular hoard issue of the antiquities of sites (as is being done in the of gold from Tillia Tepe in the late Afghanistan, where since 1922, project reported on by Karl Ryavec 1970s just prior to the Soviet with a hiatus in the Civil War and in Tibet) and protection. As the invasion of Afghanistan. A well- Taliban years, the Delegation Sichuan archaeologist Huo Wei illustrated catalogue of the Tillia Archéologique Française en noted in a presentation I heard on Tepe finds appeared in Russian in Afghanistan (DAFA) has so this Tibetan material a year ago, 1983. Until the objects from these fruitfully worked. Perhaps more when the archaeologists returned various excavations resurfaced in would have been left for future to at least one of the sites a year 2003, they had been assumed lost generations to discover had after the first discovery, the looters during the Civil War and period of material excavated prior to the had already been at work. Taliban rule. In fact they had been end of the 20th century not ended locked away safely in vaults of the When we think back over the up in the Kabul Museum for the Central Bank. The exhibition history of archaeology on the Silk shelling of the Afghan Civil War provides a rare opportunity to see Road, there is, of course, the well- and the iconoclastic Taliban to these treasures and to support the flogged issue of whether the destroy. But who was to know? reconstruction of the Kabul ‘foreign devils’ should be The world knows the grievous tale Museum, which will benefit from castigated for carting off to Europe about the wanton destruction of the proceeds of the tour. so many objects, defacing the Buddhas of Bamiyan. The Buddhist cave sites, etc. There world should know and support Apart from its superb also are the unintended con- better the resumption of serious illustration in color of 228 objects sequences of excavations such as archaeological investigations in and numerous historic photo- Aurel Stein’s, where once the word Afghanistan. Would that there graphs and drawings from the got around locally about the also be some way to check the excavations, the catalogue possible value of the artifacts, local inroads made by ongoing illegal contains a number of valuable entrepreneurs went to work on excavations, whose pits pockmark essays, starting with that by Omar what had been covered up and left the landscapes of many of the Khan Massoudy, the Director of behind. By the time C. P. Skrine, better known sites. Field work by the National Museum in Kabul, the British Consul in Kashgar in DAFA at Bamiyan, now headed by laying out the recent and tragic 1922-24 arrived in Khotan, he Zemaryalai Tarzi, is already history of his institution and its could purchase sizeable chunks of advancing substantially what we collections. Several of the leading Buddhist murals from a shop that know about that former royal French specialists — Pierre
3 Cambon, Jean-François Jarrige near future of a definitive solution. François Jarrige, eds. Paris: (who is also Director of the Musée Among his many interesting Editions de la Réunion des musées Guimet), Paul Bernard and observations are ones on the nationaux, 2006. Véronique Schiltz — bring readers degree to which some of the Matteo Compareti and Étienne de up to date on the significance of results of the French excavations la Vaissière, eds. Royal Nauruz in the four major excavations and were inadequately or incompletely Samarkand: Proceedings of the the objects they uncovered. The published. He concludes that Conference Held in Venice on the finds at Fullol, discussed by there is a cultural unity in the finds Pre-Islamic Paintings at Afrasiab. Jarrige, are important as evidence at Begram, Tillia Tepe and Sirkap Revista degli studi orientali, N. S., concerning the ‘Bactro-Margiana’ (one of the most important Vol. LXXVIII, Suppl. no. 1. Pisa; cultural complex of ca. 2200-1800 settlements at Taxila in northern Roma: Accademia editoriale, BCE, which connects to the better- Pakistan), with a strong indication 2006. known centers of culture in that the Begram ‘treasure’ is Mesopotamia and the Indus thereby pre-Kushan in date, either Note Valley. Bernard reviews the ‘Indo-Greek’ or Parthian. While importance of Aï Khanum as an there are some early indications 1. See Skrine’s field diary, British outpost of Hellenic culture. Visitors of Buddhism, this is not yet the Library, Oriental and India Office to the exhibition will have the era of the refined development of Collections, MSS EurF 154/39, p. opportunity to see the well-known Gandharan Buddhist art under the 47, April 4, 1924, under the inscription commemorating the Kushans. The Begram ivories, with heading ‘New stupa found by visit there by Clearchos, a disciple their stylistic diversity and Abbas Khan at Khadalik.’ of Aristotle, and quoting the enthusiastic evocations of the Delphic code of civic conduct. pleasures of life are well known. Véronique Schiltz’s essay on the There are bronzes of striking A Hundred Years of Tillia Tepe finds, discusses the yet refinement. The glass is nothing Dunhuang, 1907-2007 unresolved issues of their short of miraculous — enameled chronology and places the objects beakers with their scenes of the An international conference co- in the context of other early hunt, fish-shaped flagons, two sponsored by The British nomad art. A appendix by Thomas cobalt blue blown glass vases… Academy, The British Museum and Calligaro on the technical analysis The British Library, will be held at I would like to think that in my of the jewels set into the Tillia Tepe all three venues, Thursday 17 to lifetime I might visit a restored gold demonstrates the broad Saturday 19 May 2007. Kabul Museum and see these geographical sweep encompassed treasures there, under conditions by the trade networks, from In May 1907, the Daoist caretaker which might ensure that they be northeast Africa to Tibet and of the Dunhuang Buddhist caves preserved safely to educate new Ceylon to the Baltic. And Chambon in northwest China revealed to generations of Afghans about the waxes lyrical about the eclecticism Aurel Stein FBA a hidden library wonders of their heritage. As it is, and artistic imagination of the in Cave 17. The library had been the objects are arguably better steppe nomads (‘un monde sealed a thousand years earlier known in the West than in their nomade éclectique et ouvert, qui and was packed with documents, original home. The ‘News from joue de la curiosité pour des manuscripts and paintings. This Ancient Afghanistan,’ to quote the mondes differents et cultive la discovery revolutionised ‘oriental title of Nicholas Sims-Williams’ beauté,’ p. 296). Not that we need studies’ throughout the world in article below, in fact can be to be reminded, but this is the early 20th century. In this surprisingly good. That there can precisely what we expect in the centenary year we seek (1) to even be such an exhibition now in ‘crossroads’ of civilizations which reflect on the discovery and (2) Paris is, I suppose, some reason later would produce an analogous to review its impact on ‘oriental for hope in the face of the grim syncretism of cultures depicted in studies,’ including the writing and realities which, alas, are regular the paintings of Afrasiab. re-writing of history and (3) to features in the news from modern discuss directions for the future. In the most substantial of the Afghanistan. The rich finds from Dunhuang essays, Chambon reviews have implications beyond ‘oriental carefully the arguments about the Daniel Waugh studies’ and need to be chronology of the Begram finds. [email protected] understood as part of world Here we seem to have a culture. Details of the program conundrum equivalent to that References may be found at
4 fundamental point in the News from Ancient Afghanistan chronology of ancient Afghan- istan and India. Nicholas Sims-Williams • The Bactrian inscription of SOAS, University of London Rabatak, discovered in 1993 and first published by Joe Cribb and myself in 1996,3 which describes events of the first year of Years of war and instability have with Homeric allusions (Bernard Kanishka and traces his led to profound damage to et al. 2004). This inscription of genealogy back to his great- Afghanistan’s cultural heritage, about the 2nd century BCE tells grandfather Kujula Kadphises. with the accidental or deliberate the life-story of Sophytos son of destruction of ancient monuments Naratos, who lost his fortune and • A group of about 150 Bactrian and works of art, the looting of the then made another as a documents from northern Kabul museum and the pillaging merchant in distant lands before Afghanistan, which date from the th th of sites such as Aï Khanum by returning home to the delight of 4 to 8 centuries CE (to be treasure-seekers. At the same his friends. Perhaps the most discussed below). time, a huge number of re- remarkable feature of this • The Bactrian inscription of markable and important inscription is that the author of Tang-i Safedak (Lee and Sims- antiquities have come to light, these highly sophisticated Greek Williams 2003), which recounts some no doubt as the result of verses seems to have been of the foundation — or re- unofficial digging, others perhaps Indian ancestry, as his name and foundation — of a stupa in chance finds resulting from the patronymic suggest. Yakaolang district, Bamiyan displacement of peoples to remote • Next in chronological order (15 province, probably in 714 CE, mountain refuges. These dis- CE) is a Kharoshti reliquary demonstrating the persistence of coveries include documents from inscription of Vijayamitra, king of Buddhism in Afghanistan well all periods of Afghan history, of Apraca in NW India, which into the Islamic period. which I would like to mention a contains a synchronism between • Finally, I may mention a group few outstanding examples (in the Azes era, usually identified of Arabic administrative docu- approximately chronological with the Vikrama era of 58/57 ments, chiefly tax records, dated order): BCE,2 and a previously unknown between 138 and 160 AH (= 755- • A group of nearly fifty Aramaic ‘Indo-Greek era’ beginning 128 777 CE). These documents, documents from the archive of years earlier (Salomon 2005). which will soon be published by the last Achaemenian satrap of According to Richard Salomon Geoffrey Khan of Cambridge Bactria, ca. 353-324 BCE. The many well-known inscriptions University, mention some of the documents date from the reigns with dates in the 200s and 300s same families and individuals as of Artaxerxes III, Darius III, and can plausibly be assigned to this the latest Bactrian documents Alexander the Great — who is era of 186/5 BCE. On this and seem to form part of the referred to exactly as if he were reckoning, for example, the same archive. a legitimate successor of the trilingual Dasht-i Nawur I do not have time today to talk Achaemenids. This discovery was inscription of Vima I, the about all of these new documents, made public by Shaul Shaked in grandfather of Kanishka I, may which cover almost all periods of recent lectures in Paris (Shaked be dated to about 93 CE. Afghan history from the 2004); an edition by Shaked and • Though the document itself is Achaemenian period to early Joseph Naveh is in press. not a new discovery, I must Islamic times. Instead, I shall mention here a Sanskrit restrict myself to those that I know • An administrative document in astrological text, the best, the Bactrian letters and Greek, a tax receipt dated in the Yavanajâtaka of Sphujiddhvaja, documents which have come to 4th year of the Graeco-Bactrian which also contains a syn- king Antimakhos I, perhaps light during the past fifteen years chronism, this time between the equivalent to 170 BCE. This and which appear to have been Saka era of 78 CE and the document, supposedly found at written in northern Afghanistan Kushan era. According to the th to 8th centuries CE. Sangcharak in north central during the 4 interpretation recently proposed I first reported on these Afghanistan and now in the by Harry Falk (2001; 2004), the discoveries in 1996, in a paper Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, synchronism establishes that the published in various forms in was first published in 1994 and famous ‘era of Kanishka’ began English, French, Russian and most recently edited by Claude in 127 CE. If this is accepted, it Japanese.4 Since then, the Rapin (1996).1 must rank as one of the most number of Bactrian documents • An acrostic inscription from the important of recent discoveries, has continued to rise and now Kandahar region in Greek verse since the date of Kanishka is a stands at more than 150. These
5 documents are written in a cursive script derived from Greek, mostly on parchment or leather, occasionally on cloth or wood. Apart from a couple of Buddhist texts, the find consists of legal documents, letters, and economic documents. Many of them are dated according to an era whose starting-point was almost certainly the accession of Ardashir I, the first emperor of the Sasanian dynasty of Iran, in 223 CE.5 Although we have no reliable information on the discovery of the Bactrian documents, it seems from their contents that most of them derive from just one or two sources. In previous presentations I have described in some detail those which appear to come from the kingdom of Rôb (now Rui) in the northern Hindukush, some of which were written in places which can be identified: Rob itself; Samingan; Malr or Madr; Kah (modern Kahmard); and Warnu, which may correspond to modern Fig. 1. Northern Afghanistan Qunduz, mediaeval Warwaliz [Fig. which was written at the behest 1].6 On this occasion I would like documents: a series of coins of a ruler of Guzgan. As Edmund to concentrate on a group of seven bearing Bactrian legends which Bosworth has written (in Minorsky or eight recently-discovered include the name and titles of a 1970, p. viii), the anonymous documents which originate in a ruler named ‘Zhulad Gozgan, king author of this book ‘was essentially slightly different area, the of Gar’; they also name the city of an armchair geographer,’ but ‘the province of Gôzgân (Gûzgân, Amber, presumably as a mint- description of Guzgan and its Jûzjân), to the northwest of Rob.7 town [Fig. 2, next page]. dependencies ..., the one section These are all legal documents: a The city of Amber, nowadays of the book which must depend on deed of sale, a loan contract, a Sar-i Pul, is well known from personal observation and deed of gift, a receipt, and several Islamic sources. One of the new experience’ is exceptionally documents regarding the Bactrian documents, a poorly- detailed and authoritative. settlement of disputes. Both in preserved loan-contract, was Another important source is the their physical form and in their written in Amber [Fig. 3, next history of Tabari, who recounts formulation they are very similar page]. Both the lender and the various episodes in the history of to documents of the same type borrower are identified as ‘market- Guzgan, some of them in from the kingdom of Rob. Almost traders of Amber,’ which fits well considerable detail. Tabari’s all of them refer to the rulers of with the description of Amber in account of Guzgan begins with the Guzgan and to places in Guzgan; the Hudud as a ‘residence of first Arab invasion in the year 32 all but one are dated, and the merchants and the market of of the hijra, i.e. 652/3 CE, just a dates fall within a period of 65 Balkh.’ few years before the earliest of years beginning in the year 436 this group of Bactrian documents. of the local era, i.e. 658/9 CE. Another of our documents Chinese sources too preserve contains the statement that it was Luckily we possess a number of some relevant information, since written ‘in Sozargan, in Kalf, in the other sources for the history and Guzgan came under the nominal city which they call Astof, in the geography of Guzgan during this suzerainty of the Tang dynasty presence of the god Wakhsh, the period. Amongst the geographical after the final defeat of the king of gods, whom they worship works one must give pride of place Western Turks in the late 650s. in Stof.’ I cannot identify the to the Hudûd al-‘Âlam ‘The Finally, we have at least one other names Sozargan and Astof, but it Regions of the World,’ a Persian source which is actually seems likely that Kalf is the Kalif work of the late 10th century, contemporary with these or Kelif of the Islamic geographers.
6 and titles, in particular, those of the rulers of Guzgan. At least three rulers of Guzgan are named in the documents: Kanag Gozgan, Skag Gozgan and Yan Gozagan. I take it that Kanag, Skag and Yan are the personal names of the ruler and that the name of the country, Goz(a)gan, is here used as a kind of family or dynastic name for its rulers. A similar usage is attested in Tabari, who (unfortunately for us) never names the ruler of Guzgan but Fig. 2. Coin of Zhulad Gozgan, King of Gar (obverse and reverse). refers to him only as ‘al-Juzjani’ Photo copyright © 2007 Nicholas Sims-Williams. or ‘al-Juzjan b. al-Juzjan.’ Kanag Gozgan is mentioned in Kalif lay on the River Oxus, which Another refers to ‘Gaz, in the the earliest document, a formed the northern border of district of Andar.’ The Hudud gives purchase-contract dated in 658/9 Guzgan; it was an important the name Dar-i Andara to a CE, in which both the vendors and crossing-point, since it lay on the military camp where the ruler of the purchasers are described as road from Balkh to Bukhara and Guzgan had his residence; it is ‘servants of Kanag Gozgan.’ The Nasaf. Nowadays the principal described as being at the foot of name of Skag Gozgan occurs in a settlement named Kelif is that on the mountains, close to the town document of 674/5, which the north bank, in Turkmenistan, of Jahudhan (modern Maymana). specifies the payment of a fine for but there is also a village named If the name Dar-i Andara means breach of contract to ‘the treasury Kilif or Kilift on the Afghan side. ‘the court of Andara,’ it may well of Skag Gozgan.’ Finally, the name In mediaeval times Kalif was be the place which once bore the of Yan Gozagan is found in the very counted as occupying both banks name Gaz and which our last document of this group, dated of the Oxus, being likened to documents refer to as ‘the court in 722/3. This is a declaration Baghdad in this respect. of the fortress’ ... ‘in the district intended to settle a dispute 8 No less than five of our of Andar.’ between a number of persons who documents were written either in I turn now from the place- are all described as ‘inhabitants of Gaz or in Lizg. These seem to be, names mentioned in our Lizag’ and ‘servants of Yan in effect, two designations for the documents to the personal names Gozagan, king of Gar.’ same place. Probably Lizg, which means ‘the fortress,’ was originally an epi- thet used to describe a city whose proper name was Gaz. A couple of docu- ments provide some details which may help to locate the fort- ress of Gaz. One is said to have been written ‘in Gaz, at Wanin- dan, the court of the fortress,’ which suggests that the ruler of Guzgan may have Fig. 3. Bactrian loan-contract written in Amber (Sar-i Pul). held court at Gaz. Photograph copyright © 2007 Nicholas Sims-Williams.
7 The significance of the title ‘king were finally defeated by the Tang or officials with Turkish names and of Gar’ is obscure. I have not been at the very end of the 650s. titles. One is named as ‘Ser the able to identify a specific place However, China was too far away Turk, tudun of Gaz,’ the other as named Gar; possibly it is merely for the Tang to exercise effective ‘lord Magatur Bukla.’ It is the Bactrian word for ‘mountain.’ power in this region, and our interesting to note that the title The same title reappears on the documents do not contain any tudun is that given by the khaghan coins mentioned earlier, which direct reference to the Chinese. So of the Western Turks to the officer bear the name of yet another far as I can see, the only trace of whom he sent to oversee the local member of this dynasty: ‘Zhulad Chinese influence is to be found a rulers who had submitted to him Gozgan, king of Gar’ or ‘king of the receipt which ends with the phrase and to control thepayment of mountain country.’ These coins ‘this is your tsak [ ],’ using a taxes. In the light of Puluo’s letter bears dates in Pahlavi, but they Chinese word for ‘document’ one might guess that the tudun are practically illegible. Doubts ([ ]ce/chai [Early Middle Chinese here carries out a similar function about the era used add a further — ]) in a context where on behalf of the ruler of element of uncertainty, so that we earlier documents of the same Tokharistan, the immediate cannot at present be sure of type use the native Bactrian word overlord of the rulers of Guzgan. Zhulad’s place in the sequence of tsirg ‘(proof of) receipt.’ Even more interesting is the name rulers. As it happens, the name of ‘Lord Magatur Bukla.’ Magatur Zhulad Gozgan also occurs in a The real nature of political is no doubt a variant of the Turkish document of 705/6, a deed of gift power in this region is clarified by baghatur, attested as a personal issued by the ‘lord of Lizg’ in favour a letter to the Chinese emperor name and later as a term for a th of three brothers, ‘Babay, Abgas preserved in an 11 century ‘hero’ or ‘warrior,’ the source of and Zhulad Gozgan, sons of encyclopaedia. The author of the Persian bahâdur and Russian Kanag,’ whom he describes as ‘my letter was a Turkish prince named bogatyr’. As for Bukla [ ], I own servants.’ It is not very likely Puluo, a younger brother of the am grateful to Yutaka Yoshida for that the three brothers are the hereditary ruler of Tokharistan, the very plausible suggestion that sons of Kanag Gozgan, the ruler who had his principal residence at this name may be identified with named 47 years earlier in the Qunduz, to the east of Balkh. the the name transcribed into document of 658/9. Even if they Puluo was sent to live at the Tang Chinese as Puluo ( [Early Mid- were, one would hardly expect court in 705. In this letter, which dle Chinese ]). As Prof. that Zhulad, the last-named and was written in 718, he mentions Yoshida points out, it is even therefore presumably the the king of Guzgan as one of the possible that the Bukla in the youngest of the three, would have ‘212 kings of various kingdoms, Bactrian document of 692/3 is the become king. It seems more likely governors and prefects’ who very same person as the Turkish that this Zhulad and his father recognized the authority of his prince who arrived in China Kanag belong to later generations brother, the ruler of Tokharistan; thirteen years later, the author of and perhaps to a junior branch of at the same time he emphasizes the letter to the Chinese emperor. the loyalty of his brother to the the royal family and that they were The historical information named after their illustrious Tang. This state of affairs is described as having existed since preserved in the Bactrian forebears, the rulers Kanag documents is of course frag- Gozgan and Zhulad Gozgan. the time of his grandfather, that is, one may presume, during the mentary, but I hope that these few To judge by their names, the sixty years or so since the Chinese examples will be enough to kings of this dynasty were of destroyed the power of the demonstrate that they contain Iranian stock. Although they seem Western Turks and incorporated fascinating and important to have ruled Guzgan without their dominions into their own information, which can be interruption throughout the period administrative framework: ‘Since supplemented and elucidated with covered by our documents, it is the time of my grandfather and the help of historical and clear that they did not wield my father up to that of the present geographical literature in Chinese, absolute power. During the early ruler, the kings of Tokharistan have Persian and other languages. th part of the 7 century, Guzgan was always been the overlords of these Together with the Aramaic, Greek tributary to the khaghan of the various countries ... The rulers of and Arabic documents from Western Turks. This must still have Tokharistan, from several gen- Afghanistan which I referred to at been the case at the time of the erations ago up to the present, the beginning of this paper, not to earliest document, a purchase- have been sincerely devoted to mention data from archaeology, contract dated in 658/9, which the great Tang dynasty; they have numismatics, art history and other refers specifically to the come constantly to pay homage disciplines, they promise to make ‘khaghan’s tax.’ No such tax is and to bring tribute.’ possible a substantially new mentioned in the other docu- synthesis of the early history of ments, all of which date from the A Bactrian document dated in Afghanistan. period after the Western Turks 692/3 CE refers to two noblemen
8 [This article is part of a lecture Falk 2001 Japanese). Oriente, 16 (1997): 3- given at the University of Harry Falk. “The yuga of 17. Washington (Seattle) on Sphujiddhvaja and the era of the Sims-Williams 1998 November 10, 2005, in a series Kusânas.” Silk Road Art and co-sponsored by the Silkroad Archaeology, 7 (2001): 121-36. Nicholas Sims-Williams. “Further Foundation and the Simpson notes on the Bactrian inscription Center for the Humanities, with Falk 2004 of Rabatak.” In: Proceedings of the additional support from several of Harry Falk. “The Kaniska era in Third European Conference of the university’s departments. Gupta records.” Silk Road Art and Iranian Studies, Part 1, Old and References have been updated.] Archaeology, 10 (2004): 167-76. Middle Iranian Studies. Wiesbaden, 1998: 79-92. Lee and Sims-Williams 2003 Sims-Williams 2001 About the Author Jonathan Lee and Nicholas Sims- Williams. “The antiquities and Nicholas Sims-Williams. Bactrian Nicholas Sims-Williams is inscription of Tang-i Safedak.” Silk documents from northern currently Research Professor of Road Art & Archaeology, 9 (2003): Afghanistan I: Legal and economic Iranian and Central Asian Studies 159-84. documents. Oxford, 2000 [2001]. at the School of Oriental and (Vol. II: Letters and Buddhist African Studies, University of Minorsky 1970 Texts, forthcoming 2007.) London. His main interest is the Vladimir Minorsky. Hudûd al- Sims-Williams 2004 medieval languages of Eastern ‘Âlam, 2nd ed. Clifford E. Nicholas Sims-Williams. “Nou- Iran and Central Asia, especially Bosworth, ed. London, 1970. veaux documents bactriens du Sogdian and Bactrian, and the Rapin 1996 Guzgan.” Comptes rendus de history of their speakers. He has l’Académie des Inscriptions et just completed the second volume Claude Rapin. “Nouvelles Belles-Lettres, 2002 [2004]: of his edition of the recently- observations sur le parchemin 1047-58. discovered Bactrian documents gréco-bactrien d’Asangôrna.” (to appear in 2007), and is now Topoi 6 (1996): 458-69. Sims-Williams 2005 working on a project on Bactrian Salomon 2005 Nicholas Sims-Williams. “Bactrian chronology. Richard Salomon. “The Indo- legal documents from 7th- and Greek era of 186/5 B.C. in a 8th-century Guzgan.” Bulletin of References Buddhist reliquary inscription.” In: the Asia Institute, 15 (2001 Osmund Bopearachchi and Marie- [2005]): 9-29. Bernard et al. 2004 Françoise Boussac, eds. Sims-Williams and Cribb 1996 Afghanistan: Ancien carrefour Paul Bernard, Georges-Jean Nicholas Sims-Williams and Joe entre l’est et l’ouest. Turnhout Pinault & Georges Rougemont. Cribb. “A new Bactrian inscription (Belgium), 2005: 359-401. “Deux nouvelles inscriptions of Kanishka the Great.” Silk Road grecques de l’Asie centrale.” Sims-Williams 1997a Art and Archaeology, 4 ([1995- Journal des savants, 2004/2: 227- Nicholas Sims-Williams. New light ]1996): 75-142. 356. on ancient Afghanistan: the Shaked 2004 de Blois forthcoming decipherment of Bactrian. London, Shaul Shaked. Le satrape de François de Blois. “Du nouveau sur 1997. Bactriane et son gouverneur: la chronologie bactrienne post- Sims-Williams 1997b Documents araméens du IVe s. hellénistique: l’ère de 223/224 ap. Nicholas Sims-Williams. “Nou- avant notre ère provenant de J.-C.” To appear in Comptes veaux documents sur l’histoire et Bactriane. Paris, 2004. rendus de l’Académie des la langue de la Bactriane.” Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, Comptes rendus de l’Académie Notes séance du 2 juin 2006. des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres, 1996 [1997]: 633-54. 1. For references to the earlier Cribb 2005 editions see Rapin 1996, 458 n. Joe Cribb. “The Greek kingdom of Sims-Williams 1997c 1. Bactria, its coinage and its Nicholas Sims-Williams. “Novye collapse.” In: Osmund Bopear- 2. For a different view see Cribb baktriiskie dokumenty.” Vestnik 2005, 213-14. achchi and Marie-Françoise Drevnei Istorii, 1997/3: 3-10. Boussac, eds. Afghanistan: Ancien 3. Sims-Williams and Cribb 1996; carrefour entre l’est et l’ouest. Sims-Williams 1997d revised edition in Sims-Williams Turnhout (Belgium), 2005: 207- Nicholas Sims-Williams. “New 1998. In 2003 I finally had the 25. finds from ancient Afghanistan” (in opportunity to visit Kabul and to
9 examine the inscription with my 8.8. Some other indications might own eyes; as a result, a third leadlead oneone toto seek Gaz further to edition is now in preparation. thethe east,east, in the mountains to the southsouth of Balkh. Sources from the 4. Sims-Williams 1997a-d; see 1414thth toto the 19th centuries mention also http://www.gengo.l.u- herehere a valley and a village called tokyo.ac.jp/~hkum/ DarraDarra Gaz, Gaz, which which may be may identical be bactrian.html. Sims-Williams withidentical the Gazzah with orthe Jazzah Gazzah of early or 2001 is the first volume of a IslamicJazzah of sources.early Islamic Jazzah sources. is comprehensive edition of the frequentlyJazzah is frequently mentioned mentioned in Tabari’s in documents. accountTabari’s ofaccount the events of the of events the year of 5. This important point has been 119the yearof the 119 hijra of the (i.e. hijra 737 (i.e. CE), 737 established by François de Blois whenCE), whenthe Turgesh the Turgesh khaghan khaghan was (see de Blois forthcoming). defeatedwas defeated in battle in battle by Asadby Asad b. ‘Abdallâh.b. ‘Abdallâh. From TabariFrom itTabari appears it 6. I previously accepted the thatappears Jazzah that was Jazzaha fortified was place a alternative identification of withfortified a garrison; place with it awas garrison; counted it Warnu (Greek Aornos) as aswas belonging counted to as Juzjan, belonging but it tois Khulm, but the newly- clearJuzjan, from but the it isitineraries clear from of the discovered Aramaic documents combatantsitineraries of thethat combatants it lay in thatthe name both Khulm and Warnu, extremeit lay in east the ofextreme Juzjan, closeeast toof almost certainly implying that Balkh.Juzjan, Itclose seems to Balkh.unlikely It seemsto me they are different cities. thatunlikely such to an me outlying that suchfortress an 7. This group of documents is wouldoutlying havefortress been would havea major been now edited and translated in administrativea major administrative centre, or centre, that the or Sims-Williams 2005. For a more rulerthat theof Guzgan ruler of would Guzgan have would held detailed version of the following courthave heldthere; court but there; I have but to Iadmit have discussion see Sims-Williams thatto admit this thatis the this only is the place only within place 2004 (in French), but the dates thewithin confines the confines of Guzgan of whichGuzgan is of the documents given there definitelywhich is definitely known toknown have to borne have now need to be corrected. theborne name the ofname Gaz. of Gaz.
