Richthofen's “Silk Roads”: Toward the Archaeology of a Concept
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Volume 5 Number 1 Summer 2007 “The Bridge between Eastern and Western Cultures” From the Editor’s Desktop In This Issue Richthofen’s ‘Silk Roads’ ..............1 Richthofen’s “Silk Roads”: Toward Special feature on food: the Archaeology of a Concept Georgia: A Culinary Crossroads...11 Food, Medicine & the Silk Road . 22 Seeking Mongolian Barbecue .... 36 In the year now drawing to a close a scholarly discipline (Oster- we are marking the 130th hammel 1987, p. 150). Trained Xiongnu Royal Grave at Tsaraam 44 anniversary of Ferdinand Freiherr especially in geomorphology, he Tsaraam Chinese Inscription ...... 56 von Richthofen’s publication of the studied areas of East and Ancient Anatolian Tracks ........... 59 term “die Seidenstrasse,” the Silk Southeast Asia, and then between Mongolia exhibition book ........... 66 Road. Almost any discussion of the 1862 and 1868 worked in the Dunhuang Centenary ................ 68 Silk Road today will begin with the American West. Today a 3944 m Upcoming programs .................. 73 obligatory reminder that the noted peak in Colorado bears his name. German geographer had coined Between 1868 and 1872, he spent the term, even if few seem to much of his time traveling in Next Issue know where he published it and China; his initial observations from what he really meant. For some those travels already appeared in Hermann Parzinger on Eurasian time now I have wondered exactly an English edition in Shanghai in archaeology what the good Baron said, which, 1872. While the political dis- Reports on the 2007 Silkroad as it turns out was something both turbances in Xinjiang prevented Foundation-Mongolian National narrower and broader than what his visiting that region, the range Museum excavations and survey those who invoke him have tended of mountains bordering the Gansu in Khovd aimag by Bryan Miller, to suggest. Corridor on the south (Qilianshan) Jessieca Leo, Veronica Joseph for a long time bore his name. His and James Williams Rather than use my space initial academic position was as a primarily for editorial comment on Odbaatar on a Uighur cemetery geologist, but in 1886 he became the contents of this issue of our chair of the Geography De- near Kharbalgas journal, I decided to undertake a Lin Ying on the Boma cup kind of archaeological investi- and more… gation, digging a test pit to discover what is in the layer containing Richthofen’s original About formulation. Readers should be warned that, like Heinrich The Silk Road is a semi-annual publi- Schliemann at Troy, I am going to cation of the Silkroad Foundation. The ignore most of the intervening Silk Road can also be viewed on-line at <http://www.silkroadfoundation. layers, which also merit close org/toc/newsletter.html>. Please feel attention, and try to focus on the free to contact us with any questions one that contains the gold. or contributions. Guidelines for con- However, unlike Schliemann, I tributors may be found in Vol. 2, No. should have little danger of 1 (June 2004) on the website. digging right through it and destroying other interesting The Silkroad Foundation evidence. Delimiting the rest of P.O. Box 2275 Saratoga, CA. 95070 the stratigraphy, both above and below, is a project for future Editor: Daniel C. Waugh research. [email protected] Ferdinand von Richthofen © 2007 Silkroad Foundation (1833-1905) [Fig. 1] was a scholar © 2007 by authors of individual ar- of impressive breadth and depth, Fig. 1. Ferdinand Freiherr von ticles and holders of copyright, as who is honored as one of the Richthofen (image source: specified, to individual images. founders of modern geography as Wikipedia Commons). partment at the University of contributing to the buildup of soil travels. In the conclusion to Vol. I Berlin. Among the best known (if in the eastern plains of China. His he is quite explicit about what he not most academically dedicated) understanding of wind erosion was considers the correct approach to of his students there was the a key to the development of Sven the study of geography. One must young Swede, Sven Hedin, whose Hedin’s ideas regarding the start with studying geology and adventures and discoveries in changing location of Lake Lop Nor. the physical landscape, but then Inner Asia would eventually Richthofen’s ideas about the a geographer should move on to overshadow those of his mentor. impact of climate change on a second stage of analysis, human settlement are directly focusing on human interaction Richthofen is best known for his relevant to any history of what we with a changing environment studies of China, notably the five as a matter of course today label (Richthofen 1877-1912, Vol. I, pp. volumes published between 1877 “The Silk Roads.” 