Chinese silk and its westward roads in antiquity

In today’s context, the common understanding of the “Silk Road(s)” transcends its original association solely with the transcontinental silk trade. The inaugural modern articulation of this term, advanced by F. von Richthofen in 1877, was not merely an academic concept. Richthofen’s formulation of the “Seidenstraßen,” however, is intricately interwoven with the ancient knowledge propounded by Ptolemy and Marinus. Consequently, his demarcation of the “Silk Road(s)” predominantly delimits the temporal expanse from the late second century BC to the early second century CE. Notwithstanding, following the evolution of the studies in the twentieth century, various interpretations of the “Silk Road(s)” eventually have extended their purview to encapsulate not only the classical antiquity but also the medieval and modern eras. The Greek term for “silk,” Σηρικόν, possibly originated by the Seres, an (imaginary?) nation of silk-producing people situated further east by the classical authors was at the center of the dynamic relations between the Romans and the Hans. Eventually, silk lost its importance in the commercial relationships between China and the West. Today, the notion of “Seidenstraßen” metamorphoses into an empty vessel, accommodating every conceivable interaction between Asia, Europa, and Africa. However, in order to shed light on the comprehensive understanding of the “Silk Road(s),” it is imperative to illuminate its primary phase when silk cargo was associated with Han China, the Roman Empire, and all the intermediaries in the late first millennium BCE. The various terminologies of silk, its incorporation into daily life, and the silk trade along the intricate network of commercial routes linking the Eurasian civilizations insinuate the importance of silk in the classic economy. On the other hand, the mythic constructions each civilization harbored about each other, as discerned from their historical records, posit that the long-distance silk trade transcended mere economic transactions among different mercantile communities. The positive impressions of each other in the literature demonstrate a desire for external explorations in early human history. In light of this, any inclination to transpose contemporary knowledge of ancient civilizations onto their respective imagined profiles, as exclusively reflected in their in herently unreliable accounts, is misguided. The prevalence of hysteresis in the dissemination of information during antiquity poseda persistent impediment to acknowledging distant lands. In the Greco-Roman literature, China never emerged as a kingdom or an empire. For instance, the Ptolemaic map delineated the northern and southern territories from which silk was derived as Serica and Sina, each possessing a distinct metropolis. Conversely, in Chinese chronicles, particularly after the Houhanshu, the Romans (or at least its very end on the east) have been described as capable of feeding silkworms and producing silks. Likewise, the feature of hysteresis is also present in long-distance silk trade activities. The fact is that after Zhang Qian’s exploration at Bactra in the late second century BC, Chinese silk was undoubtedly transported to Central Asia, whether through official channels or individual endeavors. Paradoxically, Western records provide references to the Seres and silk only around the late first century BC. In this case, engaging in unidirectional research under such circumstances significantly heightens the risk of distorting the historical authenticity. Thus, this thesis aims to elucidate the Silk Roads in the late classical period by synthesizing insights from Greek, Latin, Sanskrit, and ancient Chinese sources. In doing so, it aspires to delineate a more complete pattern of trans-regional communications in ancient civilizations. The same method will also be applied to discern and compare the different utilization of silkin pre-Wei China and the Greco-Roman milieu. The silk, especially its transparent forms, assumes disparate moral connotations within the two societies. While the Chinese transparent silks, namelysha, hu, and luo, served as integral components of the attire worn by female elites and later a part of formal dresses of imperial officers, the transparent silk in the West, namely Coa vestis and later Serica vestis, functioned as symbols of moral turpitude in the narrative of Roman moralists and always accompanied with the profiles of adulteri or the so-called mali imperatores in the HistoriaAugusta. Apparently, the alienation of the function of silk along transmissions may be highly contingent on the actual benefits that an empire could receive. Generally speaking, the exportation of silk in ancient China facilitated the positive side embodied in the imperial economy. Conversely, in the Roman Empire, especially before the end of the Third Century Crisis, silk always aggravated the burden laying on the imperial Treasury. Under this circumstance, the demonized profile of silk seemingly symbolized a panic mentality reflected within Roman society. After the discourse on silk, the final section of the thesis employs a multilingual approach to delineate a comprehensive cartography of silk transmission among distinct ethnic groups, diverse geographical landscapes, and varied historical periods. When examining the Mountainous SilkRoad, the interrelation between the Sanskrit term cīna and the Chinese character “成(cheng)” accentuates the earliest instances of private silk trade originating from the Bashu Basin to the Lower Ganges Valley and then, via the Indian Uttarāpatha, to Bactria. Within the context of the Steppe Silk Roads, the trajectory of the Eurasian silk trade, flourishing between the two termini of these routes, is contingent upon the Han-Xiongnu tributary treaties and the Roman-Parthian relationships. As for the Maritime Silk Roads, an amalgamation of sources ranging from Chinese official records of Hanshu and Liangshu to Greek individual works of the Periplus Maris Erythraei (hereafter: PME) and Cosmas Indicopleustes, clarify the maritime silk trade from the late second century BC to the mid-sixth century CE.