Fig. 1. Bamiyan VR1= Royal City site no.1, overall plan of excavations. Copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. The site is located to the west Bamiyan 2006: The Fifth Excavation of the niche of the 55 m Buddha statue, almost at the foot of the Campaign of Prof. Tarzi’s Mission cliff itself. There we unearthed a remarkable ensemble of glass- Zemaryalai Tarzi blowing or glazing workshops. The Marc Bloch II University, Strasbourg Next year we will investigate this site further as well as sectors within the royal city or its neighboring sectors. This was the fifth consecutive year The site is located on the right that I led the French survey and side (north) of the Kabul–Band- We owe to Alfred Foucher excavation mission at Bamiyan. e-Amir road where the Valley of (1923, 1925, 1942-1947) the We have to excavate in unusual Tchehelsotun emerges and more initial identification of the and difficult conditions due to the precisely at the western Bamiyan royal city, notwith- fact that we work on private extremity of the ancient standing subsequent and property rented for the purpose of Bamiyan bazaar, today in ruins. unfounded contrary propositions excavation but restored to its As we anticipated, we could note made by M. L. Carter (1985). original cultivated state at the end how the cave architecture of the Furthermore, as indicated by the of each archaeological season. ancient city progressively gave Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang Another significant reason why we way to built architecture. In (Julien 1853, Beal 1983, Watters may not be able to complete our 2006 we opened the site. In 1904 and Pelliot in Godard et al. plans is the necessity of often 2007 we will build on the success 1928), the royal city, Bamiyan’s having to circumvent houses, of the first season and continue capital, was built up against the walls, gardens and, most of the our work there. cliff and crossed the valley. Its time, irrigation systems. Recog- wall was 6-7 li long. Today the nizing the incoherence shown in II. The Royal City site no. 2 = ruins indeed still abut the Great the drawings of the site, I decided VR2 (1st campaign of Cliff and spread east to west in 2006 to excavate the excavations) [Fig. 2] from Sorkh Qol (west of the monuments separately, even though I may later attempt to link their relationships to one another in a larger context. Amongst the monuments I chose are the chapel (sanctuary) found around Stupa no. 2 on the ‘Eastern Monastery’ site (MO in the text), and Stupa no. 1, which is the largest in Bamiyan and measures approx- imately 30 m on each side. We are just in the beginning phases of exploration of the other sites such as MR (Monastery of the ancient or former king), VR1 (Royal City site no. 1) and VR2 (Royal City site no. 2). The results will produce significant information on the history and archaeology of Bamiyan.
Choice of Sites
We have proceeded on the following sites, from West to East in the Bamiyan Valley, as part of a plan established in 2001:
I. The Royal City site no. 1= st VR1 (1 campaign of excava- Fig. 2. Bamiyan VR2 = Royal City site no.2, excavation plan for the tions) [Fig. 1, facing page] northern part of the site. Copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
11 Fig. 3. Bamiyan, MO = site of Eastern Monastery, excavation site 2005-2006. Copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. large 55 m Buddha) to the west IV. The Eastern Monastery = m Buddha. In 2006 we opened of Sang Tchaspan. In this way MO (5th campaign) [Figs. 3, four sites, extended our the city was built on both slopes 10] excavations around the chapel of the Tchehelsotun valley. Our of Stupa no. 2, freed Stupa no. excavations, although as yet We have been excavating on this 4, unearthed the northern side limited in scope, have added site since 2002 (Tarzi 2003, of the Great Stupa no. 1, and significantly to our knowledge of 2004 a-c, 2005). It is located to began excavations in the ‘clover the city. the south of the eastern part of field’ to the northwest of Stupa the Great Cliff and to the no. 1, practically at the foot of southeast of the niche of the 38 the Great Cliff. III. The Monastery of the preceding king = MR (The 2nd campaign of excavations did not take place because of landmines.)
We ran a series of surveys in 2005 (1st campaign) while moving around without appar- ent danger. However in 2006 this site, located between the two dynamited Buddha statues, had been entirely and deliberately littered with landmines, as indicated by several hundred white and red rocks. Where did the mines suddenly come from? The question remains curiously unanswered. In 2007, we will excavate there (2nd campaign) Fig. 4. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 1 (VR 1), excavations on the southern side according to our pre-established of the site, view from the northwest towards the southeast. Photograph copyright plan. © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
12 Site I. The Excavations of VR1 [Fig. 4, facing page]
Our goal was to excavate a pre- Islamic part of the Bamiyan royal city at the limit of the cave and open air built habitat. We had a very complicated negotiation with the owner of the chosen emplacement, an ancient serail (this word designates a caravan serail, not a Turkish palace reserved to women), located to the west of the ancient and now destroyed bazaar. Thanks to the support of the Bamiyan Government and of the national security we were able to come to an agreement. We excavated a Fig. 5. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 2 (VR 2), view of the northern part of the dozen squares 4m x 4m. We excavations from the Great Cliff. Copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. began with square T15 by grotto A, to the north, and squares T16- of ashes in the excavations — excavations will shed more T19 to the south. The site was Bamiyan became a township of no definitive light on the subject, in enlarged to the west with squares importance and was repeatedly view of our discovery of a R18, S18, R19, S19 and the occupied by invaders from all over. beautiful and significant series of beginning of squares S20 and T20. In squares S19, T18 and T19 we ceramics. In addition, we found in found the corner section of the the Muslim layers a large number From north to south, it was very base of a fortification. There is of funerary pits (containing bones interesting to observe in the ruins plenty of documentation for the from bodies which had been left the transformation of cave study of this Muslim period of exposed to the air) that had been habitats into built habitats. One Bamiyan (Baker and Allchin 1991; inserted in the constructions or can note that the serail, probably Barthold 1913, 1977; Bosworth against the walls. As Charles established around the first part 1961, 1965, 1973, 1996; Elliot Masson had already noticed in the of the 20th century, revealed a 1867-1877; Gardin 1957, etc). region of Jalalabad and as we had more or less level terrain of which However more research in depth also noted in several of our the archaeological layers T15, T16 should be done. While our excavations in Hadda, the practice and T17 were in chaos. We found contribution has produced some of inhumation of bodies in- a broad mix of Turk pre-Islamic satisfying results, the excavation creasingly becomes the norm in (6th-9th centuries) and Ghurid of this site is not finished. Afghanistan following the Mongol (12th-13th centuries) ceramics, and period (15th and 16th centuries). some Ghaznavid, Khwarazmshahi The excavated area may well and modern ceramics. Further to encompass the Bamiyan ceramic Site II. The Excavations of VR2 the south the stratigraphy studios, judging from the finds of [Fig. 5] becomes more logical. a significant number of small clay rods used by potters in their kilns. Without going into too much Our knowledge of ceramics at The location of this site is to the detail one can observe that there Bamiyan had previously been west of the niche of the 55 m are three distinct periods. The first limited to a series of ceramic Buddha by Sorkh Qol, practically is Turk pre-Islamic, just prior to shards, most found on the surface, at the foot of the cliff. We chose the Ghaznevid; the second period with the exception of some found this location in the hope of finding — of the Ghaznevids and the through the surveys on the sites the fortified walls of the pre- Khwarazmshahs — is short, and of Zohak and Gholghola cities. The Islamic city of Bamiyan. We were the site for a time was abandoned. research undertaken prior to ours close. Instead of finding the The most flourishing Muslim was the work of famous southern face of the fortified wall, period for this site followed, that specialists, Gardin (1957), Gardin we discovered constructions built of the Ghurids, who established and Lyonnet (1987, and in Le against it. A careful study of our their second capital at Bamiyan. Berre et al. 1987b) and finally 1967 photographs shows that this Following the Mongol hiatus — the Baker and Allchin (1991), but area was used as a cultivated field, brutal passage of Chingis Khan should, however, be confirmed irrigated by a canal which is dry and the near total destruction of now through excavations such as today. A few years later it became all habitats, as seen in the layers ours. We hope that our a pond or reservoir. The layer of
13 rather than ceramic kilns. We that was left were the west and found a grinding device in situ, south walls and the southwest with a fixed (inferior) circular corner of this tower, which had millstone and a mobile superior obviously been built on a square millstone. The floor with its plan. In addition, during its long remains of glass paste (pâte de period of abandonment, it had verre) and glass shards been used to store hay and food originating from the making of for cattle; its plan had undergone vases suggest that these were such degradation that it had workshops for glass manu- almost became circular. A further facture. There were as well two complication for this investigation ovens or smithies and two is the fact Sorkh Qol is located in storage pits. the path of streams which flow into Until now no serious study the valley on the weather’s whim. has been done regarding the Thus, as we observed, a major industry of glassmaking during storm of 2005 had devastated the the Muslim period in Afghanistan irrigation channels in the area. and specifically in Bamiyan. The raw bricks fallen from the Readers may wish to refer to my two walls had the following research (Tarzi 2001, 97-99) dimensions: 38x20x6 cm, concerning this craft in 33x20x6 cm, 31x19x6 cm, northwestern India and its 27x20x6 cm. We discovered that relationship with China and the the foundations of the tower were Fig. 6. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 2 Muslim world. placed on a sandy ground in which (VR 2), general view of the glass or we found many glazed shards ceramics workshop. Photograph copy- B – The Sorkh Qol tower dating from the Muslim period. right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. Near the eastern part of the tower Based on my own recollections deeper excavations (1.40 m) loess (pure clay) at the bottom of and 1967 photographs, the two unearthed only the foundation the pond is visible in our trenches. Sorkh Qol towers reminded me of seat of a wall, aligned northeast We excavated in two places: A, the sites in Chinese Turkestan. I to southwest, 0.70 m in width, cut first sector, to the north and at the thought then they might belong in its center by the foundation seat immediate south of the fortified to the fortifications of the royal of a second wall, itself positioned wall; B, the second sector to the city, the pre-Islamic capital of east-west and 0.40 m in width. southwest of the first em- Bamiyan. Since these two towers The two walls formed angles of 25o placement of a tower also visible now have been destroyed, I and 65o. At the same level of these in our 1967 photograph. wanted to find their locations in walls but further to the northwest order to excavate their found- of our excavation, we discovered A - Glass workshops (?) [Figs. 6, ations and establish their a more or less rectangular tiled 7] relationship to the wall that gutter. It is probable that we are connected them. Nothing is left of in the courtyard of a large In this sector we excavated eight the first tower located to the construction. Unfortunately, given 4m x4m squares, C5-C7, D5-D7 northwest. Its and E5-E7. The chronology materials were remains the same as for VR1. totally repro- However the positioning of the cessed for the structures does not change: they construction of a superimpose one another from the house which is end of the Turk period until the end now inhabited. of the Ghurid period. Two large The site of the ensembles were excavated. second tower, Because all of the constructions larger than the have not yet been fully unearthed first and further it is difficult to establish the to the southeast, relationship of one to the other. remains Nevertheless we are certain that unoccupied. We here is an ensemble of workshops were told by the where the kilns (vertical), such as inhabitants that, Fig. 7. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 2 (VR 2), glass work- small size tandoors, most likely prior to its final shop, detail, showing lower part of a millstone. Photo- served as smithies or hearths destruction, all graph copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
14 (Delegation d’Archéologie Française en Afghanistan) to send us their restoration expert to demonstrate the use of new polymerized glass- based products for the consolidation of clay. In the same central sector of Massif A, we expanded our excava- tion squares around Stupa no. 2 in order to acquire a good and easy read of the chapel’s plan that surrounds it. First Fig. 9. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO). Bottom we had to unearth the part of clay Buddha statue along W wall of Gallery western side of the A9. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; stupa and pursue Zemaryalai Tarzi. excavations on the Fig. 8. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery northwestern sides. During this isolated feet are preserved in situ; (MO), Gallery A9. Clay molding with series of excavations we some are preserved to the knees. polychrome, representing a sitting discovered a clay votive stupa to Buddha in meditation. H 43 cm, W 29 cm at shoulder. Inv. no. BAM. the west (Stupa no. 5), two other Chapel A (= Caitya A), around V.06.1. Photograph copyright © clay votive stupas (Stupas nos. 6- Stupa no. 2 [Figs. 10; 11, 12 next 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi 7), and a series of benches on page] which presumably had stood 22 rapid erosion due to the streams, large clay Buddha statues. Of this In order for us to acquire a better excavations in 2007 may bring number, 14 pairs of feet and 5 understanding of the architecture only minor results.
Site IV. The Excavations at MO
Since 2002 we have been excavating the site of the Eastern Monastery referred to in our text as MO. At the end of each excavation campaign we re-bury the remains on site under several meters of soil. The first two weeks of excavations at MO were devoted to the costly and difficult task of reopening squares previously excavated. We enlarged Gallery A9 in which we had previously found many sculptures, largely composed of clay moldings with polychrome intact. Our discoveries this year however were more modest than in previous years: a clay statue representing a sitting Buddha in meditation [Fig. 8], the bottom part of a standing clay statue [Fig. 9] in situ, and many more fragments. Our efforts here were concentrated on the restoration of previously un- earthed moldings too fragile to be Fig. 10. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO). Detail of excavation plan, showing moved. We asked the DAFA Caitya A. Copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
15 width of the corridor was reduced at the level of the masonry blocks, thus creating large pilasters against the enclosing wall. We did not find any traces of fire or a significant amount of compacted clay on the floor of the corridor(s) or of the four corner cells, which brings us to conclude that their covering was not made out of wood. In this case one can suppose that each of the four corner cells was roofed by a cupola resting on squinches and the corridors by barrel vaults. The nearly square central courtyard measured 9.50 m on a side. In its center is Stupa no. 2, also with a square plan and Fig. 11. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Gallery A9. View of chapel (caitya) measuring 5.25 m. Therefore the from E with Stupa no.2 in its center. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; circumambulation path (pradak- Zemaryalai Tarzi. sinaptha) did not exceed 2.20 m in width. In the middle of each side of Fig. 12. Bamiyan East- the courtyards each arm of the ern Monastery (MO), NE ‘cross’ is a structure like an ‘iwan’ corner of courtyard of opening on Stupa no. 2 (iwan N, Stupa no.2, with pairs of feet on benches. Photo- S, E and W). Logic would suggest graph copyright © 2006 that each of these iwans be DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. covered with a barrel vault. However signs of fire at the level where there were niches to support beams and joists prove of the site and ensembles in the four corners is a cell 3,50m x that each iwan was covered with Bamiyan Valley, we first studied 3,50m square (cells N, NE, SW, a wooden roof and had an this monastic complex — a caitya, SE). A corridor parallel to the attached portico. The Pradak- a sort of a large cruciform chapel ‘enclosing’ wall joined each cell to sinapatha around Stupa no. 2 placed in a square plan — the next one. These four corner initially had a schist or slated separately from its surrounding cells and their communicating limestone tiled floor, which context of the other constructions corridors had their inner sides subsequently was covered with a of the MO. This large caitya was defined by communicating with Gallery A9 to enormous blocks the east, which in turn gave of masonry simi- access to a similar yet probably lar to the double smaller complex that had in its towers of the center Stupa no. 4 (see below). corners of the To the north, it communicated Tall-i Takht forti- with other galleries and corridors. fications To the south, it was delimited by (Stronach 1978) an attached portico where we and the Nee found significant traces of fire (cf. Royal city 2005 report). Excavation of the (Ghirshman MO1 square gave us more precise 1946). These information on the western wall double massifs of this ensemble. were also rein- forced by the corners of the Fig. 13. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Stupa no. 2 Caitya A is surrounded by four caitya’s central from SW. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai walls, 2.15 m thick. At each of the courtyard. The Tarzi.
16 layer of lime stucco, as also was Stupa no. 2. Finally, probably Fig. 15. Bamiyan th th between the 6 and 9 centuries Eastern Monas- CE, the floor was completely tery (MO), a part covered by a layer of clay which of the excavated has retained the traces of fire. relics from Stupa no. 2. Photograph Stupa no. 2 [Fig. 13, facing page] copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. In 2005 we excavated three sides of this stupa. Two (east and south) were unearthed completely and unidentifiable the north partially. In 2006 we stupas. At the upper level though, fragments. We might interpret completed excavation of the there is something new: on each these findings in the following way. monument. Its form and its stucco side of the stupa are three It may be that the persons in coating links it to the stupas of relatively deep niches on top of charge of the restoration of this Gandhara and more specifically of molded bases, flanked by pilasters stupa, between the 6th and 9th Hadda, the location of the first or columns whose circular, molded century CE, left the relics in stupa to be found to the north of bases are like ionic bases. The few disarray. Such has been noted the Hindu Kush. It consists of a architectonic elements still left on previously, for example in Butkara platform on a plinth, a torus, scotia this row are very interesting (Facenna 1980-1981), where or cavetto of the ‘classical’ type of indeed, but will require further relics were divided and placed Hadda, and on each side, seven investigation in order to give a behind the niches of a monument pilasters, two of which are located complete description. instead of inside a reliquary. This at the corners. Each pilaster is on Despite the deterioration of its was exactly the case with our a molded base composed of a exterior, Stupa no. 2 had not been Stupa no. 4 to which we shall plinth, a torus, and cavetto or disturbed by illegal excavation in return later. In conclusion I should hollow molding. The shafts of the the past. So we excavated its note that, while we attempted to pilasters are without any center vertically, in the hope of reach a deeper floor such as that decoration. The capitals are of the discovering a reliquary and its attained in A6 in 2003, we Corinthian type with a row of relics. We were absolutely excavated Stupa no. 2 only to a polylobed acanthus leaves surprised at the finds. In the depth of 550 cm. As our workers hanging on the abacus [Fig. 14]. southeastern corner of the stupa, became increasingly endangered within the compact masonry, in the narrowing trench of the about 0.50 cm from the top of the excavation, we had to cease our edifice, we found a bronze bell, a activities. bronze earring with screw and chiseled rings and a thin gold Stupas nos. 3, 5-7, around Stupa circular plaque in the shape of a no. 2 ring [Fig. 15]. At the same depth towards the northwest, we Stupa no. 3 [Fig. 16] discovered ivory beads, fine stones and gems, and further to Stupa no. 3 was partially the west we found 5 more bronze unearthed last year in the eastern rings, one of which seems to be a ring with a bulge for a bezel, a small bronze coin, etc. Our discoveries ceased at about 1.60 cm, almost at the ground level of Stupa no. 2. At that level we also Fig. 14. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery found several (MO), one of the pilasters of stupa no. 2. Photograph copyright © 2006 fragments of very DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. small gold petals and a small and very In the lower levels then, there is thin bronze coin Fig. 16. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), NW cor- no difference from the Gandhara broken into several ner of votive Stupa no. 3, detail. Photograph copy- right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
17 ‘iwan’ or arm of the cross of Chapel A. In 2006 we unearthed its eastern side and its eastern and northern stairs. It is a miniaturized clay votive stupa, preserved on two levels only, since it was partially crushed due to the collapse of the walls and the roof. Its plan is square, but with its four stairs and their landings it has a cruciform shape. In some places it preserves its entire painted relief decoration, little columns, modillons etc. Its north-south length measures 196 cm and its east-west length measures 199 cm. Our stupa resembles the clay votive stupas of Tape Sardar at Ghazni (Taddei 1985). There is a difference, however, in that the Fig. 17. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), clay votive Stupa No. 5, located W stupa in Bamiyan is not placed in of Stupa no. 2. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. a lotus flower as is the stupa at Ghazni. Stupa no. 3 of Bamiyan is Stupa no. 4 [Fig. 19] similar to the stupas of the kind represented on the baked clay We anticipated we would find a plaques of Kashmir (Kak 1933) stupa in this location (squares NE and the painted murals of the B20 and NE C20). In order to Bamiyan grottos. Prof. Taddei had reach it we had to demolish a wall dated the second period of Tape separating two fields. With the Sardar from the 6th to the 7th consent of the fields’ owners, MM. century CE (Taddei 1968). The Bahauddin and Khan Mohammad destruction of Bamiyan in the 9th we proceeded without damaging century CE is historically attested. a very old poplar tree. We were It is therefore reasonable to date disappointed with the results of the construction of Stupa no. 3 of the excavation because the stupa the MO of Bamiyan between the had been extensively plundered in 6th and 9th century CE. the past. Was this act of Fig. 18. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), vandalism, dating probably from Stupa no. 5 [Fig. 17] clay votive Stupas nos. 6 and 7, located N the Ghurid period, due to the of Stupa no. 2. Photograph copyright © salvaging of the construction stone This stupa is the twin of Stupa no. 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. or the limestone coating, or was 3, almost of the same dimensions, were preserved; the higher levels, this systematic destruction aimed better preserved in its form but as with Stupas nos. 3 and 5, were at recovering the reliquary hidden less so in its miniaturized relief completely crushed decoration. It is to be noted that by the collapse of some panels on the façade were the walls and roofs. adorned with images: seated Their lower levels figures in a nimbus at the lower consist of a platform level and standing figures in a on a plinth and an nimbus at the upper level, possibly unadorned scotia. images of the Buddha in miniature Their upper levels and made in the pure tradition of have the beginning the Bamiyan artistic school. of a square body adorned by pilasters Stupas nos. 6 and 7 [Fig. 18] which have dis- integrated. This type These two clay votive stupas were of stupa is often built on an irregular square plan. found in Hadda Fig. 19. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Stupa One side of the square measures where it is usually no. 4. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; approximately 115 cm. Two levels stuccoed. Zemaryalai Tarzi.
18 its origin when the results come back from the laboratory.
Stupa no. 1 (western survey)
This survey was done differently from our usual square pattern. The goal was to find the north- west corner of the Great Stupa no. 1 in order to get the exact measurement of one side of the square plan for this monument. We established that the northern side measures 29-30 m. This very Fig. 20. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery large survey of more than 10 m in (MO), Stupa no. 4. Reliquary in the length improves our under- shape of a small globular pot. H 5.7 standing of this monument and cm, Dia. 5.5 cm. Inv. no. BAM, V.06- Fig. 21. Contents of the reliquary BAM, the site of MO [Fig. 22]. In addition 187. Photograph copyright © 2006 V.06-187: beads, agate, ivory and two the excavation revealed the DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. small pearls. Photograph copyright © western landing of the northern 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. behind the niches of the stairs of the stupa [Fig. 23]. Two other discoveries should be noted: monument? Indeed, in con- diameter — contained 5 beads, 2 • firmation of our second of which were totally decomposed It looks as though in its first hypothesis, we found at 200 cm a marine pearls and one of which state of decoration the stupa had reliquary [Fig. 20]. This little was an ochre-orange soft stone in a stucco coating. reliquary — a small globular pot, a disk shape with a hole in its • It is also important to explain 7 cm high with a 5.5 cm maximum center [Fig. 21]. The lid sealing the why around the base of the relics was made stupa there is a considerable of a type of thickness in the layer left by the decomposed fire. This layer is composed of mastic; we will burnt clay fragments, burnt know more about wood and many iron or bronze
Fig. 23. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Stupa no.1, the west landing of the northern stairs of the stupa. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
Fig. 22. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Stupa no. 1, large survey to the northwest of the monument. Photograph copy- right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi.
19 with a hill and certain we have to proceed with three arches, caution when attempting to the date can explain a chronological hypo- be pushed thesis. The only written back to the 2nd information available to us is in the century CE Chinese and Muslim sources that (Rapson 1908; shed some light on the second Allan 1936; great period of Bamiyan. It is our Mitch-iner excavation data which enable us 1976). I dated to determine the first great period the second and place it between the 3rd and period to the the 5th century CE, with the 6th century CE possibility that we can extend this in my first period back to the 2nd century CE. Fig. 24. Bamiyan Eastern Monastery (MO), Stupa no.1: traces thesis on Of particular interest in this of fire, 9th century CE. Photograph copyright © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. Bamiyan (Tarzi chronology is to learn what caused 1977). This a general degradation involving fragments [Fig. 24]. It is quite date corresponded to that of the the profanation of many statues. possible that Stupa no. 1 was construction of the 55 m Buddha One could attribute this encircled by a wooden railing statue and with the restoration of destruction to the Sasanians in the (vedika or pado-vedika) sup- the ensemble of the 38 m Buddha time of Shapur or to the ported in some places by clay statue. It is to this second period Hephthalites. masonry. that I attribute the realization and extension of the ‘Eastern We know for certain that the Northwest Sector (excavations in Monastery’ (MO), in which we hiatus between the first and the clover field) hope to find the 1000-foot-long second periods is rather large and reclining Buddha statue translates into an accumulation of For several years I wanted to open mentioned by Chinese pilgrim soil and embankment 1 m – 1.5 a site that would extend the Xuanzang. The carbon 14 analysis m thick. Also certain is that the northern limits of the MO to the of vegetal and animal fibers from second great period of Bamiyan north and at the foot of the Great the coating of the 38 m Buddha corresponds to its seizure by the Cliff. Reaching an agreement with statue done by the German team western Turks. Indeed whether the owners took a long time, but in charge of the protection of the the central power at Bamiyan is we eventually were able to open fragments of the two large statues Hephthalite or local (Tajik), politics the site on August 13th. Our guest supports my proposed dating, of Central Asia at the time were of honor, Roland Bezenval, viz.: the second great period of governed by the Western Turks, Director of the DAFA, broke the Bamiyan begins in the middle of the same ones who asked ground with the first shovelful of the 6th century CE. When we reach Xuanzang to go through Balkh and dirt. It became a very large the level of the fire of the 9th Bamiyan, two cities that were not survey, 25m x 2.5m, that crossed century CE, I will ask the Germans on the initial itinerary of the the field south to north. Due to the for more analysis. What is certain Chinese pilgrim. collapse of the cliff in the northern is that the moldings unearthed in part of the survey, there one has Gallery A9 date from before the The ceramics and chronological to go at least 7 m deep to obtain 6th century CE. I have carried out precision results. Given the size of the task a careful comparison with the clay we will have to pursue the moldings of Hadda on the site of The study of the ceramics we operation in 2007. Tape Shotor (Tarzi 1976) and of excavated remains to be done. Tape Sardar in Ghazni — Yet the discovery of shards found The Chronology excavated by my colleagues and in the site of MO along its long wall friends Profs. Maurizio Taddei V, in survey N (north), has already The pre-Islamic period (1968, 1981, 1985) and Giovanni produced valuable information Verardi (1981, 1989). Based on (Tarzi 2005). These pre-Islamic In 2003 and 2004 we discovered stylistic and technical criteria in ceramics, which we will detail later, the two great periods of Bamiyan the analysis of the pre-molded consist of two lots: one from the around Stupa no. 1 (BN, BS, BW clay curls, I am able to date these 2nd – 5th century CE and another and A6 and A8). I had initially to the 3rd - 5th century CE. from the 6th – 9th century CE. estimated the first period to be of Indeed it is to Ya’qub bin Laith as- the 3rd century CE. However, Because the history of Central Saffar in 871 CE that I attribute thanks to the discovery in 2004 of Asia is yet inadequately known the end of life at the MO, the ceramics and of an Indian coin and no dates are absolutely destruction of Bamiyan in general
20 and of the statues and their had been politically undermined historians such as Yaqubi and temples. Further study of the first by the fleeting coalition of the Tabari, who describe the gradual group of ceramics needs to be Sasanians and Western Turks [Fig. shift from one religion to another done. The second lot is composed 25]. However, in our research among the local population. Such of shards generally similar to the regarding Bamiyan in particular study is necessary to understand ones found by Le Berre in the and more generally Central Asia why we find in our excavations fortified castles of the Hindukush to the northwest of India, we find Turk ceramics of the early Islamic and published by Jean-Claude a discrepancy between the hand- period. Despite attacks by the Gardin and Bertille Lyonnet (in Le made Turk ceramics and the dozen Samanids and the Ghaznevids, Berre 1987a, b) and Piers Baker or so surviving issues of several Sardars (Sar = lords, (1991). Hephthalite coinage. wrongly labeled by the Arabs as It is with too much caution that Sher) managed to stand up to We do not yet have definitive them and remain loyal to their these ceramics are termed ‘turco- answers regarding the Heph- hephthalite’ and attributed both to religion, Buddhism, until 987 CE. thalites and their art. However, This is probably why the ceramics the Hepthalites and the Turks. there is no reason to doubt the Hephthalite ceramics, generally of Bamiyan during the Samanid well founded hypotheses of my and Ghaznevid periods occupy a made in the Kushan tradition, are colleagues Roman Ghirshman difficult to identify. In some modest place [Fig. 26] among our (1948), Robert Göbl (1967) and finds. On the other hand the regions they seem to be inspired Shoshin Kuwayama (1989, 2002). by the Kushano-Sasanids, and in Ghurid period is amply We should continue to study represented in its ceramic forms some cases can be included in the closely the Hephthalites taking Begram III group (Kuwayama into consideration the Tape Sardar 1991). In Hadda, for example, (Ghazni) Italian excavations, the nothing allows us to distinguish 2004 and 2005 Afghan ex- between the Kushan and cavations at Khwadja Safa and Hephthalite ceramics. On the Tape Narendj in Kabul, and my other hand, there the Turk own excavations in Hadda. To ceramics are obvious and specific. these we should add the DAFA These hand-made ceramics have excavations at Tape Alghata near been very well analyzed by Gardin the village of Dadal (Myadan- and Lyonnet, both from the Wardak province) and my standpoint of techniques of excavations in Bamiyan. Sadly shaping and polishing and the use there has also been a series of of under-glazes, and from the illegal excavation in Khawar, Fig. 26. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 1 standpoint of the symbols and Messe Aynak of Logar or Khord in (VR 1), ceramic with painted geomet- motifs in the painted designs, Kabul, and many other sites. Our ric and vegetal decoration in relief in th which reflect a connection with the duty is to provide documentation the Muslim layers (12 century CE?) (BAM.V.06.MS18). Photograph copy- peoples of the steppes. These so that specialists will be able to right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. ceramics appear at a later date study and interpret our database th (second half of the 6 century CE) objectively. Until our future at a time when the Hephthalites and their new decorations, all of excavations uncover Hepthalite which are very important coins we will continue to attribute regarding the history of the region the pre-Islamic art of Bamiyan to [Figs. 27-29, next page]. Once the post-Kushan period, including more thanks to historical texts, the Kidarites, Hephthalites and especially the Tabakat-i Nasiri of Turks. Dzuzdjani (Dzuzdjani 1963-1964; Raverty 1881), and studies by The Islamic Period Bosworth (1961) and Barthold (1977), we learn that Bamiyan The ceramic and numismatic served as a capital for the evidence Shansabani kings of Ghur, starting with Fakhr al-Din Mascud (1163 A. Ceramics CE) and ending with Djalal al-Din cAli (1213 CE) and ‘Ala’ al-Din The transition between the pre- Muhammad. We know that the city Fig. 25. Bamiyan Royal City site no. 2 Islamic and Islamic period is of Gholghola also served as (VR 2),Turk ceramic (BAM.V.06. representative of the history of the capital. The royal Ghurid city ”tower”—140 cm). Photograph copy- Bamiyan Valley. One should take extended over a kilometer from right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. into account the writings of the south where today’s Bamiyan