726ff). Not surprisingly then, we and 1912 which he never lived to discover that a significant part of complete, separate atlas volumes, As Richthofen himself makes his introduction to China is really and his two-volume travel diary. clear (Op. cit., pp. 1, 722ff), a history of human activity across At first acquaintance, his 1877 among the most important Eurasia, a history of travel, introduction to his China is a influences on his thinking about exploration, and the exchange of surprise, since it opens with a Asian geography was the account cultural information. In short, chapter on Central Asia, by which of Alexander von Humboldt’s even though he barely employs he meant approximately what we travels in 1829, L’Asie Centrale. the term, it is a history of the Silk now call Xinjiang — that is, the The young Richthofen had Roads. His letters to Hedin in area bounded by the Altai attended lectures by Gustav Rose, 1890, 1892 and 1893, repeat his Mountains in the north, Tibet in the a mineralogist who had par- earlier advice. He chides Hedin south, the watersheds of the ticipated in Humboldt’s expedition for wanting to go off to explore major Chinese rivers in the east (Zögner 1998). Richthofen also without acquiring first sufficient and the Pamir Mountains in the had the highest praise for the academic training in geology, at West (Richthofen 1877-1912, Vol. massive compilation by Carl Ritter, the same time that he writes of I, p. 7). In other words, this “East Asien (on Ritter’s influence, see the significance of the Tarim Basin Turkestan” was central, whereas Osterhammel 1987, pp. 162-166). and Aral Sea region for human that which lay west of the Pamirs, He seems initially to have history (Hedin 1933, pp. 74-75, and even the loess plains to the subscribed to Ritter’s idea that 83, 95-96). east, the heart of agricultural Inner Asia was the original home China, were to him periphery (on of humans, even if later he We can see where some of the Richthofen’s contributions to abandoned that speculation themes in China lead by looking Central Asian geography, see (Hedin 1933, p. 83).1 The new ahead to the course of lectures Chichagov 1983). Most of the archaeological discoveries in that Richthofen offered twice in the maps in the book are centered on region about which he learned in 1890s on patterns of human the Tarim Basin and extend from the last years of his life, even if settlement (Siedlung) and the Caspian to Chang’an. Indeed they were not shedding light on communication (Verkehr) in their the Inner Asian emphasis of much earliest man, could have relationship to physical geography of the book provides the context reinforced his original ideas about (Richthofen 1908). He drew on for his development of the concept the centrality of Central Asia. examples of human activity from of the Silk Roads. We can also see Arguably his indebtedness to early to modern times and ranging in Richthofen’s emphasis the Humboldt and Ritter might be around the globe. While his views embryo of what in Halford worth closer examination if we in these lectures regarding levels Mackinder’s formulation several wish to probe the origins of the of culture of various peoples might decades later became the Silk Road concept. raise some eyebrows today (see geopolitical Eurasian “Heartland.” Osterhammel 1987), we can The second surprise for me appreciate his emphasis on the As Ute Wardenga has indicated, about Vol. I of Richthofen’s China importance of human interaction Richthofen was important in is his interest in human geography across space and time. Human developing as a field of study the (for a different view, Osterhammel settlement (broadly conceived) is regional geography of Asia 1987, pp. 180-181; on his geology not static. Geographical conditions (Wardenga 2005). In an era today see Jäkel 2005). I expected his change, and political and cultural when desiccation of the steppe focus to be physical geography, factors come into play. To a lands seems to be proceeding which he treats only in the first considerable degree, human apace, we can especially half of this volume although in development from more appreciate his ideas about the greater detail in Vols. II and III, “primitive” to higher cultural importance of wind-blown where he weaves into his analysis stages is a response to the sediment from Central Asia the observations made during his challenges of the surrounding 2 environment but is also influenced director (1902-5) of the Institut archaeological, and he was further by exchange between areas of für Meereskunde (Institute for the limited by having to rely on human settlement. Thus Richt- Study of the Seas) in Berlin. translations of the Chinese texts.3 hofen is taking a “geosystems” Richthofen noted that following approach to writing human The specific context for the establishment of a Han economic geography, in which Richthofen’s use of the term presence in Inner Asia in the exchange creates conditions for “Seidenstrasse” in his China, Vol.