21 Fig. 29. BAM.V.06.MS20-160 cm (12th century CE?).
Fig. 27. BAM.V.06.MS20-160 cm. to the city of coins in our excavations of 2003- Bamiyan Royal City site no. 1 (VR 1), ceramics with Gholghola. We 2005, we know that the beginning nd polychrome of the Muslim period. Photographs copy- have to investi- of Bamiyan was around the 2 or rd right © 2006 DAFA; Zemaryalai Tarzi. gate further why 3 century CE. The discovery of a there is such an bronze coin depicting the image Fig. 28. BAM.V.06.MS20-160 cm (12th century CE?). abundance of of a Greco-Bactrian king (first half Muslim ceramics of the 2nd century CE) is very in Bamiyan on important despite the fact that it several levels and in was not found in the earliest layers many places in the of Bamiyan. Further investigations valley. Once we will be necessary. Our exca- finish our photo vations, especially of the Turk processing for the ceramics, have shed light on the excavations of 2006, end of the Buddhist period of the we will be able to valley around the 9th century and tackle this question on the relationship between this more seriously. pre-Islamic period and the beginning of the Islamic period. B.Numismatic One can say that this phase of evidence archaeological uncertainty concerning the transition between To date we have not the two great periods is a cleaned the coins we reflection of the history of found. In 2006 we Bamiyan, when its Buddhist found no Greek or sovereigns converted to Islam and Kushan coins. We its monuments devoted to the cult found several thin of Sakyamuni were brutally Muslim bronze coins destroyed by Ya’qub bin Laith as- airport is to the edge of the probably from the Ghaznevid Saffar in the 9th century CE. plateau on the north and was period, a few Ghurid coins, and Nonetheless, Buddhism would last called Tape Almas. Gholghola was even a few from the modern still until the Ghaznevid period. its citadel. This city and its citadel period such as the reign of the former king of Afghanistan were taken first by the Further study of the Muslim Mohammad Zaher Shah al Khwarazmshahs (1215 CE) and ceramics and the study of the Motawakelellalah. later by Chingis Khan. numismatic evidence will enable According to Gardin (1957), the us to establish more precise dates. Khwarazmshahi and Ghurid Conclusion We have found so far Ghaznevid, ceramics originating from Khwarazmshahi and Ghurid coins Gholghola city were the product It is a challenge to draw a dating from the 10th-13th centuries of an imported Iranian workshop, conclusion from this scientific CE right up to the abandonment whose brief duration lasted from patchwork without being able to and destruction of the site by approximately 1175 into the 13th include carbon 14 analysis or other Chingis Khan. Once we have century CE. As Gardin also noted, laboratory test results. Thanks to cleaned these coins it will be these ceramics were not limited the discovery of ceramics and possible to date with more
22 precision the stratigraphy, which County Museum of Art, October, album photographique. Mémoires will then make possible the use of 1970. Leiden: Brill, 1972: 1-26. de la Délélegation archéologique the glazed ceramics as an française en Afghanistan [Mém. Allchin and Hammond 1978 indispensable tool in identifying DAFA], 4. Paris: G. van Oest, the archaeological layers we F. Raymond Allchin and Norman 1930. encounter in Bamiyan. Hammond, eds. The Archaeology of Afghanistan from Earliest Times Beal 1983 About the Author to the Timurid period. London; Samuel Beal, tr. Si-yu-ki. Buddhist New York: Academic Press, 1978. Records of the Western World. Translated from the Chinese of Born in 1939 in Kabul, Professor Abu al-Fazl 1939 Hiuen Tsiang AD 629. 2nd ed. New Zemaryalai Tarzi completed his Abu al-Fazl ibn Mubarak. The A’in- Delhi: Oriental Books Reprint studies under the supervision of i Akbari [by] Abu’l-Fazl ‘Allami. Corp., 1983 (1st ed., 1884). Professor Daniel Schlumberger, in Henry Blochmann, tr. Douglas C. the process obtaining three PhDs. Phillott, ed. 2nd ed. revised. Beal 1888 From 1973 to 1979, he was Bibliotheca Indica, N.S., Work no. Samuel Beal, tr. Life of Hiuen- Director General of Archaeology 61, Vol. 1. Calcutta: Royal Asiatic tsiang by the Shamans Hwui li and and Preservation of Historical Society of Bengal, 1939. Yen-tsung, with a preface Monuments of Afghanistan. He containing an account of the works later directed the excavations in Ball 1982 of I-Tsing. London: Trübner, 1888. Bamiyan and Hadda on the sites Warwick Ball, avec la collaboration Breshna 1972 of Tape Shotor and Tape Tope de Jean-Claude Gardin. Archae- Kalan. Exiled to France in 1979, ological Gazetteer of Afghanistan. A. G. Breshna. “A Glance at the he is currently Professor of Eastern Catalogue des sites archéolo- History of Fine Arts in Archaeology at the Marc Bloch II giques d’Afghanistan. 2 tt. Paris: Afghanistan.” Afghanistan 25/3 University of Strasbourg, France, Editions Recherche sur les (1972): 11-21. and will go to Kabul University in civilisations, 1982. Bivar 1971 early March 2007 to teach their Baker and Allchin 1991 A. D. H. Bivar. “Hayatila.” The archaeology Master’s students in Encyclopaedia of Islam, New ed., Farsi. He is Director for the French Piers H. B. Baker and F. Raymond Vol. 3 (Leiden: Brill; London: Archaeological Missions for the Allchin. Shar-i Zohak and the Luzac, 1971): 303-304 Surveys and Excavations of History of the Bamiyan Valley, Bamiyan, the mission having been Afghanistan. Ancient India and Bivar 1998 co-funded by the National Iran Trust Series, No. 1. Oxford: A. D. H. Bivar. “The Sasanian Geographic Society since 2004. BAR, 1991. Princes at Bamiyan.” in: Vesta S. Prof. Tarzi is the author of some Barthold 1913 Curtis, et al. eds. The Art and seventy-five articles and books. Wilhelm Barthold (V. V. Bartol’d). Archaeology of Ancient Persia: He is also President for the “Bamiyan.” The Encyclopaedia of New Light on the Parthians and Association for the Protection of Islam, Vol. 1 (Leiden: Brill; Sasanian Empires. London; New Afghan Archaeology, Inc. (San London: Luzac, 1913): 643-4. York: I. B. Tauris, 1998: 103-110. Francisco, California), whose Bosworth 1961 managing director and founder is Barthold 1977 Clifford E. Bosworth. “The early his daughter Nadia Tarzi. For more Wilhelm Barthold (V. V. Bartol’d). Islamic history of Ghur.” Central information please contact Turkestan down to the Mongol Asiatic Journal, 6 (1961): 116- [email protected] and/or visit http:/ Invasion, 4th ed. E. J. W. Gibb 133. /www.apaa.info. Memorial Series, N. S., 5 (1e ed.1928), London: E. J. W. Gibb Bosworth 1965 References Memorial Trust, 1977 (reprint of Clifford E. Bosworth. “Ghurids.” revised and expanded 3rd ed., The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New 1968; 1st ed. 1928). Allan 1936 ed., Vol. 2 (Leiden: Brill; London: Luzac, 1965): 1099-1104. John Allan. Catalogue of the Coins Barthold and Allchin 1960 of Ancient India. London: British Wilhelm Barthold and F. Raymond Bosworth 1973 Museum, 1936 (reprinted 1967). Allchin. “Bamiyan.” The Encyclo- Clifford E. Bosworth. The paedia of Islam, New ed., Vol. 1 Allchin 1972 Ghaznavids, Their Empire in (Leiden: Brill; London: Luzac, Afghanistan and Eastern Iran, F. Raymond Allchin. “A cruciform 1960): 1009-1010. 994-1040. 2nd ed. Beirut, 1973 reliquary from Shaikhan Dheri.” (1st ed., 1963). In: Pratapaditya Pal, ed. Aspects Barthoux 1930 of Indian Art. Papers Presented in Jules J. Barthoux. Les fouilles de Bosworth 1996 a Symposium at the Los Angeles Hadda. T. 3 . Figures et figurines, Clifford E. Bosworth. Les dynasties
23 musulmanes, trad. de Yves Foucher 1923 Göbl 1967 Thoraval. Paris, 1996 (original ed.: Alfred Foucher. “Rapport A. Robert Göbl. Dokumente zur The Islamic Dynasties: A Foucher” [A letter addressed to E. Geschichte der Iranichen Hunnen Chronological and Genealogical Senant about the antiquities of in Baktrien und Indien, 4 vols., Handbook. Edinburgh, 1967) Bamiyan]. Journal Asiatique, avril- Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1967. Carter 1985 juin 1923: 354-368. Godard et al. 1928 M. L. Carter. “Hsüan-tsang and the Foucher 1925 André Godard, Y. Godard, and Colossal Buddhas at Bamiyan.” In: Alfred Foucher. “Notes sur Joseph Hackin. Les antiquités A. K. Narain, ed. Studies in l’itinéraire de Hiuan-tsang en bouddhiques de Bamiyan. Mém. Buddhist Art of South Asia. New Afghanistan.” In: Etudes Asia- DAFA, 2. Paris; Bruxelles: G. van Delhi: Kanak, 1985: 117-125 tiques publiées à l’occasion du Oest, 1928 Chavannes 1903 vingt-cinquième anniversaire de Hackin and Carl 1933 l’Ecole Française d’Extrême-Orient Edouard Chavannes. Documents Joseph Hackin and Jean Carl. sur les Tou-Kiue (Turcs) Occi- par ses membres et ses collaborateurs. T. I. Publications Nouvelles recherches archéolo- dentaux. Paris: Libraire d’Amer- giques à Bamiyan. Mém. DAFA, ique et d’Orient, 1903 de l’École française d’Extrème Orient, t. 19. Paris: G. Van Oest, 3. Paris: G. van Oest, 1933. Dupree 1958 1925: 257-284. Hackin et al. 1959 Louis Dupree. Shamshir Ghar: Foucher 1942-1947 Joseph Hackin, Jean Carl and Historic Cave Site in Kandahar Jacques Meunié. Diverses Province, Afghanistan. Anthropo- Alfred Foucher. La vieille Route de l’Inde de Bactres à Taxila. 2 tt. recherches archéologiques en logical Papers of The American Afghanistan (1933-1940). Mém. Museum of Natural History, Vol. Mém. DAFA, 1. Paris: Les Éditions DAFA, 8. Paris: Presses uni- 46, pt. 2. New York, 1958. d’art et d’histoire, 1942-1947. versitaires de France, 1959. Dupree and Kolb 1972 Fussmann 1974 Higuchi 1983 Louis Dupree and Charles C. Kolb. Gérard Fussman. “Nouvelle Takayasu Higuchi. Bamiyan: “Ceramics from Aq Kupruk, Darra- découverte à Bamiyan.” Afuganisutan ni okeru Bukkyo i-Kur and Hazar Gusfand.” Afghanistan, 27/2 (1974): 57-73. sekkutsu jiin no bijutsu Transactions of the American Gardin 1957 kokogakuteki chosa, 1970—1978- Philosophical Society, N.S., 62/4 nen (in Japanese; Bamiyan: Art (1972): 33-42 (reprinted in Jean-Claude Gardin. “La poterie and Archaeological Researches on Afghanistan, 27/4 (1974): 45-69). de Bamiyan.” Ras Orientalis, 2 (1957): 227-245. the Buddhist Cave Temples in Dupree 1967 Afghanistan 1970-1978). 4 vols. nd Nancy Hatch Dupree. The Valley Gardin and Lyonnet 1987 Kyoto: Dohosha, 1983-1984; 2 of Bamiyan, 2nd ed. Kabul: Afghan Jean-Claude Gardin and Bertille ed., 2001. Tourist Organization, 1967. Lyonnet. “Céramique et Chrono- IsMEO activities 1972 logie.” In: Le Berre 1987a: 96- Dzuzdjani 1963-1964 [IsMEO activities]. “Archaeological 120. Dzuzdjani. Tabakat-i Nasiri. New Mission in Afghanistan.” East and ed. by Abd al-Hayy Habibi. 2 vols. Hambis 1967 West (Rome), 22/3-4 (1972): 379-384. Kabul, 1342-43/1963-64. Louis Hambis, ed. Mission Paul Elliot 1869 Pelliot. T. III. Douldour-Aqour et Julien 1853 Henry M. Elliot. The History of Soubachi, Planches. Paris, 1967. Stanislas Julien. Histoire de la vie India as Told by Its Own Ghirshman 1946 de Hiouen-thsang et de ses Historians: The Muhammadan voyages dans l’Inde depuis l’an Roman Ghirshman. Begram. Period. John Dowson, ed. 8 vols. 629 jusqu’en 645, par Hoei-li et Recherches archéologiques et London: Trübner, 1867-1877. Yen-thsong, suivie de documents historiques sur les Kouchans. et d’éclaircissements géograph- Faccenna 1980-1981 Mém. DAFA, 12. Cairo: Institut iques tirés de la relation originale Domenico Faccenna. Butkara I français d’archéologie orientale, de Hiouen-thsang. Paris: (Swat, Pakistan) 1956-1962. 1946. L’Imprimerie impériale, 1853. Instituto italiano per il medio ed estremo Oriento, Centro studi e Ghirshman 1948 Julien 1857-1858 scavi archaeologici in Asia, Reports Roman Ghirshman. Les Chionites- Stanislas Julien. Mémoires sur les and memoirs, Vol. 3, pts. 1-3. Hephtalites. Mém. DAFA, 13. contrées occidentales, traduit du Rome: IsMEO, 1980. Vol. 3, pts. Cairo: Institut français d’arché- sanscrit en chinois, en l’an 648 4-5/2. Rome: IsMEO, 1981. ologie orientale, 1948. par Hiouen-thsang, et du chinois
24 en français par M. Stanislas Julien, Le Berre 1987a Rapson 1908 2 tt. Voyages des pèlerins Marc Le Berre, M. Les monuments Edward James Rapson. Catalogue bouddhistes, II-III. Paris: pré-islamiques de l’Hindukush of the Coins of the Andhra L’Imprimerie impériale, 1857- central. Avec la collaboration de Dynasty, the Western Ksatrapas, 1858. Henri Marchal et une contribution the Traikutaka Dynasty and the de Jean-Claude Gardin et Bertille “Bodhi” Dynasty. London: The Kak 1933 Lyonnet. Mém. DAFA, 24. Paris: British Museum, 1908. Ram Chandra Kak. Ancient Editions Recherche sur les Raverty 1881 Monuments of Kashmir. London: civilisations, 1987. India Society, 1933. Henry G. Raverty, tr. Tabakat-i- Le Berre et al. 1987b Nasiri: A general history of the Klimburg-Salter 1989 Marc Le Berre, Jean Claude Gardin Muhammadan dynasties of Asia, Deborah E. Klimburg-Salter. The et Bertille Lyonnet. “Données including Hindustan; from A. H. Kingdom of Bamiyan: Buddhist Art archéologiques inédites sur 194 (810 A.D.) to A.H. 658 (1260 and Culture of the Hindu Kush. l’histoire de Bamiyan (Afghani- A.D.) and the irruption of the Naples: Istituto universitario stan).” In: Gherardo Gnoli and infidel Mughals into Islam, by orientale, Dipartimento di studi Lionello Lanciotti, eds. Orientalia: Minhaj-ud-din, Abu-’Umar-i- asiatici; Rome: Istituto italiano per Iosephi Tucci Memoriae Dicata. 3 ’Usman. 2 vols. Calcutta: Asiatic il medio ed estremo oriente, 1989. vols. Serie oriental Roma, 56. Society of Bengal, 1881. Kohzad 1953 Rome: Istituto italiano per il Medio Rowland 1938 ed Estremo Oriente, 1985, Vol. 2: Ahmed Ali Kohzad. “The Most Benjamin Rowland, Jr. The Wall- 775-785. Ancient Temple in Bamiyan.” Paintings of India, Central Asia Afghanistan, 7/2 (1953): 12-17; Litvinskii and Zeimal’ 1971 and Ceylon: A Comparative Study. translation of “Qadim tarin Boston: Merrymount Press, 1938. Boris A. Litvinskii and Tamara I. macbade Bamiyan.” Aryana, 2/6 Zeimal’. Adzhina-Tepa. Arkhitek- Rowland 1947a (1944-1945): 20-26. tura, zhivopis’, skul’ptura. Benjamin Rowland, Jr. “The Kuwayama 1987 Moscow: Izd-vo. Iskusstvo, 1971. Colossal Buddhas at Bamiyan.” Journal of the Indian Society of Shoshin Kuwayama. “Literary Mitchiner 1976 Evidence for Dating the Colossi in Oriental Art, 15 (1974): 62-73. Michael Mitchiner. Indo-Greek and Bamiyan.” In: Gherardo Gnoli and Rowland 1947b Indo-Scythian Coinage. Vol. 9. Lionello Lanciotti, eds. Orientalia: Greeks, Sakas and Their Con- Benjamin Rowland, Jr. “Studies in Iosephi Tucci Memoriae Dicata. 3 temporaries in Central and the Buddhist Art of Bamiyan, the vols. Serie oriental Roma, 56. Southern India: Indo-Parthian, Bodhisattva of group E.” In: K. Rome: Istituto italiano per il Medio Western Satraps, Chutus, Abhiras, Baratha Iyer, ed. Art and Thought, ed Estremo Oriente, 1985, Vol. 2: Satavahanas. London: Hawkins, issued in honour of Dr. Ananda K. 703-727. 1976. Coomaraswamy on the occasion Kuwayama 1989 of his 70th birthday. London: Miyaji 1973 Luzac, 1947: 46-52. Shoshin Kuwayama. “The Hephthalites in Tokharistan and Akira Miyaji. “La scène de Scerrato 1960 Nordwest India.” Zinbun: Annals Parinirvana dans la grotte F à Bamiyan.” Journal of the Nagoya Umberto Scerrato. “A Short note of the Institute of Research in on Some Recently Discovered Humanities (Kyoto University), 24 University Faculty of Letters, 9 (1973): 51-73. Buddhist Grottoes near Bamiyan, (1989): 83-134. Afghanistan.” East and West Kuwayama 1991 Miyaji 1978 (Rome), 11/2-3 (1960): 94-120. Shoshin Kuwayama. “The Horizon Akira Miyaji. “The Parinirvana Schlumberger et al. 1964 of Begram III and Beyond: A scenes of Bamiyan: an icon- Daniel Schlumberger, Bruno Chronological Interpretation of the ographical analysis.” In: Takayasu Dagens, and Marc Le Berre. Evidence for Monuments in the Higuchi, ed. Japan-Afghanistan Monuments préislamiques Kapisi-Kabul-Ghazni Region.” East Joint Archaeological Survey in d’Afghanistan. Mém. DAFA, 19. and West (Rome), 41/1-4 (1991): 1976. Kyoto: Kyoto University, Paris: G. Klincksieck, 1964. 79-120. 1978: 17-31. Spuler 1952 Kuwayama 2002 Mustamandi 1969 Bertold Spuler. Iran in früh- Shoshin Kuwayama. Across the Shahibye Mustamandi. “Nouvelles islamischer Zeit: Politik, Kultur, Hindukush of First Millennium: A fouilles à Hadda (1966-7) par Verwaltung und öffentliches Leben Collection of the Papers. Kyoto, l’Institut Afghan d’Archéologie.” zwischen der arabischen und der 2002. Arts Asiatiques, 20 (1969): 15-36. seldschukischen Eroberung, 633
25 bis 1055. Wiesbaden: F. Steiner, Centre de recherches sur l’Asie d’Afghanistan 104, mars 2004: 1952. centrale et la Haute-Asie, 1. Paris: 20-21. Stronach 1978 Imprimerie nationale, 1977. Tarzi 2005 David Stronach. Pasargadae: A Tarzi 1988a Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Les fouilles de Report on the Excavations Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Bamiyan.” la mission archéologique française Conducted by the British Institute Encyclopaedia Universalis, Vol. 3 à Bamiyan sous la direction de Z. of Persian Studies from 1961 to (Paris, 1988): 225-26. Tarzi.” In: L’art d’Afghanistan de 1963. Oxford; New York: Tarzi 1988b la préhistoire à nos jours: nouelles Clarendon press, 1978. données, actes d’une journée Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Bamian. ii. Taddei 1968 d’étude, UNESCO, 11 mars 2005. History and Monuments.” V. and A. Marigo, eds. Paris: Maurizio Taddei. “Tapa Sardar: Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. 3, fasc. Centre de recherches et d’études First Preliminary Report.” East and 6 (London; New York: Routledge, documentaires sur l’Afghanistan, West (Rome), 18/1-2 (1968): Kegan Paul, 1988; 1989 ed. as 2005: 95-124. 109-124. complete volume): 658-660. Verardi 1983 Taddei 1985 Tarzi 1997 Giovanni Verardi. “Osservazioni Maurizio Taddei. “Clay Stupas and Zemaryalai Tarzi. (1997), sulla coroplastica di epoca kusana Thrones at Tapa Sardar, Ghazni “Préservation des sites de Hadda: nel nord-ovest e in Afghanistan in (Afghanistan).” Zinbun: Memoirs monastères bouddhiques de Tape relazione al materiale di Tapa of the Research Institute for Shotor et de Tape Tope Kalan.” Sardar, seguite da una pre- Humanistic Studies (Kyoto Mari, Annales de Recherche cisazione sulla natura e la data University), 20 (1985): 17-32. Interdisciplinaires, 8 (1997): 207- delle sculture di Ushkur.” Annali Taddei and Verardi 1978 222. dell’Istituto Universitario Orientale Maurizio Taddei, and Giovanni Tarzi 2001 (Naples), 43 (1983): 479-504. Verardi. “Tapa Sardar: Second Zemaryalai Tarzi. Relation entre Watters 1904 Preliminary Report.” East and les villes et les monastères au Thomas Watters. On Yuan West (Rome), 28/1-4 (1978): 33- nord-ouest de l’Inde: le cas de Chwang’s Travels in India, 629- 135. Kâbol. Thèse d’habilitation, 2 tt. 645 A.D. Thomas W. Rhys Davids Taddei and Verardi 1981 Strasbourg, 2001. and Stephen W. Bushell, eds. 2 Maurizio Taddei, and Giovanni Tarzi 2003 vols. Oriental Translation Fund, N. Verardi. “Buddhist Sculptures from Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Bamiyan: S., 14-15. London: Royal Asiatic rd Tapa Sardar, Ghazni Professor Tarzi’s Survey and Society, 1904-1905; 3 ed., New (Afghanistan).” La parola del Excavation Archaeological Mission, Delhi, 1996. passato. Rivista di studi antichi 2003.” The Silk Road, 1/2 (2003): (Naples), fasc. CXCIX (1981): 37-39. 251-266. Tarzi 2004a Tarzi 1976a Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Recent Zemaryalai Tarzi. “Hadda à la Archaeological Investigation of the lumière des trois dernières French team at the Bamiyan Site.” campagnes de fouilles de Tapa-é- In: Protecting the World Heritage Shotor (1974-1976).” Comptes Site of Bamiyan, Messages from Rendus de l’Academie des the Field: International Sym- Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, posium. Tokyo, 2004: 16-17. Séances de l’année 1976, juillet- Tarzi 2004b octobre (Paris): 381-410. Zemaryalai Tarzi. “‘Kaweshhaye Tarzi 1976b tazae bastanshenasi dar Bamiyan’ Zemaryalai Tarzi, ed. Zaryab. et sa traduction en allemand: “Bamiyan, and Where is the ‘Bamians Buddhistische Denk- Sleeping Buddha ?” Aryana mäler und neue Ausgrabungen.’” (Afghanistan Republic), Summer Andescha, 16, Jänner 2004: 3-8, 1976: 30-33. 60-68. Tarzi 1977 Tarzi 2004c Zemaryalai Tarzi. L’architecture et Zemaryalai Tarzi. “La mission le décor rupestre des grottes de archéologique à Bamiyan en Bamiyan, 2 tt. Bibliothèque du 2003.” Les Nouvelles
26 inventive Iranian peoples who Balkh and the Plains of promoted craftsmanship and trade, built cities and wrote poetry Turkestan all across ancient Central Asia. On the down side, Balkh was usually rich rather than powerful, and Frank Harold became the envy and the prize of University of Washington, Seattle more warlike neighbors. Photographs by Ruth Harold Always a place of importance, the province of Bactria and its capital city flash into view in the If I had to choose a single place world’s most luscious melons fragmentary annals of historians to represent all the glories and come from nearby Kunduz. Most and travelers. Bactria first appears calamities of Central Asia, I would significantly, several natural trade on the list of the conquests of pick the oasis of Balkh in northern routes intersect at Balkh. From Darius, who incorporated it into Afghanistan. Balkh was old long there, caravans could follow the the Achaemenid empire.Tradition before Alexander captured it, and well-watered foot of the claims that Zoroaster taught here over the course of 2500 years has mountains westward towards and died here, in the sixth century seen more than a score of Herat and Iran, or across the Oxus BCE, or even earlier; the Zoro- conquerors come and pass on. to Samarkand and China [Fig. 1]. astrian faith became the state The Arabs, impressed by Balkh’s The valley of the Balkab still gives religion of the Achaemenids, and antiquity and wealth, called it passage to Bamiyan and thence later of the Sasanians. Alexander Umm-al-belad, the mother of to Kabul; of all the routes across took Bactria in 329 BCE, married cities. When the Silk Road was the the Hindu Kush, this is the most the princess Roxane, and made chief artery of commerce between westerly and the easiest. But the region his base for further East and West, Balkh was second geography is at most opportunity, conquest and for the amalga- to none. But then came Chingis not destiny; and the greatness of mation of the Greek and Iranian Khan, who wreaked upon it the Balkh owes even more to those civilizations. That vision, far in utter devastation that has made the Mongols’ name a byword for barbarism. Balkh never fully recovered, and eventually faded into a village; the seat of government shifted to scruffy but vigorous Mazar-i Sharif, site of a revered shrine. What the visitor comes to see in Balkh is chiefly the melting walls of the old city, enclosing a vast field of rubble and wreckage; it is a place of memories rather than monu- ments. But for those who savor the melancholy pleasure of ruins, there is no more evocative site between Xian and Trebizond.
Why here, on the drab plains of Turkestan between the Hindu Kush mountains and the river Amu Darya (Oxus)? At one level, geography holds the key. Balkh sits on an alluvial fan built up by the Balkab River, well suited to irrigation. The region called Bactria in ancient times was renowned for its grapes, oranges, water lilies and later sugar cane, and an excellent breed of camels too. To this day, some of the Fig. 1. Balkh and its neighbors. Copyright © 2007 Frank Harold.
27 advance of the times, survived for another three centuries in the small Graeco-Bactrian kingdoms that thrived and quarreled on both sides of the Hindu Kush. The ruins of one of their cities have been found at Aï Khanum, close by the River Oxus. They wrote no history but contributed greatly to the development of Gandharan architecture and sculpture, and they minted the most gorgeous silver coins of the ancient world.
Bactria reappears with its annexation by the Kushans (129 BCE), whose large and powerful Fig. 2. Balkh. The Timurid walls of the Bala Hissar. Photograph copyright © 1970 Ruth Harold. empire stretched from Central Asia deep into India. This was a building had recently been looted, over a century, the nomads were fortunate era, when the lands and that the monks had become never far away. through which the caravan routes lax in the performance of their passed were divided among a few duties; perhaps he sensed that the Catastrophe struck in 1220, stable states which submerged glory days of Buddhism were over. when Chingis Khan chose to make their differences in the interests There was frequent strife with the an example of Balkh, perhaps as of trade; and Balkh flourished at Turkic nomads across the Oxus, punishment for an uprising. One the crossroads, as a depot and and the first Arab incursions were hundred thousand Mongol trans-shipment point for the just fifteen years ahead. horsemen embarked on an orgy world’s luxuries. ‘From the Roman of slaughter and destruction that Empire the caravans brought gold The times that followed were left nothing standing; a few weeks and silver vessels and wine; from turbulent ones in Central Asia. later they returned to pick off the Central Asia and China rubies, Balkh changed hands repeatedly handful of wretched survivors. furs, aromatic gums, drugs, raw among Arab, Persian and Turkic Balkh remained in ruins for a silk and embroidered silks; from rulers, and was sacked more than century and was so described by India spices, cosmetics, ivory and once, yet it continued to prosper. Marco Polo (1275) and by Ibn precious gems of infinite variety’ The Arab geographers Yaqubi and Batuta (1333); and yet revival (Dupree 1967, 71). With the Moqaddasi (9th and 10th cen- must have been under way, for merchants came monks preaching turies) depict Balkh as it was Timur (Tamerlane) chose Balkh to the new religion of Buddhism, and under Samanid rule, when proclaim his accession to the Balkh became a center of worship Bukhara was the center of power. throne (1359). Timur and his and learning, famous for its A large and bustling city of mud successors favored Balkh; they temples and monasteries. brick some three square miles in restored the walls [Fig. 2] and area, it held perhaps 200,000 endowed the city with quite By the time the Chinese pilgrim persons. Mud-brick walls splendid buildings, some of which Xuanzang passed through Balkh surrounded the city, pierced by survive. on his way to the fountainhead of seven gates. Buddhist and Buddhism in India (630 CE), the Zoroastrian temples had been Balkh remained worth fighting city had become part of the destroyed; instead, a splendid over, by Uzbeks, Safavids, Sasanian empire. Sasanian Friday mosque occupied the Mughals and eventually the rising viceroys ruled from Balkh, and a center, and many more mosques power of Afghanistan under the splendid fire-temple had been were scattered among the Durrani Shahs. But the city slowly erected in the suburbs. The dwellings. The city was home, declined as its surroundings grew bazaars were still humming with not only to Persians and Turks but swampy and malarial, the trade, the countryside fertile, and also to communities of Jews and irrigation canals fell into disrepair, a hundred Buddhist temples and Indian traders; a Nestorian and cholera struck again and monasteries testified to the metropolitan had his see in Balkh. again. Uzbeks of nomad origins continued vitality of Buddhism. It nourished poets and scholars, became the dominant element. Xuanzang was particularly lawyers and even geographers By the beginning of the 20th impressed by the wealth of the and astronomers. But peace was century the population was down chief monastery and its associated a sometime thing; even when to 500 households, and the stupa. But he noted also that the Balkh came under Seljuk rule for administrative center of Afghan
28 is cool and [Fig. 4], battered and weather- austere, beaten but still sixty feet high in decorated places, that enclose the Bala with stucco Hissar, the High Fort. The honeycomb ramparts were built in Timurid and painted times (14/15th centuries) upon floral foundations that likely go back to designs. the Kushans and possibly further. Across the They enclose a roughly circular park stands a field half a mile across, that tall gateway probably corresponds to the with some central city of medieval Balkh. Now decorative there is only dry scrub and low tile work; mounds of debris; here and there this is all that potsherds and broken bricks call remains of a mutely for attention. There is madrassah nothing much to see; but I have built in the never forgotten what it felt like, 17th century up there on those worn stumps of in Timurid wall, gazing out over nothingness. style. As far as I can We stayed in Mazar-i Sharif ascertain, (‘Tomb of the Exalted’), which bothboasted a decent hotel and even buildings still occasional electricity.There is stand. nothing ancient or traditional about Mazar, which only rose to The earlier prominence in the 19th century. monuments We found it a bustling ‘third-world- take some modern’ town of straight wide Fig. 3. Mausoleum of the theologian Abu Nasr Parsa (1462- searching. A streets, motor traffic, government 1463 CE). Photograph copyright © 1970 Ruth Harold. couple of offices and shops. Uzbeks, nondescript Tadjiks, Hazara and Pashtuns Turkestan had migrated (1866) to mounds probably mark the sites meet and chaffer in the seat of nearby Mazar-i Sharif. A new of that Buddhist temple and stupa, power, which is also a center for chapter had begun, the one in whose statuary Xuanzang trade in Karakol lambskins and which we are still living. described as being ‘lustrous with carpets. More recently, Mazar has Of all this eventful history, little precious gems.’ A small brick all too often been in the news. It enough remained on the ground mosque decorated with carved was largely spared Soviet shelling, at the time of our visit in 1970. stucco survives from early Islamic but saw much fighting when the One arrives in the center of an times, but we failed to find it. What Taliban seized most of northern agricultural market town, neatly we had come to see was the walls Afghanistan, and again when that planted with trees and grass, that show off two Timurid edifices. One is the mausoleum of Khwaja Abu Nasr Parsa [Fig. 3], erected in 1462/63 in honor of a distinguished theologian; it is considered one of the finest examples of late Timurid architecture and often features on tourist posters. The shrine consists of a tall octagonal brick chamber surmounted by a fluted dome; entry is through a high portal flanked by a pair of corkscrew columns. The entire exterior is clad in brilliant blue tile mosaic, much of which has been slowly Fig. 4. Balkh. The Timurid walls of the Bala Hissar. Photograph copyright peeling off the walls. The interior © 1970 Ruth Harold.
29 Afghanistan. Pilgrims flock to the tomb, which has a reputation for miraculous cures; and many thousands come here each spring to celebrate Nauruz, the Persian New Year.
Neither Balkh nor Mazar look anything like a caravan city of the middle ages, but nearby Tashkurgan does (or did in 1970) [Figs. 8, 9, 10, facing page]. The town officially goes by the name of Khulm. A ruined mud-brick castle looms over the town; it is only a couple of centuries old, but the weathered walls give it an Fig. 5. Mazar-i Sharif. Shrine of Hazrat Ali. Photograph copyright © 1970 Ruth Harold. regime was toppled by the slain Caliph, tied onto a camel’s Northern Alliance with the help of back, was carried out to Turkestan American airpower. Miraculously, and buried in a secret location. the great shrine of the Sharif Ali, Five hundred years later, thanks which lent the city its name, has to dreams and visions, the grave survived the turmoil and has came to light and a shrine was recently been restored. built over it. Chingis Khan leveled it, but Ali’s sepulcher was Hazrat (the noble) Ali is one of rediscovered during the reign of the central figures of Shia Islam, Husain Baikara, the last Timurid and almost as much revered as Sultan of Herat, who erected a the Prophet Muhammad himself. grand mausoleum on the site Ali ibn Abi Talib was Muhammad’s (1481 CE) [Figs. 5, 6, 7]. This is cousin and son-in-law, and the building, many times restored eventually became the fourth and re-decorated, that one sees Caliph. But his reign was marred today. With its two domes, by discord; the Caliph was impressive courtyard and portals, assassinated in 658 CE, and excellent blue tile-work and a flock according to orthodox tradition of white pigeons, the shrine of Fig. 5. Mazar-i Sharif. Shrine of Hazrat was buried in Najaf, Iraq. Afghans Hazrat Ali is one of the most Ali, view in courtyard. Photograph copy- believe otherwise: the body of the spectacular buildings in right © 1970 Ruth Harold.
antique air. The covered bazaar was fascinating, a place of traditional crafts, small open- fronted shops and inviting chai- khanas (tea houses). You sat on a takht, a throne, by the side of the street, sipping your tea while puffing on a hookah, and watched the parade of Central Asia pass by. That was in a time of peace, which seemed like innocence. I wonder how Tashkurgan has fared.
About the Authors
Frank and Ruth Harold are scientists by profession and Fig. 5. Mazar-i Sharif. Shrine of Hazrat Ali. Photograph copyright travelers by avocation. Frank was © 1970 Ruth Harold. born in Germany, grew up in the
30 Fig. 8. Tashkurgan. Photograph copy- right © 1970 Ruth Harold.
Middle East and studied at the City College, New York, and the University of California at Berkeley. Now retired from forty years of research and teaching, he is Professor Emeritus of biochemistry at Colorado State University and a member of the volunteer faculty at the University of Washington. Ruth is a microbiologist, now retired, and an aspiring painter. The Harold family lived in Iran in 1969/70, while Frank served as Fulbright lecturer at the University of Tehran. This experience kindled a passion for Asian travel which has since taken them to Afghanistan and back to Strange, The Lands of the Eastern Iran, into the Himalayas, up and Caliphate (Cambridge, 1905; down the Indian sub-continent reprint Lahore, 1977); and in articles on Bac- tria and Balkh by Frantz Grenet in the Encyclo- paedia Iranica, Vol. 3 (London, 1988). A very readable account of the land, its past and its present, is in Nancy Hatch Dupree’s The Road to Balkh (Kabul, 1967); unfortunately, this little gem is now a collector’s item. The most celebrated Fig. 10. Chaikhane (tea house) in the traveler’s tale is bazaar, Tashkurgan. Photograph surely The Road copyright © 1970 Ruth Harold. to Oxiana, by Robert Byron Fig. 9. Street scene, Tashkurgan. Photograph copyright (London, 1937; © 1970 Ruth Harold. reprint Oxford, 1982). Discerning and along the Silk Road between readers will also enjoy The Light China and Turkey. They make their Garden of the Angel King: home in Edmonds, Washington. Journeys in Afghanistan, by Peter Levi (London, 1972). Afghani- Sources stan’s recent travails have been extensively covered, for instance, The history of Balkh, and the in Larry P. Goodson, Afghanistan’s reports of ancient travelers, are Endless War (Seattle, 2001). covered in some detail by Guy Le
31 Further Evidence for the Interpretation of the ‘Indian Scene’ in the Pre-Islamic Paintings at Afrasiab (Samarkand) Matteo Compareti Venice
The Sogdian paintings at Afrasiab opinion, Silvi Antonini’s idea Fragmentary inscriptions on the were discovered accidentally more remains the key for a correct western wall mention the name of than forty years ago during road interpretation of the entire cycle a sovereign, Varkhuman, who construction near Samarkand. of the paintings at Afrasiab. While corresponds to the local king However, only in 1975 was the first a detailed study by Markus Mode recognized as governor of book concerning them published a few years later disputed her Samarkand and Sogdiana by the (Al’baum 1975). Archaeological interpretation (Mode 1993), the Chinese Emperor Gaozong (649- excavations continued at the great specialist of Sogdian studies, 683) in the period between 650- Afrasiab site for some time, the late Boris Marshak, not only 655 (Chavannes 1903, 135).1 In leading to the discovery of other accepted it but also added other 658 Gaozong even sent an envoy fragments of schematic paintings important elements to the general to the court of Varkhuman for an between 1978 and 1985 interpretation of the whole cycle official investiture (Anazawa and (Akhunbabaev 1987). Since 1989 and, especially, of the southern Manome 1976, 21ff., cited by French archaeologists have been wall paintings (Marshak 1994). Kageyama 2002, 320). However, excavating at the ancient site in Soviet scholars continued to study according to Islamic sources, collaboration with Russian and, the Afrasiab paintings, although when Sa‘id ibn Othman conquered after the collapse of the Soviet their interesting results did not Samarkand in 676 he did not find Union, Uzbek colleagues, but become widely known because of any king there. So it is possible to without a specific connection to their publication in Russian in rare suppose that Varkhuman was no the paintings themselves. journals or books (e.g., Maitdinova longer regent of Samarkand at the 1984; Akhunbabaev 1990; Motov time of the Arab conquest (Frye, The room where the paintings 1999). 1954, 40; Smirnova 1970, 275; were discovered came to be called Fedorov 2006, 222-223). All of the the ‘Hall of the Ambassadors,’ In recent years other authors evidence suggests that the since its western wall, facing the such as Etsuko Kageyama, Frantz Afrasiab paintings were executed entrance, depicts several repre- Grenet, Sergei Iatsenko, and around this period. sentatives of non-Sogdian lands Simone Cristoforetti together with bearing gifts. While from the start the present writer reopened the Other literary sources (Chinese, there has been general agreement problem of the interpretation of Persian and even Sogdian) could on the identification of that the Afrasiab paintings considering be useful for the comprehension imagery, the interpretation of single scenes or details and chronology of the mural what exactly the ritual is that the (Kageyama 2002; Grenet 2003; paintings. They have already been scene depicts and some of its Yatsenko 2004; Grenet 2005; extensively considered in a recent details have been a matter of Grenet 2006; Compareti and study by Frantz Grenet, who also debate. This article is a con- Cristoforetti 2005). Finally, a demonstrated that the spatial tribution to that discussion. conference was organized by the organization of the Afrasiab present writer in March 2005 in paintings corresponds to an Venice in order to collect in one General Interpretation established scheme well known in volume the most recent results of Sasanian Persia (Grenet 2005, the investigations by those At the end of the 1980s Chiara Silvi 124-130) and in India too where scholars who had already studied Antonini offered persuasive it possibly originated (de la the paintings together with a new evidence to identify the scene of Vaissière 2006, 148).2 In translation of the Sogdian the western wall in the so-called particular, as already noted by inscriptions at Afrasiab by Vladimir ‘Hall of the Ambassadors’ as a Mode (Mode 1993), a passage of Livshits (Compareti and de la representation of the Iranian New the Tangshu (History of the Tang Vaissière 2006). Year Festival (Nawruz) in Dynasty, composed between 1043 conjunction with the coronation of The inscriptions are extremely and 1060) referring to 7th-century the local king, Varkhuman (Silvi important in order to attempt a central Sogdiana mentions a royal Antonini 1989). In this author’s chronology for the paintings. pavilion where representations of
32 Fig. 1. Western wall, Afrasiab (after F. Ory and Grenet reconstruction). Persians and Byzantines appeared Persepolis (Silvi Antonini 1989, interest is Sergei Iatsenko’s very on the western wall, Chinese on 125-126). interesting observation about the the northern wall, and the Turks necklace and the reconstructed It seems correct to consider the and Indians on the eastern one torque in the hands of the envoy New Year Festival as a good (Chavannes, 1903, 145).3 As will from Chaghanyan on the western occasion to celebrate the be shown in the present paper as wall. The envoy can be recognized coronation of a king among well, this is exactly the partition in the lower left part of the scene ancient Iranians. The hypothesis of the walls at Afrasiab, the only since he is wearing a robe is supported by some literary exception being the western one. embellished with so-called sources on ancient Persian habits, senmurv-like creatures. At present it is almost transmitted, however, only Considering that all the other unanimously accepted that the through Muslim authors (Ibid., foreign envoys are bringing scenes depicted in the ‘Hall of the 118-126). So, the lost figure in the tributes to be presented to the Ambassadors’ are part of a unique upper part of the western wall was figure that was depicted in the cycle. The western wall most likely most likely that of a king, possibly upper part of the scene, then most represents the initial stage of the Varkhuman himself. It is not likely the torque was intended for Sogdian Nawruz celebrated in 7th- excluded that he was probably a man and the necklace for a century Samarkand. According to represented together with his wife woman. On the western wall they the mobile Sogdian (and, more according to a scheme much can only be the Samarkand royal generally, Iranian) calendar, appreciated on 6th-century couple (Yatsenko 2004). In this during the 7th century Nawruz fell funerary monuments belonging to way, as will be discussed more in summer (Compareti and powerful Sogdians settled in China extensively below, the King and Cristoforetti 2005).4 The and recently excavated in the area Queen of Samarkand could have fragmentary paintings enable us of Xi’an (China).5 On those counterbalanced the Chinese to recognize foreign delegates monuments the couple is emperor and empress on the shown during the presentation of represented under a canopy both northern wall. some gifts to an upper central in realistic and paradisiacal scenes figure that is irretrievably lost [Fig. (Marshak 2001), but it is not Boris Marshak has identified the 1]. The presentation of gifts (or, excluded that the two royal figures scene on the southern wall as the better, tributes) on the occasion could have been positioned at a final stage of the Nawruz festival, of Nawruz is a very ancient Iranian certain distance from each other. when the Sogdian sovereign custom, and, according to the In this case, a possible alternative celebrated a funerary ritual in interpretation by Roman explanation is Mode’s hypothesis honour of his ancestors in a temple Ghirshman and other scholars that the two rows of tributes- which — according to the Tangshu which was accepted by Silvi bearers were proceeding towards — was built on the eastern fringes Antonini, it can be clearly two different sovereigns of the town (Marshak 1994, 11- observed among the very ancient (Varkhuman and the Turkish 15).6 While the paintings are very reliefs of the Apadana at Khaghan) (Mode 2006). Also of fragmentary, the shape of an
Fig. 2. Southern wall, Afrasiab (after F. Ory and Grenet reconstruction).
33 on that occasion people feed fishes in order to prevent aquatic animals Fig. 3. Northern wall, Afrasiab (after F. Ory and Grenet reconstruction). from eating the enormous horse ridden by a ancient times when the emperor body of the poet and race in rivers person who was depicted larger was expected to perform a ritual and lakes on dragon-shaped boats than the other people around him hunt in a special part of the searching, ideally, for his corpse. can be discerned among the imperial park and kill evil animals Other people dive in the water to paintings of the southern wall [Fig. such as felines. After the hunt, look for his body which, needless 2]. It is highly probable that this members of the Chinese to say, was never recovered. It is person was king Varkhuman aristocracy went at a pond in the quite clear that the second part of moving in the direction of the same park to listen to musicians the ancient Chinese New Year temple of his ancestors. The and singers on boats shaped like Festival, as reported in poems, representation of this building birds’ heads, while some people and the Duanwu Festival very survived only partially in the left had to dive in the water in search much resemble each other. part of the scene depicted on the of animals such as fishes, turtles As is well-known, in Gregorian southern wall, almost on the and ducks. This is exactly what can calendrical terms, the Chinese corner with the eastern wall (the be discerned in the hunting and New Year Festival falls in January- direction of the royal parade aquatic scenes in the left part of February, while the Duanwu falls according to the Chinese sources). the northern wall. Also the around mid-June. The latter date Two people wearing ritual appearance of a dragon is constitutes an exact parallel with Zoroastrian masks (padam) in the recorded in Chinese poems in the Sogdian Nawruz which, during middle of the procession could be coincidence with a festivity the 7th century, was celebrated in considered in charge of the possibly to be identified with the summer. The artists in charge of sacrifice for the royal ancestors. New Year Festival and, in fact, a the execution of the paintings at In fact, they accompany a composite winged monster can be Afrasiab confused the two harnessed horse not mounted and discerned below the boat in the festivities because of their four geese probably destined to be aquatic scene (Compareti similarities. Possibly the artists sacrificed in honour of Iranian forthcoming). A person leading even confused them deliberately gods (Grenet 2005, 125). two horses in the water is probably in order to have a calendrical performing a Chinese ritual which coincidence between a local Chinese subjects appear on the has not yet been identified. As will northern wall exactly as reported Sogdian festivity and an important be observed below, the presence Chinese one (namely, the in the Tangshu [Fig. 3]. It is an of this last element is quite extremely complicated represen- Duanwujie) which could balance important for the comprehension the Chinese New Year celebration. tation which is divided in two of the whole cycle. parts, both of them connected with astronomical-astrological There is something more to be The Eastern Wall matters. It is beyond the aim of added as regards the aquatic At this point we turn our attention the present article to discuss in scene. One lady on the boat is to the eastern wall [Fig. 4, facing detail all the elements which led represented larger than the page]. Many scholars agree that to its general interpretation others, because she is possibly the this scene represents India mainly (Compareti and Cristoforetti 2005; Chinese empress. She is feeding on the basis of the passage in the Compareti 2006; Compareti the fishes just below the boat and, Tangshu, even though there is no forthcoming; Compareti and in fact, her left hand is opened as Turk representative depicted here. Cristoforetti forthcoming). Here it if to drop something into the water. Unfortunately, once more, the will be enough to say that the two Such an attitude calls to mind a Chinese source is not specific parts of the scene constitute an typical Chinese festivity, the about the subject of the scene, exact parallel with the western and Duanwu Festival, still performed and the fragmentary state of the the southern walls. In fact, most today around the summer solstice painting makes an identification likely, on the northern wall there to remember a poet who extremely difficult. is a representation of the Chinese committed suicide in ancient New Year Festival. Some Chinese times, during the Warring States The surviving fragments are poems report the custom of very period (453-221 BCE). Every year concentrated just in the lower part
34 archers shooting cranes could be part of the same scheme but, unfortunately, the fragmentary state of the eastern wall does not allow one to discern more. Among the different scenes on Fig. 4. Eastern wall, Afrasiab (after F. Ory and Grenet reconstruction). the eastern wall, the fragments of ‘teacher and of the wall. Starting from the left kneeling person appear among student’ with armilla and the part, one can observe two sitting fishes, turtles, water-birds and inferior parts of the horse close to people facing each other in a flowers. Grenet identified the the legs of a person are typical attitude of teacher and infant-archers as a multiple proportionately larger than the student. Between them is a round representation of Kama, the other figures in the same object which was probably Indian god of love who was composition. Possibly, this fact is intended to be an armilla used for reproduced according to an not to be neglected, especially in astronomical purposes. In a recent iconography borrowed from interpreting the scene identified paper, Frantz Grenet argued Classical art. His presence could by Grenet as Krishna fighting convincingly that this image be justified because of the ‘allusion Keshin, since on the other walls represents the transmission of to Krishna’s romances with the larger characters have very astrology from the Greeks to the cowgirls’ (Ibid.). However, as important roles. Indians according to an Grenet himself noted, Markus iconography rooted in Classical art Mode had already observed that In his most (Grenet 2003). Next to them is a those archers should be better recent paper rider on a horse but so far there is identified with pygmies fighting devoted to the no satisfactory explanation for its cranes exactly as described interpretation of meaning. After the entrance, on (although differently represented) the Indian scenes the right portion of the wall, a in Roman sources (Mode 1993, at Afrasiab, second enigmatic scene can be 98; Grenet 2006, 46-47). Mode’s Grenet produced discerned: a person wearing a intepretation would fit better given a 5th-century long robe is carrying a child while the fact that a source in Classical Gupta relief from two big birds spread their wings. art was proposed for the first Mandor The background is aquatic. Grenet scene on the left. Moreover, the representating proposed to identify this scene demon-crane Putana is one, while Krishna fighting with a representation of Krishna in the painting there are parts of against Keshin and his foster-mother, Yashoda, at least three birds. Unless there (Grenet 2006, fig. just before the attack of the crane- are new discoveries, the 2), although two demon Putana (Grenet 2005, interpretation of this scene will 128). Above them, fragments of remain open. Fig. 6. Panel of the an image of a horse and the legs Vahid Kooros Col- The long-haired man grabbing lection funerary bed of a person could be intended as (after Riboud 2004, the tail of a buffalo in the water another episode of Krishna’s fig. 25). youth, when he fought the horse- may recall an enigmatic scene demon Keshin (Ibid.; Grenet engraved on a panel of a 6th- 2006, 45) [Fig. 5]. On the right century funerary bed from China other specimens of Indian part of the painting, the which possibly belonged to a sculpture — one from a private background is still aquatic but Sogdian [Fig. 6].7 It is possible to collection and the other from infant-archers and a man grabbing recognize an archer shooting a Mathura — provide good parallels the tail of a bull together with a bird while sitting on an ox among which support his arguments waves, a scene which has not yet (Harle 1985, figs. 7-8). Lastly, a been identified. However, the black wax inscribed seal (possibly Indian (or, better, Vishnuite) Kushano-Sasanian) kept in the context of the panels of this Ashmolean Museum deserves to funerary bed, recently pointed out be considered [Fig. 7, next page]. by Penelope Riboud (Riboud 2004, The figure, which appears 46, fig. 24), may mean that it together with a Bactrian provides a good comparison with inscription, could be interpeted as the detail in the Afrasiab painting Heracles fighting the monstruous Fig. 5. Eastern wall, Afrasiab, detail even if rendered differently. Other horse of Diomedes or Krishna (after Al’baum 1975, fig. 26, detail). elements such as the pygmy fighting Keshin according to a
35 hypothesis of the Indian character to a sacred pond. When he of the eastern wall is correct and returned, the queen and if that fragmentary painting concubines had to embellish the actually represents the lower parts mane and the tail of the animal of a man with a horse, then one while praying. Then the horse was should expect to find also there choked in the northern part of the the depiction of an Indian festivity area designated for the sacrifice, or celebration connected with and the queen had to lie next to royalty when a kind of horse its corpse while the king and his sacrifice occurred. Such a ritual is companions performed an reported in Indian literary sources enigmas-competition. Only at this Fig. 7. Kushano-Sasanian inscribed explicitly and is described as the point, the dead horse, together black wax seal, Ashmolean Museum (after Harle, 1985, fig. 1). most important royal sacrifice that with other sacrificial animals, only important sovereigns could could be quartered in the presence common iconography which was have afforded to celebrate since of priests, nobles and common possibly rooted in Classical art Vedic period: the ashvamedha people. (Ibid.).8 The interpretation is again (Dumont 1927).9 Ritual celebrations and other complicated, typical for objects of sacrifices in honor of Indian Central Asian provenance in which The aim of the horse sacrifice, divinities such as Agni and Soma Greek, Iranian and Indian or ashvamedha, in ancient India were performed as well. In elements co-exist, exactly as in was the recognition of a king as particular, the ritual liquid Soma the painting at Afrasiab under an universal sovereign. It was also was solemnly offered on the third examination. a magical ritual with very ancient day of the ashvamedha, and, later, solar reminiscences celebrated in all the objects touched by it had In any case, in our opinion, it is order to ensure fecundity to the to be thrown in the water not so important to figure out the kingdom. In fact, the king was (Dumont, 1927, 227). On the exact interpretation for the detail expected to accomplish it at the fourth day a purification bath of the man with the horse. The end of his reign, when it was occurred for all the participants in very presence of this animal almost time for the succession of the ashvamedha, together with represents an interesting element. the designated new king (Ibid., the sacrifice of twenty-one sterile A reasonable hypothesis can be x). The preparation for the cows. Although we do not know offered to explain its inclusion in ashvamedha took normally one exactly the representation of that the cycle of paintings at Afrasiab year but, sometimes, even two. Indian ritual by the Sogdians (nor where, as already observed, a The sacrificial animal — which was by the Indians themselves), at funerary sacrifice in the presence chosen because of his color, speed least this part of the ashvamedha of royal characters is depicted on and other characteristics (Albright celebration resembles very much the southern wall as a continuation and Dumont 1934, 110-111) — the Duanwujie. of the Nawruz on the western wall. had to be ritually immersed in a On the northern wall the Chinese pond and later was set free The ashvamedha took place emperor and empress too are together with one hundred around February-March (but also performing local rituals connected castrated horses and obliged to in spring or summer; see Ibid., 9- with calendrical matters which move in a northeastern direction. 10) and had very clear calendrical correspond quite precisely to the The land crossed by the horse was connections: the wandering of the Sogdian events. In both the considered to be under that king’s horse around and outside the scenes of Sogdian and Chinese dominion. Thus this was a warning kingdom had the symbolic value rituals the presence of the horse to the neighboring kingdoms. of the annual movement of the sun seems to be very important, Young nobles, and among them which conferred to the king the although on the northern wall the the designated successor, had to legitimacy to govern on the land explanation is not yet fully clear. follow the horse in order to allow during the period of the year. Persian literary sources of the it to pass wherever it wanted and Furthermore, of considerable Islamic period explicitly indicate a prevent it from coupling with any interest is the fact that, according connection between the horse and mare for one entire year. At the to some Indian literary sources, water (Cristoforetti 2006). time of its return to the starting among the characteristics of the Moreover, in the painting on the point, a three-day celebration took designated sacrificial horse was a northern wall, two horses are place during which encomiastic spot on its body or a tuft of hair swimming, since the connection singing, music and offerings had on the forehead with a particular with the aquatic element should to be performed at court. On the shape representing the Pleiades have been extremely important for second day the sacrificial horse constellation. There is an exact the Chinese too (Riboud 2003; was attached to the royal war- parallel between such a Mao forthcoming). So, if the chariot and led by the king himself characteristic of the horse of the
36 ashvamedha and a similar spot or representing Sogdiana and China, approximately during the tuft required for sacrificial horses where the sovereign was depicted ashvamedha, and the Duanwu, in ancient Mesopotamia. Possibly together with his queen, for the which fell around the Sogdian this was due to the association of celebration of the ashvamedha the Nawruz. a certain period of the year, when presence of the royal couple was the Pleiades were particularly required. The character of the It is not possible to find an exact visible in the sky, with phenomena Indian sacrifice concerned the contemporary parallel for the such as inundations by large legitimacy of a king, and at painting of the eastern wall since, rivers. In this way, the Pleiades Afrasiab the representation of unfortunately, the few elements could have been seen as a link to such a concept can be observed referring to the ashvamedha in the fertilization of the land on two opposite walls: the eastern Indian art are limited to the (Albright and Dumont 1934, 124- (or Indian) one and the western representation of the sacrificial 127). So here is another link (or Sogdian) one where the horse itself — for example, in at between horse and water in Nawruz is celebrated in con- least one sculpture and coins of connection with calendrical junction with the coronation of the Gupta period (Huntington matters. As is well-known, many Varkhuman. Finally, all the scenes 1985, 187-188; Lindquist 2003). elements coming from Meso- on the four walls present clear Nevertheless, hints of a horse potamian culture were accepted connections with astrological- sacrifice exist in Indian art, in Central Asia such as, for astronomical matters which could although they date to a period example, the presence of the be considered reciprocally much later than the Afrasiab goddess called by Kushans and (although not exactly) balanced: paintings. These are the relief Sogdians Nana who, in the Iranian when a king decided to perform carvings of the great platform of milieu, should be possibly the ashvamedha, this had to the early 16th century Hazara identified with Anahita and, happen around February-March, a Rama temple at Hampi (ancient consequently, with Venus (Tanabe period of the year quite close to Vijayanagara) (Dellapiccola and 1995; Grenet and Marshak 1998). the celebration of the Chinese New Verghese, 1998).10 Almost forty Astral symbols seem to have Year Festival (January-February). years ago, the great indologist played a very important role in The Sogdian artists and their Hermann Goetz had already ancient Sogdiana too, and for this patrons were certainly aware of recognized among these reliefs reason the artists at Afrasiab were the astronomical-astrological some images of foreigners probably attracted by their common notions of ancient represented in processional rows presence also in other cultural ‘Westerners’ such as Indians, together with animals such as spheres. Specimens of Sogdian art Greeks and Mesopotamians, but elephants and horses (Goetz objects produced both in the they had to find also common 1967, 195-196, fig. 11). In motherland and in the colonies features with China that, in those particular, one relief is extremely along the so-called ‘Silk Road’ days, still followed a different interesting because of the pose of present quite often images of a system and only later — most one foreigner (possibly a Persian?) horse or a pegasus with a pole on likely through the Sogdians — holding the bridle of a recalcitrant its head embellished on its top would have adopted ‘western’ horse with one hand while the with a half moon containing a star features such as the division of the other seems to be beating the or a flower (Compareti 2003, 34). week into seven days, each one animal with a kind of dagger [Fig. Since much of the horse linked to a planetary deity 8]. Why would a person of possibly represented on the eastern wall (Chavannes and Pelliot 1913, 158- Iranian appearance have been at Afrasiab disappeared, any 177). For this reason they cleverly represented in this way? Could his attempt to find such astral opted for representations on the pose be considered the final part symbols is completely useless. northern wall of the Chinese New of a horse sacrifice? In the pre- However, as now seems likely, the Year Festival, which fell Islamic Iranian sphere there was horse was associated with the aquatic element and had astral relationships almost in every ancient culture; for this reason it could have been chosen to be represented on the walls at Afrasiab.
Other details of the eastern wall could be considered to have a precise parallel with elements in the other three painted scenes at Fig. 8. Relief carving, Hazara Rama temple, Hampi (after Goetz Afrasiab. Just as in the scenes 1967, fig. 11).
37 an important funerary horse people and animals can be notwithstanding the long period of sacrifice, the chakharom, which is observed already in very ancient time which separates the creation just alluded to, for example, on a Persian art (for example, at of the textile and the relief at Sogdian ossuary from Shahr-i Persepolis12), and it is well known Hampi, they resemble aston- Sabz (Uzbekistan) by the sole that the Achaemenids extended ishingly each other (Compareti presence of a harnessed horse their control on some parts of 2005, 37-40). The same could be (Grenet 1993, 61, n. 44).11 northwestern India, where they said for the earlier horn seal from However, if the people in the relief influenced local cultures. However, Takht-i Sangin. That fragmentary at Hampi are Iranians then they the processions of Persepolis do Persian textile offers a good, if should be considered in all not look exactly like the scene on enigmatic, parallel to the probability Muslims and not the Indian horn seal, where the specimens in Indian art. If ancient Mazdeans. What is needed is an man seems to stand in front of the Iranians knew the Indian example from Indian art dated to animal without walking and his iconography for the horse sacrifice a much earlier period. right hand seems to grab the hilt and had even adopted it, then it of the sword while with the left, could be considered likely that it As noted above, in Indian art possibly, he holds the bridle. is exactly something similar that there are very few specimens the Sogdians copied for the which can be identified as Since the temple at Takht-i representation of India on the representations of the Sangin is much older than any eastern wall at Afrasiab. The ashvamedha, and they are all date other specimen of Indian art hypothesis is hardly demon- to the Gupta period. Nevertheless, already considered in the present strable, but at least it can offer a an interesting horn cylinder seal study, then it seems to be likely possible alternative identification from the Greco-Bactrian site of that a pure Indian iconography is to the battle between Krishna and Takht-i Sangin [Fig. 9] which has involved at Afrasiab. In any case, Keshin. In any case, the depiction independently from the origin of of Indian subjects at Afrasiab Fig. 9. Indian the iconography, it is clear that the according to that iconography horn cylinder Iranians were aware of it. In fact, could be simply explained because seal, Takht-i it is possible to observe very the context there was obviously Sangin (after similar scenes in a problematic 7th- Rapin 1996, Iranian. fig. 29b). century (?) textile fragment acquired on the antiquarian been recently market embellished with nine An Indian King in the Paintings attributed to horses on three parallel lines with at Afrasiab? India (Bernard, people wearing caftans holding in 1994, 112-113) presents a scene one hand the bridles and with the We might, finally, propose a very similar to the relief of Hampi other one a weapon or a stick. The reconstruction for the upper part and, possibly, to the recon- position of those men indicates a of the eastern wall which was struction of that detail of the clearly hostile attitude towards the completely lost: probably also in Afrasiab painting reconsidered horses; for this reason the scene this scene there was a king here. It is not easy to give an exact of the textile could be intended as together with his spouse; it is not interpetation to the scene carved a representation of a sacrifice unlikely that the royal couple had on the seal, which was termed by (Kitzinger 1946, fig. 46; Trilling larger dimensions exactly as on Claude Rapin ‘an Indian myth’ 1982, pl. 17) [Fig. 10]. As the the other walls. As in the case of (Rapin 1996, 50, fig. 29b; Rapin present writer has already noted, Varkhuman and Gaozong on the 1995, 275-281); however, other walls, could this Indian what is really important to king be identified? It would consider here is the pose of seem that Harsha (606-647) the person standing in front is the most probable of the horse, which at candidate, since he was a Afrasiab as well might have very powerful sovereign of followed an established northern India in that period. iconographic formula. It is True, the Chinese pilgrim not possible to be too specific Xuanzang, who visited India about the pose of the man in the first half of the 7th with the horse on the horn century and was a respected seal since the scene is guest at Harsha’s court, depicted too sketchily and it recorded important Buddhist could represent just a rider festivities celebrated in that with his steed or even a Fig. 10. 7th century fragmentary textile, kingdom but gave no hints procession. Processions of Egypt? (after Trilling 1982, pl. 17). about the ashvamedha (Beal
38 1884 [1983], 206-224). Xuanzang References Belenitskii 1961 was a devoted follower of the Aleksandr M. Belenitskii. “Raboty Dharma, which could explain his Akhunbabaev 1987 pendzhikentskogo otriada v 1961 scant interest in his memoir in Khasan G. Akhunbabaev. g.” Arkheologicheskie raboty v religious customs extraneous to “Domashnie khramy rannesredne- Tadzhikistane, IX (1961): 53-75. Buddhism. However, this vekovogo Samarkanda.” In: Bernard 1994 explanation would not explain why Gorodskaia kul’tura Baktrii- Indian sources too, such as the Tokharistana i Sogda, Tashkent, Paul Bernard. “Le temple de Takht- Harshacharita, are silent about the 1987: 10-21. i Sangin en Bactriane: temple du ashvamedha during Harsha’s feu ou pas?” Studia Iranica, 23 reign, even though animal Akhunbabaev 1990 (1994): 81-121. sacrifices should have existed in Khasan G. Akhunbabaev. 7th-century India (Kane 1918, Sotsial’no-planigraficheskaia Chandra 1983 236). struktura kvartala znati na Lokesh Chandra, “Hellenistic Echoes in the Legend of Krishna.” In the second part of the 7th Afrasiabe i problema izucheniia In: Joachim Deppert, ed. India century, Adityasena, one of the rannesrednevekovogo Samar- and the West. Proceedings of a last representatives of the Gupta kanda. Samarkand, 1990. Seminar Dedicated to the Memory Dynasty (or Later Gupta) in Al’baum 1975 of Hermann Goetz. New Delhi: Magadha performed the Lazar I. Al’baum. Zhivopis’ Manohar, 1983: 149-154. ashvamedha (Auboyer 1965, 387; Afrasiaba. Tashkent, 1975. Asher 1983), a fact that definitely Chavannes 1903 Albright and Dumont 1934 created great sensation and Edouard Chavannes. Documents whose echoes, possibly, reached William F. Albright and Paul-Émile sur les Tou-Kiue (Turks) Occi- other regions outside India. For Dumont, “A Parallel between Indic dentaux. Paris, 1903. this reason he could have been and Babylonian Sacrificial Ritual.” considered an appropriate Journal of the Royal Asiatic Chavannes and Pelliot 1913 candidate to appear together with Society, 54/ 2 (1934): 107-128. Edouard Chavannes and Paul Varkhuman and the Chinese Anazawa and Manome 1976 Pelliot. “Un traité manichéen Emperor Gaozong at Afrasiab. retrouvé en Chine.” Journal W. Anazawa and J. Manome. Asiatique, 11 sér., t. 1 (1913): 99- This last hypothesis — although “Korean Envoys Depicted in the 199; 261-394. highly evocative — is hardly Mural Painting from Ancient demonstrable. Despite the efforts Samarkand.” Chosen Gakuho, 80 Compareti 2003 of some students of Sogdian art (1976): 1-36 (in Japanese). to reconstruct the other Matteo Compareti. “Note fragmentary parts of the same Asher 1983 sull’iconografia del pegaso e del cavallo bardato nell’arte iranica.” painting with reference India, Frederick M. Asher. “Historical and In: Matteo Compareti and G. proof of the proposed iden- Political Allegory in Gupta Art.” In: Scarcia, eds. Il falcone di Bistam. tifications is still lacking (cf. Mode Bardwell Smith, ed. Essays on Intorno all’iranica Fenice/Samand: 2002). Gupta Culture. Delhi; Varanasi; un progetto di sintesi per il volo Patna, 1983: 53-66. del Pegaso iranico tra Ponto, Auboyer 1965 (1961) Alessandretta e Insulindia. Venezia, 2003: 27-37. Jeannine Auboyer. L’India fino ai Gupta. Milano, 1965 (original title: Compareti 2004 About the Author La vie quotidienne dans l’Inde Matteo Compareti. “Remarks on ancienne (environ IIe s. avant J.- the Sogdian Religious Iconography Matteo Compareti graduated C.-VIIe s.). Paris, 1961; in English in 7th Century Samarkand.” 2004: from The University of Venice ‘Ca’ as: Daily Life in Ancient India, from http://www.eurasianhistory.com/ Foscari’ in oriental languages and Approximately 200 B.C. to 700 data/articles/a02/422.html. literatures and in 2005 defended A.D. New York, 1965). his PhD in Iranian studies at The Compareti 2005 University of Naples ‘L’Orientale.’ Beal 1884 (1983) Matteo Compareti. I Popoli Iranici He is a specialist in art history of Samuel Beal, tr. Si-Yu-Ki. Buddhist e la navigazione nell’Oceano Sogdiana, especially pre-Islamic Records of the Western World. Indiano. Venezia, 2005. Samarkand, although his interests Chinese Accounts of India. include also Sasanian Persia. At Translated from the Chinese of Compareti 2006 present his research focuses Hiuen Tsiang AD 629. London: Matteo Compareti, “A Reading of mainly on the iconography of Trubner, 1884 (Reprint New Delhi, The Royal Hunt at Afrasyab Based Mazdean divinities. 1983). on Chinese Sources.” In:
39 Compareti and de la Vaissière de la Vaissière 2006 Occasion of His 65th Birthday. 2006, pp. 173-184. Étienne de la Vaissière. “Les Turcs, Wiesbaden, 2003: 123-129. rois du monde à Samarcande.” In: Compareti forthcoming Grenet 2004 Compareti and de la Vaissière Frantz Grenet. “Maracanda/ Matteo Compareti. “On the 2006: 147-162. Meaning of the Dragon in the Samarkand, une métropole pré- Paintings at Afrasyab (Ancient Dumont 1927 mongole. Sources écrites et Samarkand).” Eurasian Studies, 6 Paul-Émile Dumont, L’Asvamedha. archéologie.” Annales. Histoire, (2006): 64-76 (in press). Description du sacrifice solennel sciences sociales, 5-6 (2004): du cheval dans le culte védique 1043-1067. Compareti and Cristoforetti 2005 d’après les textes du Yajurveda Grenet 2005 Matteo Compareti and Simone blanc. Paris: P. Geuthner, 1927. Frantz Grenet. “The Self-Image of Cristoforetti. “Proposal for a New Fedorov 2006 the Sogdians.” In: Étienne de la Interpretation of the Northern Wall Vaissière and Éric Trombert, eds. Michael Fedorov. “Returning to the of the ‘Hall of the Ambassadors’ Les Sogdiens en Chine. EFEO, Sogdian Incense-Burner of the at Afrasyab.” In: Central Asia from Etudes thématiques 17. Paris Late VII-Early VIII c. AD: A Por- the Achaemenids to the Timurids: (2005): 123-140. Archaeology, History, Ethnology, trait of Ikhshid Varkhuman?” Culture. Materials of an Interna- Iranica Antiqua, 41 (2006): 221- Grenet 2006 tional Scientific Conference 231. Frantz Grenet. “What was the Dedicated to the Centenary of Fowden 2004 Afrasyab Painting About?” In: Aleksandr Markovich Belenitsky, Compareti and de la Vaissière ed. Valerii P. Nikonorov, St. Garth Fowden, “The Six Kings at 2006, pp. 43-58. Petersburg, 2005: 215-220. Qusayr ‘Amra.” In: La Persia e Bisanzio. Roma, 2004: 275-290. Grenet and Marshak 1998 Compareti and Cristoforetti Frantz Grenet and Boris I. Frye 1954 forthcoming Marshak. “Le mythe de Nana dans Richard N. Frye, ed. and tr. The Matteo Compareti and Simone l’art de la Sogdiane.” Arts History of Bukhara. Translated Cristoforetti. “New Elements on Asiatiques, 53 (1998): 5-18. from a Persian Abridgement of the the Chinese Scene in the ‘Hall of Arabic Original by Narshakhî. Harle 1985 the Ambassadors’ at Afrasyab Cambridge, Mass.: Mediaeval along with a Reconsideration of James C. Harle. “Herakles Academy of America, 1954. ‘Zoroastrian’ Calendar.” Studia Subduing the Horse(s) of Iranica, forthcoming. Diomedes and Krishna Slaying the Goetz 1967 Demon-Horse Keshin: a Common Compareti and de la Vaissière Hermann Goetz. “Frühe Dar- Iconographic Formula.” In: Janine 2006 stellungen von Moslems in der Schotsmans and Maurizio Taddei, Hindu-Kunst.” Oriens, 18-19 eds. South Asian Archaeology Matteo Compareti and Étienne de (1967): 193-199. 1983: Papers from the Seventh la Vaissière, eds. Royal Nauruz in International Conference of the Samarkand. Proceedings of the Goossens 1993 Association of South Asian Conference held in Venice on the Roger Goossens. “Un texte grec Archaeologists in Western Europe, Pre-Islamic Paintings at Afrasyab. relatif à l’ashvamedha.” Journal Held in the Musées Royaux d’Art Rivista degli Studi Orientali, N.S., Asiatique, t. 217 (1930): 280-285. et d’Histoire, Brussels. Naples: LXXVIII, Suppl. n. 1. Pisa; Roma: Instituto universitario orientale, Accademia editoriale, 2006. Grenet 1993 1985: 641-652. Frantz Grenet. “Trois nouveaux Cristoforetti 2006 documents d’iconographie Huntington 1985 Simone Cristoforetti, “Afrasyab religieuse sogdienne.” Studia Susan L. Huntington, The Art of toponimo e Afrasyab eponimo: Iranica, 22/1 (1993): 49-67. Ancient India. Buddhist, Hindu, considerazioni sulla riemergente Jain, with contributions by John C. Grenet 2003 plausibilità di una lectio facilior.” Huntington. New York; Tokyo: In: Compareti and de la Vaissière Frantz Grenet. “L’Inde des Weatherhill, 1985. 2006, pp. 163-171. astrologues sur une peinture sogdienne du VIIe siècle.” In: Kageyama 2002 Dallapiccola and Verghese 1998 Carlo Cereti, Mauro Maggi, and E. Etsuko Kageyama. “A Chinese Way Anna L. Dallapiccola, Anila Provasi, eds. Religious Themes of Depicting Foreign Delegates Verghese, Sculpture at Vija- and Texts in Pre-Islamic Iran and Discerned in the Paintings of yanagara: Iconography and Style. Central Asia. Studies in Honour of Afrasiab.” In: Iran, questions et New Delhi: Manohar, 1998. Professor Gherardo Gnoli on the connaissances. Vol. I: La période
40 ancienne, ed. Ph. Huyse. Paris, Marshak 2001 Rapin 1996 2002: 313-327. Boris I. Marshak. “La thématique Claude Rapin. Indian Art from sogdienne dans l’art de la Chine Afghanistan. The Legend of Kane 1918 de la seconde moitié du VIe siècle.” Sakuntala and the Indian Treasure P. V. Kane, ed. The Harshacarita Comptes Rendus de l’Académie of Eucratides at Ai Khanum. New of Ba’abhatta (Text of des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, Delhi: Manohar, 1996. Uchchhvasas I-VIII). Bombay, 2001, No. 1: 227-264. 1918. Riboud 2003 Marshak 2006 Kitzinger 1946 Penelope Riboud. “Le cheval sans Boris I. Marshak, “ Remarks on the cavalier dans l’art funéraire Ernst Kitzinger. “The Horse and Murals of the Ambassadors Hall.” sogdien en Chine: à la recherche Lion Tapestry at Dumbarton Oaks: In: Compareti and de la Vaissière des sources d’un thème A Study in Coptic and Sassanian 2006, pp. 75-85. composite.” Arts Asiatiques, 58 Textile Design.” Dumbarton Oaks Mode 1993 (2003): 148-161. Papers, 3 (1946): 1-72. Markus Mode. Sogdien und die Riboud 2004 Lindquist 2003 Herrscher der Welt. Türken, Penelope Riboud. “Description du S. E. Lindquist. “Enigmatic Sasaniden und Chinesen in Historiengemälden des 7. monument”, and “Quelques Numismatics. Kings, Horses, and remarques sur l’iconographie the Ashvamedha Coin-Type.” Jahrhunderts n. Chr. aus Alt- Samarqand. Frankfurt/Main etc.: religieuse du monument.” In: South Asian Studies, 19 (2003): Catherine Delacour and Penelope 105-112. Peter Lang, 1993 (= Europäische Hochschulschriften. Reihe XXVIII, Riboud, eds. Lit de pierre, sommeil Maitdinova 1984 Kunstgeschichte. Bd. 162). barbare. Présentation, après restauration et remontage, d’une Guzel M. Maitdinova. “K Mode 2002 banquette funéraire ayant interpretatsii zhivopisi Afrasiaba Markus Mode. “Court Art of appartenu à un aristocrate d’Asie VII v. n. e. (stsena v lodke).” Sogdian Samarqand in the 7th Centrale venu s’établir en Chine Izvestiia Otdeleniia obshchest- century AD: Some remarks to an au VIe siècle. Paris, 2004: 15-31 vennykh nauk AN Tadzhikskoi old problem.” 2002: http:// and 43-47. SSR, 2, Dushanbe, 1984: 20-27. www.orientarch.uni-halle.de/ca/ Schiltz 1994 Malville 2000 afras/index.htm, accessed January 15, 2007. Véronique Schiltz. Gli Sciti. VIII John McKim Malville, “The Cosmic secolo a.C.-I secolo d.C., Parigi, Geometries of Vijayanagara.” In: Mode 2006 1994. John McKim Malville and Lalit M. Markus Mode. “Reading the Gujral, eds. Ancient Cities, Sacred Afrasiab Murals: Some Comments Silvi Antonini 1989 Skies: Cosmic Geometries and on Reconstructions and Details.” Chiara Silvi Antonini. “The City Planning in Ancient India. New In: Compareti and de la Vaissière Paintings in the Palace of Afrasiab Delhi: Indira Gandhi National 2006, pp. 113-128. (Samarkand).” Rivista degli Studi Centre for the Arts; Aryan Books Orientali, 43 (1989): 109-144. International, 2000: 100-118. Motov 1999 Iurii A. Motov, “Izobrazhenie Sinor 1990 Mao forthcoming misterii prazdnika Mikhragan v Denis Sinor. “The Establishment Mao Min. “The Scene of the nastennykh rospisiakh afrasiab- and Dissolution of the Türk Bathing Horses at the «Hall of the skogo dvortsa.” In: Istoriia i Empire.” In: Denis Sinor, ed. The Ambassadors» in Afrasyab arkheologiia Semirech’ia. Sbornik Cambridge History of Early Inner (Samarkand): Its Iconography statei i publikatsii. Almaty, 1999: Asia. Cambridge: Cambridge Influence from China and Its 57-81. University Press, 1990: 285-316. Cultural Link with the Nawruz Festival.” Paper Presented to the Rapin 1995 Stein 1983 Second Conference on Turfan Claude Rapin. “Hinduism in the Burton Stein. “Mahanavami: Studies, Turfan, August 25th-30th Indo-Greek Area. Notes on Some Medieval and Modern Kingly Ritual 2005, forthcoming. Indian Finds from Bactria and Two in South India.” In: Bardwell Temples in Taxila.” In: Antonio Marshak 1994 Smith, ed. Essays on Gupta Invernizzi, ed. In the Land of the Culture. Delhi; Varanasi; Patna, Boris I. Marshak. “Le programme Gryphons. Papers onCentral Asian 1983: 67-92. iconographique des peintures de Archaeology in Antiquity. la ‘Salle des ambassadeurs’ à Monografie di Mesopotamia, 5. Smirnova 1970 Afrasiab (Samarkand).” Arts Firenze: Le lettere, 1995: 275- Ol’ga I. Smirnova. Ocherki iz istorii Asiatiques, 49 (1994): 5-20. 291. Sogda. Moskva: “Nauka,” 1970.
41 Tanabe 1995 the building as a temple too. This that the city of Hampi presents an Katsumi Tanabe. “Nana on Lion. does not seem to have been the urban plan which denotes a East and West in Sogdian Art.” case in Afrasiab where the ‘Hall of complex system of astral Orient, 30-31 (1995): 309-334. the Ambassadors’ has been relationships (Malville 2000). identified as the private space of 11. Other harnessed horses Trilling 1982 a prominent person, possibly possibly ready for sacrifice can be James Trilling. The Roman Varkhuman himself (Marshak observed in at least one painting Heritage. Textiles from Egypt and 2006, p. 75). at Panjikent and on a 6th-century the Eastern Mediterranean 300 to 4. Chinese sources also report the Sogdian funerary bed from China 600 A.D. Washington D.C., 1982. time of year when the Sogdian (Belenitskii 1961, p. 72, fig. 15; Yatsenko 2004 Nawruz was celebrated Marshak 1994, pp. 11-15). (Compareti and Cristoforetti 12. The motif was wide-spread Sergey A. Yatsenko. “The Costume forthcoming). Grenet noted that of Foreign Embassies and among many ancient cultures one of the Turk guards wrapped connected with ancient Persia Inhabitants of Samarkand on Wall his robe around his hips, probably Painting of the 7th c. in the ‘Hall of from very ancient times to the since the season was too warm Islamization of Iran and Central Ambassadors’ from Afrasiab as a (Grenet 2004, pl. B). Historical Source.” Transoxiana, 8 Asia. Processions of this kind can (June 2004): http:// 5. Recently Mikhail Fedorov be observed, in fact, at Pazyryk rd www.transoxiana.org/0108/ suggested that Varkhuman is the (3 century BCE; see Schiltz 1994, yatsenko-afrasiab_costume.html. person dressed like a warrior in p. 284, fig. 215) but also in some the left corner of the southern unpublished fragmentary wall, who is, however, depicted on terracottas from 10th-11th century the same scale as the other people Dvin (Armenia), directly observed Notes around him (Fedorov 2006). For a by this writer in the State Museum different interpretation of that of Armenian History. 1. In 630, during the reign of detail, see Compareti 2004. Taizong (630-649), the Chinese 6. It is not clear if this part of the defeated the Eastern Turk Empire celebration should follow or in Mongolia and used Turkish precede the Nauwruz (Compareti contingents in order to subjugate and Cristoforetti forthcoming). the Western Turk Empire in the Tarim Basin and Transoxiana. This 7. Unfortunately, the funerary task was completed during the monument was not excavated reign of Gaozong between 657- according to scientific criteria, and 659 (Sinor 1990, p. 310). Turk it is now part of a private collection guards can be observed (the Vahid Kooros Collection, everywhere in the paintings of the Houston). western wall at Afrasiab: they can 8. The same figure of Krishna be recognized by their hairstyle presents some traits borrowed and other facial traits such as the from Hellenistic culture (Chandra absence of a beard. In fact, 1983). Chinese literary sources describe 9. Also classical authors were them as having long hair and aware of the ashvamedha. In his plaits. They do not carry gifts in book on Apollonius of Tyana, the paintings, and for this reason Philostratus (1st century CE) gives they have been considered to be a description of an Indian horse guards in service in the territory sacrifice which could be only of their former empire after the interpreted as the ashvamedha submission to the Tang. (Vit. Apoll. Ty., 2, 19, 15, cited in 2. A possible similar scheme is, Goossens 1930). mutatis mutandis, in the famous 10. This is in all probability a early 8th century Omayyad representation of the Mahan- painting at Qusayr ‘Amra (Jordan) avami, a nine-days festival which (Fowden 2004). comprised also horse sacrifices 3. The king of that Sogdian region exactly as in the ashvamedha to (identified with Kushanya) went be held in March-April or into that pavilion to pray; so it September-October: (Stein 1983, would not be incorrect to identify 75-88). It is worth remembering
42 Mapping Early Buddhist Sites in Western Tibet: Recent Findings from Tsamda County, China Karl E. Ryavec University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, WI, USA
In this article, I present recent in Tsamda county of Ali prefecture so it is often difficult to locate early field survey findings of early in the Tibet Autonomous Region temples listed. Also, many smaller Buddhist sites in Ngari or western is designed to study the spatial shrines and cave murals are not Tibet during August 2006. The patterns of newly discovered sites recorded in the surviving historical sites are in the core region of the in relation to the better known records, and it is thus necessary former Guge kingdom [Fig. 1], sites of historical importance. In to survey areas to document sites. and date from the 10th to 13th this way, it may be possible to century Second Diffusion of deduce approximately how many Interest in western Tibet has Buddhism period, known in sites probably lie in the canyons tended to focus on the region’s Tibetan as the ‘Chidar’ (phyi dar). of Ngari awaiting detailed historical importance in This survey of abandoned temples documentation. Historical Tibetan spearheading the Second and cave murals at several locales records do not contain maps, and Diffusion of Buddhism, and the iconographic origins of Tibetan Buddhist art. Western scholarship largely started with the expe- ditions and findings of the noted Tibet- ologist Giuseppe Tucci (1933). His interests were similar to those of Sir Aurel Stein who earlier ex- plored ancient Buddhist sites along the Silk Road during the first decades of the twentieth century. In both cases, these early archae- ological and art
Fig. 1. Religious and cultural sites in the core region of the Guge Kingdom, ca. 10th-14th centuries CE. Copyright © 2007 Karl E. Ryavec
43 history surveys revealed a region Plateau west of sacred Mount an explanation for the fact that dessicated by climate change over Kailash. After the collapse of the Tibeto-Burmans inhabit both sides the past two millennia with Tibetan empire in the 9th century, of the Himalayas, the greatest numerous settlement areas the new Guge kingdom that arose natural land barrier on earth. abandoned due to dried-up in the 10th century was sometimes Certainly it is reasonable to irrigation sources. Recently, still referred to as Zhangzhung. assume these settlements in the archaeological investigations of upper Sutlej River valley had an It is not clear what sort of western Tibetan pre-Buddhist and agrarian base long before broader cultural influences may Buddhist sites have commenced Buddhism arrived, but some time have interacted with the historical under collaborations between the after the historical domestication development of Zhangzhung American archeologist Mark of the important grain crop plants during the pre-Buddhist period. Aldenderfer (2001, 2004), and the of wheat and barley in the Middle The nearest major cultural hearth Chinese archaeologists Hou Wei East about 10,000 years ago. in this part of the world was the and Li Yongxian (Hou and Li 2001) According to J. P. Mallory and Harrapan, or Indus valley of Sichuan University. And I have Victor Mair (2000), the weight of civilization that flourished c. 5000 studied the aerial extents of circumstantial evidence for the – 2000 BCE, long before available ancient abandoned farmland in early settlement of eastern Central archaeological evidence pertaining several canyons of the former Asia during the Mesolithic period to Zhangzhung appeared. What Guge kingdom based on 2-foot indicates western origins. In impact the urban Harrapan culture resolution satellite imagery, and addition to the cultivation of may have had on historical made some preliminary findings cereals, archaeological evidence developments in western Tibet is on likely historical population for the domestication of sheep also speculative at best, as outlined by levels (Ryavec 2005). favors this western origin Geoffrey Samuel (2000). hypothesis. The extent to which Furthermore, George van Driem Tsamda county lies in the heart western Tibet was geographically (1998) postulates that the of the canyon country of connected with these early northern Neolithic culture of southwestern Tibet carved by the diffusions and later trading Kashmir (2500 – 1700 BCE), much Sutlej river of the Indus networks requires further detailed closer to western Tibet, represents watershed, and bordered on the interdisciplinary research. a colonial exponent of the north south by the Himalayan frontier China Majiayao Neolithic culture Most of the Buddhist monas- with India. This region contains (ca. 3900 – 1800 BCE). Van Driem teries in western Tibet were built many ancient acropolis fort sites, aptly points out that this provides under patronage of the western some probably dating from the first millennium BCE Iron Age. Also, the terrain abounds in habitable caves. Traditionally, many people lived in caves especially during the cold winter months. Under the Tibetan empire ca. 7th to 9th centuries, western Tibet was annexed and referred to as Zhangzhung. The indigenous Bonpo religion remained strong while Buddhism seems not to have made any inroads, unlike in Central Tibet where it was fostered as a court religion of the emperors. Little is known of this past period, with studies by a small number of specialists referring to Zhangzhung in terms ranging from a coalition of territorially based lineages to group of kingdoms, and an empire (Bellezza 2003). However, most scholars agree that the Zhangzhung capital was located at Kyunglung on the eastern border Fig. 2. The acropolis fort complex above the present-day village and of Tsamda county where the Sutlej monastery of Mangnang. Note the numerous caves of the former resi- river originates on the Tibetan dents. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec.
44 of Buddhist temples during the ‘Chidar’ period. Buddhist monks also painted cave murals as they did throughout the Silk Road region.
New Sites
The acropolis fort complex [Fig. 2, facing page] above the village of Mangnang [Fig. 3] contains a ruined temple with an approx- imately 4 m 12th-century Buddhist statue still largely intact [Fig. 4]. Fig. 3. Mangnang village, and ca. 11th century temple complex. Himalaya fron- Mangnang is well known as the tier between Tibet and India in background. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl site of an 11th century temple E. Ryavec. where the famed Bengali Buddhist master Atisha was invited to stay th Tibetan Guge dynasty (ca. 10 to Yet almost every canyon in the one year ca. 1043 before traveling th 17 centuries CE), which became county has an ancient acropolis to Central Tibet where he passed instrumental in supporting a fort complex that saw the addition away. Available guidebooks to Ngari make no mention of this important surviving statue in the fort above the Mangnang village temple complex. Bedongpo village lies in a small tributary of the Sutlej at approximately 4,200 m. Ruins of a fort/monastery complex tower above the village [Fig. 5]. Historical records show that the monastery of Bedongpo was a branch of the main monastery of Toling constructed in 996 CE during the beginning of the Buddhist period in western Tibet. Various other ruined temples are also found in the Bedongpo valley,
Fig. 5. Ruined ca. 12th century fort/ temple complex above the village of Bedongpo. Note small new Buddhist temple at foot of site. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec Fig. 4. Ca. 12th century ruined statue of a Buddhist deity, approximately 4 m tall, on the top of the Mangnang fort complex. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec resurgence of Buddhist art and literature. During this period many acropolis fort sites were re- developed to accommodate temples. In fact, the former Guge capital at the fortress of Tsaparang is the main destination of most tourists going to Tsamda county today, and is described in detail in guide books to western Tibet.
45 early Tibetan Buddhist forms of art and architecture relatively unknown except to a handful of specialists. The area’s importance as one of the core agrarian bases of the kingdoms of Guge and Purang starting in the tenth century led to royal patronage for substantial temple construction.
There are several problems, however, that make it difficult if not impossible for scholars and tourists to visit most of these sites. In recent years, tourists to Tsamda county have generally only been granted access to the main Fig. 6. Drisa fort complex with ca. 12th century chorten. Photograph copyright temples at Toling in the county © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec. seat, the nearby fort and temples at Tsaparang, and the Dungkar but only near the village was a circa twelfth-century murals [Figs. caves and fort easily accessed small temple rebuilt after China’s 9, 10, facing page]. There are from the main road into the political and economic reforms in some other caves in the valley, but county. Chinese border security Tibet during the 1980s. About 2 ladders are required to access concerns place most of the other km downstream sites off limits, from Bedongpo ostensibly due is a relatively to sensitivity unknown site about the loca- called Drisa tions of military [Fig. 6]. Num- bases and erous chorten patrols. China dating from might do well circa the twelfth to learn from century lie on its neighbor the valley floor India, which below an exten- now allows sive complex of scholars to caves and an travel within 1 acropolis fort. km of its Traces of red claimed border pigment on the walls of at least Fig. 7. Ca. 12th century chorten and aban- one of the doned farmland in the Bedongpo valley. ruined fort Note the numerous caves of the former buildings residents. Photograph copyright © 2006 indicate Karl E. Ryavec. possible temples. No traces of houses, them. The Khyung- however, are noticeable, indicating lang cave lies about that the former farmers probably 5 km upstream from lived year-round in the caves. The Shangtse fort, the entire valley here below Bedongpo reputed summer village consists of large tracts of capital of the Guge abandoned farmland, also kings. indicated by a surviving chorten near the edge of an ancient field Conclusion [Fig. 7].
The Khyunglang cave [Fig. 8] Tsamda county con- Fig. 8. Entrance to the Khyunglang cave. contains 3 walls with surviving tains many surviving Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec.
46 them freely available. This would then make it possible for more people to visit the sites without the need to take photographs of the murals, as complete images would already be available.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the Tibetan Academy of Social Sciences and Prof. David Germano of the University of Virginia for facilitating my field research in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China under the general auspices of the Tibetan and Himalayan Digital Library project.
About the Author
Dr. Karl E. Ryavec is an Assistant Professor in the Geography/ Fig. 9. One of the three c. 12th century mandala murals in the Khyunglang cave. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec. Geology Department at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens with China. But China, unlike concern relates to efforts by Point. His Ph.D. dissertation India, has to deal with its citizens Chinese cultural offices preventing (University of Minnesota, 2002) attempting to flee the country. photography at the sites. This was entitled “Land Use Change in Thus the wider off-limit areas on problem could be easily solved if Central Tibet, c. 1830-2000.” the Chinese side reflect, in part, a those scholars who have already Starting in 2004, Dr. Ryavec method of preventing people from taken high-resolution photos (and conducted field research in getting close enough to the border official Chinese-sponsored surveys Tsamda county in China to to walk into India. A second have already done this) made understand better the growth and decline of the western Tibetan Guge kingdom. E-mail:
References
Aldenderfer 2001 Mark Aldenderfer. “Piyang: a Tibetan Buddhist Temple and Monastic Complex of the 10th -11th Centuries AD in Far Western Tibet.” Archaeology, Ethnology, & Anthropology of Eurasia, 2001, 4(8):138-146. Aldenderfer and Moyes 2004 Mark Aldenderfer and Holley Moyes. “Excavations at Dindun, a pre-Buddhist village site in far western Tibet.” In: Huo Wei and Li Yongxian, eds. Essays of the International Conference on Tibetan Archaeology and Art. Chengdu, China: Center for Fig. 10. Detail of a Guge warrior in one of the three c. 12th century mandala Tibetan Studies, Sichuan Union murals in the Khyunglang cave. Photograph copyright © 2006 Karl E. Ryavec. University, 2004: 47-69.
47 Bellezza 2003 and the Mystery of the Earliest Tucci 1933 John V. Bellezza. “Ancient Tibet: Peoples from the West. London: Giuseppe Tucci. Secrets of Tibet: Bringing to Light the Forgotten. A Thames & Hudson, 2000. Being the Chronicle of the Tucci comprehensive survey: of Pre- Ryavec 2005 Scientific Expedition to Western Buddhist sites in Upper Tibet Tibet. Translated from the Italian (1992-2002).” Athena Review, 3/ Karl E. Ryavec. “Aerial Survey of edition by Mary A. Johnstone. 4 (2003), online at
all types of wood-based artifacts, Han Lacquerware and the Wine whether vessels, boxes, furniture, musical instruments, arms, Cups of Noin Ula chariots, or coffins. By the Qin (220–206 BCE) and early Han François Louis eras, lacquering had become so Bard Graduate Center, New York prominent a craft that certain vessels were even produced as ‘pure’ lacquer artifacts without a Lacquer work is today recognized recorded his historic find, a wood substrate, using instead as one of the centrally distinctive wooden ear cup with scroll lacquer-drenched ramie fabric to components of Han material ornament from the ruins of a Han build a core. culture (206 BCE–220 CE). What’s command center (Stein 1921, Vol. more, the Former Han period (206 2, 645; Vol. 4, pl. LII). Since As a commodity, lacquer work BCE–8 CE) has come to be Stein’s discovery, and especially was in many respects akin to celebrated as the apogee of over the past forty years, woven silk during the Han era. Chinese lacquer art (see Wang archaeologists have unearthed Both had relatively little intrinsic 1982, 80–99; Prüch 1997; Fuzhou thousands of Han and even pre- material value. Made from 1998; Barbieri-Low 2001; and Li Han lacquer artifacts, several renewable resources, silk and 2004 for further reading on Han hundred of which are fortunately lacquer products, unlike artifacts lacquer). These insights are still in fine condition. made of jade and gold, were relatively recent and entirely the valued primarily on the basis of result of archaeological dis- We now know that the use of their design and manufacture. coveries. Precisely a century has lacquer as a protective, water- This meant that they could be passed since the first proof coating made from the sap made to cater to a relatively broad archaeological discovery and of the lacquer tree (rhus spectrum of the population. Plain identification of a lacquer vessel verniciflua) goes back to Neolithic silk fabric and utensils simply from Han China. In the spring of times in China. But as an varnished in raw brown lacquer 1907, while surveying the Han artistically emancipated craft, were widely available and border fortifications north of lacquering came into its own only essential commodities. But Dunhuang — and just weeks in the late fifth century BCE in the patterned silks with complex before coming upon the state of Chu in southern China. weave structures and glossy, sensational medieval library at the From that time on it was the colored lacquers with artfully Mogao Caves — Aurel Stein dryly preferred means of decoration for painted red and black decoration
48 Fig. 1. Wine cup, dated 2 BCE, from Noin Ula tomb 6. Seen from the side. State Hermitage Museum, St. Peters- burg (photograph © 2005 Daniel C.Waugh). or even gold and silver inlays could be very expensive and functioned above all as means of social distinction. The quality of lacquer Fig. 2. Wine cup, dated 2 BCE, from Noin Ula tomb 6. Seen from the bottom work found in archaeological without handles. State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg (photograph after Umehara 1960, pl. 59). contexts can thus explain much about the wealth and social position of its last owner; it can discoveries in Mongolia and Mountains, about 100 kilometers even illuminate his or her Buryatia, it is worth taking a fresh north of Ulaanbaatar. look at some of the early finds. relationship to the Han imperial Four relatively well-preserved court. Most recently, Han lacquer lacquer cups from Noin Ula have While the discovery of Han artifacts have been reported from been adequately published [Figs. lacquer ware in a military station a number of Xiongnu cemeteries. 1–5]; a few more have been from the ancient Han frontier may While some evidence was reported though not illustrated in not be as spectacular as the finds discovered in tombs in the Tamir the main surveys. Unfortunately, from aristocratic tombs near big River Valley in eastern Arkhangai, no proper excavation report of the towns, it is by no means unusual some 300 kilometers west of tombs was ever prepared, as its or surprising. Lacquered artifacts Ulaanbaatar (Waugh 2006), the potential authors had fallen victim were available everywhere in the majority of finds come from the to Stalinist terror (Maenchen- Han Empire, even though the mountains between Ulaanbaatar Helfen 1965). And the Japanese majority was made in the and Lake Bai- lacquering workshops of central kal north of it and southern China where lacquer (Miniaev trees grew abundantly. Han 1998; Torbat lacquers have even been found in et al. 2003). areas far beyond the ancient Han Of these re- frontier, as far north as Lake Baikal cent finds a and as far west as Begram in lacquered Han Afghanistan (for the Begram finds chariot is see Hackin 1954, 295-297, figs. certainly the 243–249; Mehendale 2005, most extra- 1.4.3). ordinary (Miniaev and The lacquer artifacts from such Sakharovskaia distant sites are still poorly 2006). The understood, despite the fact that most sig- many of them were already found nificant early in the 1920s and 1930s. Although discoveries, widely discussed early on, they however, have received little attention since remain the the major discoveries in the wine cups People’s Republic of China took discovered in center stage. Now, however, in the mid- Fig. 3. Wine cup from Noin Ula tomb 23. Mid-first century light of recent insights on Han 1920s in the CE. National Museum of Mongolian History, Ulaanbaatar lacquer and in view of new Noin Ula (photograph courtesy of Thierry Ollivier).
49 1969, 112). The fourth cup was not discovered by Kozlov, but by Mongolian scholars who inves- tigated the tombs in summer 1927. This cup, found in four fragments, is also inscribed and dated to the year 2 BCE [Fig. 5], but was discovered in tomb 5, which lay in the vicinity of tomb 6. It has always been kept in Ulaanbaatar (Umehara 1944, 16; Fig. 4. Wine cup from Noin Ula tomb 23. Mid-first century CE. State Hermitage Umehara 1960, 29). The two cups Museum, St. Petersburg (photograph after Umehara 1960, pl. 63). now in Ulaanbaatar have recently been shown in two traveling archaeologist Umehara Sueji different tombs, a fact that exhibitions in Europe (Paris 2000, (1893–1983), who was able to appears to have escaped several 147; Bonn 2005, 51), where they study the lacquers extensively later authors (Umehara 1960, 28– were both assigned to tomb 6, soon after their discovery and 32, pls. 59–62). The Russian without any mention of Umehara’s planned on publishing a major expedition of 1924–25 led by Petr account of the 1927 investigations analysis of the site, lost most of K. Kozlov, according to Umehara, or the reports that the uninscribed his research materials during the found an inscribed and dated cup cup [Fig. 3] was found in the inner 1945 napalm bombing of Tokyo of 2 BCE in the large kurgan 6 burial chamber of tomb 23, north and had to reconstruct his book [Figs. 1, 2] and two un-inscribed of the coffin (cf. Trever 1932, 47, manuscript after the war. Finally, cups in kurgan 23, about 100 pl. 29, 1; Rudenko 1969, pl. 48). there has been some confusion meters west of kurgan 6 (Figs. 3, These discrepancies are likely the due to the dividing of the Noin Ula 4). Sergei I. Rudenko later result of oversights by the finds between the State mentions in his inventories of the catalogue authors. The cata- Hermitage in St. Petersburg and Kozlov expedition, published in logues, especially the one from the Museum of Mongolian History 1962, that tomb 23 actually Paris, do, however, have the virtue in Ulaanbaatar. contained four lacquer cups, one of providing outstanding color Umehara explains that the four of which [Fig. 3] had been illustrations of Noin Ula lacquers. returned to Mongolia (Rudenko Han lacquer cups come from three The two cups from tombs 5 and 6 [figs. 1, 2 and 5] carry important inscriptions that identify them as official products manufactured in government workshops for the imperial court. Both share the same basic design of facing birds and spirals, yet they show very different styles: one bold the other tender and fragile. These stylistic differences have been recognized as typical for two distinct regional styles — those from Sichuan and Shaanxi, respectively. As Anthony Barbieri-Low has illuminated in his excellent recent dissertation, the cup from tomb 5 [Fig. 5] is a typical example of the thousands of mass-produced vessels from the two imperial luxury workshops in Shu and Guanghan; fifty lacquer vessels from these Sichuan workshops are still known today (Barbieri-Low 2001, 421–422). The cup is of beautiful quality, despite being mass-produced, and is explicitly designated in its Fig. 5. Wine cup, dated 2 BCE, from Noin Ula tomb 5. National Museum of inscription as ‘fit for use by the Mongolian History, Ulaanbaatar (photo courtesy of Thierry Ollivier). emperor (chengyu).’
50 In contrast, the cup painted with silk, in addition to the same gifts cloud and scroll ornament with fine lines from kurgan 6 [Figs. 1, as had been given in the year 25 interspersed animals that was 2] is unique in the archaeological BCE [to his predecessor]’ (Hanshu omnipresent during the Former record. It was produced in a 94B.3817). Han period [Figs. 1, 2 and 4], palace workshop in the capital faded away over the course of the Chang’an in Shaanxi by the Ever since the Xiongnu and the first century CE. In the 40s, after master artisan Wang Tanjing and Han court had reached a peace two decades of civil war following design painter Hu. On the bottom, accord in 53 BCE, diplomatic the murder of Wang Meng (r. 9- separate from the incised exchange between the two had 23 CE), the aristocracy of the Later inscription made by the intensified. By the end of the first Han dynasty (25-220) aban- manufacturing office, the cup century BCE there was a well doned the old luxuriant bears the two additional large established system of tributary ornamental style in favor of a characters ‘Shanglin,’ which refer trade between the two rulers, frugal one, and the imperial to the imperial park in Chang’an. according to which the emperor lacquer workshops henceforth This reference led Barbieri-Low to provided huge gifts to the shanyu, produced only undecorated speculate that the lacquer who in turn acted nominally vessels, red on the inside, black workshop might actually have submissive, promising to keep the on the outside, before finally been located in the imperial park. peace and enable mutual trade. shutting down for lack of funds It is, however, much more likely Before Wuzhuliuruoti’s visit in the early in the second century. With that the inscription was simply year 1 BCE, there were four the trendsetting imperial elite part of the palace inventory instances of a Xiongnu shanyu forfeiting luxurious display, the system that designated the cup for attending an audience at the Han Han lacquer industry becomes use in the one of the imperial court, each more generously fiercely commercial, and the old palaces in Shanglin Park. rewarded than the one before ornamental style survives only in (Barfield 1989, 63–67). Back in his an increasingly simplified, own country, as Thomas Barfield There is indeed good reason to downgraded form. The two cups has pointed out, the shanyu was think that this cup was used in from tomb 23 represent this obliged to distribute among his Shanglin Park in the year 1 BCE commercial type of ware typical of nobility the wealth he had to host the chief Xiongnu leader, lacquer production in the first obtained through this tributary Shanyu Wuzhuliuruoti (r. 8 BCE– century CE. Most likely these cups trade (Barfield 1981). Such gift 13 CE). According to Ban Gu (32– reached the Xiongnu not as official distribution among the Xiongnu 92 CE), this shanyu had requested imperial gifts but through trade. nobility offers one explanation as an audience at the capital as early We can view them as evidence for to why the two imperial lacquer as the year 3 BCE. But the Han free forms of private trade cups were reportedly found in court extend the formal invitation between the Han and Xiongnu different tombs. It is of course also only after months of deliberations states, conducted both at Han possible that the occupants of centering on the vast expense and frontier markets, by the countless tombs 5 and 6 were both at the the bad luck occasioned by visits members of the embassies that Chinese court in 1 BCE. Indeed it from the Xiongnu leaders. A went to and fro, and by the has often been suggested that subsequent illness of the shanyu military stationed along the kurgan 6 is the tomb of further delayed the visit. When the borders. Yü Ying-shih has adeptly Wuzhuliuruoti Shanyu himself shanyu finally arrived, he came in described this kind of frontier (Paris 2000, 146). the company of five hundred men, trade in his classic study (Yü 1967, more than in any delegation The two cups made in the year 93–132). before, and all of them eager to 2 BCE, undoubtedly in anticipation Because lacquerwares were experience the Han court’s wealth of the expected Xiongnu visit, are made in only some regions in and generosity. The emperor, who the earliest lacquer cups from Noin China, they were among the for astrological reasons had Ula. The ear cups found in tomb frequently traded goods in the Han decided it best to ‘reside in the 23 belong to an altogether Empire. And because lacquers Grapevine Palace (Putao Gong) in different category. They are of were unique Chinese products Shanglin Park and to treat his noticeably lower quality than the with excellent qualities, it seems guest with additional honors,’ vessels made in the government reasonable to assume that they invited the shanyu to stay at workshops, have no official figured prominently in interna- Shanglin Park as well — a privilege inscriptions, differ in style, and tional trade — like bronze mirrors regular courtiers could only dream may be as much as seven decades or silks (Maenchen-Helfen 1973 of. ‘The shanyu, appreciative of younger than the cups dated to 2 for an overview of bronze mirrors this favor, was also regaled with BCE (cf. a vessel from the tomb in Xiongnu contexts). Early 370 robes, thirty thousand bolts of Wang Xu [d. after 69 CE] in Chinese sources are full of proud of various patterned silk fabrics, Pyongyang; Harada 1930, pl. 61). references to the infatuation of and thirty thousand pounds of raw The symmetric and yet organic Han’s neighbors with Chinese
51 goods, yet the sources virtually never mention lacquer specifically as an export good. Lacquer evidently did not fit the Han rhetoric of wealth in the same way gold, jade, and silk did. When the Han court provided wine cups to their tributary delegations, they handed them out as party favors after the main banquet rather than as serious gifts worth entering into the national records. Never- theless, some recipients of such tokens of imperial grandeur — Chinese officials perhaps more so than others — treasured them, sometimes over generations, and rarely ever used them.
Not surprisingly, imitations of the imperial wares were also Fig. 7. Han lacquer bowl fragment, first century CE, found at Tamiryn Ulaan Khoshuu, Feature 97, Arkhangai aimag, in 2005 (photograph © 2005 Daniel available on the market. Some, as C. Waugh). Barbieri-Low has uncovered, were deceptively similar to authentic lines seen on ear cup handles official wares, complete with fake made for the court earlier on [cf. official inscriptions (Barbieri-Low Fig. 5]. The bowl found in Feature 2001). The majority, however, 97 [Fig. 7], on the other hand, were of lesser quality and combines on its black exterior a emphasized either the bold red striking pattern of sketchy red line perceived as typical of the lines and dots — a faded imperial Sichuan style or the fine continuation of the old imperial red lines typical of the Sichuan-style — with a design of metropolitan style of the Former delicate scrolls painted in red, Han capital, Chang’an. The gray, and yellow. Such multi- Fig. 8. Inscription on Han lacquer bowl, fragments of lacquer vessels colored painted ornament was first century CE, found at Tamiryn Ulaan Khoshuu, Feature 97, Arkhangai recently discovered in Xiongnu typical for the commercial aimag, in 2005 (photograph © 2005 tombs in the Tamir Valley products of the early Eastern Han Daniel C. Waugh). represent such commercial era (25-220 CE) and hinted at the categories from around the mid- earlier tradition of expensive gold fertility through its auspicious first century CE (Waugh 2006). and silver inlays. Like many inscription yi zi sun, ‘may it bring The bronze-mounted handle of an Eastern Han artifacts for personal you sons and grandsons’ [Fig. 8]. ear cup found in Feature 201 [Fig. use, such as bronze mirrors, silks, The regularity with which 6], for instance, continues the or jewelry, this lacquer bowl was remains of Han lacquers are found characteristic design of diagonal magically charged to enhance in Xiongnu tombs of the late first century BCE and the first century CE suggests that the Xiongnu elite recognized fine Han lacquers as prestigious and useful possess- ions, if not for their association with the Chinese court, then for their appeal as exotic commodities and their connection to the Xiongnu ruling family, whose policies resulted in the availability of Chinese artifacts. A more precise picture of Xiongnu perceptions and uses of fine Chinese commodities such as the Fig. 6. Bronze-mounted handle of ear cup found at Tamiryn Ulaan Khoshuu, perishable lacquers, however, Arkhangai aimag, Feature 201, in 2005 (photograph © 2005 Daniel C. Waugh). awaits further research.
52 About the Author Hanshu Rudenko 1969 Ban Gu. Hanshu [History of the Sergei I. Rudenko. Die Kultur der François Louis is an Associate Former Han Dynasty]. Beijing: Hsiung-nu und die Hügelgräber Professor of Chinese Art and Zhonghua shuju, 1962. von Noin Ula. Bonn: Habelt Verlag, Design History at the Bard Harada 1930 1969. [Translation of Kul’tura Graduate Center for Studies in the khunnov i Noinulinskie kurgany, Harada Yoshito. Lo-lang: A Report Decorative Arts, Design, and Moscow-Leningrad, 1962.] Culture in New York. He has on the Excavation of Wang Hsü’s Stein 1921 published widely on early and Tomb. Tokyo: Tôkô Shoin, 1930. medieval Chinese metalwork and Li 2004 Aurel Stein. Serindia: Detailed Report of Explorations in Central is currently working on a book on Li Zebin, ed. Han Guangling guo Khitan material culture. Asia and Westernmost China. 5 qiqi [Lacquer from the Han State vols. Oxford 1921. Available online of Guangling]. Beijing: Wenwu at:
53 Trade and Commerce on the Silk Road after the End of Mongol Rule in China, Seen from Chinese Texts
Ralph Kauz Institute of Iranian Studies/Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna
Traffic and exchange on the Silk from the onslaught of the Arab embassies arrived in China from Road are generally perceived to Muslims. Already during the Tang, Central and Western Asia during have taken place more before and but much more during the this period. They number 89 during Mongol rule in Asia than in following dynasties, direct embassies coming from the later periods. That is, in this view overland contacts between Central Asian center Samarkand the ‘Silk Road’ is a historical Eastern and Western Asia declined alone — the first arrived on 27 phenomenon which came to a halt to a certain degree; however, October 1387 and the last on 3 sometime during the late maritime trade increased May 1618.2 If we take the average, ‘European’ Middle Ages. Few enormously instead. about one embassy from would think about merchants and Samarkand arrived in either of the These circumstances changed envoys crossing Asia well after the two Chinese capitals under the under the Mongols, when travelers Mongols, before the Europeans Ming (Nanjing and later Beijing) like John of Plano Carpini and ‘re-discovered’ Central Asia. This every three years, though we William of Rubruck, not to mention paper will discuss the traffic along must admit that this calculation is Marco Polo and others, brought the route after the Mongols in partly incorrect because many reports and narratives of Central order to demonstrate that the Silk more embassies came at the and Eastern Asia under Mongol Road did not break off completely beginning of the dynasty than at rule back to Europe and implanted in the middle of the 14th century, its end. the idea of (relatively) free travel but continued to function for a and trade into the heads of their rather long time subsequently. The embassies arriving from countrymen. Nowadays images of Samarkand during the Ming journeys on the Silk Road are The historical documentation of dynasty seemingly reveal the mostly connected with Marco Polo trans-Asian contacts in Chinese close continuous contacts with and the Mongol period. Few people texts started during the Han Central Asia. However, Samarkand would probably think of the dynasty, when Emperor Han Wudi still lies in Central and not in aforementioned Han ventures, sent Zhang Qian, the first well- Western Asia. If we turn further Sogdian traders, and even less of known traveller along the Silk west (or better southwest), we persons like the Chinese official Road, to the Yuezhi to propose a find that 21 embassies arrived Chen Cheng, the Timurid painter political and military coalition from Herat (in 14 cases written Ghiyas ad-Din and the Portuguese against the Xiongnu. Around the Halie and in 7 Heilou) between the Jesuit Benedict Goës, who crossed beginning of the Common Era, the years 1409 and 1484. Herat was Central Asia decades and even Han conquered vast areas of the the second capital of the Timurids centuries after the fall of the ‘Western Regions’ (Xiyu), and after Shahrokh ascended the Mongols.1 What were the motives consequently the Han Empire throne in 1405 and from this base of these latter travelers and what stretched far into Central Asia. he re-conquered parts of his was the historical and political After the downfall of the Han, father’s empire from various rivals. background of their endeavors? interactions between Western, Herat was the contemporaneous Central and Eastern Asia The famous Great Wall of China, capital of Khorasan — and persisted, though on a less in the shape we can appreciate Khorasan can absolutely be institutionalized level. They rose today, was built during the Ming regarded as a province of Iran.3 again under the rule of the period (1368-1644), and in the But Herat was not the furthest cosmopolitan Tang dynasty, when popular view it is still a symbol of western city mentioned in the Sogdian and other merchants Chinese seclusion (cf., however, Di Ming records: three embassies brought various exotics to China Cosmo 2006). In fact though, came from Kerman, the important and exported Chinese silks and according to a major historical center of southeastern Iran, other products in exchange. For source of this dynasty, the written in the ‘Veritable Records’ Peroz, son of the last Sasanian ‘Veritable Records’ (Ming shilu) as with different spellings (1415, shah, China was the only haven well as other texts, numerous 1424, 1425), and we also find five
54 embassies from Isfahan (1419- the period. These glossaries were China into his strategic schemes. 1483) and seven from Shiraz compiled by the ‘Muslim Office’ Furthermore, many people of (1413-1484). The last three cities (Huihui guan), a sub-office of the Central Asia (the so-called were (and are) definitely on what ‘Office of the Four Barbarians’ (Siyi semuren) had settled in China is considered Iranian soil and at guan) which was in charge of during the Yuan dynasty, and least at the beginning of the 15th translations from various some of them were obviously century they belonged to the languages and thus essential for brought back to ‘Samarkand’ as it Timurid Empire. Thus it seems diplomatic and commercial is written in Chinese texts, but this that we may affirm commercial exchange. Linguistic inconsis- toponym probably includes other relations between Iran and China tencies and errors allude to the places of Central Asia as well. taking place well into the 15th probability that the texts were Timur came to power at about century. written by corrupt Chinese officials the same time as the first Ming for ‘fake embassies.’5 These letters Emperor; he founded a Central Relations between China and indicate that the embassies came Asian empire with its capital at Western Asia apparently went from places much closer to China Samarkand. Though of Turkic even beyond the region of Iran: than they pretended in order to origin, Timur stood in the tradition we learn of 23 embassies arriving profit from the lucrative tribute of the Mongols and legitimized his from Arabia (or Mecca), which the system. Finally, the Chinese texts 4 rule by marrying a woman with Chinese called Tianfang (1433- show that the Chinese officials Chingisid lineage. His pretensions 1618), and of five coming from a themselves were often not sure of clearly aimed far beyond the area country called Roumi (1423-1445) the veracity of many embassies. in which he grew up, the core of and finally eleven others from one One early example recorded by the Ulus Chaghatay dominion. He pronounced similarly, namely Lumi the critics of the Supervising conquered Iran, led his army into (1524-1618). Roumi and Lumi Secretary (jishizhong) Huang Ji on India and far into Asia Minor where should be both the transcription 26 December 1424 may be given he defeated the Ottoman Sultan of ‘Rum,’ the popular term for here: ‘Many of the envoys are Bayazid, but the east, China Anatolia and pars pro toto for the trading barbarians who conduct included, was to be spared until Ottoman Empire. their private businesses under a the end of his rule. Finally, Timur false pretext to bring tribute and According to Chinese texts, gathered his army to attack China, under false authorization in order therefore, embassies from places but he died in the early stages of to attain an official position...’ as far as Samarkand, Arabia and this campaign at Utrar, on 18 (Ming shilu 1966: Renzong shilu, the Ottoman Empire arrived in February 1405. China during the whole Ming j. 5, p. 160). Both rulers saw themselves as dynasty, though the numbers at The reality of intense trans- possible successors of the the beginning of the dynasty Asian exchanges well after the fall Mongols, and their respective surpass those in the second half of the Mongols in Iran and China aspirations reached beyond the by far. As a result continuous may be doubted after these area they actually ruled. Thus it is exchanges between Western and remarks. To illuminate this not surprising to find them spying Eastern Asia seem to have taken preliminary reasoning we will out the other’s ambitions. In fact place even centuries after the consider briefly the history of the we cannot prove this statement, Mongols’ conquests. region before we turn again to the yet the texts handed down may embassies and put them in the However, the real basis of the lead one to assume it. Timur sent framework of the broader political data gathered from the ‘Veritable several embassies to the Chinese context of the period. Finally, we Records’ can be doubted, and one emperor, bringing the greatly will address the question, ‘Why did may consider all or at least a desired horses as tribute with the Silk Road decline?’ number of these embassies to be them and Zhu Yuanzhang also ‘fake embassies.’ First, one may When Zhu Yuanzhang defeated sent embassies to the ruler of question whether embassies from the Mongols and founded the Ming Central Asia and Iran. We may Arabia and the Ottoman Empire dynasty in 1368, he was forced to suppose that Timur presented still arrived in China in the late 16th deal with areas across the borders himself as a tributary to the and even early 17th centuries, of China, because the rest of the Chinese in order to gather because Asia was separated by Mongol armies fled with the last necessary information on the political and religious obstacles Yuan emperor Toghan Temür into strategic conditions in early Ming during that period. Another reason the steppes.6 Serious Mongol China. The first of these embassies for these doubts is the existence pretenders survived until 1388, arrived in late 1387 and was sent of various Persian credential some of them recognized even by by the ‘son-in-law’7 Timur — thus letters to the Chinese Emperor the Chinese as having legitimate state the Chinese texts. These which were found as attachments claims. Thus Zhu Yuanzhang had Timurid embassies (some eleven to Persian-Chinese glossaries of to include the regions north of can be counted) continued until
55 1396, and all of them brought with succession. The victor of these Schiltberger, this mission probably them relatively high numbers of struggles was Zhu Di, son of the had a disastrous outcome. Clavijo horses which we will remember first Ming emperor and governor tells us that the Chinese should were the most sought after tribute of Beijing. His rule of 22 years be hanged (Clavijo 1928, 223- item by the Chinese. Why they (1402-1424) as the Yongle 225), and we read nothing of the were brought to a temporary end Emperor may be considered one return of these envoys in Chinese is not quite clear. Fortunately, of the most remarkable reigns of texts. Timur wanted to deliver the however, we can reconstruct the Chinese history. Zhu Di pursued tribute in person and he started probable development of the an expansionist foreign policy. The to organize a campaign against relationship between the Timurids movement of the capital from China in late 1404. The motives and the Ming of those years from Nanjing to Beijing, close to the behind his plans remain obscure; a number of sources: first the Mongols who were still a his self-exculpating words about aforementioned Chinese texts; threatening enemy, can be seen leading his army against non- second, Timurid historiographers as the symbol of this policy. The believers should be doubted. His who also disclose an amount of most important objectives of this main objective was more likely important information; and third policy were: directed against the Moguls, who even Europeans, namely the - Large-scale campaigns possessed the eastern part of the Castilian Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo against the Mongols with former Ulus Chaghatay; against and the Bavarian Johann participation of the emperor; China the campaign might have Schiltberger, who both sojourned - Occupation of Vietnam; been a raid similar to the one he in Samarkand at the turn of the - Maritime expeditions to the led against India some years century. They did not leave much, Western Indian Ocean under before (Kauz 2005, 75-78). Luckily but it is all the more valuable the leadership of admiral for the Chinese, the campaign information because of this. Zheng He; came to no avail, because, as we have seen, Timur died in its early - Active foreign policy towards A letter, allegedly sent by Timur stages. himself, seemed to have been Central Asia. crucial for the interruption of It is certainly the last objective Timur’s successors did not relations between both empires which is of interest here, but the continue his aggressive politics, (Kauz 2005, 64-67). In this letter, Central (and Western) Asia policy but pursued instead peaceful which was received in late 1394 can only be seen in the context of exchanges with China: Fu An and at the Chinese court, Timur the overall foreign policy. One also Chen Dewen, another unconditionally acknowledged the example of this is the presence of Chinese envoy, were allowed to suzerainty of China in most Timurid envoys travelling overland return home with the rest of their obedient terms. As a result the and Hormuzian envoys travelling respective entourages. The Chinese government sent an overseas to Beijing at the same following years witnessed the embassy under the leadership of time in early 1421! Zhu Di had most intensive exchange between the official Fu An and others, woven a close net connecting the the two empires. This exchange among them the eunuch Liu Wei,8 major parts of Asia with China at was documented in both Chinese to Samarkand to thank Timur for its center. This is certainly an and Timurid sources, which allow his submission. Chinese and extraordinary feature in the us to give a fairly exact picture of Timurid texts differ completely in history of Chinese foreign the interactions. It was the telling the story. According to the relations. Chinese Emperor Zhu Di who was first, Fu An refused to kowtow to Before we turn to the peak of the driving force behind them; his Timur and was ordered to travel these relations, their rather probable aims were to propagate around the Timurid Empire to disastrous beginning must be his rule and legitimize it by the realize its size. Strangely enough, revealed. Only a short time after numerous audiences given to the Timurid Sharaf ad-din Yazdi his inauguration, Zhu Di sent an foreign envoys. Possibly a military gives a much more favorable embassy ‘to Samarkand, Herat alliance against the continuing impression of the reception: Fu An and other places to present the Mongol attacks was also part of was allowed ‘to kiss the carpet’ — emirs there with brocade’ (Ming his scheme. The Timurids on the a high favor — and was graciously shilu 1966: Taizong shilu, j. 15, other hand were primarily dismissed. Whatever happened, p. 270). Thus goes the official interested in the various Chinese the embassy must have been a reason; the factual motive, exports such as silks and failure, because out of 1,500 however, was probably to inquire porcelain, though we know at least accompanying soldiers only 17 after the remainders of the former one occasion when Shahrokh, the returned in 1409. Chinese embassies and to resume Timurid ruler until 1447, wanted Zhu Yuanzhang died in 1398, tributary relations. According to to impress Chinese envoys by and his death was followed by the accounts of the Europeans ordering the extensive decoration years of struggle for the already mentioned, Clavijo and of his capital Herat.
56 Some letters which were Empire, but envoys from the Mongols had much greater impact. exchanged between the two rulers Ottoman Empire seem much less The Oirats or Western Mongols have survived in Chinese and likely, since it was rather more became the most important Timurid sources and have become orientated towards Europe in source of danger for the Ming in the object of various translations those years. However, it is not the 1440s, even managing to and research (e.g., Fletcher 1968; altogether impossible that capture the Chinese emperor Zhu Kauz 2005, 93-129). They show Ottoman merchants/envoys Qizhen in the battle of Tumu in that diplomatic misunder- travelled through the whole of 1449. Nevertheless, the Chinese standings were overcome by Western Asia and joined their government was still capable rather pragmatic responses: in Timurid colleagues somewhere in enough to react quickly and particular the Chinese Emperor did Central Asia. We may recall that installed his half brother on the not insist on his alleged superiority Schiltberger returned in these throne. After their captive lost his — which was of paramount same years on a similar route back political importance, the Mongols significance for the Chinese home to Bavaria. released the former emperor, and political system — and the Ming faced the awkward Chinese texts record embassies acknowledged the Timurid ruler as situation of housing another from Western and Central Asia (nearly) his equal. An almost possible emperor inside the walls until the very end of the dynasty, modern system and network of of the capital. A number of military whereas the number (and diplomatic and political exchanges and civil officials finally overthrew success) of Chinese embassies between Western, Central and the Jingtai Emperor in 1457 and declined rapidly after the death of Eastern Asia developed for the few installed the former emperor to Zhu Di. We may thus turn to these decades of the Yongle reign. This take up his reign again under the efforts from the Chinese side regional network was certainly title ‘Heavenly Harmony’ before we consider again the connected with the international (Tianshun). Western. During the Xuanzong era network under Ming guidance. (1425-35), the foreign policy of Zhu Qizhen had obviously Emperor Yongle was not yet learnt his lesson from captivity by However, further developments completely abandoned: one last the Mongols and considered show that these interactions maritime expedition was sent to preventive measures again, depended almost exclusively on the Western Indian Ocean (1431- possibly even further assaults on the foreign policy of Emperor Zhu 33), and three embassies were the Mongols. Two further intended Di. After the death of this emperor sent to Central Asia. However, the Ming embassies (1457 and 1463) on his return from a campaign first succeeded, whereas the latter to the Timurids must probably be against the Mongols in 1424, the three in all probability did not. regarded as parts of these political Chinese embassies to the West Their orders were all given in the schemes, especially because both met with increasing difficulties. It second half of Xuanzong’s rule, but of them had to be conducted seems likely that they never they met with difficulties at the under military guidance. However, reached their destinations in the Chinese borders where Tatars and the course of these missions West, although embassies from Tibetans maltreated the local shows the almost complete the West continued to arrive in population and no doubt also structural military and admin- rather large numbers. Thus, foreign missions, though it seems istrative incompetence which mutual contacts continued, albeit they might have been less severe made sending any more envoys in a rather one-sided manner. One on the Central Asians than on the to the West out of the question. It example may be given: the Chinese (Kauz 2005, 162-172). It had proved to be difficult to obtain ‘Veritable Records’ tell of envoys is not clear at exactly which part even the necessary horses for the arriving at the Chinese court from of the route the Chinese envoys undertaking. The envoys and their Qi’erman (Kerman), Roumi (Rum/ decided to return, because all entourages struggled hard to Ottoman Empire) and Kuncheng incidents are badly recorded. reach Hami or, in the case of the (Kun-City = Qom?) on 14 These records do not support a second mission, did not even September 1425. They brought definite conclusion — they just arrive at this oasis close to China. horses and the ubiquitous ‘local allow a most probable assumption Maybe the latter did not even products’ as tribute with them and that the embassies did not cross leave the capital (Kauz 2005, 211- received silks, brocades and cloth the borders of China. The 219). Thus the last Chinese in return (Ming shilu 1966: insecurity at the borders and the attempts to exchange embassies Xuanzong shilu, j. 7, p. 184, j. 8, Chinese military incapability with the West came to an end. pp. 205, 216). Here we may obviously hindered their passage challenge again the credibility of This did not mean that the beyond China. this embassy: it is possible that traffic collapsed completely. The Kerman and Qom sent envoys to However, the tribes in China’s Central Asian side had obviously China because both cities were west were not the major menace far less difficulty sending envoys within the sphere of the Timurid for China; the attacks of the and merchants to China. One large
57 embassy which arrived in early was the custom that when they stopped sending embassies to the 1453 deserves special mention had entered China, the Chinese west after several failures because the Chinese texts relate government took charge of their disclosed its military and that no fewer than 121 towns sent maintenance’ (Bretschneider administrative incompetence. The envoys — it seems that the whole 1910, Vol. 2, 267). Timurids and their successors Middle East and Central Asia sent continued to send embassies, Thus the history of the their men to China. The reason though these were exclusively interchanges between Western, could have been the inauguration commercial in character. It is most Central and Eastern Asia under the of the aforementioned Jingtai probable that a number of these Ming dynasty can be roughly Emperor. Their great number embassies did not come from divided into two major periods: seems to nourish our suspicion Central Asia at all, but started the time until the mid-15th that we are dealing with fake somewhere near the borders of century and the period afterwards. embassies just adopting names of China and just disguised In the time around 1500 the foreign places. Fortunately, one themselves as coming from places Middle East and Central Asia saw imperial Chinese edict written in further away. However, it may be a number of major changes: the 1453 in Mongolian and Chinese confirmed that the traffic towards Shi’i Safavids came to power in has survived in Turkish archives. China carried on almost until the Iran and partially blocked the The recipient was a ‘small vassal very end of the Ming dynasty, traffic between the Sunni rulers in kingdom’ named La’er, probably although on a rather lower scale. the East and in the West of their the transcription of Lar in southern dominion. The Timurids perished, Iran, a trading center of medium though they found a successor in importance in the Western Indian Babur who conquered northern [Portions of this article were Ocean region. This document India in 1526, and were replaced presented in a lecture, co- proves that contacts between by the Uzbeks, who, however, sponsored by the Silkroad China and rather small could not establish an empire as Foundation and Columbia principalities in the Middle East strong as Timur’s. It can generally University, at the Asia Society in actually existed. be said that the political and New York on November 11, 2005.] economic importance of Central However, the Chinese Asia declined rapidly after 1500. administration gradually lost The discovery of the maritime control of the various tribute route to India and China by Vasco embassies arriving in the capital. da Gama and the following The number of envoys increased About the Author European expansion towards the (sometimes dramatically), but the Indian Ocean did not have much tribute they brought was lacking Doz. Dr. Ralph Kauz is a research influence over the Silk Road both in quality and quantity. Also scholar at the Institute of Iranian traffic.10 embassies came more often than Studies/Austrian Academy of they were entitled to do and To conclude, the embassies Sciences, Vienna. His thesis for his stayed much longer in China than from Timur to the new dynasty in habilitation on Ming-Timurid before. Central Asians obviously China received a favorable political and economic relations lived more comfortably in China response, mainly because they was published in 2005 (see than they did back home; this brought much desired horses with citation below). Among his other assumption is also confirmed by them. However, when China recent publications are “Postal numerous requests of ‘people of reciprocated and sent Chinese Stations in Ming China (1368- Samarkand’9 to settle down in envoys to Samarkand, these were 1644),” in: Angela Schotten- China. But it must be made much less welcome, hammer, ed., Trade and Transfer acknowledged that far fewer probably because of the Chinese Across the East Asian embassies arrived in China from attitude to degrade Timur to a “Mediterranean” (East Asian the middle of the 15th century until mere subordinate of the Ming Maritime History 1) (Wiesbaden: the end of the dynasty than in the Emperor. The relations between Harrasowitz, 2005): 75-89, and preceding hundred years or so, the Timurids and the Ming “Bengali Textiles as Tribute Items the ratio being approximately 35 developed very well only after to Ming China,” in: Rosemary Crill, to 75. For the last period the Timur’s death, and the Ming ed., Textiles from India: The annals of the Ming dynasty made initiatives proved paramount for Global Trade (Calcutta: Seagull the following comments: ‘In the the development of intercourse on Books, 2006): 39-55. He wrote in reign of Wan li (1573-1620) the the Silk Road. The Chinese side The Silk Road, 3/1 (2005) about intercourse with Samarkand was was rather more interested in the his project to publish a translation still animated, for those foreigners propaganda of its superiority, of the “Khataynameh” (Book of liked to carry on trade with the whereas the Timurid side favored China), written by `Ali Akbar Chinese people. Besides this, it commercial aspects. China Khata’i in 1516.
58 References Chih.” Ming Studies, 17 (Fall 3. It is always difficult to apply 1963): 49-59. toponyms to different historical Amiot 1789 periods. When I speak of Iran in Rossabi 1975 Jean Joseph Marie Amiot. “Recueil this article, I mean the region Morris Rossabi. China and Inner de suppliques, lettres de créance.” whose borders roughly encompass Asia: From 1368 to the Present Mémoires concernant l’histoire, les the modern country. Day. London: Thames and sciences, les arts, les mœurs, les Hudson, 1975. 4. According to the hitherto usages & c. des Chinois. 15 vols. unpublished Chinese glossary Paris, 1776-1791. Vol. 14 (1789): Rossabi 1990 ‘Zengxu zazi’ Tianfang is the 239-308. Morris Rossabi. “The ‘decline’ of country of the ‘Kingdom of the Bretschneider 1910 the central Asian caravan trade.” Kaaba’ (mamlakat-e ka’beh). In: James D. Tracy, ed. The Rise Emil Bretschneider. Mediaeval 5. Some of these letters were of Merchant Empires: Long- Researches from Eastern Asiatic already published in 1789; see Distance Trade in the Early Modern Sources. Fragments towards the Amiot 1789. World, 1350-1750. Cambridge Knowledge of the Geography and etc.: Cambridge University Press, 6. For an overview of Chinese History of Central and Western relations with Inner Asia beginning th th 1990: 351-370. Asia from the 13 to the 17 under the Ming, see Rossabi 1975. Century. 2 vols. London: Rout- Thackston 1989 ledge & Kegan Paul, Trench, Wheeler M. Thackston, tr. and ed. 7. Chinese fuma, a translation of Trübner & Co., 1910. A Century of Princes. Sources on the Mongolian word kürgän, as Timur called himself. Son-in-law of Clavijo 1928 Timurid History and Art. Cambridge, Mass.: The Aga Khan Chingis Khan is meant, thus Ruy González de Clavijo. Clavijo: Program for Islamic Architecture, legitimating his rule. Embassy to Tamerlane, 1403- 1989. 1406. Guy Le Strange, tr. and ed. 8. Eunuchs played a crucial role London etc.: Harper & Brothers, Watanabe 1975 in diplomatic and tribute relations during the entire Ming dynasty. 1928. Extended excerpts also Hiroshi Watanabe. “An Index of available on-line at
59 denser coat to protect it from the Hunting Hounds along the Silk colder climate [Fig. 2]. Road – Which Way Did They Go? It has been shown recently that the dog was first domesticated Sir Terence Clark from the wolf in Eastern Asia and London spread outwards from there across the world probably about 15,000 years ago or possibly In 2001 I journeyed for the first their long limbs, deep chest, 40,000 years ago (Savolainen et time along part of the Silk Road tucked up waist, wedge-shaped al.). According to the Russian from Khiva to Bukhara, head on a long neck, pendulous cynologist V. A. Gorodtsov hunting Samarkand, Tashkent, Bishkek, ears and whippy tail, have been and other types of specialised Lake Issyk-kul and Almaty to known to exist in Western Asia dogs emerged in Central Asia in realise an ambition I had nurtured since at least the fourth the Neolithic period (8-10,000 since studying Russian at millennium BCE. Archaeological BCE) (Plakhov and Shelestova Cambridge years before. The evidence from this period in the forthcoming). This accords with following year I journeyed along shape of seal impressions from archaeological evidence in another part from Bishkek over Tepe Gawra in the Tien Shan to Kashgar, then northern Iraq through the oasis towns on the shows repre- southern side of the Taklimakan sentations of before crossing the desert to the such hounds in northern oases and on to pursuit of Dunhuang, finally leaving via cervidae (Clark Urumqi to Almaty. During these 1995, 132). journeys I came across various Similar hounds, hunting hounds peculiar to Central though with dis- Asia but similar in many aspects tinctive pricked to the Saluki, the hunting hound ears and a tail of the Middle East, where I had curled over the spent much of my professional back and gener- career. I was curious to know ally known as whether there was indeed a Tesem also occur relationship between them and, if in Ancient Egypt Fig. 2. Central Asian Tazy in Kazakhstan. Photograph so, whether these hounds owed from ca. 3,750- copyright © 2007 Terence Clark. their origins to Western or Central 3,400 BCE Asia. (Brewer 2001, 32). In the absence Western Asia and leaves a of evidence elsewhere to the considerable period of millennia Hunting hounds of the Saluki contrary, it would seem likely that for distinctive breeds of hunting family [Fig. 1], characterised by the Saluki type of hunting hound hounds to have developed before emerged first on the great the advent of the Arabian Saluki plains of Mesopotamia, to Central Asia, which Russian where they were used for cynologists, such L. P. Sabaneev, hunting mainly by sight the A. A. Sludskii and E. I. whole range of the abundant Shereshevskii, generally agree game then to be found came in the wake of the Muslim there, as well as predators conquests in the 7th and 8th such as fox, jackal and wolf. centuries and was crossed with However it cannot be local breeds to produce the Central excluded that among the Asian Tazy (Ibid.). Sabaneev says nomadic tribes of Central that the admixture of blood from Asia, who may have left few these local breeds brought about tangible clues, similar a change in the smooth-haired requirements for a hunting Saluki’s appearance to a longer hound on the steppes and coat, fringes, pendulous ears and semi-deserts there may a generally coarser build. He does have shaped a similar kind not specify what these local Fig. 1. Smooth-haired Iraqi Saluki. Photo- of hound, possibly with a breeds were but only that they graph copyright © 2007 Terence Clark.
60 Scythians’ British Library on the Silk Road in splendid 2004 there were two 7th century examples of the Tang dynasty terra cotta figurines goldsmith’s art, of such hounds in unmistakable including the poses: one sitting upright and the famous pectoral other crouching on the crupper of from the Tolstaia a horse behind its huntsman Mogila, showing master [Fig. 4]. A magnificent smooth-haired mural in an imperial 7th century hounds with Tang tomb near Chang’an shows either pricked or a falconer with a Sparrowhawk on cropped ears in his arm accompanied by a pursuit of hare beautifully represented feathered (Przezdziecki Saluki (Whitfield 1999, 89). A 9th- 2001, 67). The century painted scroll in the British Seleucids’ capital Museum of the Paradise of at Seleucia in Bhasajyaguru from Dunhuang in Fig. 3. Petroglyph from Kazakhstan. Photograph copy- contemporary the time of the Tang dynasty right © 2006 Renato Sala of the International Scientific Iraq was retained shows a smooth-haired hound Projects of the Laboratory of Geo-archaeology, Almaty. by their suc- Saluki reaching for a piece of Reproduced with permission. cessors — the meat. Another Tang painting Parthians, though shows two Salukis in a butcher’s were longhaired mountain dogs the following Sasanians built a new with pendulous ears (Sabaneev town at Ctesiphon on the opposite 1993, 13). side of the Tigris in 226 CE — and was the great hub controlling However this attribution of the international trade from Rome to origin of the Tazy to the eastward China that became known as the movement of Salukis with the Silk Road (Valtz Fino 2005, 149). conquering Arabs seems to Much of this trade for some 500 overlook other evidence that years was in the hands of the suggests the presence of very Sogdians, based around Bukhara, similar smooth-haired hunting Samarkand and the Ferghana hounds in the region at much valley, who were for long exposed earlier dates, which might equally to Hellenistic influence, not least have contributed to the since Alexander’s wife Roxanne development of the Tazy. There was a Sogdian (Sinor 1990, 175). are for example petroglyphs from So it is entirely possible that Saluki the 1st and 2nd millennium in hounds were being conveyed Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan that eastwards along that route well show stylised dogs in hunting before the Arab conquests. Indeed scenes, though in general they if we look further east in China in appear to have pricked ears and the Qin Period (221-207 BCE) we an upward curling tail more like find funerary bricks from noble Fig. 4. Tang dynasty figurine. Photo- the Tesem of Ancient Egypt [Fig. graph copyright © 2007 Victoria and tombs with graphic examples of 3]. Albert Museum. Reproduced with per- smooth-haired hunting hounds mission. In the 4th century BCE with cropped or pricked ears in Alexander the Great and his hunting scenes (Przezdziecki shop, while a Song dynasty colour Seleucid successors had 2001, 98). Similar hounds appear and ink on silk painting from the established an empire from the on stamped bricks (Ibid.) and in 10th century shows three mounted Mediterranean to Afghanistan and stone reliefs (Schafer 1985, 77) hunters carrying unmistakable the Indus. It is known that the later in the Han Period (206-220 Salukis on their horses (Waters Greeks used Saluki-like hounds for CE). and Waters 1984, 92, 40). Much hunting. Indeed there are grounds later a Jesuit painter resident in for believing that the very name Be that as it may, it is clear that Beijing in the mid-18th century Saluki comes from the Arabic word by the 7th century hounds looking painted several Salukis for a Saluqi for Seleucid (Smith 1980). remarkably like contemporary presentation album to the The Greeks traded with western Salukis were being represented in Qianlong Emperor, though it is Central Asia and their influence art across Central Asia and China. suggested that foreign dignitaries can be seen in some of the In a remarkable exhibition at the may have given them as tribute
61 Greyhound; yet it hounds, particularly since the was not a Saluki departure of many of the ethnic either. All their Russian population, and I had keeper could tell given up all thought of seeing any us was that this more hunting hounds. It was hound and all the therefore a pleasant surprise to be others we saw greeted on arrival in Tash Rabat there had come by a hound with a dense black coat originally from that the local Kyrgyz called a Russia and that Taigan [Fig. 7]. This breed is he used them for particular to the high mountains seeking out fallen where it has developed the ability gazelle in the to hunt all manner of animals in Fig. 5. Mounted Berkutchis and Tazys in Kyrgyzstan. Pho- reserve. During a the rare atmosphere above 2,500 tograph copyright © 2007 Terence Clark, from original visit to Russia in m even in the depths of winter. It on display in Cholpon Ata Museum, Kyrgyzstan. 2004 I saw many appears to be related to the Saluki (Rawski and Rawson 2005, 188- similar hounds, which were called but with a broader head, a stockier 191, 410-411). Hortaya (khortaia) [Fig. 6]. Some build and a dense coat. Russians believe that this breed It proved to be the first of a may have descended from those Against this academic evidence number of such hounds that we smooth-haired hunting hounds I set off to explore for facts on the were to see. We took a walk up shown in the early Scythian ground today. The start in the into the mountains hoping to see representations mentioned walled oasis town of Khiva in into China and on the way came above. western Uzbekistan appeared across a yurt that was protected auspicious as I spotted a Berkut After taking in the many by a red and white Taigan. A or Golden Eagle sitting on a stand. delights of Bukhara, Shakhrisabz woman emerged from the yurt The Berkut is traditionally used who turned out to be someone for hunting right across Central to whom we had given a lift Asia and is often used in earlier. She welcomed us into tandem with Tazys [Fig. 5]. My her yurt and showed us a tiny hopes were soon dashed black Taigan puppy. Her however as it turned out to be husband appeared and said a mere tourist attraction. We that he hunted marmot and crossed the Oxus or Amu Darya mountain goat for the pot, and as it is now called and drove the hounds were very affective parallel with it along the even when the temperature fell southern side of the Kyzyl Kum to –30 degrees C. As we in ideal hunting country but explored further in the area we without success, apart from passed near another yurt from some information about an which a man hailed us, offering oasis town far from our road us hospitality. We declined but that was described as the Fig. 6. Russian Hortaya in Uzbekistan. Pho- asked if there were any Taigans centre for hunting with Tazys. tograph copyright © 2007 Terence Clark. nearby. He indicated a valley However I noticed on the map an area outside Bukhara that was and Samarkand, designated as a gazelle nature we drove on via reserve. I reasoned that if gazelle Tashkent and were indigenous there hunting Bishkek deep into hounds might also be found there. Kyrgyzstan. Our We stopped at the entrance to the destination was a reserve, and I went in with our yurt in the Tien guide to speak to the Director in Shan Mountains charge. Bounding to meet us near the former came the familiar form of what I Silk Road cara- supposed to be a smooth fawn vanserai at Tash Saluki. On closer inspection it Rabat. All along proved to have turned back ears, our route I had which are more commonly been told about associated with Greyhounds, the decline in Fig. 7. Taigan at Tash Rabat. Photograph copyright © though it definitely was not a hunting with 2007 Terence Clark.
62 where we would find some. We round her beautifully decorated By the time of my next trip splashed through an icy mountain yurt, from the roof of which hung along the Silk Road a year later I stream up the valley and around a fur from a fox caught by her had established via the Internet a bend came on another yurt and Taigan. Further on we came across contact with people in Kyrgyzstan a mud-brick house under a young lad walking by the and Kazakhstan so that my search construction. As we approached roadside with a beautiful black and for Central Asian hunting hounds three Taigans rushed out to greet tan hound that had something of was less haphazard. This time my us. They were very friendly and the old-fashioned Bell-Murray type earlier impression of the situation looked in good condition: one of of Afghan Hound about it [Fig. 8]. of these hounds was reinforced Nearby I spotted out both factually and visually. Our of the corner of my guide, Almaz Kurmankulov, was a eye a familiar shape founder of the Kyrgyz Taigan gliding along the Society, which had recorded about base of a farmhouse 200 purebred Taigans and was wall. We made a encouraging breeders to preserve little detour and the breed as part of the nation’s were warmly heritage. Starting in Bishkek he welcomed by the took us first to meet a well-known farmer’s wife and horse and Taigan breeder on his her small bright- farm. Here we saw a number of eyed daughter, who his breeding stock, all of them proudly showed us black and white, with the the black and white distinctive ring at the end of the Taigan bitch, rather tail where the last two vertebrae strangely called are fused together. One bitch was Tarzan, and her five surrounded by a litter of lively Fig. 8. Afghan Hound? Photograph copyright © 2007 tiny puppies. The puppies, two of which were due Terence Clark. bitch gave a warning to be presented later to King Juan growl when I Carlos of Spain. We had intended them was heavily pregnant and stepped too near to take a picture to see one of the kennels on Lake was due to give birth within a few of the puppies and the next thing Issyk-kul, but all the hounds were days. All, we were told, were I knew was that she had bitten me away in the mountains where they excellent hunters. A little further in the ankle, to the mortification spend the summer months with on I saw another Taigan on the of her owner! No serious harm was the flocks and herds. As we were other side of a stream by a small done and I was assured that the to see later this is the bountiful house. As soon as we stopped to bitch had been vaccinated against time for Taigans when marmots get a better look, the door of the rabies, but it was a warning not are abundant, which they catch to house flew open and some young to mess with a Taigan with feed their puppies. Instead we lads rushed out, jumped onto puppies. made a diversion high into the horses and raced across the mountains to visit Zarnai stream towards us, followed by a Sagenbai, one of the few It was clear from all these very lively Taigan puppy. It was remaining Berkutchis in encounters that the Taigan, like only with difficulty that we Kyrgyzstan. We found him and his the Saluki in the Middle East, is managed to extricate ourselves wife at their yurt, outside of which held in a position of high esteem from their pressing invitations to sat a screaming Berkut. Zarnai put both as a pot-filler and as a their house. We did relent further on a demonstration of his skill, companion. However, as in other on where a woman appeared from flying the Berkut from his horse parts of the region, the pressures a small house with a plate of to a lure in the valley below [Fig. of modern life on the habitat of different dairy products: kaimak 9, next page]. He and his sons still the hunting hound’s prey is (a sweet thick cream), curds and flew their eagles to hunt mainly leading to a decline in the numbers cheese with delicious fresh bread. hare for food and fox for fur but of the Taigan and, according to also for wolf to protect their As we descended from the local sources, the carelessness of livestock. In the past they used mountains the next day we passed some of the hunters has resulted to fly them in tandem with Tazys, many yurts and great herds of in some crossing with other as an old photograph in the horses, sheep and cattle — and breeds. Nevertheless in my short Cholpan-Ata Museum illustrated even a few yaks. We stopped at exploration I had seen enough of [Fig. 5, facing page]. one where a woman was making the breed to form the impression little round cheeses (qurut) that that it is still hanging on As on our last trip we made for she was setting out to dry and successfully in this area of Tash Rabat whence we planned to harden in the sun. She showed us Kyrgyzstan. drive over the Torugart Pass into
63 yurt dragged out from her number of raptors of different underground den a very kinds, some of which are there for reluctant bitch to show us breeding and some for her recently born puppies. rehabilitation, after being found There could be no doubt injured, and release into the wild. that in these remote parts Running loose were several Taigans still formed an mature Tazys and puppies, while essential part of the Kyrgyz in well-designed kennels some nomads’ way of life. Tobets padded massively up and down. Both the Tazy and the Tobet Fascinating though the have suffered from a decline in journey along the Silk numbers and in quality, and the Road through the Uighur Centre is endeavouring to Region proved to be, in preserve the breeds and to terms of hunting hounds it encourage their wider distribution. was totally unrewarding. It is hard to judge its success. According to border Certainly I heard of some Kazakhs Fig. 9. Kyrgyz Berkutchi. Photograph copy- officials and our guide, we right© 2007 Terence Clark. who maintained quite large were not allowed to depart kennels of Tazys for hunting on the Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous from the main road to visit Kyrgyz their farms and on the steppe, and Region of China. As we arrived at villages in which I had expressed I met some Tazy breeders in our yurts we were greeted with an interest; so I could not make Almaty. However, the problem is the news that there was a Kyrgyz enquiries there. Among the Uighur also one of changing lifestyles: community some 30 km away with and Han Chinese I met only blank there is no longer the same need Taigans that Almaz was keen to looks when I showed them to hunt for food or for fur, and register. So he and I and a local photographs of the hounds. Yet a younger people are more Russian driver set off to find them. contemporary mural in the Khotan interested in computer games Before long we found ourselves at Museum illustrating medieval than hunting in the often harsh a military checkpoint before the travellers on the Silk Road showed conditions of the steppe. border with China. The prospects in the central foreground an of passing it did not look too good unmistakable Tazy. Throughout my tours I was as neither of my companions had How different was the reception collecting here and there from the passports with them. However a at our final destination in various hunting hounds both friendly officer pointed to a white Kazakhstan! In Almaty Konstantin mtDNA and DNA samples to send house a few hundred metres away Plakhov, a biologist at the Institute to Dr Peter Savolainen in Sweden, where he said we would find many of Zoology and a champion of who is undertaking research into Taigans and allowed us to pass. Kazakhstan’s native breeds, came the origins of dogs. The research, Sure enough we found several to the hotel and took mature hounds there, some with me to call on Askar young puppies that kept popping Raibaev, President out of deep holes in the ground of the Dog Breeding where they lived, protected from Federation of the biting wind and predators. Kazakhstan. As I Almaz duly measured them and entered his house I recorded their details. A young lad almost fell over came up and asked if we would Roshan, a beautiful like to see some more. So under Tazy that occupied his guidance we set off in our much of the centre ancient car across country where of the room with her there was not so much as a dirt eight puppies. Askar Fig. 10. Kazakh Tobet. Photograph copyright © 2007 track. After some while we described the con- Terence Clark. stopped at the top of a bluff from siderable efforts where we could see below a yurt being made to preserve not only which has of course important belching smoke from its chimney: the Tazy but also the Tobet [Fig. implications for the history of we had arrived. Scrambling down 10], a huge shepherd guard dog, mankind in this region, continues, we were met by several Taigans of which I was shortly to see some and in due course it may lead to of different ages and sizes and in specimens at my next stop — the an answer to my initial question no time Almaz was submerged in Sunkar Breeding Centre in a about the western or central Asian a heap of playful puppies, grown beautiful setting outside the town. origins of these hunting hounds fat on regurgitated marmot meat The Centre contains a large along the Silk Road. from their parents. The lady of the
64 About the Author / Al-Saluqi: kalb al-sayd al-sharqi. of T’ang Exotics. Berkeley: Apache Junction, Az.: Midbar, Inc., University of California Press, 1985 The author studied Russian at 1995: 131-134. (1st ed., 1963). Cambridge University while in the Plakhov and Shelestova Sinor 1990 Royal Air Force but on joining the forthcoming British Foreign Service was sent Denis Sinor, ed. The Cambridge to study Arabic at the School of Konstantin N. Plakhov and A. S. History of Early Inner Asia. Oriental and African Studies at Shelestova. Borzye Tazy i okhota Cambridge: Cambridge University London University and at the s nimi. Almaty: forthcoming. Press, 1990, p.175. Middle East Centre for Arab Przezdziecki 2001 Smith 1980 Studies in Lebanon. He spent Xavier Przezdziecki. Our Levriers. G. Rex Smith. “The Arabian much of his career in the Middle Nice: Les Amis de Xavier Hound, the Saluqi — Further East, latterly as Ambassador to Przezdziecki, 2001. (Tr. of Le Consideration of the Word and Iraq and to Oman. In retirement Destin des Levriers. Paris, 1984.) Other Observations on the Breed.” he retains close links with the Bulletin of the School of Oriental Middle East through a number Rawski and Rawson 2005 and African Studies (University of of academic bodies and has Evelyn S. Rawski and Jessica London), 43/3 (1980): 459-465. written extensively in books and Rawson. China: The Three journals on the history and politics Emperors, 1662-1795. London: Valtz Fino 2005 of the region and on the Saluki and Royal Academy of Arts, 2005. Elisabetta Valtz Fino. “In the Wake hunting. E-mail
A Thousand Years on the Silk Road: in six states and performed for over 3000 people. The purpose of Epic Poetry and Music from the the tour was to provide Kyrgyz Republic opportunities for Americans to learn about Central Asian Rysbai Isakov, Epic Singer performance culture from two Akylbek Kasabolotov, Musician talented cultural ambassadors and to provide the artists with Dr. Helen Faller, Anthropologist experiences that would help them to develop their art in new ways. In February-March 2006, with performed episodes from the Video footage of the Kyrgyz generous support from the Kyrgyz national epic Manas, the Cultural Performances concert at Silkroad Foundation, anthro- longest in the world at over half a the University of Texas at Austin pologist Helen Faller toured the million lines, and Akylbek is on view at www. United States with two young Kasabolotov, a member of silkroadfoundation.org and artists from Kyrgyzstan in a series Kyrgyzstan’s Tengir Too realaudio.cc.utexas.edu:8080/ of university residencies called the Ensemble, who shared his ramgen/cola/centers/creees/ Kyrgyz Cultural Performances country’s unique nomadic musical images/media/ Project. The artists were Rysbai traditions. The three of them were kyrgyz_022206E.rm. Information Isakov, a laureate epic singer, who in residence at eight universities about the project can be found on
65 the Central Asian Cultural How I started to recite I’ve told R: No. … I took ten years off from Exchange website — www. you, right? Before [I began to school and then went back cace.us. recite] I was very ill. I was very, afterwards. very ill. It’s impossible to describe In addition to being a manaschy H: When did you start working for the it in words — it wasn’t a physical — reciter of the Manas epic — Manas Miras Foundation? At first you disease. And then I had a vision. Rysbai is the Executive Director of worked in television, right? After that I began to get better the Manas Miras Foundation, the R: After I got my university mission of which is to preserve the slowly. At the beginning I didn’t even understand what it was, it degree, I worked in television Manas. Rysbai explained to programming. But before that we American audiences that he was incomprehensible. But, afterwards, after I started to recite established a society among suffered from terrible migraine ourselves of creative young headaches as a child and that only a little, I noticed that my head wasn’t aching like it used to. people. I worked there as the after he received a vision and executive director. We developed began to recite the Manas did they H: You were already older than 12 at oral folk projects in the form of dissipate. In fact, if he doesn’t that time? contemporary performance. We recite regularly, he becomes ill. R: That was when I was around submitted a proposal to the Akylbek is in his first year of 15 or 16. Only then did I start to television company and started graduate school at Bishkek’s notice, but up till then I didn’t working there. We collaborated Conservatory, where he studies quite…Only at the age of 12 did I there with writers from the House under composer and director of start to understand…not of Poets. At that time I received the Tengir Too Ensemble, understand but rather to feel it… an invitation from Baitkochernezov Nurlanbek Nishanov. Unlike (Sponsor of the Manas Miras H: Did people start inviting you to Rysbai, he considers himself an Foundation) which I accepted, and recite the Manas at that age? artist who needs to practice in we started the Foundation. order to perform. In addition to R: No. I recited at school on studying and playing profession- special occasions. I was very shy H (turning to Akylbek): I would like to ally, Akylbek teaches music at the about reciting the Manas. My learn more about how you came to university level. upbringing made me shy. But, work in music. This interview, here somewhat there were occasions. Akylbek: Well, my father’s younger brother is a musician. He shortened for publication, took H: They called upon you. place, mostly in Russian, over tea plays the komuz (Kyrgyz lute). in Helen Faller’s Philadelphia home R: Yes, people who wanted to Even now he works at the Karakul in early mid-March 2006. hear. And when they asked, I Music School. And he was the one began…I closed my eyes and I who showed me the musical path Helen: I wanted to start by asking how don’t know how I performed. The in the road [of life]. He had me long you have each been pursuing your epic began.…I probably started to start as a student at the music art, although (she nods to Rysbai) you recite the Manas properly from the school in 1996. And there I learned don’t consider it art, right? If you could age of 20. That’s when I started how to play the balalaika, the talk a little about the place of the truly to understand the Manas. Russian ‘lute.’ Manas in your life, in your childhood, Until then, I was somehow blind. for example, that would be interesting. H: And for the komuz there are no H: And how did that happen? I’m written notes. Is that how they taught Rysbai: I had a grandmother who curious. the instrument? told me all those folk tales. Epics, legends, and all that. And of R: I became accustomed A: No. course she told me about the somehow and began no longer to suffer from shyness when I H: They taught students to play by Manas. I don’t know at what age, using musical notation. but in my childhood I was familiar recited. Step by step… A (nods): And around then they with the Manas and when I already H: But by the age of 20 you had opened a department of mountain had learned how to read, my already lived in Bishkek for four years region instruments. At the time, grandmother gave me a book. And after graduating from high school. there was no such thing. she wanted me to read from it not Right? as it is read silently, but as it is R: I became a student at the H: But I thought your father’s brother recited. And when I read it, she university. In Bishkek I was a komuz player? broke into tears. participated in competitions and A: Yes he is. But he was the only H: How old were you at the time? festivals. We all competed among komuz player, and he took me R: I was six, no, not six. Older. ourselves. From every department under his wing. So that’s how I And that’s how I grew up. I grew in the university. ended up learning how to play the up in the spirit of the Manas. And H: That was 10 years ago. Didn’t balalaika. But, I also have a I began to recite at the age of 12. studying interfere? grandmother who plays the
66 komuz. After I finished music Technical University. So we started H: I would like to know from you why school, I wanted to study at the to work there, and we’re there you decided to participate in this Conservatory in the capital city of now. project, to take part in a residence Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek. across what seems like almost all of H: I have a question. You both had to America? H: And that was five years ago? move to Bishkek in order to seriously A: Yes. In 1996 I entered the pursue your callings? R: For me it was an honor. And Karakul Music School and I A: Yes. not everyone is given such an graduated in 2000. And in the opportunity, right? To travel to R: I didn’t know that I was going America. same year I immediately began at to become a manaschy. I just the Conservatory. At that time the decided to go to university. H: Akylbek, why did you decide to Conservatory offered only participate in this project? traditional singing and the komuz. A: I wanted to continue studying music. A: We have a saying in Kyrgyz that But in 2000 they opened a states, if they invite you, it is department of national music that H: Hm. I ask because it’s not an necessary to go. And the second included wind instruments and the absolute contradiction but it seems reason is that I wanted to show kylkiyak (Kyrgyz cello). somewhat strange that you as rural my culture to Americans. It’s as H: It was Nurlanbek. [Nurlanbek people who have very deep folk roots Rysbai aga said, for us it is an Nishanov is a Kyrgyz composer and in your blood, in order to develop those honor. Athletes and cultural director of Tengir Too, who has worked roots to reach a higher level had to activists have a special role. It is with the Aga Khan Trust for Culture for move to Bishkek, which is a much less our obligation… some five years. Akylbek is his Kyrgyz place. In the sense that R: To bring to light the splendor protégé.] Russians live there, Russian speakers. of the people, the people’s culture. A: Both Nurlanbek and Chytyrbaev In Bishkek, things aren’t really so much H: And what did you want to get out opened the new department. So culturally Kyrgyz as they are post- of this experience? after entering the Conservatory, I Soviet, right? gave it a lot of thought and A: If I had stayed in Karakul, I R: We wanted to perform as we decided that I wanted to play my wouldn’t have learned to play should, so that our people own national instruments. And I national wind instruments. There wouldn’t be ashamed of us after immediately started playing wind aren’t any professionals like our performance. We hoped for instruments. I gave up the Nurlanbek there. And I want to say that. balalaika and began from nothing. that Nurlanbek aga is the only H: Akylbek, did you want something Nurlanbek started me out from Kyrgyz folk musician who works at different or the same thing? nothing. And when I graduated a professional level. Now he has from the Conservatory, he begun to revive all our musical A: The same thing. For the public immediately gave me work in traditions and has started to make to understand and listen to us. We Tengir Too. instruments. And he composes are very pleased. It has been works to be played on folk good. Our dream has been H: But, before joining Tengir Too, you instruments. For that reason I had realized. also played in a group, right? to leave home to study. Because H: How do you feel you’re being A: Yes, yes. I played when I was there weren’t any professionals, received by American audiences. How in music school in an ensemble any teachers. do you feel when you perform? called Aidigil. I played a little sybyzgy (Kyrgyz flute), but only R: For me, as I said, the situation A: I feel comfortable, somehow. the sybyzgy. But, in Karakul there was different. I never dreamed of R: Yes, and it’s not only our music weren’t really any musicians of becoming a manaschy. I simply that they understand. If a person professional stature. And then thought about getting into has music in his or her soul, then Nurlan aga [an honorific meaning university. Just like everyone else. it is possible to understand without older brother or uncle] invited me I got in and suddenly that was language. But, the astonishing to work with Tengir Too. I worked what happened. I’ve already said thing is that they understand the with Tengir Too for two or three that I started truly to understand Manas as well. You saw that months, but then they closed due the Manas when I was studying in yourself in Texas. The audience to lack of finances. And then in Bishkek. told us what was happening in the 2003 we started to work again. H: It’s interesting to me that in order epic. They asked the question about the woman speaking [the H: That was because of the Aga Khan to continue to do your work, you have students heard Rysbai vocalizing Foundation? You started getting money to be in the city. Kanykei’s distress and wanted to from them or… R: Well, we aren’t always there. know more]. That shows that they A: Yes. And in addition to that we We very often leave the city for understood the words. And one got support from the Kyrgyz State the villages to tour and perform. woman said that she began to cry
67 when I was reciting. Moments like R: There you go. If you’re going every detail is looked after. With that make it clear to us that to eat a lot, you need to be active. this experience we can’t say that American audiences comprehend But, that’s my personal opinion. we really know America, but we us with their souls. There’s a lot more, of course. If do have some understanding of H: Did you have any other additional you compare Texas with Wyoming the place now. And our goals for your trip to America? and New York, it’s magnificent. We impressions are completely saw Texas first, and then different from what we have been R: We didn’t come here only to Wyoming. In those places told about America. acquaint America with our culture. everything was clean. Like glass, H: Interesting. At the same time we wanted to right? But when we arrived in New learn, to see how Americans live York, it was unexpected. New York R: In Kyrgyz we say: it’s better to with our own eyes. What life is was dirty. It turns out that a big see something once than to hear really like for Americans. To hear city means big trash. (Laughs) about it a thousand times. I about it is one thing, but to see it wanted to make one more point. with your own eyes is another. We H: Akylbek, you didn’t answer the Here it seems easier for people to didn’t even know that Americans question about what you found realize their dreams. I would like would be so hospitable…but of surprising in America. to extablish a creative connection, course their traditions are A: Well, what has been surprising a scholarly and creative con- completely different. And that was is to see such big cities, how nection, with Americans with the a surprise for us. I personally they’re built, and also I’m goal of preserving the Manas epic. thought that Americans wouldn’t surprised by how much work is To create that connection and invite us to their houses as guests. involved…and how well the realize it… In the Manas there are H: And what else surprised you? buildings are looked after. Inside sacred things — not for any everything is in order. So, all that particular nations or tribes. But R: Wyoming was surprising. The human labor, that surprises me. things that should be sacred for heavenly nature in Wyoming, the How everything is kept up. And all people. Like the Bible, like the beautiful mountains, and of course another thing — the relationship Koran! Like Buddhism and the antelope. How the sheep roam between man and nature is very Krishnaism and so on. The Manas free. close. In my opinion, that’s very is also a part of those worlds. One H (addressing Akylbek): And did good. shouldn’t divide them. And it’s not anything surprise you other than that? H: What do you mean exactly? right to love only one and deny the A: Well, seeing the cities and the others, the way that religious A: Yesterday we learned [while fanatics do. For example, one civilization itself, yes. And the cars, guests at the house of some by comparison with ours… There fanatic loves only the Bible and Philadelphia Kyrgyz] that sheep denies all other religions. Another are differences… The people here aren’t slaughtered the same way are good and very open. loves only Islam and denies we do it in Kyrgyzstan. Here they another religion. If a person truly H: You didn’t expect that? use a special razor. The attitude believes in the sacredness of his A: No. I didn’t expect that. No of people to nature here is religion, then he ought to value matter where you go, people are respectful, not only towards other sacred things. animals but towards all nature. ready to answer your questions. H: Certainly. Akylbek? And the cities, the cities are very Also, it was good to meet local beautiful. musicians, who played different A: Well, for me this experience has kinds of music. I played with them. given the inspiration when I go H: What haven’t you liked in America? They taught me music and I back to Kyrgyzstan to practice and I have asked you several times. It taught them music. It was very play music even more. To make probably seems like a strange question interesting. even more instruments. To learn to you, since you haven’t answered. R: I would like to collaborate how to play new instruments. And R: Aha, what haven’t we liked? creatively with Americans again. eventually to compose a piece of That of course is a matter for each music. That’s what I feel inspired person. That’s personal… Well, I H: Although you haven’t yet seen all to do. of America, you’ve spent some time notice that very few people are a H: And the piece of music will be for healthy weight. here and I wonder if your opinion of it has changed. Kyrgyz folk instruments or for… H: Yes, Americans eat too much. R: Yes. Yes, now we’ve seen it with A: For folk instruments. R: I think it’s not just a matter of our own eyes, right? Of course our H: Good. Thank you for taking the time overeating. I eat a great deal too knowledge isn’t complete. to do this interview. As bolsyn. and I don’t put on weight. Everywhere we go, we are treated R and A: As bolsyn. H: Yes, but you walk 11 km every day as guests. We live in hotels. In [to and from work in Bishkek]. short, everything is done for us —
68